Thank you Toad-Hall, I will work my way thru each of your responses....with fingers crossed. I am NOT at all a techie or anywhere close to one. I have lost my husband and my adult daughter this year and am lost in the computer stuff; they always took care of these sorts of things for me; so I am operating under a lot of stress and totally in the dark.

I appreciate everyone's suggestions, however most of them are over my head, but I am trying.

• • • • re :I am getting the same "nonresponsive script" message that I was getting before....where you have the option to "cancel" or allow it to "continue".

You should select 'Cancel'.****

I always click on cancel. That window has long been my nemesis that hangs up my computer, but typically it straightens itself out. These past few weeks however it has popped up when TB is frozen.

• • • re :The box says

"chrome://messenger/contentmailwindowoverlay.js:2853" And supposedly the tech guy removed Chrome last week. 'Chrome' is not 'chrome'. 'Chrome' is a browser.***

Yes. I did not want Chrome loaded on my new this year W10 computer (because I have long had trouble with this "nonresponsive script" window popping up and it is always always always a Chrome message), but the tech guy loaded in on anyway. He remotely removed it last week when I told him the window had started popping up again.

• • • Q: Do you have a lot of emails in your Inbox ?

Q: Is this an IMAP or POP mail account? You were asked what you use, but still no answer on this. I suspect it might be POP since you said there was nothing on server,...please tell the forum.***

Yes I have a LOT of emails and several accounts; I predominantly use TB to organize lots of information as I am very active on many forums in many different subject areas and collect lots of information which I organize in folders and subfolders within whichever email account in TB. It is a wonderful way to keep things easily accessible and organized......when you can get in that is :-(.

Since I am not able to get into TB (nothing works even tho a page is open it is dead) I cannot get into to see my settings, so was not able to answer that questions. I was not able to find or open (cannot recall at the moment what happened when I tried to follow that suggestion except that it did not work) the Profile file that you suggested previously.

I never knew you could use either pop or imap; someone else set this up for me and I just use it. However I can tell you that all my bellsouth accounts (I have maybe 8, but only 3 active ones) are empty on the server; and my one aol account retains its mail and I can access it on aol, but always read it on TB (I have long loved TB for its reliability and ease of use - and that all my various mail accounts come into one place making it ever so easy to keep up with it all). I recall that it is either pop or imap, and the bellsouth accounts are the other. Hopefully that made sense.

I have recently rec'd messages from TB when mail is not being imported that something (some long techie phrase...seems like starts off with UBT or something like that) does not work with "leave messages on server until...." and that I have to uncheck that box, which I did and then the mail started coming into TB. Hope that gives you a clue. If would much prefer my mail being left on the server for the very reasons I am struggling here with. But evidently TB no longer allows that. I used to have it set to "keep mail on server until I delete them", but I had to change that recently. sigh.

I will send this and start on the next batch of suggestions. They look complicated/scary to me so will take me a while to work thru that.

• • • Check the proxy setting.

Close computer and wait for 10 minutes. Start computer. Start Thunderbird in Offline mode via 'Run' app.***

I am already frozen at the first sentence. I have no idea what a proxy setting is or means. I assume that the next few lines are telling how to check the proxy setting? When you say close the computer I assume you mean a total "shut down". I did that the other night and turned off the power strip as well overnight.

Where would I find the option to start TB in offline mode...oh, perhaps that is in the Run app.....I've never done or seen that before. Taking a deep breath will attempt that.

Thank you for your time....and patience. I am not a stupid person, in fact quite the opposite and am quite competent in many areas, but computers are like cars to me. I can do and figure out a lot of things in life, but I am not a mechanic and will never be so I never touch the car except to drive it; computers are just as mysterious and confusing and scary to me as cars are because it is SO easy to totally mess things up....which I most definitely do not want to do. Therefore I do not randomly go around clicking on things that I do not know what they are....like my dh and dd always did with rapid speed. Money is too tight and I have 2 W7 laptops that I am having to pay someone to upgrade to W10 for me here in the next few weeks and cannot afford to have to have my desktop worked on as well. Again, thanks. Your help is greatly appreciated.

re: "leave messages on server until...." and that I have to uncheck that box, which I did and then the mail started coming into TB. Hope that gives you a clue.

