201721 - 'news:' URL from external source spawns extra blank window

Status: NEW

(SeaMonkey :: MailNews: Message Display, defect)

Description

[Mike Cowperthwaite]

Under Windows 2000, I have configured
  HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\news\shell\open\command
with the default value of
  "<path>\Mozilla.exe" -news "%1"
In about:config, network.protocol-handler.external.news is not defined (defaults 
to false), and network.protocols.useSystemDefaults is false.

When I enter an autosubscribe news: URL in something other than Mozilla -- such 
as Start|Run, or clicking the URL in Metapad -- Mozilla opens an "empty" window. 
This window has no title and no content, just the Moz dragon-head icon in the 
corner.

If the Mozilla mail/news window is not open, a mail/news window opens and the 
empty window has zero height (other than the titlebar) and is positioned in the 
upper-left corner of the screen.

If the Mozilla mail/news window is already open, a second mail/news window opens 
(Bug 129574) *and* the empty window is sized to cover the entire screen, but not 
maximized (similar to a symptom in Bug 168315).

This is true for these URLs:
   news:netscape.public.mozilla.editor  (subscribed to)
   news:netscape.public.mozilla.seamonkey  (not subscribed to)
   news:netscape.public.mozilla.bugzilla  (nonexistent)

If the registry key is configured without the "-news" command line option:
   <path>Mozilla.exe  "%1"
then Mozilla opens a new (unwanted) browser window, but the empty window is not 
spawned.

Comment 1

[Mike Cowperthwaite]

Updating a bit for Seamonkey (trunk / 1.5a-0925).

(In reply to comment #0)
> When I enter an autosubscribe news: URL in something other than Mozilla --
> such as Start|Run, or clicking the URL in Metapad -- Mozilla opens an "empty"
> window.  This window has no title and no content, just the Moz dragon-head
> icon in the corner.

I failed to state, originally, that this test is assuming Mozilla was not already running.  With Seamonkey, the little window is not a blank any longer; it has a title "Page Load Error" and the standard text in the window.  No other window opens; closing the window exits the program.

I also note that on restarting Seamonkey immediately, there is a bogus new news account created, called "news" -- xref bug 327885.

> If the Mozilla mail/news window is not open, a mail/news window opens and the 
> empty window has zero height (other than the titlebar) and is positioned in the 
> upper-left corner of the screen.
> 
> If the Mozilla mail/news window is already open, a second mail/news window
> opens  (Bug 129574) *and* the empty window is sized to cover the entire
> screen, but not maximized (similar to a symptom in Bug 168315).

The max-sized-window symptom is not present in Seamonkey.


> This is true for these URLs:
>    news:mozilla.support.thunderbird  (subscribed to)
>    news:mozilla.support.firefox  (not subscribed to)