Search Support

Avoid support scams. We will never ask you to call or text a phone number or share personal information. Please report suspicious activity using the “Report Abuse” option.

Learn More

Allow me to move the toolbars in Quantum

  • 25 replies
  • 448 have this problem
  • 18 views
  • Last reply by TeknoXI

more options

On the new Firefox Quantum it appears the positions of the toolbars is fixed and the extension that used to allow this to change don't work. Particularly, the tabs are on top which is just hideously awful. I'm sure someone, somewhere likes it, but why are we all being forced to work in a specific way? Have you been brainwashed by Apple of Microsoft? Just look at how many people used the "Classic Theme Restorer" or "Tabs on Bottom" extensions to see how many people despise this awful layout you've imposed on us.

Please, fix this urgently and let users decide how their screen should be laid out, rather than imposing your will on us - especially since this is a cross platform browser so needs that level of flexibility.

Quantum seems to work great, but the ethos underpinning this design ("Work my way or not at all") it terrible and is a great way of alienating people.

On the new Firefox Quantum it appears the positions of the toolbars is fixed and the extension that used to allow this to change don't work. Particularly, the tabs are on top which is just hideously awful. I'm sure someone, somewhere likes it, but why are we all being forced to work in a specific way? Have you been brainwashed by Apple of Microsoft? Just look at how many people used the "Classic Theme Restorer" or "Tabs on Bottom" extensions to see how many people despise this awful layout you've imposed on us. Please, fix this urgently and let users decide how their screen should be laid out, rather than imposing your will on us - especially since this is a cross platform browser so needs that level of flexibility. Quantum seems to work great, but the ethos underpinning this design ("Work my way or not at all") it terrible and is a great way of alienating people.

Chosen solution

userChrome.css modifications continue to work fine with firefox quantum. the author of classic theme restorer has also made a bunch of them available at https://github.com/Aris-t2/CustomCSSforFx

Read this answer in context 👍 4

All Replies (20)

more options

Support Volunteers can't make changes to Firefox and the developers do not directly monitor this site. To submit suggestions for new or changed features, may I suggest:

Feedback: https://qsurvey.mozilla.com/s3/FirefoxInput/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Firefox Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/firefox/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/firefox

There also is a forum run by the Add-ons team where you may see talk about potential future capabilities of extensions to modify the UI (initially limited to colors, I think, but perhaps more down the road): https://discourse.mozilla-community.org/c/add-ons

Please let us know if this solved your issue or if need further assistance.

more options

hi, webextensions can no longer arbitrarily customize the UI in the new addon system. you can however twek most of the stuff with the help of a userChrome.css file - https://www.reddit.com/r/firefox/comments/6x2tmz/can_i_have_tabs_on_bottom_and_bookmarks_above/ contains a sample for tabs on bottom.

more options

@pkshadow - thanks, I will go through that route.

@philipp - that doesn't seem to work. Maybe userChrome.css isn't supported under Quantum?

more options

Chosen Solution

userChrome.css modifications continue to work fine with firefox quantum. the author of classic theme restorer has also made a bunch of them available at https://github.com/Aris-t2/CustomCSSforFx

more options

Hmmm, OK I'll fiddle, it's not making any change for me; at least the thing I followed on Reddit didn't, but the github thing looks like I need userChrome.css and userContent.css, not just userChrome.

I'll play around and see what I can do.

Still, I think Mozilla should make this easier; to develop a cross-platform browser and then force it to only work a certain way is (IMO) not a very Mozilla-like attitude!

more options

Ah ha! Thanks - got it working now.

more options

Such a simple question, and so annoying that the very latest Quantum doesn't allow you to change the position of the tabs! So frustrating - and I'm certainly not going to bother fiddling around with the suggested solutions. So I'll have to move to Chrome. Very annoying

more options

couldn't agree more with everyone - especially for those of us who are ot at all computer savvy. So far I have followed about ten sets of directions to set up this chrome file and STILL am unsure what to do. Do I copy and paste something into it? How? Does it have to be a notepad file, or do I just copy and paste some text that I get from somewhere? MOST OF US do not understand what to you guys is very simple.

more options

Yes, once again the Firefox developers show that they have not yet realised that Firefox is no longer a niche browser used by computer literate enthusiasts but a main stream browser used by the general public who are mainly not computer literate enthusiasts.

