OS2 World Community Forum

OS/2, eCS & ArcaOS - Technical => Internet => Topic started by: ivan on January 09, 2019, 05:55:09 pm

Title: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: ivan on January 09, 2019, 05:55:09 pm
Today I found a problem with ff 38.8 - I am unable to download any PDF document, yet I can do so with my Linux box or win XP in a VM.

Digging around in options I find the Applications tab has no applications listed and no way to add any (see attachment) yet the 'mimeTypes.rdf file is in the profile and appears to have everything listed.  Even the PDF Download add on that works with ff 17.0.11 does not work.

Is there a way to get the ability to download PDF documents back or do I have to fire up a Linux box every time to do that?

Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 09, 2019, 08:56:32 pm
With Firefox closed, try deleting/renaming handlers.json from your profile.
You could also try toggling your SET MOZ_NO_RWS setting in config.sys or on a cmd line.

edit, seems we don't have the handlers.json file. Perhaps try moving mimetypes.rdf out of the way or at worse, swap it with one from a new profile.
Here the applications tab is populated so it seems to be a profile problem there. It gets populated when you click a link and choose download or whatever I believe.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: David Graser on January 09, 2019, 09:33:33 pm
Can FF be setup to use Lucide or does it already use Lucide?
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 09, 2019, 09:44:37 pm
Can FF be setup to use Lucide or does it already use Lucide?

If Lucide is set as the default PDF application, Firefox should use it. RWS helps here but it is somewhat buggy and usually turned off. Firefox really degraded in its handling of helper applications.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: ivan on January 09, 2019, 10:10:00 pm
Hi Dave,

I did the delete mimeTypes.rdf, it got recreated at next start (reduced from 63K to 4.8K) and still nothing in the Applications tab and the popup for how to deal with a file does not appear any more.  I assume the next thing is to try a new profile but raises the question of how do I migrate all the e-pub books that I have in the old profile to the new one.

Hi David,

I don't have a default program set for PDF files, sometimes I use Lucide and sometimes I use GSView depending on content. Lucide is good for reading text and GSView is excellent for drawings and engineering diagrams.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: David Graser on January 09, 2019, 10:19:29 pm

Hi David,

I don't have a default program set for PDF files, sometimes I use Lucide and sometimes I use GSView depending on content. Lucide is good for reading text and GSView is excellent for drawings and engineering diagrams.

Can you show pics on the difference on how Lucide renders an engineering drawing and GSView renders one?  I am curious.  Gregg has done an excellent job on improving Lucide.  I have beta 10 which worked great.  However, it has improved more since then.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 09, 2019, 10:30:32 pm
Hi Ivan, perhaps one of these will help, https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/recovering-important-data-from-an-old-profile (https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/recovering-important-data-from-an-old-profile), http://kb.mozillazine.org/Transferring_data_to_a_new_profile_-_Firefox (http://kb.mozillazine.org/Transferring_data_to_a_new_profile_-_Firefox)
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: roberto on January 09, 2019, 11:01:55 pm
Are you reload? in the firefox.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: ivan on January 10, 2019, 12:19:17 am
Hi David,

There are three main things in GSView that beat Lucide.
1) much better zoom increments.
2) the ability to set a scale for a drawing and take measurements from it.
3) the ability to set a DPI value for the display.

As an example, towards the end of last year I needed to work with some A0 size drawings that were emailed to me. Lucide wouldn't open them (something to do with problems creating thumbnails I think). GSView had no problems and I could zoom in and take the necessary measurements whicj saved me having to setup a windows box to run AutoCad.

Sorry no pictures, those were sensitive commercial drawings.

BTW, I am not trying to put down Lucide, in fact it is my PDF reader of choice for equipment manuals and SF stories I have in PDF format.


Hi Dave,

I have the first of your urls bookmarked from when I setup the Linux box.  Reading the second one, it appears that all I have to do is copy the epub dir to the new profile and put the correct extension in the extensions dir.


