I-Firefox Community Forum

Suddenly I cannot search from the search bar. It defaults to the address bar. why "fix" something that was not broken. Being forced to use the address bar is frustrating. If you go directly to the address bar, it tells you it cannot find that site.

How do I get searches (my default is Google) to STOP going to the address bar? This started out of the blue and it is making me crazy. I don't want to be asked which search to use, and I don't want it to search in the address bar. I want it in the search box. Thanks.

I am reopening the question from 2020 as the solution described no longer seems to apply. https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1284577

I am running Windows 11. Firefox 144.0 (64-bit)

When entering search terms into the search bar in the centre of the page, the information typed appears in the address bar, even after following the fix described in 1284577.

Treating the address bar as the search bar appears to be the default. While the user can additionally deselect the search engine in the address bar, that is an unnecessary and undesired additional step for every search (the primary reason I am using Firefox)

Is there a way to permanently set the default for what I enter into the search bar to remain in the search bar and not to be managed by the address bar? Thanks, Rich

I can't seem to locate how to activate the microphone in the AI sidebar. I have Gemini selected, and when I hit the microphone to dictate I get the following message.. Unable to access the microphone. Please check settings.

I looked through Firefox settings and my laptop's but I don't see where it is turned off or asking for activation.'

Tom Z.

I don't like to use the address bar to type searches. I like using the SEARCH BOX in Firefox's New Tab instead. But, with each update, I once again have to try to figure out how to set Firefox searches to be typed in the search box. Is there any way to set this so it doesn't get changed with every update?

These icons appeared recently in my Firefox browser I can't remove them. The only recent changes included uninstalling SuperAntiSpyware after finding that Microsoft PC Manager is a better option, which has performed excellently without issues.

Additionally, a free VPN (Proton) was briefly used from the Firefox browser without installation, but after finding it complicated to set up, it was deleted. A few hours later, I noticed the two icons as the windows were misbehaving and they are causing a slowdown in the PC's performance. They do not seem to be add-ons or extensions.

How do I remove the icons and return to the previous performance?

How to make Firefox my default browser on my new computer a Windows 11 computer. I’m to the point where I’ve got a pop-up window, which says sync Firefox on your phone or tablet. I am asked toOpen Firefox on my mobile device. Then Go to the menu and tap sign in. That’s where I am. Now I’m asked to tap “ready to scan” and hold my phone over the code. Unfortunately, my Firefox app does not show a ready to scan option after I get to sign in. Help!!

I am having a problem with Firefox. Some websites do not load correctly and certain extensions do not work as expected.

I have already tried restarting Firefox and checking my internet connection, but the issue still happens.

Please advise how to fix this problem. Thank you.

Previous solution: switch browser.newtabpage.activity-stream.improvesearch.handoffToAwesomebar to false does not work anymore.

Please help.

Regards, Victor

"I’ve been having trouble with choppy YouTube videos in Firefox. It happens on both Wi-Fi and Ethernet connections. My system is running Windows 10, and I’ve already tried disabling hardware acceleration and clearing my browser cache. The issue persists even when I’m in Safe Mode. I’m using the latest version of Firefox (XX.XX). Any suggestions on how to fix this?"

I have spent hours with Tech department and digital assistand department at Directv. Today they are telling me as long as I use Firefox I will be unable to access my account. I have paid to have my computer checked out and was told that it was updated and the system was working fine. How to I get Directv to recognize my system?

A recent update (https://windowsreport.com/firefox-fixes-an-8-year-old-windows-bug-that-broke-virtual-desktop-use/) has broken behavior I previously depended on as part of my workflows: If I clicked a link in one desktop, it would open that link in the browser instance on the last desktop I'd used, so I could keep all my browser windows on one virtual desktop full-screened for easy viewing, then slide back to my other workspaces for messaging/writing/etc.

Now, apparently as a bug fix, every time I try to open a link on a desktop, it creates a new Firefox instance in that desktop instead of opening the link in the browser I have open on other workspaces. This has dramatically impacted how I work. How can I restore the previous behavior? It is so disruptive having new windows opening all the time instead of keeping them in my dedicated browser workspace. If there isn't a fix for this, I will need to move to a new browser.

I've used Firefox for 20 years through the various iterations of Windows, and have been using it trouble free on Windows 11 since November 2024. Two days ago, however, When I tried to open the Guardian site (www.theguardian.com) it would open very slowly and not load and of the pictures. This gradually got worse, the site taking for ever to open at all, and always with the little dot in the tab at the top left going from side to side showing it was still loading. I have tried everything I can think of. Opened in troubleshoot mode, changed DNS settings, uninstalled and reinstalled Firefox twice (one time to see if it would work normally if I didn't actually sign in to my account). All to no avail. In fact now things are worse, in that the GOV.Uk website is now giving me similar problems - and a few other sites have become slightly slow and reluctant to open as well. My internet connection seems fine, and all these sites open without any trouble on Microsoft Edge. I am NOT very good at tech, and I am now tearing my heair out as to what I can try next.

Any help wopuld be gratefully received!

Jim Luetchford

Firefox crashes whenever it would need access to my camera or microphone. So far it has only happened whn trying to access a Roll20 game with camera and microphone connectivity, and when trying to access a video appointment for Universal Credit. It never happened on Windows 10, but since updating to Windows 11 it happens every time without fail, and the crash is immediate.

Since updating Firefox from a previous version, the browser no longer displays any Unicode emoji characters. Where an emoji would normally be rendered (👁️), the browser instead displays empty space. Websites such as twitter and discord, which use their own artwork for emoji, are unaffected. This has negatively affected my browsing experience.

For illustrative purposes, I will add a series of emoji and include a screenshot of how they are displayed: (😀🙁😡💀). Other characters still display correctly: (β❖♞䷲⎈𐘢𓀺இ). My computer otherwise displays emoji correctly. The issue persists after disabling extensions, and has persisted between computer restarts.

I am using Firefox version 147.0.4 (aarch64) on a Macbook Air running macOS Sequoia 15.5.

I don't remember when it started but text that wasn't underlined before such as: Names of shortcuts in new tab view Titles of YouTube videos on home page, and recommended while watching a video (not on the video itself) Reddit titles and usernames (old UI)

I have checked settings as best as I can and tried disabling all extensions but still have the issue.