The change between Firefox 3.6.* and Firefox 4 is how location bar search works. In Firefox 3.6 it 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. With Firefox 4 it just performs a Google search if you type something which is not recognised as a URL. To get the Firefox 3.6 behaviour on Firefox 4 you need to change a hidden preference. # Type '''about:config''' into the location bar and press enter # Accept the warning message that appears, you will be taken to a list of preferences # Locate the preference '''keyword.URL''', double-click on it and change its value to the link shown below [http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q= http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q=] If you prefer, you can also do this by installing the Browse by Name extension - https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/browse-by-name