Hi roberto,

I assume you mean did I restart Firefox.  Yes I did since you can't make the changes with FF running and to because I changed the SET MOZ_NO_RWS setting I also rebooted the computer.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 10, 2019, 02:06:47 am
Hi Ivan, someone pointed out your problem may be in content-prefs.sqlite. Brutal fix is moving it out of the way. Subtle fix is using a sqlite3 editor such as the sqlite manager extension and deleting the prefs table containing a bad path, probably from a crash while downloading to %TMP% and a leftover .part file.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: ivan on January 10, 2019, 09:40:29 pm
Hi Dave,

that wasn't it either.  I am now fighting to get a new profile up and running with several of my extensions.  The ones that were in the extension directory as xpi files were no problem but the one I need ix in a directory and looks like it is an unzipped xpi file.  Do you think it might work if I zipped that dir up and gave it an xpi extension?  Job for tomorrow, been out all day and still have to cook dinner ;)

When I get this new profile working I will try and get ff45 running - at the moment all it does is peg out 2 of the 4 processors for 45 seconds then switch to the other two for the same length time then wash and repeat.  The only way to stop it is to kill the process.  The fun and games using an AMD processor - it never used to be like that with OS/2 (I'm not changing to Intel processors considering all the problem they are having)
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: ivan on January 11, 2019, 06:44:01 pm
Hi Dave,

Almost success.  I have got it downloading PDF documents but restoring the epub library is a right PITA (still on going with about 300 more to go).  Another PITA is the fact that Mozilla appears to no longer offer any addons for any version before 60 esr which made it almost impossible to get an en_GB dictionary that would install.

Now if I can get FF 45.9 to actually run on a Ryzen processor based system (I know the Linux FF 60 does on my Ryzen based box) I will be a happy camper.

Thanks for all your help.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 11, 2019, 07:19:50 pm
Hi Ivan,
Yes the extension situation is now crappy, Mozilla acting like asses removing all the legacy add-ons. Sometimes Google will find older versions. You could try zipping up to make an XPI, never tried. Also check in your old pref.js for any references to the extension, adding those preferences might be needed.
As for your problems with FF45, I can't imagine your processor mattering unless it didn't support some instructions such as an Athlon with SSE2. I did build this for Dariusz, https://bitbucket.org/dryeo/dry-comm-esr31/downloads/firefox-45.9.0.en-US.os2.PhenomII.zip (https://bitbucket.org/dryeo/dry-comm-esr31/downloads/firefox-45.9.0.en-US.os2.PhenomII.zip).
More likely a library problem. Had a crash the other day and when the system came up, neither SM or TB would load anything and sat there with a core at 100%. Eventually traced it down to NSS which I had to downgrade and then upgrade to fix. Not sure what was wrong exactly but just reinstalling it wasn't enough.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Pete on January 11, 2019, 08:56:12 pm
Hi ivan

In the past I have unzipped xpi files to edit install.rdf - to let the extension install on a newer Seamonkey than listed in the install.rdf - and then zipped the files back into xpi and installed without problems.

Obviously I cannot say that it works for all extensions but it has for the few that I tried.


Regards

Pete
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Doug Bissett on January 12, 2019, 05:54:04 pm
I have been following this thread, trying to figure out what the problem is. I can download PDF (and other) files , with no troubles.

I am running ArcaOS 5.0.3, with Firefox 45.9.0. Firefox has ZERO add-ons (which is probably the key to success), and one plugin (Open H264...), that says it "will be installed shortly", but never does. It seems that it isn't needed anyway.

When I click on a PDF file, it opens for read, in a new window in Firefox. At the top of the window, there are buttons, and one of them is Download (sometimes, you need to expand the menu selections, with the far right button, to see the Download button). After it is downloaded, I use Lucide to read/print/edit (when it has edit fields) the PDF file.

You can also RMB on the download link, and select "Save Link As...", without opening it for read (normal download procedure).

Have I missed something? What else do you want to do?
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 12, 2019, 06:42:31 pm
I have been following this thread, trying to figure out what the problem is. I can download PDF (and other) files , with no troubles.

