246504 - Manual theme/extension installation

Status: RESOLVED FIXED

(Toolkit :: Add-ons Manager, enhancement)

Description

[Alex Eng]

The Extension Manager and Theme Manager windows should have a button or
hyperlink, perhaps with the caption "Install from File...", so that users can
install an extension or theme from a downloaded XPI or JAR file.  Dragging and
dropping an XPI or JAR file into the Extension Manager or Theme Manager window
may not be obvious to some users.

Comment 1

[Christoph Grether]

I agree, this would be a minor polish. 
Some people maybe don't know, that you can easy drag & drop themes to the theme
manager. An install button would be very helpful. I tested one of the latest
Thunderbird builds, now, there is the same Theme/Extension manager like in
Firefox, but with an install button. The theme manager in TB also supports drag
& drop, so the install button is no more needed like before. But, why not just
include this button in Firefox, too?

Maybe after 1.0? 

Comment 2

[Dimitrios]

*** Bug 247091 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 3

[Ed Hume]

This is not just a "minor polish." Just how would you know that you should drag
an extension into an open browser window? Or--yet more obscure--into an open
Theme Manager dialog window? Note that the latter is not the same as the former.

At the very least, the Extension Manager and theme Manager dialog windows should
include instructions on how to install an extension or a theme.

When we get to 1.0, do you really want newbies flooding the Mozillazine forums
asking how to do this? Or worse, giving up in disgust and going away?

Comment 4

[George Deka]

i agree with comment 3, it is a minor polish thing but i think it needs to be 
done. Before 1.0
Should we mark this blocking 1.0 ?

Comment 5

[Peto]

Please, see also my comments under bug 247091

Comment 6

[Mel Reyes]

Currently Thunderbird has an install button for Themes and Extensions.  For the
sake of uniformity and use this somewhat simple polish should be added to
Firefox for the 1.0 release.

What's nice is that Themes button defaults to *.jar file extension and the
Extension to *.xpi file extension, would love to see this for FF, thanks.

Comment 7

[Dan Fischbach]

Voted.  Agreed, buttons are needed so new users have something logical to go on
(i.e., clicking a button) instead of the not-so-obvious drag 'n' drop we
"vetrans" have become used to.

Comment 8

[Dan Fischbach]

Can this PLEASE be nominated for 1.1?  If Thunderbird 1.0.2 has this, then 1.1
should have it.  This seems very trivial, and should take only a few moments to
add a button to the UI.

Comment 9

[Mel Reyes]

Yeah I couldn't wait so I created MR Tech's Local Install:
http://www.mrtech.com/extensions/

I allows multiple installs for extensions and filters for *.xpi or *.jar and a
bunch of other goodies coming with the next release.

More info here: http://forums.mozillazine.org/viewtopic.php?t=183967

Comment 10

[Dan Fischbach]

Yeah, I know about your extension and use it myself, but it should be something
that should have been fixed by 1.0.

Comment 11

[Pavel Cvrcek [:JasnaPaka]]

I ported this button from Thunderbird to Deer Park Alpha 1 today. I wanted to
test how it's difficult. I think that's easy but i have two questions:

1) In file extensions.js i found something like this:

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
// functions to support installing of themes in apps other than firefox //
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Is there any problem with this code in Firefox? I didn't found anything.

2) I didn't found usefull icon in actual theme for this button.

I don't have time to create a patch at this moment - maybe later. 

Comment 12

[Pavel Cvrcek [:JasnaPaka]]

Attachment: Preview of my "port"

Comment 13

[Anders Conbere]

It's crazy that this isn't include at the VERY least in Linux builds.  So many
systems do NOT include gui filemanagers, and even in the mix of those that do
MANY do not support drag and drop features.. and then FURTHER using those that
do support and dragging and dropping jar files tosses up a ton of gtk errors,
sometimes crashes the browser, and is generaly buggy.

And, let us not forget the OSX builds where dragging and dropping work not even
a little.

I know that my use of the theme manager is probably a little bit more intense
than most peoples (and I'm sure that mr. Hume will agree with me on this) but as
a theme developer this system is just ludicrous.