More than that, the layout of the screen defies standard logic. How do you search? You go from the general to the particular. So the screen layout should reflect that - i.e. search bar (the general, it's blank so you can enter in whatever you want to search for, you can't get more general than that), then open tabs (becoming more particular now), then the screen of the tab you are looking at.

Add to this lack of logical layout the fact that the tabs are black with white print and, I think, smaller, make the screen still less user friendly. The standard of dark print on a light (usually white) background is used because that is, for the very great majority of the population, the best combination.

And the oft-repeated statement that Firefox developers rarely if ever look at this forum just confirms that they couldn't really care what problems they inflict on Firefox users.

more options

For all those others who come searching for this:

Press Windows button and R on keyboard Type %appdata% Click OK Find: Roaming>Mozilla>Firefox>Profiles>(alphanumeric mix).default>chrome chrome folder may need to be created.

Open notepad Type in the text in the image: (I tried putting the raw text here, but it changed on saving)


In the save, set to "all files" Save somewhere as userChrome.css Cut and paste it into that chrome folder Restart Firefox. Tabs should now be on bottom.

Modified by alancsalt

more options

Re: alancsalt 11/18/17, 3:10 PM

This worked for me!

Followed your instructions exactly.

A million thanks !!

-- DJ

more options

alancsalt said

For all those others who come searching for this: Press Windows button and R on keyboard Type %appdata% Click OK Find: Roaming>Mozilla>Firefox>Profiles>(alphanumeric mix).default>chrome chrome folder may need to be created. Open notepad Type in the text in the image: (I tried putting the raw text here, but it changed on saving) In the save, set to "all files" Save somewhere as userChrome.css Cut and paste it into that chrome folder Restart Firefox. Tabs should now be on bottom.

I've tried this but it all grinds to a halt when I get into the Profiles folder as there is no (alphanumeric mix).default folder.

more options

It's the only folder in my Profiles folder.

Do you not have a Firefox account perhaps?

Modified by alancsalt

more options

Hm, maybe I'm thick, but that says gvivfrb7.default, not (alphanumeric mix).default, or are we entering here into the world of computerism in an extreme form?

more options

Those letters/numbers at the start of the folder name are different for everybody.

gvivfrb7 is an alphanumeric mix.

If you have a folder in profiles, whose name ends in .default, that is it.

Modified by alancsalt

more options

Thanks for the clarification, as I thought, entering into the deeper world of computerism.

I had already worked out that the file concerned had a unique name for each user, but not that that was the file. I had assumed that the information you gave was the filename and not the file name type. I do, indeed, recall alphanumeric values from my use of Cobol 40 years ago!

Once again, there is a need to remember that not all who use Firefox or visit this forum are computer experts. It would have been clearer if you had simply referred to "the file ending .default".

However, I have made the suggested changes but the tabs are still at the top. In the text to type, it is not always clear where there is a space between characters. Could you clarify, please?

more options

You know what we all need? A guide listing what a layperson can do / change using about:config. Line by line, what is changeable and what each command will result in.

I bet someone could sell that and make some money.

more options

You can use the button on the "Help -> Troubleshooting Information" (about:support) page to go to the current Firefox profile folder or use the about:profiles page.

more options

Anaya said

You know what we all need? A guide listing what a layperson can do / change using about:config. Line by line, what is changeable and what each command will result in. I bet someone could sell that and make some money.

Exactly, and we also need non-computer specialists being involved in development of Firefox. Currently, the development of Firefox is largely, if not entirely, developer-driven and their needs (as they see them) and the needs of what I shall call everyday users can and do diverge widely.

Modified by fedup101

more options

This is the actual code: copy and paste it. It works for me. If it doesn't for you, I don't know why not.

#TabsToolbar { -moz-box-ordinal-group: 2; } 
#nav-bar{ border-top-width: 0px !important; }
  1. 1
  2. 2