Only POP accounts have that option so it was useful info.

re :Start Thunderbird in Offline mode via 'Run' app. On windows 7....here is a link that might help you.

• https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/all/how-to-get-to-run-command-in-windows-7/a3872689-39e5-44ca-9d92-be5626585112

In Run app - it's a small window.. Type: thunderbird.exe -offline Note there is a space between .exe and -offline click on OK

The reason I'm suggesting you start up Thunderbird in offline mode means Thunderbird is not using the internet so cannot access server. This will help to test what is going on. I'm hoping you can get access within Thunderbird whilst it cannot access server. Then you can check that 'proxy' setting.

• Menu Icon > Options > Advanced > Network & Disk Space
• click on 'Settings' button
• select: “Use system proxy settings”.
• click on OK

After checking the 'proxy' setting, I suggest you do the following for all the Pop mail accounts. This will ensure you do not have any corruption in the Inbox and give a clean file.

• Move all the emails out of the 'Inbox' into other suitable folders for storage.
• Delete any emails you do not want.
• When 'Inbox' is empty:
• Right click on 'Inbox' and select 'Compact'.

Compacting is very important to maintain the health of your folders. It fully deletes all previously marked as deleted but hidden emails. When you delete an email, it is not as yet deleted just in case you deleted by accident and need to recover. Compacting actually removes those marked as deleted emails. It tidies up the mbox file containing the list of emails and reduces the file size. You should regulary compact the Inbox, Junk, and Drafts folders because they get the most deleting action.

Then try resetting the Account Setting for one of those pop mail accounts as a test. I recall several instances in the past where some people got that error message to uncheck 'Leave message on server...' in order to download, but that sounds like the server trying to clear and gain space, so as server is effectively empty, try switching it on again.

• Right click on the pop mail account name in Folder Pane and select 'Settings'
• Select 'Server Settings'
• Select 'Leave message on server'
• Select 'Until I delete them'
• click on 'OK'

Now exit Thunderbird. Restart Thunderbird as normal and report back on results.

Windows 10 ...link to info on how to get the 'Run' app open. https://www.isunshare.com/windows-10/5-ways-to-open-run-in-windows-10.html

Normally, you do not need to empty the Inbox in order to compact, but on this occasion, I would not like to lose emails due to possible corruption, hence the request to move all the emails and start with fully empty and clean Inbox.

"Normally, you do not need to empty the Inbox in order to compact, but on this occasion, I would not like to lose emails due to possible corruption, hence the request to move all the emails and start with fully empty and clean Inbox."

Good morning and thank you Toad-Hall. I am going to get started this morning trying to work my way thru your instructions. Emptying my inbox would take the rest of my life....I have something over 20,000 emails in the main inboxes alone as I recall. That's not counting drafts and folders and subfolders....and the other accounts. I know I know. And also about 25 tabs open on FireFox. Bad I know. I keep opening things I need/want to read and then my crazy hectic chaotic life pulls me off to deal with yet another daily emergency and I don't get back to the computer for the rest of the day. And to make matters even more fun I have yet to get around to setting up an external hard drive to do backups.....so I have no backup. The external hard drive is sitting right here....still in its box....over a year now. I hate myself. Beat up on me if you want (so far you haven't and I thank you for that); couldn't be any worse than how I beat up on myself for not being able to keep up with everything. Used to be 3 adults here managing everything needing managing on this 10 acre 1910 homestead. Now just me....and I am totally overwhelmed, trying to adjust, and have a hard time coping each day.....fences collapsing, trees coming down, animals sick or injured (horses, alpacas, chickens, ducks, guineas, livestock guardian dogs, cats), still homeschooling one kiddo, 4 vehicles only one runs and it needs work; mower dead since last June; leaking roofs on the main house, the cottage, and the shop....and the rain just never stops. I could go on, but won't bore you; just a lot to deal with every day. Just need my email......my main social outlet as we are homesteaders escaped from the big city with no like minded people out here to interact or socialize with. I NEED my email contacts! Am totally isolated without it.

