You get the (Not Responding) in the title bar of the Firefox window?

To see whether this is related to the Flash plugin, could you disable it temporarily and try using Yahoo mail and other sites without it? You probably can determine whether it's relevant in less than 30 minutes.

Open the Add-ons page using either:

• Ctrl+Shift+a
• orange Firefox button (or Tools menu) > Add-ons

In the left column, click Plugins. Then find Shockwave Flash and set it to "Never Activate". (Later, when you return to re-activate it, it will be at the bottom with any other inactive plugins.)

Any difference?

If it's a Flash issue, try disabling the protected mode feature. See this support article from Adobe under the heading "Last Resort": Adobe Forums: How do I troubleshoot Flash Player's protected mode for Firefox?

You get the (Not Responding) in the title bar of the Firefox window? YES . Thanks for answering my request for help. I tried doing what you suggested BUT I am still having the same problem. So, we now know that it is not a Flash issue. Hardware acceleration is not checked because someone suggest I try this also. Leaving this not checked did not resolve the issue either, so we know that this is not the source of the problem. I've use Firefox for years but this situation is probably going to cause me to download an other browser, which is something I really do not want to do.

Does anyone have any additional suggestions? I can't be the only person with a Win8.1, touchscreen Lenovo computer using this browser that is having this issue.

Could you test by visiting the same sites in Firefox's Safe Mode? That's a standard diagnostic tool to bypass interference by extensions (and some custom settings). More info: Diagnose Firefox issues using Troubleshoot Mode.

You can restart Firefox in Safe Mode using

Help > Restart with Add-ons Disabled

In the dialog, click "Start in Safe Mode" (not Reset)

Any difference?

Hi jscher2000, Using safe mode did not resolved the situation. Also, I disabled the four extensions I have per the instructions on Firefox. Disabling them actually caused the browser to move even slower then I have been writing about. And, I do not have any add-ons. I guess I could disable the plugins, next, but I am not sure that is a very good idea. We already tried not using the Shockwave Flash, which did nothing to resolved the problem. So, do you have any additional troubleshooting ideas for me to try? Thank you very much for your help.

Hi Krava, you could disable unimportant plugins, but I don't think it will make a big difference either way.

Could you clarify something for me: when you say you have a problem loading a new tab, is it the standard new tab page with 9 thumbnails for your frequently visited sites, or do you mean opening a link in a new tab?

Does your external security software (Norton, I believe) filter your Firefox web traffic? If so, please review those settings and maybe adjust what is blocked.

Is there anything special about the way you connect? You can check Firefox's setting here:

orange Firefox button (or Tools menu) > Options > Advanced > Network mini-tab > "Settings" button

By default, Firefox will use your Internet Explorer (LAN) connection setting, "Use system proxy settings". You could try "No proxy" and see whether that makes any difference.

Some users have installed private VPN or onion routing (TOR) software that might affect how sites are accessed.

Some malware may access the internet in the background while you are using Firefox to disguise their traffic. You can supplement your regular security scans with the tools listed in this article: Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware.

Boot the computer in Windows Safe Mode with network support (press F8 on the boot screen) as a test to see if that helps.

Do a malware check with some malware scanning programs on the Windows computer.
Please scan with all programs because each program detects different malware.
All these programs have free versions.

Make sure that you update each program to get the latest version of their databases before doing a scan.

• Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware:
  http://www.malwarebytes.org/mbam.php
• AdwCleaner:
  http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/download/adwcleaner/
  http://www.softpedia.com/get/Antivirus/Removal-Tools/AdwCleaner.shtml
• SuperAntispyware:
  http://www.superantispyware.com/
• Microsoft Safety Scanner:
  http://www.microsoft.com/security/scanner/en-us/default.aspx
• Windows Defender: Home Page:
  http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/defender/default.mspx
• Spybot Search & Destroy:
  http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html
• Kasperky Free Security Scan:
  http://www.kaspersky.com/security-scan

You can also do a check for a rootkit infection with TDSSKiller.

