On the Chinese ones they are probably for the DVR and/or security cameras

I will try to de-activate the plug ins, but I don't think that has anything to do with it. It's more of a timing issue. And I'm getting erratic behavior.

Okay a few things. I know you are trying to help. but I really don't thnk it has anything to do with the plugins. For example It does some adobe plugins were out of date and I tried to update them. But it won't let me because it says the plug in I' using is vulnerable... https://blocklist.addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/blocked/p946

NSS, that's why I'm trying to update it. Anyway, I try to follow the manual method but when clicking on the link at:

https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/plugincheck/

so I click on the update now button and it opens a new page.... and nothing is there. I just did it a minute ago and it opened to a "moved" page, but did not take me to the new page. Now it takes me to an empty page.

And I think I know what the problem is.

I HATE TABS. I WANT TO EXECUTE THE MORON THAT INVENTED THEM.

So I have tabs turned off and tell it to open a new window. I think that is where the problem is coming from. And even tho i have tabs turned off, it's still opening new tabs on this support ticket window.

Anyway, this problem seems to have come up when I tried to completely eliminate all tabbed behavior on this browser.

As much as I like Firefox (and I really do) I can't stand tabs and I need a way to remove that "feature" from the program. But doing so I think is what is causing this issue. Not 100% sure, but It's my gut instinct. Could also have something to do with going from a non-secure to secure page, however I have noticed that the adobe website was secure and it tried to go to another secure page, but I don't know if they were both on the same cert.

Also all the plugins were set to "Ask" and it never asks before I have this problem, so I don't think it's a plugin.

Okay Matt, I don't know what efforts you undertook to try to eliminate tabs, but if you just mean changing some built-in options, it's unlikely that would break page loading.

Let's come back to Flash later.

At this point, please try 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?

Is there any indicator in Firefox that tells me it's running in safemode?

If I have one firefox window open in safe mode and open other, it is opened in safte mode or normal mode?

Thanks

In Safe Mode, all your extensions are disabled and do not function. That is the clearest sign. Firefox remains in Safe Mode until you exit completely and start it up again normally (i.e., not holding down the Shift key).

Okay sorry it's taken me so long to get back to you. I was really trying to nail down what the problem is.

Okay restart in safe mode it works fine.

Restart in normal mode and disable ALL plugins, it works fine.

Try to start adding back in one plug in at a time and it stops working. Doesnot matter which of 4 or 5 different plug ins I enable (one at a time) It stops working but the behavior can be different for each one.

For example:

Here is a repeatable url:

https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#newwindow=1&q=credit+cards+with+cash+back+comparison

The first organic result is a site called "nerdwallet"

depending on which plug in I have enabled, I get different behavior.

One will give me this 301 error:

301 Moved Permanently nginx/1.4.6 (Ubuntu)

another one will give me

301 Moved Permanently nginx

another one will sometimes not give any thing, but a blank page.

sometimes it does nothing. Not a redirect, etc.

The plug ins that cause this are:

Ghostery, Adblock Flashblock Disconnect Hide Tab Bar with One Tab

It seems if any of these are enable, then clicking the link on google for "nerdwallet" will not load or load a 301,etc.

I hope this helps solving the problem.

I really like using those plugins.. and don't want to run w/o them.

Just a note that I'm going to refer to these particular add-ons as Extensions.

I don't understand why "Flashblock" or "Hide Tab Bar with One Tab" would possibly cause this issue. But the other three could have features related to redirects and tracking links.

This could be either some kind of corruption with extension data (e.g., extension preferences, extension block/allow lists), or, considering the large number of extensions involved, the update might have partially failed leaving corrupted or inconsistent program files.

As that second issue is pretty quick to address, please try this:

Clean Reinstall

We use this name, but it's not about removing your settings, it's about making sure the program files are clean (no inconsistent, corrupted, or alien code files). As described below, this process does not disturb your existing settings. Do NOT uninstall Firefox, that's not needed.

(A) Download a fresh installer for Firefox 40.0.2 from https://www.mozilla.org/firefox/all/ to a convenient location. (Scroll down to your preferred language.)

(B) Exit out of Firefox (if applicable).

(C) Rename the program folder, either:

(32-bit Windows folder names)

C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox

to

C:\Program Files\OldFirefox

(64-bit Windows folder names)

C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Firefox

to

C:\Program Files (x86)\OldFirefox

(D) Run the installer you downloaded in (A). It should automatically connect to your existing settings.

Any improvement after a clean reinstall?

Note: Some plugins may exist only in that OldFirefox folder. If something essential is missing, look in these folders:

• \OldFirefox\Plugins
• \OldFirefox\browser\plugins

Hey, I found a big clue tonight!

Whenever I find one of these pages that will not load when I click on it, I found that if I RIGHT click on it and select "open in a new window" it works perfectly every time.

So what does that mean?

matt621 said

Whenever I find one of these pages that will not load when I click on it, I found that if I RIGHT click on it and select "open in a new window" it works perfectly every time.

So what does that mean?

Hi Matt, links sometimes have scripts attached that route them through a tracking script or which take other actions on the way to loading the actual page. I believe the right-click methods may bypass those scripts and just grab the destination URL immediately.

Does it work to click and drag a problem link and drop it on the address bar to load it in the same tab? That might work around the script override in the same way as the right-click menu options.

Yes, dragging the link to the address bar works as well.

Do what does this mean?

Does it mean the tracking script is buggy?

or my adblockets, etc are preventing it from working?

or is there something in Firefox that causes this issue?

Thanks.

I think either Ghostery or Disconnect may be blocking some tracking that the site's script is forcing on you. I'm sure those extensions are written to handle a wide range of scenarios, but perhaps in these cases they are just hitting a wall. You could try deactivating one at a time on a problem site to see whether that makes a difference. (I don't use them, so I don't know how easy/difficult that is.)