1581320 - Differences Firefox/Windows and Firefox/Linux

Status: NEW

(Core :: DOM: Copy & Paste and Drag & Drop, enhancement, P5)

Description

[Bart]

Attachment: DragAndDrop.png

User Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux i686; rv:60.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/60.0

Steps to reproduce:

When using Firefox I often drag-and-drop the icon just before the address bar to a folder location. (To illustrate I added image "DragAndDrop.png".) I get a tiny file which is an Internet Shortcut. When dragging-and-dropping it to Firefox, it will open the corresponding Internet page. I absolutely love it. Over the years I saved 9960 of these Internt shortcuts.

Firefox/Windows creates a file with .URL extention. Recently I changed to Linux/Debian. Firefox/Linux creates a file with a .desktop extention. (These are files "Internet for people not profit - Mozilla.URL" and "Internet for people not profit - Mozilla.desktop". Somehow I only managed to include one attachment in the first post. I'll try to add all other files in a second post.)

Actual results:

I assume that Firefox/Linux is not familiar with .URL files. If I drag-and-drop a .URL file to the Firefox windows, I get a popup that asks me which program to use to open the file. (This is image "WhatShouldFilefoxDo.png" shows. I'll also try to add this one later.) When running Windows, Firefox/Windows doesn't know what to do with a .desktop file either.

Expected results:

So I have a suggestion for an improvement. :)

I would be very happy if Firefox/Linux and Firefox/Windows would be able to read each other's files. I.e. Firefox/Linux would be happy to read a .URL file and go to the corresponding URL, while Firefox/Windows would be happy to read a .desktop file an go to the corresponding URL.

Even nicer would be if Firefox created either a .desktop file OR a .URL file, no matter if I'm running Windows or Linux.

PS, Maybe the following is useful extra information?

• I wasn't sure if this was a "defect report" or a "request for enhancement". I chose "request for enhancement".
• I'm using a dual-boot computer with Windows 10 and Debian Linux (version 10 = Buster). Most often I use Debian Linux, but from time to time I need Windows (e.g. when using iTunes). Documents, pictures, music, internet shortcuts, etc. are on a separate partition. I find that it makes backups easier, but it also allows both Windows and Debian to access the files on this partition, including these .URL and .desktop files.
• Under Debian Linux I discovered six file/folder explorers: Caja, Dolphin, File Manager, File Manager PCmanFM, Files, Nemo en Thunar. Draging-and-droping the address bar to a folder works fine with Nemo, but it doesn't work with all file/folder explorers. When using the LXDE graphical interface, Nemo can be found under Start -> Accessories -> Files (It's the second icon called "Files").
• I tried to rename the .URL extension to .desktop and then drag-and-drop it to the Firefox window. I don't get the popup that asks me what to do with the file, but Firefox doesn't go to the URL of the .desktop either.

Under Debian Linux I'm using Firefox 60.9.0esr (32-bit)
Under Windows 10 I'm using Firefox 51.0.1

Comment 1

[Bart]

Attachment: Internet for people not profit - Mozilla.URL

Comment 2

[Bart]

Attachment: Internet for people not profit - Mozilla.desktop

Comment 3

[Bart]

Attachment: WhatShouldFirefoxDo.png

Comment 4

[Andre Klapper]

When using Firefox I often drag-and-drop the icon just before the address bar to a folder location.

What is a "folder location"? Is this within Firefox? Some Linux desktop environment's desktop? Some unnamed file manager application?
A clear list of steps to reproduce, step by step, which leaves no room for interpretation, would be welcome.

Under Windows 10 I'm using Firefox 51.0.1

You are running an ancient, unsupported, and insecure software version which is 30 months old.

Comment 5

[Bart]

Hi Andre,

Thank you for your fast reply. Boy, I tried so hard to be complete, but still I failed. \o/

With "Folder location" I meant a folder that's opened in Windows Explorer when running Windows. It's not something within Firefox.

When running Debian, with "Folder location" I meant a folder that's opened in Nemo, Thunar or one of the other file/folder explorers. For extra clarification I added screen copies of Nemo and Thunar, both showing the "About" box.

Under Debian Linux I noticed six file/folder explorers that all come with the default Debian installation. (I mentioned them in my first post.) I think they were written by different authors. They all compare to Windows Explorer, but they all have their differences, just like Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Internet Explorer, etc. have their differences.

I hope this answers. If not, the only other thing I can do is add a picture that shows. Let me know if you need this. I'll be happy to add it.

If you have other questions, let me know as well.

Thank you for looking into this!

Comment 6

[Bart]

Attachment: Nemo.png

Comment 7

[Bart]

Attachment: Thunar.png

Comment 8

[Bart]

I guess I was in a creative mood.
I made a Photoshopped picture of what I was trying to describe.
Sometimes one picture is better than many words.

If the picture still doesn't describe it, please let me know.

Comment 9

[Bart]

Attachment: DragAndDrop2.png

Comment 10

[Andre Klapper]

I'm not sure if there is something to change in Firefox code here.
This sounds like being somewhere between the window manager and the virtual file system. Have you discussed this in a Debian forum already?

Comment 11

[Bart]

Dragging the icon that's in front of the address-bar to a folder and creating a file goes without a problem.

When doing this while running Windows, I get a file with .URL extension (a tiny file that's an internet shortcut). When doing this while running Debian/Linux I get a file with .desktop extension. (Also an internet shortcut.) That all goes fine. As a side-note, the extension ".desktop" may be confusing. (Please don't blame me, I didn't do it. :p )

I'm now mainly running Debian/Linux and I still have a ton of .URL files that I created when I was mainly running Windows. When I drag-and-drop one of these files with .URL extension back to Firefox when running Debian/Linux, Firefox now asks me which program to use to open the file. (That's image "WhatShouldFirefoxDo.png" in comment 3.) When I do this when running Windows, Firefox reads the .URL file and goes to the internet page specified in the .URL file.

Can I persuade you to download

• "Internet for people not profit - Mozilla.URL" (in comment 1) and
• "Internet for people not profit - Mozilla.desktop" (in comment 2)
  and drag-and-drop both to Firefox and see what happens?

When running Windows, file "Internet for people not profit - Mozilla.URL" will work, the other won't.
When running Debian/Linux, file "Internet for people not profit - Mozilla.desktop", will work, the other won't.
If you open them with a text editor, you'll see that they're both text files and that they're essentially the same.

When running Debian/Linux and and when dragging-and-dropping a .URL file back to Firefox, it would be nice if Firefox also read the .URL file and went to the address specified in it. (And vice-versa when running Windows and when dragging-and-dropping a file with .desktop extension back to Firefox.)

I hope I clarified it sufficiently. If not, please let me know.

Comment 12

[Sebastian Padilla]

Hi branden,

Thanks for submitting this enhancement to us. I understand your concern and, with the attachs that you left us I was able to reproduce this using Firefox Nightly (2019/10/04) on Ubuntu 16.0 and on Windows 10 Pro.

I'm going to add a Product and a Component so one of our devs can take a look at it.

Thanks!

Sebastian

Comment 13

[Bart]

Many thanks to you and all the others who put time and effort into this!