"...I have crash problems..."

See if any of this information helps:

• http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Firefox+crashes
• http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Firefox+crashes+when+loading+certain+pages
• http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Firefox+crashes+when+you+open+it
• http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Firefox+will+not+start

"...problems with the appearance of FF 4.x..."

Maybe the following will help

You can change the interface to look much like Firefox 3.6.x. See:

• http://www.computertechtips.net/64/make-firefox-4-look-like-ff-3-6/
• http://blog.fligtar.com/2011/01/16/how-to-customize-firefox-4s-ui/

Firefox 3 Theme for Firefox 4: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/firefox-3-theme-for-firefox/

• Add color home, back/forward and other buttons (like Firefox 3) to the Navigation Toolbar in place of the gray buttons in Firefox 4
• See: http://ffaddons.game-point.net/ff3ff4/

Also see:

• http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/How+to+customize+the+toolbar

There are major changes to the user interface in Firefox 4.

1. The MenuBar / Firefox button. Turn on the Firefox 3 style Menu Bar on (Firefox button off) or turn the Menu Bar off (Firefox button on) using one of the following:
   • HOLD down the ALT key while pressing the keyboard letters VTM. The Menu Bar will appear as in Firefox 3.6. This places a check mark next to "Menu Bar".
   • Right-click in a blank space on a tool bar, click "Menu Bar" to check/un-checked (checked = display Menu Bar; un-checked = display Firefox button
   • Using the Menu Bar: View > Toolbars, click Menu Bar to check/un-check (on/off)
   • Using the Firefox button: click Firefox button > Options, click Menu Bar to check/un-check (on/off)
2. Tabs on top (above other toolbars). To change Tab Bar to a position below the toolbars as in prior versions, click "Tabs on top" to check/un-check (on/off)
   • HOLD down the ALT key while pressing the keyboard letters VTT. This checks/un-checks (on/off) "Tabs on top".
   • Right-click in a blank space on a tool bar, click "Tabs on top" to check/un-checked (checked = Tabs are on top; un-checked = Tabs are below toolbars)
   • Using Menu Bar: View > Toolbars
   • Using Firefox button: click Firefox button > Options
   • Use one of the above procedures to again show "Tabs on top" (checked)
3. The Status Bar has been eliminated and replaced by the Add-on Bar. You can restore some of the prior Status Bar functionality on the new Add-on Bar by
   • installing the Status-4-Evar extension: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/status-4-evar/
   • Be sure the Add-on bar is diplayed at the bottom of the Firefox 4 window
     • Ctrl+/ toggles the Add-on Bar displayed or not displayed
     • Firefox button > Options OR, if you are optionally using the Menu Bar instead of the Firefox button, View > Toolbars OR right-click in a blank space on a toolbar::
       • if no check mark next to Add-on Bar, click Add-on bar to place a check mark.
       • If Add-on bar has a check mark, it is already displayed
   • then drag 3 widgets to the Add-on Bar from the Customize Toolbar window (the 3 widgets are: Status Text, Progress Meter, Download Status). To open the Customize Toolbar window
     • Using Menu Bar: click View > Toolbars > Customize
     • Using Firefox button: click Firefox button, click small arrow to the right of Options, click Toolbar Layout
     • Note: Instead of either of the above, you can do as in the past, right-click an empty space in the Navigation toolbar and choose Customize
   • set options for Status-4-Evar:
     • Menu Bar: Tools > Add-ons, click on Status4Ever, click Options, set options to your liking
     • Firefox button: click Firefox button, click Add-ons, scroll down to Status-4-Evar, click Options, set options to your liking
4. Firefox 4.0 has a combined Go/Reload/Stop button that is positioned at the far right of the location bar.
   • During the page load process it shows as a Stop button and after the loading has finished the button is changed to a Reload button. If you type in the location bar then that button becomes a Go button.
   • You can middle-click that button to duplicate the current tab to a new tab.
   • In Firefox 4.0 you can move the Stop/Reload button out of the location bar and put them wherever you want on the toolbar. You can also make them appear as separate buttons on the toolbar.
     • Open the "View > Toolbars > Customize" window to move them out of the location bar.
     • Swap the two buttons or move them to their previous position at the left of the location bar.
     • If the order is "Reload - Stop" to get a combined "Reload/Stop" button.
     • Swap the order to "Stop - Reload" or separate them otherwise to get two distinct buttons.

