237691 - yahoo.com - Yahoo Messenger requires Internet Explorer as default browser

Status: VERIFIED FIXED

(Tech Evangelism Graveyard :: English US, defect)

Description

[Matt Seitz]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (X11; U; Linux i686; en-US; rv:1.4) Gecko/20030703
Build Identifier: Mozilla/5.0 (X11; U; Linux i686; en-US; rv:1.4) Gecko/20030703

I reported a problem with Yahoo! Messenger to their tech. support.  The reply I
received says that Yahoo! Messenger requires that Internet Explorer be the
default web browser.  

Reproducible: Always
Steps to Reproduce:




I sent a response asking that they support Mozilla as a default browser.

Here is a copy of the letter I received:

X-Apparently-To:	 [e-mail] via 66.218.93.7; Tue, 16 Mar 2004 02:14:32 -0800
Return-Path:	<[e-mail]>
Received:	from 216.145.48.34 (EHLO mail-relay1.yahoo.com) (216.145.48.34) by
mta181.mail.dcn.yahoo.com with SMTP; Tue, 16 Mar 2004 02:14:32 -0800
Received:	from mirrocraft.cc.kana.corp.yahoo.com
(mirrocraft.cc.kana.corp.yahoo.com [207.126.228.26]) by mail-relay1.yahoo.com
(Postfix) with SMTP id F26A68B6E8 for <[e-mail]>; Tue, 16 Mar 2004
02:13:46 -0800 (PST)
Date:	Tue, 16 Mar 2004 02:13:46 -0800
To:	[e-mail]
Subject:	Re: Feedback - 5,6,0,1339 - Home - Suggestions/User Requests
(KMM10908861V31997L0KM)
From:	"Yahoo!Messenger" <[e-mail]>  Add to Address Book
Reply-to:	Yahoo!Messenger <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version:	1.0
Content-Type:	text/plain; charset = "us-ascii"
Content-Transfer-Encoding:	7bit
X-Mailer:	KANA Response 7.0.1.116
Message-Id:	<[e-mail]>
Content-Length:	904
	

Hello, 

Thank you for writing to Yahoo! Messenger.

When you click on a web link in Yahoo Messenger, the Messenger uses 
Microsoft's Internet Explorer to bring up a browser.  If you do not have
the latest version IE installed, you can download Internet Explorer 
here:

   http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/default.htm

You must also have IE set as your default browser or links in Messenger 
may not work.  To check this:

1. Click the "Tools" menu at the top of your IE window and select 
"Internet Options".

2. Select the "Programs" tab and ensure there is a check in the box next
to "Internet Explorer should check to see whether it is the default 
browser."

Thank you again for contacting Yahoo! Customer Care.

Regards,

Jacob

Yahoo! Customer Care

For assistance with all Yahoo! services, please visit:

   http://help.yahoo.com/



Original Message Follows:
-------------------------

Yahoo! ID:  mseitz

Messenger Build: 5,6,0,1339

Connect From: Home

Connection Speed: ISDN/Cable/DSL

Problem Type: Suggestions/User Requests

Type your feedback here:
 When I click on a Yahoo Messenger mail
alert, my browser displays an insecure
Yahoo Mail login screen.  I then have to
click the "Secure" link to go the secure
login screen.  I would like to configure
Yahoo Messenger so that clicking on a
mail alert will take me directly to the
secure login screen.

While Viewing: 

Yahoo ID: mseitz : no amt link
Browser: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.6) 
Gecko/20040113
REMOTE_ADDR: 66.32.181.222
REMOTE_HOST: unknown
Date Originated: Sunday March 14, 2004 - 07:32:58
-------

Comment 1

[Bill Mason]

*** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of 260673 ***

Comment 2

[Bill Mason]

Oops, nope.  That's wrong.

Comment 3

[Aaron Graves]

Hmm, just happened upon this bug in tech-evangelism. Perhaps in the code they 
are making a direct call to Internet Explorer to open the URL link. There is 
an API call they should use instead that will open what the user has selected 
as the default browser (more or less, Windows will open the program that is 
associated with HTTP requests, which if you set Mozilla (and/or) Firefox as 
the default browser, that should be the program to open). I am presently at 
work, but when I return home this evening I will attempt to contact Yahoo 
regarding this (though I suspect I will get a similar without-thought reply).

Comment 4

[Felix Miata]

Conforming summary to TFM item 10 at 
http://www.mozilla.org/projects/tech-evangelism/site/procedures.html#file-new

Comment 5

[Aaron Graves]

I did not have a chance to contact Yahoo on this matter last night, as I spent 
the majority of the night downloading and burning copies of Fedora Core for my 
server that should be arriving soon. I will attempt to make contact tonight, 
as there is a large winter storm moving in, it appears I'll have some time on 
my hands.

