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Menus garbled in FF 33

sportsflorida
sportsflorida
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Just updated to Firefox 33, and all the menus and browser text (for example, in about:support, etc.) are nothing but asterisks. My language is properly set in Windows, and I did nothing out of the ordinary to make it happen. Just hit the update button, restarted, and when it opened again, I couldn't read anything. The webpages themselves can be read, but nothing native to the browser itself. And since I'm not well-schooled on "Asterisk," I'd prefer English if possible. Any ideas?

Just updated to Firefox 33, and all the menus and browser text (for example, in about:support, etc.) are nothing but asterisks. My language is properly set in Windows, and I did nothing out of the ordinary to make it happen. Just hit the update button, restarted, and when it opened again, I couldn't read anything. The webpages themselves can be read, but nothing native to the browser itself. And since I'm not well-schooled on "Asterisk," I'd prefer English if possible. Any ideas?

All Replies (4)

jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
  • Top 25 Contributor
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Hmm, maybe Firefox has developed an allergy to your preferred system font for menu text??

Could you test in Firefox's Safe Mode? That's a standard diagnostic tool to deactivate extensions, hardware acceleration, and some other advanced features of Firefox. More info: Diagnose Firefox issues using Troubleshoot Mode.

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

Not all add-ons are disabled: Flash and other plugins still run

After Firefox shuts down, a small dialog should appear. Click "Start in Safe Mode" (not Reset).

Any difference?

If that fixes it, I suggest disabling Firefox from using hardware acceleration. You can set that in the Options dialog here:

"3-bar" menu button (or Tools menu) > Options > Advanced

On the "General" mini-tab, uncheck the box for "Use hardware acceleration when available"

When you exit Firefox and start it up normally again, that change should be in effect.

jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
  • Top 25 Contributor
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Hmm, if you can't read the menus, the keyboard shortcuts are:

Alt+h (to open the Help menu)

r (to "click" Restart with Add-ons Disabled )

Enter (to confirm)

sportsflorida
sportsflorida Question owner
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Thank you for your reply. I tried changing the system font, and the one in Firefox just for the browser (under 'tools/options/content,' which I was able to do from memory), and neither attempt worked. I also tried restarting firefox in safe mode, but that didn't work either. Nothing on my computer changed from the time I was running 32.0.3 until I tried to use 33.0. It is indeed a mystery.

jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
  • Top 25 Contributor
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Hmm, in case the update jumbled some files, you might want to try replacing your Firefox program files using a "Clean reinstall" procedure, which is as follows:

(1) Download a full installer for Firefox 33 from https://www.mozilla.org/firefox/all/ to a convenient location. (Scroll down to your preferred language.)

(2) Exit Firefox

(3) Rename the Mozilla Firefox program folder (for 32-bit versions of Windows) 

C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox

to 

C:\Program Files\OldFirefox

(4) Run the installer you downloaded in #1. It should automatically connect to your existing settings.

Any improvement?

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

  • C:\Program Files\OldFirefox\Plugins
  • C:\Program Files\OldFirefox\browser\plugins