508994 - Opening a Java Signed applet causes Firefox to stop accepting mouse actions and key strokes

Status: RESOLVED FIXED

(Plugins Graveyard :: Java (Java Embedding Plugin), defect)

Description

[nacho]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; U; Intel Mac OS X 10.5; en-US; rv:1.9.0.13) Gecko/2009073021 Firefox/3.0.13
Build Identifier: Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; U; Intel Mac OS X 10.5; en-US; rv:1.9.0.13) Gecko/2009073021 Firefox/3.0.13

The problem is that the program window looses focus and is unable to recover it, so you can no longer write in the address field or interact with the browser. 

It happens when you launch a website that has a java signed applet in it. The way the bug happens depends on how you have the java console configured in Java Preferences.app. Three possible options:

- show console: you will load one page with a java applet in it, no problem. When you load a second webpage with a java signed applet in it, after you allow it to load the content, the browser stays in an out of focus state.
- hide console and do not open console: just open a website that contains a java signed applet and you won't be able to type anything else.

If you selected hide console or show console options, selecting the console window and going back to firefox solves the blocking.

Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
(with the show console option enabled in Java Preferences)
1. Open a website that contains a java signed applet. Allow it to load the content.
2. Open a second website that contains a java signed applet. Allow it to load the content.
Actual Results:  
Browser blocks and accepts no input.

Expected Results:  
You should be able to continue with normal operation.

Comment 1

[Steven Michaud [:smichaud] (Retired)]

You don't need to use two signed Java applets to see this bug -- just
one will do.  The bug only happens on OS X 10.5.X (not on OS X
10.4.11).  And I suspect it only happens with Apple's most recent
update for Java	on OS X	10.5.X (Java for Mac OS X 10.5 Update	4) --
though I haven't yet tested this.

1) Using Applications : Utilities : Java Preferences, click the
   Advanced tab and make sure "Java console" is set to "Do not start
   console" (the default value).

2) Load a signed applet (e.g. http://segal.org/java/hellotrust/).  In
   the dialog that appears, either choose to trust the applet or not
   to trust it (either will do for the purposes of this test).

   After the dialog is dismissed, the browser window will appear
   inactive (e.g. its title bar will be a lighter shade of gray).
   Clicking anywhere in the window won't change this.  And you won't
   be able to enter text when you click in a text field.

   You can make the problem go away by getting the browser to open
   anther window, then closing that window.  (For example, you can
   choose Firefox : About Mozilla Firefox, then close the About
   window).

I strongly suspect this is an Apple bug.  But, because it doesn't
happen in Safari, I will probably need to make the Java Embedding
Plugin work around it.

Comment 2

[Smokey Ardisson (offline for a while; not following bugs - do not email)]

FWIW, I can't reproduce this in a 1.9.0.14pre-based Camino nightly on Mac OS X 10.5.7, with "Java for Mac OS X 10.5 Update 4" and Java console not set to open.  

IIRC, I have seen the weird toolbar color stuff happen in Firefox 3.0.x with other plug-ins, though.

Comment 3

[Steven Michaud [:smichaud] (Retired)]

> FWIW, I can't reproduce this in a 1.9.0.14pre-based Camino nightly
> on Mac OS X 10.5.7, with "Java for Mac OS X 10.5 Update 4" and Java
> console not set to open.

I haven't yet tried 1.9.0-branch Camino, but I couldn't reproduce it
in Camino 1.6.8.  Or in FF 2.0.0.20 -- but that's probably just due to
using a Carbon-based browser as opposed to a Cocoa-based one.

I can repro (on OS X 10.5.7) in FF 3.0.X and 3.5.X using an older
version of the JEP (0.9.6.5).

> IIRC, I have seen the weird toolbar color stuff happen in Firefox
> 3.0.x with other plug-ins, though.

If you remember which ones, please let us know.

Comment 4

[Steven Michaud [:smichaud] (Retired)]

> I suspect [the bug] only happens with Apple's most recent update for
> Java on OS X 10.5.X (Java for Mac OS X 10.5 Update 4)

I've confirmed this.  The bug doesn't happen with Java for Mac OS X
10.5 Update 3, on OS X 10.5.7 or 10.5.8.

Comment 5

[Steven Michaud [:smichaud] (Retired)]

This is definitely an Apple bug -- one that also happens on OS X 10.6
(SnowLeopard) and has somehow gotten "backported" to Java for Mac OS X
10.5 Update 4.

I've got a workaround for this bug on SnowLeopard.  So all I've had to
do is backport my workaround to versions of OS X 10.5 >= 10.5.7
(Update 4 requires 10.5.7 or higher).

This workaround will appear in the next release (0.9.7.3) of the Java
Embedding Plugin.  My guess is that this will happen sometime in the
next few months.

Comment 7

[Kevin Dangoor]

It's been a couple of months since that last comment. Any word on when 0.9.7.3 of the Java Embedding Plugin will be out?

Comment 8

[Steven Michaud [:smichaud] (Retired)]

In the next month or two, I think.

Comment 9

[Smokey Ardisson (offline for a while; not following bugs - do not email)]

(In reply to comment #1)
>    You can make the problem go away by getting the browser to open
>    anther window, then closing that window.  (For example, you can
>    choose Firefox : About Mozilla Firefox, then close the About
>    window).

If you try Cmd-N, you trigger bug 538053 (double-processing; I think there's a more general bug on double-processing when plug-ins are focused, possibly in Widget:Cocoa instead of Plug-ins, but I can't find it ATM) and get two windows, though you still exit the weird state.  This implies that the plug-in has focus and is holding on tight :P

Comment 11

[Steven Michaud [:smichaud] (Retired)]

I've just released a new version of the Java Embedding Plugin
(0.9.7.3) that fixes this bug (by working around it).  For more
information see bug 551327.

Comment 12

[Steven Michaud [:smichaud] (Retired)]

JEP 0.9.7.3 has now landed on the 1.9.2 and 1.9.1 branches, and should
be in tomorrow's Firefox 3.6.3pre and 3.1.10pre nightlies (at
ftp://ftp.mozilla.org/pub/mozilla.org/firefox/nightly/).

Please test with them and let us know your results.