Comment 6

[Chris Lawson (gone)]

Is this still the case on Windows? It's definitely not true on Mac, and presumably not on any other non-Windows platforms that Y!M supports.

Comment 7

[Jay Larson]

When clicking on a hyperlink received in a yahoo instant message IE is launched even though I have Firefox 3 set as my default browser. Same thing happens when I get a yahoo mail notification tray icon and click on that, or when accessing an item under the messenger help menu, etc...

Occurred on clean install of:
Windows XP Professional Version 2002 Service Pack 3
Firefox 3 (no previous version of Firefox ever on this pc)
Yahoo Messenger 8.1.0.421

According to Yahoo help files, Messenger launches whichever browser is set as default:
http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/messenger/messenger8/other/mstawdefbrowser.html

Comment 8

[Chris Lawson (gone)]

(In reply to comment #7)
> According to Yahoo help files, Messenger launches whichever browser is set as
> default:
> http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/messenger/messenger8/other/mstawdefbrowser.html

That sounds like a bug in Y!Messenger, and certainly not the same thing that this was originally filed to track. This bug, based on comment 7, sounds FIXED.

Jay, you should open a bug with Yahoo on the fact that Y!M refuses to respect your default browser preference.

Comment 9

[Jay Larson]

Chris, when using Firefox 2.0.0.14 as the default browser any links in Yahoo Messenger call it up just fine. This error only occurs with Firefox 3.

I believe I may have discovered the solution. When installing FF3 I selected it to be default. I later checked under Tools/Options/Advanced/General and re-confirmed it was set as default. Still, Yahoo Messenger was calling IE. Then it occurred to me to check the Windows XP 'Set Program Access and Defaults' utility. Under Custom the 'Use my current web browser' radio button was checked. I selected the 'Mozilla Firefox' option and now Yahoo Messenger is calling FF3 for all links.

Comment 10

[Chris Lawson (gone)]

Ah, user error then ;) Thanks for the update, Jay.

Comment 11

[Jay Larson]

Yeah, right. That part where selecting FF2 to be my default browser upon install actually worked, and then selecting FF3 to be be my default browser upon install not working was a huge miscalculation on my part. What was I thinking?

Comment 12

[Chris Lawson (gone)]

(In reply to comment #9)
> Then
> it occurred to me to check the Windows XP 'Set Program Access and Defaults'
> utility. Under Custom the 'Use my current web browser' radio button was
> checked. I selected the 'Mozilla Firefox' option and now Yahoo Messenger is
> calling FF3 for all links.

Either way, that's not a bug that TE should concern itself with. It's either a bug in how Y!M is reading the default browser preference or a bug in how Windows is setting it.

Comment 13

[Matt Seitz]

> Either way, that's not a bug that TE should concern itself with. It's either a
> bug in how Y!M is reading the default browser preference or a bug in how
> Windows is setting it.

Why is this not an appropriate topic for TE?  I thought the purpose of TE was to work with 3rd party developers to help them make sure their products work with Mozilla browsers.  This issues seems to fall into that category.

Comment 14

[Chris Lawson (gone)]

While you're correct as to the general purpose of the Tech Evangelism component, TE has perhaps the most limited resources of any Mozilla project, and we have to pick our battles. There are over 2000 open bugs in the TE component. This one, as filed, is FIXED.

If someone wants to file a new bug on the new "problem" and then work with Yahoo to solve it, go right ahead, but please do not continue to mis-use this bug for that purpose.

Comment 15

[Jay Larson]

This is not Yahoo's problem. It's a problem with FF3 not properly updating the registry. So, in that sense, Chris is correct that this bug should be closed. However, I don't believe it to be fixed.

1) Y!M correctly launches the default browser specified in the Windows Registry. They DO NOT require IE to be default contrary to what the tech reported.
2) A clean install of Windows XP Professional SP3 and clean install of FF3 (no prior version of Firefox ever having been installed) did not update my registry correctly when I selected it to be default. Forcing the default under 'Set Program Access and Defaults' DID update the registry and resolved the Y!M issue.
3) A clean install of Windows XP Professional SP3 and clean install of FF2.0.0.14 and Y!M launches Firefox without having to adjust 'Set Program Access and Defaults' so it sure looks like a regression to me. 

Also see related bug at https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=426754

Comment 16

[Matt Seitz]

Thanks for the clarifications.  I'm going to go ahead and mark this bug as verfied.  I agree that the FF3 issue reported in Comment 7 looks like a duplicate of Bug 426754, and should probably be discussed there.