Firefox certainly could use a child-proof mode, but... I don't think there is one.

Could you test in Firefox's Safe Mode? That's a standard diagnostic tool to deactivate extensions and some advanced features of Firefox. More info: Diagnose Firefox issues using Troubleshoot Mode.

If Firefox is not running: Hold down the Shift key when starting Firefox.

If Firefox is running: You can restart Firefox in Safe Mode using either:

• "3-bar" menu button > "?" button > Restart with Add-ons Disabled
• Help menu > Restart with Add-ons Disabled

and OK the restart.

Both scenarios: A small dialog should appear. Click "Start in Safe Mode" (not Refresh).

Any improvement in ability to use the UI? If so, you can disable hardware acceleration as you were planning.

I have this problem too. Just started today. Whenever I click on Options, Firefox stops responding and I have to use Task manager to end it. The other functions in the Firefox menu work ok. It's only the Options that does this. It only started doing this today. May 28, 2015. I've tried shutting down and re-starting to no avail. I ran Malware bytes and McAfee scans - no problems detected.

Hi maccifj, some others users are reporting that some aspects of the new "in tab" preferences page do not work for them, but I haven't heard of Firefox freezing.

Try switching back to the old Options dialog. Here's how:

(1) In a new tab, type or paste about:config in the address bar and press Enter/Return. Click the button promising to be careful.

(2) In the search box above the list, type or paste pref and pause while the list is filtered

(3) Double-click the browser.preferences.inContent preference to switch it from true to false

(Note: I don't know whether the old dialog will be in Firefox forever or is a transitional feature. As you've probably noticed, the long-term trend is to remove things that pop up.)

Does that work without freezing?

If Firefox still freezes, please try Safe Mode using the steps in this post: https://support.mozilla.org/questions/1062698#answer-730175 -- any difference?

you said, "Click the button promising to be careful." That implies I could royally screw something up .

I ran a McAfee QuickClean. Everything is working ok now. (Looking for a piece of wood to knock on.)

maccifj said

you said, "Click the button promising to be careful." That implies I could royally screw something up .

Yes, there are some settings you can change to make Firefox very hard to use. That's why it's good to filter the list first so you aren't even looking at areas that don't need fixing.

maccifj said

I ran a McAfee QuickClean. Everything is working ok now. (Looking for a piece of wood to knock on.)

I'm not familiar with that tool. Does it have a log of what it changed, or do you notice any other changes?

I think it gives you a generalized log - number of files, objects,etc, deleted and from where. Here's a description (it's part of my McAfee LiveSafe Internet Security package.

"The McAfee QuickClean tool deletes unnecessary files, freeing up space and optimizing your PC's performance."

"You can use this tool to free up space on your PC as needed, or schedule it to clean your PC regularly and automatically."

"This tool cleans files and folders you specify, including your Recycle Bin, temporary files, shortcuts, lost file fragments, registry files, cached files, flash, Silverlight and browser cookies, browser and Windows history files, sent and deleted email, memory image files, problem report files, and old Active-X files."