I am running ArcaOS 5.0.3, with Firefox 45.9.0. Firefox has ZERO add-ons (which is probably the key to success), and one plugin (Open H264...), that says it "will be installed shortly", but never does. It seems that it isn't needed anyway.
The Open H264 plugin doesn't work on OS/2 due to DLL naming problems. The reason for downloading the rest of it is licensing and it is actually for video chat
Quote
When I click on a PDF file, it opens for read, in a new window in Firefox. At the top of the window, there are buttons, and one of them is Download (sometimes, you need to expand the menu selections, with the far right button, to see the Download button). After it is downloaded, I use Lucide to read/print/edit (when it has edit fields) the PDF file.

Sounds like you have the pdf reader extension installed :)
Quote
You can also RMB on the download link, and select "Save Link As...", without opening it for read (normal download procedure).

Have I missed something? What else do you want to do?

Ivan's problem is in his profile, probably a crash screwed up his contents-prefs.sqlite file, namely leaving a bad filename in there. He's decided to try a new profile.
As for his problems with 45.9, probably a library problem.

Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Doug Bissett on January 12, 2019, 07:14:08 pm
Quote
Sounds like you have the pdf reader extension installed :)

No, PDF files are handled by Firefox 45.9.0 (and possibly earlier versions). In fact, FF handles them better than Lucide does (although I am not sure if they can be edited). AFAIK, I have no extensions installed. I have found no need for any of them.

Quote
Ivan's problem is in his profile

I think the main problem, is trying to use plugins, and add-ons. I don't use any of those things, and any that I have tried, do nothing but cause trouble.

Quote
As for his problems with 45.9, probably a library problem.

More likely an add-on, or plugin problem, unless he has tried to manually update the RPM/YUM stuff, which is pretty well guaranteed to cause problems.

I will note, that I used Ad-Block, and FLASH-block, at one time. I tried No-Scrpt too, but it never worked properly, for me. I abandoned them some time ago, simply because the HOSTS file from http://winhelp2002.mvps.org/hosts.htm (http://winhelp2002.mvps.org/hosts.htm) works just as well (READ the page), and doesn't cause problems in FF (you may need to add any entries that you need for your own use, after the localhost line, and before the rest). Just replace C:\MPTN\ETC\HOSTS with the one from the download.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 12, 2019, 08:35:18 pm
The PDF reader was/is an extension that is now integrated into Firefox. https://github.com/mozilla/pdf.js/ (https://github.com/mozilla/pdf.js/). SeaMonkey users still need to manually install it I believe.

Extensions can be hit or miss but with care they add to the functionality of the browser (and email client).
Profile problems, even without any extensions or plugins are very well documented, on all OSes. And a badly timed crash will cause problems.
As for library problems, i had a crash the other day that screwed up my install of NSS, couldn't load pages, couldn't download email, one core at 100%, had to downgrade and ten upgrade NSS to fix it. It's possible to have library problems even if you do everything right. Ivan is (was?) manually installing his dependencies so it is even more likely to be a library problem.

The hosts file works well but I still don't like other peoples code running on my computer if I don't request it, especially with our old, unmaintained browser so I run no-script and have a couple of other add-ons as well. No-script has a high learning curve and isn't for everyone.
One thing the modern browser has done has made malware truly cross platform. At least we're saved by stupid scripts trying to run C:\WINDOWS\CMD.EXE.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: ivan on January 12, 2019, 11:17:43 pm
First of all, two things. 1) Thanks Pete that got my British English spell check back
2) I can now download PDF documents again even though the Applications tab in Options remains blank.

Now to try and answer some of Doug's comments.

First off I don't want to read PDFs in the browser - there is no point when I need them for later reference.

Addons/extensions are essential in a modern browser is only for blocking adds (Adblock Plus) and javascript brought in from who knows where that can do who knows what - things like trying to copy login details etc. (NoScript).  I will not do any serious web browsing without at least those two extensions installed.

I tried the hosts file but it appears to have been compiled for the US area as it missed so many of the European problem sites and didn't stop any of those feeding javascript so I returned to using NoScript.  It is easier to block all javascript to start with and then enable as necessary - one local site tries to pull in scripts from 86 different sites, tracking, marketing analysis and adding the info about whit I clicked on to other sites were the main ones, when it actually only needed 4 scripts to work, 3 of which are embedded in the site.