BTW, thanks for the W10 link at the end. I am running W10 and am beginning to wonder if that is the problem, or part of the problem. I know since I have moved to W10 I can no longer use my printer which is a hassle. I did the research and supposedly W10 would work with my printer...but it doesn't so that has been a big hassle and another project to have to go research and spend money. Not being able to print has been a major hassle but I have not had time to figure out what to do about a new printer.....I have discovered it is no longer an easy decision to make.....so many options makes my head spin. So I am not very happy about the W10 "upgrade" esp since I have 2 laptops running W7 that are going to cost me several hundred $$ to have upgraded to W10. Another mountain to climb.

I have used TB for at least a decade; maybe two decades (the years run together when life is so crazy busy) with no problems ever whatsoever.  I LOVE TB.  I have argued with the tech guy as he wants me to just get rid of TB and use gmail (and says he can't fix TB for me).   I don't want to.  I love TB.  It makes my life so much easier by allowing to have several email accounts on one page to check.    I just need it to go back to working seamlessly and consistently.   

OK, guess I'd better get started on all this. Thanks again for your help, SO appreciate. I hope this will do the trick. Wish me luck. I'll let you know how it goes.

PS I do not have TB installed on my laptop (cause I don't use it for email). If I install TB on a different device such as the laptop is there any way that my emails would be accessible from a different computer/new TB installation? Or are they actually on my desktop computer itself? Or are they somehow stored on TB and accessible from there? If that would be the case perhaps I could do that and not have to worry about losing them on this, my main, computer.

Reporting back - TB did not work just opening TB in safe mode via the Run app/thunderbird.exe -offline. I got the same Unresponsive script box and when I clicked "stop script" as I always do, TB is still frozen.

TB works in Safe Mode w/networking - from the OS....following Matt's steps. I was able to see the server settings.....and my main accounts were pop. I rechecked the box to keep on server until I delete while I was in there. What exactly would I type to reset to imap so they will just stay on the server? They are att accounts and I see that att is included in the server settting. I have an aol account that is imap and it includes aol in the setting. So just wondering what the proper phrase would be to reset att accounts to imap setting?

When I did a restart it does not work in normal operating mode. when I did a restart I got the same "unresponsive script" box......Chrome://messenger/content/mailwindowoverlay.js:2853 and it is still frozen.

Reading back on your post I forgot to do the proxy thing while in safe mode :-(. And I forgot about compacting the inbox.....I haven't seen that option anywhere, but I actually just forgot while I was doing the steps for safe mode.

So I guess all we know now is that TB works in safe mode. Now what? Do I need to go thru all that again to do the proxy and compact the inbox? Will that give us any more info? I guess I'll do that while I await your response.

What anti virus do you use? The troubleshooting information on the help menu will tell you that if you do not know. Everything below is something you can do now. Without answering that question. But knowing makes giving exact instructions simpler.

If TB worked in safe mode with networking the issue is in the startup applications. So lets have a look at what you have there.

Use this article to open the startup apps https://support.microsoft.com/en-au/help/4026268/windows-10-change-startup-apps

Have a look at the list. These are the apps that did not start in safe mode with networking. So the cause of the issue is most likely here. What you will have to do if disable one, restart your computer and try Thunderbird. repeat until you find the one that is causing the problem.

History tells us that the most likely candidate is an anti virus program. Things like Norton, Kaspersky, McAfee and AVG are some of the more popular. I suggest you disabling the anti virus first if you have one installed. (On windows 7 that is almost mandatory) so this is really just a test to determine cause. not a solution.