There is a change in Firefox 4 in how Location bar search works.

• In Firefox 3.6.x, Location bar search uses Google "Browse by name" search. With the browse by name search, it performs a Google search and
  • if there is a clear match it will take you to the site
  • otherwise it shows the Google search result page
• Firefox 4's default is
  • to perform a Google search and present the Google search results page if you type something which is not recognized as a URL
  • you must type a complete URL, such as www.youtube.com , to go directly to the site
• Also make sure you do not clear "Browsing History" when using Clear Recent History:
  • https://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Clear%20Recent%20History
• To get the Firefox 3.6.x behavior in Firefox 4. you need to change a hidden preference.
  1. Type about:config into the location bar and press the Enter key
  2. If you see a warning, zccept it (promise to be careful)
  3. A list of preferences will open
  4. Filter = keyword.URL
  5. Double-click on that preference in the lower pane
  6. A small window will appear; copy the line below and paste into the box in that small window (or type it into the box in that window exactly as shown below):
     • http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q=
• See:
  • http://kb.mozillazine.org/About:config
  • http://kb.mozillazine.org/Keyword.URL
  • http://kb.mozillazine.org/Location_Bar_search

I don't mean to say this is just too much information, it's just that it doesn't focus on my problem. Perhaps I failed to outline my problem clearly as most of this info does not apply.

1. I use FF 4.x on my Win 7 machine without problems. I am quickly becoming familiar with and comfortable with the changes. I like them. 2. I also have tried to use FF 4.x on my Win XP machine and have had problems. It does NOT look like the same browser on my XP machine. Once I open another browser window from the first window, I see 2 title banners at the top and frequently some stuff just doesn't work. It's different and it's hard to get used to.

I appreciate all this info; I'm sure some of it will be useful at some point.

Mine is doing the same thing with the XP Pro I have on the desktop. I haven't loaded Firefox 4 on the laptop, been afraid to with all the problems I'm having on the desktop.

When I open Firefox there are two banners. It wasn't originally this way and did work fine when I first upgraded. I noticed I now also have an orange Firefox tab on the second banner that contains a drop down list of some menu items, which are still listed where they normally were so it appears to me I should only be seeing one or the other but not both? I haven't checked out to see if the menu items are functional but I do know the private browsing does not work in either location. Everything worked until that Firefox tab showed up and I don't know how to get rid of it.

I don't know either and no one seems interested in this problem. Hard to understand since Win XP users still outnumber Win 7 users. I am slowly learning to accommodate FF 4 on my XP machine. Yet another reason to consider upgrading my XP machine to 7? I wonder if MS pays commission to FF...lol

This pic shows a new approach to tech support.

I've been reading and found what my problem was, yeah, it's now working again, lol. I no longer have two banners and all the menu items are working. I had been using No Script as an Add-on, when I disabled it, everything started working and appearing normal.

   I'm not sure why it didn't do this in the beginning when I first loaded Firefox 4, might have been an update loaded for No Script that made it incompatible. I don't know if this will help your problem but it did mine and I apparently wasn't the only one having this issue. I'll have to leave No Script disabled until they have an update that won't cause problems.

I have never used that specific add on, but it got me thinking. I will try disabling all of them and then enable them one at a time to try to determine which of them might be causing problems. "THANKS FOR THE IDEA!  ;)

Yes I have this exact same problem. Yes I am using Windows XP 32 bit. Yes Firefox used to work fine before I loaded Fiefox 4.0.

I suspect Mikey has hit the nail on the head. I have to use Windows XP because my machine is supplied by my employer and they have decided that there are problems with the deployment of Windows 7 at the moment.

The symptoms I get are the same as Mikey's, plus at FF start I get one standard window plus multiple extra windows (> 10) with two title bars. Also at start up, my previous tabs aren't restored. Tear-off tabs no longer work properly either.

I may have to use another browser until the deployment of Windows 7, which is sad because if I get to like the other browser I may not come back to FF ...