On the new tab, do you want the standard Firefox new tab page ([[Customize the New Tab page]]) to use Google from its search box, or do you want a Google page ''in place of'' the standard Firefox page? * The search box on Firefox's built-in new tab page should use your default search engine automatically. See: [[Change your default search settings in Firefox]]. * Firefox 41 and later do not use the browser.newtab.url setting because it was constantly attacked by malware. Now you need an add-on to change the new tab page. More on that later. If you are currently seeing a new tab page ''other than'' Firefox's built-in new tab page, perhaps there is another extension making the change that isn't so obvious. Do you want to experiment with disabling all extensions and see whether that restores the default? One way is to test in Firefox's Safe Mode. In Safe Mode, Firefox temporarily deactivates extensions, hardware acceleration, and some other advanced features to help you assess whether these are causing the problem. ''If Firefox is not running:'' Hold down the Shift key when starting Firefox. ''If Firefox is running:'' You can restart Firefox in Safe Mode using either: * "3-bar" menu button > "?" button > Restart with Add-ons Disabled * Help menu > Restart with Add-ons Disabled and OK the restart. ''Both scenarios:'' A small dialog should appear. Click "Start in Safe Mode" (''not'' Refresh). Any difference? ---- Here are some options for replacing the new tab page: * ''If you already use either the "Classic Theme Restorer" or "Tab Mix Plus" extension:'' There is an option somewhere (!) in its extensive settings dialogs to select a different new tab page. * ''If you want to use your home page on the new tab:'' Try https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/new-tab-homepage/ * ''If you want to set a different page or a completely blank page:'' Try https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/new-tab-override/ * ''If you want the cursor to move into a search box in the page:'' Try https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/custom-new-tab/ ''Please only use one of these methods at a time, otherwise there may be conflicts and dysfunctionality.'' '''Setting up New Tab Override and Custom New Tab''' After installing one of these extensions, you need to use its Options page to set the desired new tab page (instead of using about:config). Open the Add-ons page using either: * Ctrl+Shift+a (Mac: Cmd+Shift+a) * "3-bar" menu button (or Tools menu) > Add-ons In the left column, click Extensions. Then on the right side, find New Tab Override or Custom New Tab and click its Options button. (See screen shot attached.) ''New Tab Override'' Depending on the height of your screen, you may need to scroll down to enter the desired address into the form. For example: * ''Page thumbnails (default)'' => about:newtab * ''Blank tab'' => about:blank * ''Built-in Firefox home page'' => about:home * ''Any other page'' => full URL to the page Then tab or click away from that form field and you can test using Ctrl+t. ''Custom New Tab'' Entering your preferred home page address is simple. If you do not check either of the boxes, the extension will set the focus in the page so, for example, the cursor will be in the Google search box. I had to exit Firefox and start it up again before Custom New Tab started working, but this may have been due to testing so many extensions back-to-back. Success?