429532 - changed download folder preferences mostly work, but some files end up in old location

Status: VERIFIED DUPLICATE of bug 311292

(Toolkit :: Downloads API, defect)

Description

[Michael Hannemann]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; U; Intel Mac OS X 10.5; en-US; rv:1.9b5) Gecko/2008032619 Firefox/3.0b5
Build Identifier: Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; U; Intel Mac OS X 10.5; en-US; rv:1.9b5) Gecko/2008032619 Firefox/3.0b5

After upgrading to Leopard, I decided to give in and use ~/Downloads as my download folder, instead of a folder on the desktop.  I kept the desktop folder around in case other programs were still pointing to that.

Periodically, when using Firefox to download files, it saves them to this old folder.  This seems to happen particularly often when I click a link which triggers a download from the server side, as opposed to my saying "save as...".

I believe the problem is the org.mozilla.firefox.plist file -- it lists the correct download directory, but also has this entry:

AppleNavServices:ChooseFolder:0:Path = file://localhost/Users/mrh3/Desktop/Downloads/

Should this be the same as the Downloads folder?

Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
1. Move from Firefox 2 to Firefox 3b5, while upgrading to MacOSX 10.5.2 at the same time.
2. Change your download directory.

and more importantly:
3. Configure a MacOSX "Folder Action" on the old downloads folder which notifies you when an item is placed inside it.
4. Clink on a link which triggers a download.
5. Observe that even if the item winds up in the correct Downloads folder eventually, it triggered the folder action on the old folder.
Actual Results:  
Files sometimes left in old downloads folder.  (Why sometimes?  Depends on website, actions)

Expected Results:  
All files should be redirected to new downloads folder, without passing through old one.

Comment 1

[Shawn Wilsher :sdwilsh]

I'm willing to bet it goes in the wrong directory when you select open or open with, right?

Comment 2

[Michael Hannemann]

(In reply to comment #1)
> I'm willing to bet it goes in the wrong directory when you select open or open
> with, right?

If I hit "Open" from the File menu, it ends up in this location from the plist:

NSNavLastCurrentDirectory  = ~/Desktop/mrh-canon-xti

If I go to the Download Manager window... well, I don't see how to say either "Open" or "Open With" there, except without a particular entry as a target.  

How do I say "open" any other way?

Comment 3

[Shawn Wilsher :sdwilsh]

When you click on a link and you get the download prompt.  There's usually save and then there's open.

Comment 4

[Michael Hannemann]

(In reply to comment #3)
> When you click on a link and you get the download prompt.  There's usually save
> and then there's open.

I see.  Let's try it...

1. I click on link which propmts downloading.
2. See folder action notice that a file has been placed in old donwnload location.
3. Dialog comes up letting choose what to do with it.
4. ... okay, I see.

If I hit "save", I don't get a chance to specify a location, and the file winds up in the new download folder.  (Which is fine.)

If I hit "Open with Preview", which is the default PDF application, then you're right, it winds up staying in the old download folder.

"Open with" brings up a dialog which lets me choose out a program out of the /Applications/ folder, which is a reasonable thing to do.

Comment 5

[Shawn Wilsher :sdwilsh]

Alright - this bug is already on file, but I don't know the number offhand.  It's likely to not be addressed for Firefox 3, but I fully expect it to be addressed in Firefox 3.1

Comment 7

[Stephen Donner [:stephend] Not actively reading bugmail]

Yeah, that's the one; verified (thanks, Matti).