Dave,  I have got 38.8 up and running as I want it - changed a couple of addons for CSS in the chrome dir.

I also got a lot further with your FF 45.9 that you pointed me to.  For some strange reason it doesn't like the LIBC066.DLL that I have on the ArcaOS 5.0.3 that I am testing it on (this is with the anpm telling me that everything is up to date, I never did trust RPM from when it messed up a SUSE server trying to update). Or maybe that DLL doesn't like the Ryzen processor.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Andreas Schnellbacher on January 13, 2019, 12:30:16 am
BTW: I would replace Adblock Plus with ublock. It performs about 2 times better. (Most likely, that doesn't matter on your Ryzen machines.)
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 13, 2019, 02:31:10 am
Hi Ivan, it likely needs the libc and possibly the libcx from the experimental repository. Sorry, I tried to remember to back level everything before building but likely forgot this.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: ivan on January 13, 2019, 11:34:42 pm
Thanks for that bit of information but how does one patch into the experimental repro with the anpm?

The attached trp file is what I get when trying to start your FF45.9.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 14, 2019, 12:07:26 am
Thanks for that bit of information but how does one patch into the experimental repro with the anpm?

Install the exp-repo package, update libc and libcx and then to be safe, uninstall the exp-repo package after rebooting.
Quote
The attached trp file is what I get when trying to start your FF45.9.

Did I forget to add the xqs files? Unluckily I didn't keep the dist\ directory from the PhenomII build due to lack of room (thought a 100GBs would be enough) so if I forgot, they're gone. For SM and TB, they're automatically packaged, whereas for Firefox, I have to create and add them manually. Going to have to fork Firefox and do a few minor updates such as packaging the XQS files :)
You could also test the Pentium M build, shouldn't have the dependency on the newer libc, if that's the problem, and have xqs files so we can trace the crash. Memory allocation errors for example will show up in libc even though it is Firefox with the bad code.

Edit, that is the netlabs-exp package. Perhaps also add the libc and libcx debug packages.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dariusz Piatkowski on January 15, 2019, 05:20:29 am
Dave and ivan,

...Did I forget to add the xqs files? Unluckily I didn't keep the dist\ directory from the PhenomII build due to lack of room (thought a 100GBs would be enough) so if I forgot, they're gone...

The test releases you built for the PhenomII CPU, and which I was testing, had the xqs files I believe. At least my test locations have them in dir structure. The only problem is we had a few versions and at this point in time I really am not sure which one was which.

Here is my dir dump across my test FF installs (sorry, it's messy, but do any of these look like the right ones?):

Code: [Select]
The volume label in drive K is DATA_STORE.
The Volume Serial Number is AB9E:75C1.

Directory of K:\firefox

12-24-18   3:05a    141875         153  firefox.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    147689         154  lgpllibs.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a     10778         154  mozsqlt3.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a  16150335         149  xul.xqs
        4 file(s)   16450677 bytes used

Directory of K:\firefox\components

12-24-18   3:05a    160891         124  brwsrcmp.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    138026         124  clearkey.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    143800         124  fake.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    132412         124  fakeh264.xqs
        4 file(s)     575129 bytes used

Directory of K:\firefox2

12-24-18   3:05a    141875         153  firefox.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    147689         154  lgpllibs.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a     10778         154  mozsqlt3.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a  16150335         149  xul.xqs
        4 file(s)   16450677 bytes used

Directory of K:\firefox_GA

12-24-18   3:05a    141875         153  firefox.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    147689         154  lgpllibs.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a     10778         154  mozsqlt3.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a  16150335         149  xul.xqs
        4 file(s)   16450677 bytes used

Directory of K:\firefox_GA\components

12-24-18   3:05a    160891         124  brwsrcmp.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    138026         124  clearkey.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    143800         124  fake.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    132412         124  fakeh264.xqs
        4 file(s)     575129 bytes used