MrTechs Local Install Extension
https://addons.mozilla.org/extensions/moreinfo.php?id=421

is currently the only REAL solution I've found for this, and it's helped my
trouble shoot several linux users troubles installing themes/extensions from a
local file.  Something similar to it's feature set would be just fine.

Please... for the sake of meshing with the other operating systems.  Many of
them don't work with drag and drop, they don't have that as a focus, and it
doesn't make sense in the realm of using them to consider installing in this
fashion.

Give us a command line method, give us a button like the local install
extension, give us something! But relegating all Linux users to a world of gui
filemanagers is simply rediculous (we don't all use gnome, or kde).

Thanks,
Anders

Comment 14

[Ashar Voultoiz]

There is another extension that add an install button to the theme manager (not
the extension manager):
https://addons.mozilla.org/extensions/moreinfo.php?application=firefox&id=496

I personally like the yellow button that comes with "MrTechs Local Install
Extension", rest of the stuff from that extension can probably be dropped (aka
the shortcuts stuff).


Would be a great feature to be included in firefox, I personally don't have a
file manager to drag'n drop from.

Comment 15

[Mike Connor [:mconnor]]

File->Open works just fine instead of drag'n'drop.  Not going to block 1.1 on
this, we're going to revisit the extension manager UI for the next release.

Comment 16

[Pavel Cvrcek [:JasnaPaka]]

(In reply to comment #15)
> File->Open works just fine instead of drag'n'drop.  Not going to block 1.1 on
> this, we're going to revisit the extension manager UI for the next release.

... but only for extensions, not themes!

Comment 17

[Bradley Chapman (not reading bugmail, still gone but not forever)]

This feature already exists for Thunderbird's EM and TM, as Thunderbird does not have the proper infrastructure hooked up to its filepickers.

Exposing this feature for Firefox would be simple. But is it really necessary?

Comment 18

[Mike Connor [:mconnor]]

not a blocker, but a nice to have.

Comment 19

[Robert Strong (they/them - no direct email)]

*** Bug 323325 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 20

[Alexey Gubanov]

You are crazy if you don't understand this simply thing. Install button strongly needed for extension manager. Ask any national support team about this, to you will answer, what thousand people ask "How I can install extension? I can't find button...". Please, keep our time and our reason. Think about people.  Make this button in Firefox 2.0

Comment 21

[Mike Connor [:mconnor]]

Why are so many people downloading extensions to install locally?  I don't see a case where local install is really necessary in a web browser...

Comment 22

[Alexey Gubanov]

(In reply to comment #21)
> Why are so many people downloading extensions to install locally?  I don't see
> a case where local install is really necessary in a web browser...
Because traffic is money in many countries (Russia for example). Because good idea save all installed extensions if you need reinstall Fx (yes, I know, profile don't remove with deinstall Fx, but you can have many situation when you need complete deinstall). Because you can install Fx to the friends and well have all extensions locally. Because you can forget where you have taken extansion. And many other reasons...

Comment 23

[Jorge Villalobos [:jorgev] (he/him)]

(In reply to comment #21)
> Why are so many people downloading extensions to install locally?  I don't see
> a case where local install is really necessary in a web browser...
> 
I do it myself on occasion. Even if it isn't necessary, the fact remains that a lot of people do it and there should be an easy way for the user to install themes and extensions. I think eventually people are going to want to backup their themes/extensions so that they can easily reinstall them after a full system reinstall. That's another bug that's floating around somewhere. Anyway, that would mean a local install is not so far fetched.

Comment 24

[Brion Swanson]

Another reason someone might have a local version to install is because they run a program or script (like Automatix: http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=80295) that upgrades Firefox but does not install themes and extensions while retaining the old ones in a backup directory.  It's left as an exercise to the user to move their themes and extensions (or download them over again).

Ideally, everyone always installs these things from the web, but the world is not ideal and a mature program has the ability to intuitively install from a local file - not just the web.

Comment 25

[Robert Strong (they/them - no direct email)]

Fixed on trunk by the checkin for bug 329045

Comment 26

[Robert Strong (they/them - no direct email)]

btw: bug 342656 made the button hidden for Firefox via the pref "extensions.hideInstallButton". The capability is there in Firefox and the Firefox dev team decided it should not be displayed by default.