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how do I prevent firefox from updating v52.5.0 at all, especially not to v60 and beyond?

  • 12 replies
  • 2 have this problem
  • 82 views
  • Last reply by PBY

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I am currently on Firefox v52.5.0 ESR and I want to stay there, because the new Quantum is useless to me. Unfortunately, I didn't set my update to never before the latest round of automatic updates. Everytime I bring Firefox up, it starts the update before I can set the update switch to never. I then wind up on v60+, and I do NOT want to be there. How do I go about installing v52.5.0 and having it stay there?

I am currently on Firefox v52.5.0 ESR and I want to stay there, because the new Quantum is useless to me. Unfortunately, I didn't set my update to never before the latest round of automatic updates. Everytime I bring Firefox up, it starts the update before I can set the update switch to never. I then wind up on v60+, and I do NOT want to be there. How do I go about installing v52.5.0 and having it stay there?

Chosen solution

What add-ons can you not run? Also, Firefox has favorites, they are called bookmarks (Bookmarks in Firefox)

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All Replies (12)

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Why do you not want to update? Firefox 52 is no longer safe to use, nor supported.

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Because Quantum doesn't support required addons. My wife and I are old enough to resent these changes. She already distrusts computers. Your attitude to this reminds me of Microsofts attempts to bully people to move to Windows 10, whose only recommendation is that it isn't Windows 8. However, I have found a solution: 1) Let v60 install; 2) change update option to never; 3) reinstall v52.5.0. You could pass this around as many others have the same problem as I. As a suggestion, you might consider adding Favorites as a feature of Firefox.

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Chosen Solution

What add-ons can you not run? Also, Firefox has favorites, they are called bookmarks (Bookmarks in Firefox)

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Bookmarks are neither as useful as Favorites nor as friendly.

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nullset said

Bookmarks are neither as useful as Favorites nor as friendly.

Could you explain this in more detail. Firefox bookmarks are similar to Favorites in Internet Explorer. Are those the ones you have in mind? Or Favorites in Microsoft Edge, or Favorites in the AOL browser, or Favorites on a website, etc.?

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Turn off your network connection, then launch firefox 52. Disable the updates there. Close firefox to make sure the settings are saved. Reopen it and close it a few times to double and triple check. Then turn your network back on.

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mgambrell said

Turn off your network connection, then launch firefox 52. Disable the updates there. Close firefox to make sure the settings are saved. Reopen it and close it a few times to double and triple check. Then turn your network back on.

I thought about that, but I found a simpler way as you can see above. Thank you for this anyway. It is nice to be understood.

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jscher2000 said

nullset said
Bookmarks are neither as useful as Favorites nor as friendly.

Could you explain this in more detail. Firefox bookmarks are similar to Favorites in Internet Explorer. Are those the ones you have in mind? Or Favorites in Microsoft Edge, or Favorites in the AOL browser, or Favorites on a website, etc.?

Favorites as in IE and PlainOldFavorites addon. Bookmarks do not offer the easy organizational procedures of favorites, and they also do not provide for the LINKS toolbar button. I suggest you familiarize yourself with the functioning of favorites, at which time you will be able to answer these questions yourself.

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nullset said

jscher2000 said
nullset said
Bookmarks are neither as useful as Favorites nor as friendly.

Could you explain this in more detail. Firefox bookmarks are similar to Favorites in Internet Explorer. Are those the ones you have in mind? Or Favorites in Microsoft Edge, or Favorites in the AOL browser, or Favorites on a website, etc.?

Favorites as in IE and PlainOldFavorites addon. Bookmarks do not offer the easy organizational procedures of favorites, and they also do not provide for the LINKS toolbar button. I suggest you familiarize yourself with the functioning of favorites, at which time you will be able to answer these questions yourself.

I'm certainly familiar with Windows Favorites in IE, and how PlainOldFavorites creates a Favorites menu on the Firefox menu bar to show your Windows Favorites. Is the Links toolbar button the one on the Windows Task Bar, or is that another feature of PlainOldFavorites?

Why do you say Windows Favorites are easier to organize? You prefer moving Favorites in Windows Explorer or in Internet Explorer rather than moving Bookmarks in Firefox's Library window ("Show All Bookmarks")? They seem similar to me.

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Tyler Downer said

What add-ons can you not run? Also, Firefox has favorites, they are called bookmarks (Bookmarks in Firefox)

Rather, question is which ones do work? Can you enable multiple tab rows? No.

Can you adjust tab width, and configure many other settings TabMixPlus enabled? No.

Can you get Colorful tabs functionality back? No.

Can you get a comparable Sessions manager? No.

Which are just a few of the many extensions that made FF superior to Chrome and the like, but now it is handicapped as re. power users, much like they are.

Of course FF wanted a race car over a utility truck, and few users needed or knew or cared about the extensive functionality of Classic Firefox.

Thusk, after finally preventing FF from updating (disable wireless, and uninstall FF and install FF ESR, launch and go to Tools>Options>Advanced and check Never update..., and close and enable wireless and restart FF) I have been running 2 separate installations of FF ESR, plus a Portable installation FF Quantum, with the former doing the heavy lifting. Thanks be to God.

But if you install Quantum alongside FF ESR or pre FF 57, then ESR takes over the latter, and then you have lost most all your extensions, and it is hard or impossible for many authors to make their extensions work with Quantum, which is simply less user-friendly, and hinders community.

Modified by PBY

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Hi PeaceByJesus, extensions are gaining increased abilities to color various parts of Firefox in recent versions. Here's an example:

https://color.firefox.com/

Structural changes to the tabs such as wrapping the tab bar to multiple rows, or allowing tabs to get narrower than 50 pixels (you can use the browser.tabs.tabMinWidth to lower the default from 76 to as low as 50 or increase it back to the old default of 100, etc.), require using custom style rules in a userChrome.css file. There are plenty of threads on that.

The old Session Manager extension created files in its own directory automatically in the background. Extensions are no longer able to do that. Instead they can use extension storage in the background, or let users download files by showing a save dialog. Some session extensions now use bookmarks to store your open tabs. These are different, but are they less useful?

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I used color.firefox and it helps, and I had to disable the dysfunctional new Colorful tabs ext. to make it work. However, that is hardly a comparable replacement for the classic Colorful tabs, and a poor replacement for the FT deep Dark theme with the NewScrollbars (aka NoiaScrollbars) ext.

As for Structural changes to the tabs in wrapping the tab bar to multiple rows, , I have scoured threads for that, and nothing I know of actually works for Quantum, which together with no Colorful Tabs, disqualifies it from being my main browser when ESR or equivalent is still fit for duty.

It is good though that browser.tabs.tabMinWidth can lower the default, which i did.

But the old Session Manager enables saving multiple sessions, and opening them on another browser. And when you have over a hundred tabs open from session to session (much more useful and faster) and 4 different Gecko-based browsers, then all the above and more much help, thanks be to God for those who make and offer them.

But thanks you very much for the help you have been, and willingness to do so.