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My search bar doesn't send me to google and instead sends me to a website with just that word in it or it tells me that website doesn't exist, how do I fix?

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When I try to use the url search bar to look for things on google, it instead sends me to a website with the name of that url. Like if I type in 'cats' it sends me to cats.com and I want it to send me to a list of google search results like it used to. And if I type in anything longer than one word it tells me the website can't be accessed. I don't want to be sent to a website and when I change the settings, nothing will send me to google.

When I try to use the url search bar to look for things on google, it instead sends me to a website with the name of that url. Like if I type in 'cats' it sends me to cats.com and I want it to send me to a list of google search results like it used to. And if I type in anything longer than one word it tells me the website can't be accessed. I don't want to be sent to a website and when I change the settings, nothing will send me to google.

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Sounds that you aren't using the search bar, but the location bar and that the actual search bar is missing.

Make sure that toolbars like the "Navigation Toolbar" and the "Bookmarks Toolbar" are visible:

  • Firefox > Options
  • "View > Toolbars"

Open the Customize window to set which toolbar items to display:

  • View > Toolbars > Customize
  • Firefox > Options > Toolbar Layout
  • Check that the "Bookmarks Toolbar items" is on the Bookmarks Toolbar
  • If the "Bookmarks Toolbar items" is not on the Bookmarks Toolbar then drag it back from the toolbar palette in the customize window to the Bookmarks Toolbar
  • If missing items are in the toolbar palette then drag them back from the Customize window on the toolbar
  • If you do not see an item on a toolbar and in the toolbar palette then click the "Restore Default Set" button to restore the default toolbar set up