270108 - File Types display does not include HTM, HTML, etc.

Status: RESOLVED WORKSFORME

(Firefox :: Installer, defect)

Description

[Ron Birdsall]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Win98; en-US; rv:1.7.5) Gecko/20041107 Firefox/1.0
Build Identifier: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Win98; en-US; rv:1.7.5) Gecko/20041107 Firefox/1.0

Start/Settings/Folder Options/File Types: no setting is shown for HTM, HTML, or
Firefox, therefore one cannot edit file associations.
Problem: The registry key HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\FirefoxHTML\Default has a null
value, thus there is no name associated with these filetypes in Folder Options
and the filetype is not displayed.
Solution: Set HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\FirefoxHTML\Default to a descriptive value such
as "Firefox files."

Reproducible: Always
Steps to Reproduce:
1. Following a clean install of Firefox, look for an HTM, HTML, or Firefox entry
in Start/Settings/Folder Options/File Types. None are found.
2. Locate the registry key HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\FirefoxHTML\Default, a null value.
3. Change the null value to a descriptive name, such as "Firefox files."

Actual Results:  
"Firefox files" appropriately appears in Start/Settings/Folder Options/File
Types, complete with its file associations.

Comment 1

[paul]

I encountered similiar when I activated Firebox 1.0 as default browser. What
bothers me is that html is now firefoxhtml in the registry and this is a messy
one to resolve.

I posted the following to mozillazine (?sp?) and got no reponses, so I am
submitting as an additon to this bug (posting is cut-and-pasted below). Though
this "feature" is not stopping functioning in a Firefox world, it is denying me
a means of dealing with html that is sorely missed ... and makes me concerned
about programs taking actions I didn't request or want.

Thanks,
Paul
--- posting on zine ---
After test driving since summer, switched default browser to firefox on my
win98se system whose default was netscape 4.78. All knowledge of html filetype
seemed to disappear, though firefox handles them correctly. Using right mouse
click on desktop and selecting new shows that 'html' and/or 'htm' no longer
exist a selections. Went to Start->Settings->FolderOptions->fileTypes and the
entries for htlm and htm are gone. When I tried to enter them as new, the action
is blocked saying that they are already associated with "firefoxhtml" (huh?).
There is no entry for such in the file extensions, the only firefox associations
I can see are 'URL' settings. I went to Firefox help and it lead me to
Options->Downloads ... it is empty under File Types and the help description
seems different than what I am seeing (in regards to options and buttons to
click). No association under plugin.

I have no objections to Firefox showing my html (both from web and local files).
But I would like to get the filetype back for my Windows box to know about it.
And, most importantly, I want to restore my original association that when
right-clicking an html icon, I get the "edit" choice that will point to Netscape
4.78 Composer (it took me awhile to figure out how to get that and that was a
couple of years ago so I have no idea what the syntax on netscape.exe is to say
"open in composer".

Aside from that, Firefox as default seems quite pleasent.

Comment 2

[deneb7000]

I confirm this bug also for winXP.
When I upgraded from Mozilla 1.6 to Firofox 1.0 I noticed that in File|New menu
of windows explorer there was no "HTML Document" item (before installing Firefox
it existed).
I checked the registry so I found that the key
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\FirefoxHTML\Default had no value.
I simply changed this registry key and all was solved.

Comment 3

[Mike Connor [:mconnor]]

Seems to be working fine on three different windows machines here.

Comment 4

[Daniel Beardsmore]

*** Bug 305040 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 5

[odapple]

I just installed Firefox 1.5 beta 2 on an NT partition that had not had Firefox
installed before.  The "set to default" operation still fails to set the value
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\FirefoxHTML\Default to a suitable string.  The FirefoxHTML key
and its Default value remain in the registry even when MSIE is restored as the
default browser.  So a subsequent "set to default" will appear to work properly
if the value was previously changed to something suitable.

In August, I verified this behavior on WinXP with the then current version of
Firefox (1.05?).

Comment 6

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

The installer does not set file associations and the application itself does. Over to OS Integration

Comment 7

[WB]

I'm using FireFox version 1.5.0.7 on Win98 SE.

This bug caused me a headache because I needed to add an HTM/HTML association to a *second* program, which is the program I use to edit HTM/HTML files.  To open an HTM/HTML file in this second program, previously, I could right click on the file name in explorer, and select to open it in the second program (instead of in FireFox).  But, after installing FireFox, I couldn't, so, I went into Windows Start Menu, Settings, Folder Options, File Types, and the HTM and HTML file types are completely missing from the list.  This article: http://kb.mozillazine.org/Default_browser implies that they may be listed as 'N/A', or 'None', but that must only be true in XP or another multiuser O/S, because in Win98 SE, a file type will *not* be listed if it hasn't been given a name.

This is a real headache and I had to edit my registry to add the 2nd association.  And, my customers who use my software will have to do that also, unless I can come up with a workaround.  The other day, I brought up this problem on the FireFox forum, in thread http://forums.mozillazine.org/viewtopic.php?p=2491970#2491970 .  That message details a workaround, but here is a simpler explanation:

1) Run Regedit
2) Go to the Key FireFoxHTML under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.
3) In the right hand pane, change the Default field from "" to "Web pages" or something.
4) Then, close regedit.
5) Go into Folder options, File types, and then that file type will be there so you can add or change the associations.

Comment 8

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

Taking to get this on my radar

Comment 9

[WB]

Why is this bug labeled as 'OS Integration' specific to Win98 when other users have reported that the bug also occurs in WinXP?

Comment 10

[Daniel Beardsmore]

What value would you have it set to? There are no fields under OS for "Windows NT kernel", "Windows 9x kernel", or "Windows all", or even "Mac OS pre-X" or "Mac OS X all".

And I am not quite sure why Bugzilla still has Apple System 7 down as a valid platform -- Mozilla Foundation surely do not support anything prior to Mac OS X? I guess it is there for older bugs, but System 7 is Netscape Navigator era, not Mozilla. And we have Flags like "blocking 1.8.0.9" when Firefox 2.0 is released, so what on earth would end up as 1.8 now?

Comment 11

[Daniel Beardsmore]

On both my XP and Windows 8.1 computers (Firefox 34 and 33 respectively) the FirefoxHTML type is described as "Firefox HTML Document".

Is anyone still able to reproduce this bug?

Comment 12

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

This is handled by the installer

Comment 13

[Molly Howell (she/her) (mostly inactive)]

Doesn't reproduce on any supported platform (a set that no longer includes XP).