Text and PDFs are faded, semi-transparent, and unreadable.
Hi, Since installing Firefox 6, when I've tried opening a PDF, the entire image looks like it's been run through a bad copy machine that's almost out of ink, and is semi-transparent. (I can see the wallpaper image on my desktop through the PDF.) I have Adobe Reader X version 10.1.0 installed, which appears to be the most recent plug-in. (I've checked that all my Adobe plug-ins are up-to-date, and also disabled every plug-in but Adobe Acrobat, and the problem persists.) I've also noticed this problem with some of the text in Flash applications I've opened, such as a practice quiz site for a textbook I'm using for school. This does not happen in Internet Explorer, or when I open a PDF in the Adobe viewer, leading me to think it's a Firefox issue. It's pretty frustrating that I can't read my online documents or study for my exams using Firefox, since overall it's my browser of choice. Any advise on how I can try to correct this issue? Thanks.
Chosen solution
I have Firefox 6 (but several versions have the same problem) and have been experiencing this same problem and finally found The Solution. Firefox has Hardware Acceleration enabled by default. You need to disable it.
You can do this under Tools ->Options->Advanced. Uncheck the Hardware Acceleration box
1., Type about:config into your address bar and promise to be careful, then search for gfx.direct2d.disabled preference name. Double click on the preference to set it to True.
2., Verify Disable Firefox Direct2D and DirectWrite Hardware Acceleration. Search for gfx.font_rendering.directwrite.enabled preference name. Double click on the preference to set it to False.
Restart Firefox. You should get clear, crisp images as well as correct PDF rendering back. It worked for me!
Source: http://www.mydigitallife.info/fix-firefox-4-fade-blur-bold-bad-and-ugly-font-rendering/
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Chosen Solution
I have Firefox 6 (but several versions have the same problem) and have been experiencing this same problem and finally found The Solution. Firefox has Hardware Acceleration enabled by default. You need to disable it.
You can do this under Tools ->Options->Advanced. Uncheck the Hardware Acceleration box
1., Type about:config into your address bar and promise to be careful, then search for gfx.direct2d.disabled preference name. Double click on the preference to set it to True.
2., Verify Disable Firefox Direct2D and DirectWrite Hardware Acceleration. Search for gfx.font_rendering.directwrite.enabled preference name. Double click on the preference to set it to False.
Restart Firefox. You should get clear, crisp images as well as correct PDF rendering back. It worked for me!
Source: http://www.mydigitallife.info/fix-firefox-4-fade-blur-bold-bad-and-ugly-font-rendering/
Modified by fazzaz
In my case, it was the Red Cats theme that was causing the problem. I removed the theme, and the problem was fixed immediately.
There is a bug in Firefox 6 that causes problems in Aero-based themes. Please update or change your aero based theme (like aspen11 did). See question 866570 for details.
I followed these steps carefully triple checked but this did not work for me. FF 6.02, Win7. BTW, not using any fancy themes only Qute 3++ 1.5.2 icons
Modified by stevedbmw
Disable Qute 3++ theme and now PDF is normal
I had the Foxdie 5 (graphite) theme installed. Reverting to the default theme fixed the problem. I'm on Firefox 8, Windows 7.
Is this a bug in the themes, or the theme framework?