Directory of K:\firefox_lx_working

12-24-18   3:05a    141875         153  firefox.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    147689         154  lgpllibs.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a     10778         154  mozsqlt3.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a  16150335         149  xul.xqs
        4 file(s)   16450677 bytes used

Directory of K:\firefox_lx_working\components

12-24-18   3:05a    160891         124  brwsrcmp.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    138026         124  clearkey.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    143800         124  fake.xqs
12-24-18   3:05a    132412         124  fakeh264.xqs
        4 file(s)     575129 bytes used
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 15, 2019, 05:37:15 am
I looked, I did forget to include the xqs files in the build I published on bitbucket :( Which made Ivan's trp report pretty useless. I'll think about refreshing the build and forking the code and automating this stuff.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: ivan on January 15, 2019, 09:02:38 pm
Sorry Dave, I didn't realise that the xqs files were missing.  I don't suppose that I can just transplant those files from another build of FF.

I am still unable to get FF45.9 running on my Ryzen test machine, I think I have installed every possible version of LIBC066.DLL that I can find and always get the same results (at least I used past experience and zipped up the usr directory so I could return to a known working state after each failed attempt - *@!*#* RPM should be taken out behind the wood shed and disposed of).

I can't help wondering how you manage to get such good results with your builds.  The only reason that I am trying to get the later builds of FF running is because your build of FF 17.0.11 will no longer load some of the sites I visit because of their switching over to https.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 16, 2019, 04:05:19 am
Hi Ivan.
No, you can not usually use the xqs files from a different build. They basically contain debugging info such as addresses of functions.
The newest should be good enough. The problem probably is not libc.
BTW, you should be zipping up \etc and \var as well as \usr. I'd suggest reinstalling libc and libcx and also installing the dbg packages to make trp files more informative. Please use the ones from the exp repository for now. They should find there way to the release repository eventually.
Then please try this build, https://bitbucket.org/dryeo/mozilla-os2/downloads/firefox-45.9.0.en.US.os2.PhenomII.zip (https://bitbucket.org/dryeo/mozilla-os2/downloads/firefox-45.9.0.en.US.os2.PhenomII.zip), it does have the xqs files. I was to lazy to fight to downgrade libcx here so it does need the ones in exp.
Dariusz, could you also test this build? If it works for you, then I'll delete the other build and eventually move all my other Firefox builds to this repository. At least Bitbucket doesn't bitch about our old browsers and isn't owned by MS.
Martin, perhaps the getting Firefox to run parts of this thread should be in their own thread?

Edit, testing on a new install, it is only libcx that needs installing from the exp repository, otherwise there will be a sys2070 in popuplog.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: ivan on January 17, 2019, 10:44:08 pm
Thanks for that Dave.

After a fight with rpm/yum to get it to actually download from the exp repository, still not certain if it did actually do anything but the anpm gui  no longer shows it as available, I did manage to get a much larger trp file, (attached) but no FF45.9 running.  Oh for the days when all the DLLs were supplied and if you needed to update one you just unlocked it and copied the new one in. 
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 17, 2019, 11:21:10 pm
OK, this seems to say you have a bad plugin (npj2_j32.dll) if I'm reading it right.
Try moving G:\mozprofiles\plugins out of the way.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: ivan on January 18, 2019, 12:07:15 pm
Dave, as they say 'you are da man'.  I don't think I have looked in the plugins directory since I installed the Innotek flash plugin back in 2003.  With that removed FF45.9 starts but I still have to kill pocket and reader.

On startup there is a slight increase in speed, doesn't take quite as long before I can open the bookmarks, sites come up a little faster.  I will say more after I have had a poke around in 'about:config'.
Title: Re: Unable to download PDF documents with FF 38.8
Post by: Dave Yeo on January 18, 2019, 06:51:04 pm
Good to hear, and nothing to do with your CPU. Still it shouldn't crash there and seems to be a recent regression. Quickly testing here by restoring my old plugin directory, 45.5.0 doesn't crash but doesn't show the Java plugins or most of the others I installed over the years. With the recent Pentium M build, I get the same crash, but even more informative as it hasn't been stripped and has all the debug info. I'll have to look into it more.