• Anti-rootkit utility TDSSKiller:
  http://support.kaspersky.com/5350?el=88446

See also:

• "Spyware on Windows": http://kb.mozillazine.org/Popups_not_blocked

jscher2000 asked:"Could you clarify something for me: when you say you have a problem loading a new tab, is it the standard new tab page with 9 thumbnails for your frequently visited sites, or do you mean opening a link in a new tab?" I have Firefox setup to open a link that I click on in an email or on a site into a new tab, and this is the new tab I am writing about. When I click on the link in the email or on a site, there is a delay and I get the dreaded "not responding" message. After a wait, finally I get to the site. And, which just happened, when I went from writing here and clicked on the tab to go back to my Yahoo email, I received the "not responding" message.

I have also used the additional malware checking programs that are listed on the Firefox site in additional to Norton. Malwarebytes found 14 issues, which it took care of, but I still have the "not responding" problem. I even did the long version of their scan which did not find anything additional. I used the Microsoft Safety Scanner also. This program did not find anything.

I mentioned above that I was getting the "not responding" message just going from here back to my email, but this last time I did that I did not get the "not responding" issue and was able to go back and forth normally.

Everything you asked me to check looks normal. I just wish Firefox would work properly 98% of the time and some this "not responding" nonsense.

I also do a program called Lumosity. This program will not work correctly when Firefox decides to not respond. Fortunately, this does not happen all of the time, but then it should not happen at all.

I wonder the Firefox is meant to work with a Win8.1 touchscreen computer. I really do appreciate all of your help. Maybe we will get to the bottom of this some day.

I forgot to mention that even just going from one email to the next can cause the dreaded "not responding" message. This happens whether I delete the email I was reading or what to go the next email in line while keeping the one I was just reading.

Also, when I click on the + to open a new tab I get the "not responding" message. And, if I try to close an open tab, I get the "not responding" message.

These just happened.

Hi, I have tried just about everything everyone has suggested so far, but I am still having the problem. Does anyone have any additional suggestions? Thank you in advance to all who answer my request for help.

To test how Firefox runs "uncustomized" on your system, could you do a two-minute experiment?

Create a new Firefox profile

A new profile will have your system-installed plugins (e.g., Flash) and extensions (e.g., security suite toolbars), but no themes, other extensions, or other customizations. It also should have completely fresh settings databases and a fresh cache folder.

Exit Firefox and start up in the Profile Manager using Start > search box (or Run) (not sure how you do this on Windows 8, maybe the Window key + r):

firefox.exe -P

Any time you want to switch profiles, exit Firefox and return to this dialog.

You'll click the Create Profile button. I recommend using the default location suggested, and not clicking the button to choose a specific folder. Then start Firefox in the new profile you created.

If you launch that external link, does it work any more quickly? Do the page-to-page problems with NOT RESPONDING still occur?

When returning to the Profile Manager, you might be tempted to use the Delete Profile button. But... it's a bit too easy to accidentally delete your "real" profile, so I recommend resisting the temptation. If you do want to clean up later, I suggest making a backup of all your profiles first in case something were to go wrong.

Still have the issue. I have tried not using the Norton password vault toolbar, but I still get the not responding message. Yes, Norton is probably running in the background. IF it turns out that Norton is the reason for my problem, then what should I replace the program with? I have it on 5 computers, but this is the only one with the non responding issue and this is the only computer that uses Firefox. Thank you for your help.

Hi Krava, apologies for the delayed response. I am not very familiar with how Norton might be filtering Firefox's access to the internet. However, there are many Norton users and I can't think of any threads where a user had to stop using it.

I'm puzzled by your statement that you do not have any other browsers on this computer. Doesn't Internet Explorer 11 come installed on Windows 8.1? Is it not working correctly either?

Yes, Internet Explore is on the computer, but I don't care for it, has too many issues and the bottom line is I just won't use it. I prefer Firefox. I have decided to not renew my Norton and will probably go to Avast because I have been told it works great with Firefox. Also, I did some testing with the Norton disabled and my not responding because a lot less frequent. I did contact Norton about this issue. Thank you for your help. It is really appreciated.