change find bar back
is there anyway to get the old find bar back? i tried looking in about:config and searching online but couldn't find anything. i was hoping you could customize it like the other toolbars and i could remove the flexible space or move the controls around.
does mozilla do usability tests? i doubt they do because there is no way the new find is easier to use or an upgrade over then the old one. i really don't want to install an add-on just to make the find bar usable again. this is almost as bad as when they removed the new tab option from the tabs context menu (something chrome has). thanks.
why the new find bar is horrible.
- the find next/previous occurrence buttons are tiny and much harder to click. there is no reason for them to be so small because there is plenty of unused space.
- the find next occurrence was moved farther away from the textbox. i just about always want to use the find next occurrence option first.
- highlight all, match case and the X to close the find bar are all the way on the opposite side. with ff maximized on a widescreen monitor that is nowhere near the textbox and next/previous buttons.
just to remind you how much better the old find bar was. everything about the top bar is better and more user friendly.
Modified by jonjonjon
Chosen solution
Here is a better code to move the spacer from its current position before the two buttons to a position after the two buttons to push the close button to the right end.
Add code to the userChrome.css file below the default @namespace line.
The customization files userChrome.css (user interface) and userContent.css (websites) are located in the chrome folder in the Firefox profile folder.
@namespace url("http://www.mozilla.org/keymaster/gatekeeper/there.is.only.xul"); /* only needed once */
/* add text to Previous and Next buttons */
.findbar-find-previous label:after { content: "Previous"; }
.findbar-find-next label:after { content: "Next"; }
/* more possible tweaks */
/* Quick find - show buttons */
.findbar-container>*, .findbar-container>hbox>* { display:-moz-box; }
/* move spacer to a position behind the Match case button */
.findbar-container>spacer { -moz-box-ordinal-group:2 !important; }
/* close button at far left */
.findbar-closebutton { -moz-box-ordinal-group: 0 !important; }
/* older Firefox versions may need this code */
/* .findbar-container>.findbar-closebutton { -moz-box-ordinal-group: 0 !important; margin-right:10px!important} */
/* adjust the width of the text field */
.findbar-textbox { width:30em !important; }
/* add a background color to the checked Highlight and Case sensitive buttons */
.findbar-highlight[checked]>label { background-color:#ff8 !important; }
.findbar-case-sensitive[checked]>label { background-color:#f88 !important; }
.findbar-case-sensitive[checked]+label { display:none !important; } /* hide "(Case sensitive)" label */
(you can consider to use "Prev" instead of "Previous" to give both buttons the same size)
edited to update the code for current releases.
Read this answer in context 👍 21All Replies (12)
That is the built-in file that Firefox uses to style the Find bar, so you can see which CSS are currently applied.
Then you know which to change (override) with your own rules.
I showed them so you can see how the border of the previous and next button are defined.
-moz-border-end-width and -moz-border-start-width are proprietary Mozilla rules for the border-right-width and border-left-width.
Any way to make the bar match the browser's background if I'm using a browser skin? Or to get it to stay open if I'm changing tabs, and make it so that, when I close it, it's closing on all tabs?
>"does mozilla do usability tests? i doubt they do because there is no way the new find is easier to use or an upgrade over then the old one. "
I couldn't agree more.
if you add this 'border-right: 1px solid #a0a0a0!important' it will draw a line on the side of the button.
The css code is excellent, not just for what it does, but for showing what can be done at the user level and for opening up so much potential. Speaking of which, is there code I can add that will force the Find bar to remain open at all times?
I'm aware of "Search for text when I start typing" and this is not acceptable as the bar still sinks after a few moments of non-use. I want the bar to ALWAYS be there:
- On new tabs
- After closing and reopening Firefox
- After any length of time without being used
- Even if it means that the bar can't be closed manually, I'd prefer that to having it close or sink automatically.
Modified by Catteneo
WOW! thats exactly it. Solves the problem. Even ctrl+F minimizes the bar again which I couldnt do with user.css thing.
++++ great!
Outstanding. That's exactly what I was looking for plus much more. Thanks Hawran.
[quote]just to remind you how much better the old find bar was. everything about the top bar is better and more user friendly.
http://s11.postimg.org/qsc5piwr7/ff_find.png /quote
I agree completely. The new one might be fine for those accursed tablets or mobile devices, but I use a PC for that stuff. I know I'm in the minority, but I wouldn't miss tablets and smart phones whatsoever.
Welcome to the minority Sonic. My only computer sits on my desk, my only only phone is MagicJack, my only music player is my Internet radio. I like to keep an uncluttered life and an uncluttered mind.
Mozilla managed to break this in Firefox 28 somehow, now you have to remove ".findbar-container>" for some things to work. To make the close button be on the left again change this:
/* close button at far left */
.findbar-container>.findbar-closebutton { -moz-box-ordinal-group:0!important; margin-right:10px!important; }
into this:
/* close button at far left */
.findbar-closebutton { -moz-box-ordinal-group: 0 !important; margin-right:10px !important; }
Modified by Geiner
Thanks I've edited the post.
I don't think that you need the margin-right, so removed that as well.
See this post for a suggestion about the background color of .findbar-find-status:
Modified by cor-el