Tweaks

From Firefox Extension Guru's Wiki

Introduction

Tweaks allow you to make changes to the Firefox browser behavior that can not be changed through the regular browser settings. The tweaks are classified into three categories: display, tabs and general. It is also important to note that not all tweaks will work on all versions of Firefox. Each tweak will include which versions of Firefox will support the tweak.

Disclaimer

The Firefox Extension Guru is an independent beta-tester and is not affiliated with Mozilla Corporation. While most of these tips, tricks, suggestions, etc. are relatively simple to do, there is still a risk of damaging your profile. Therefore these are recommended for advanced Firefox users and should be attempted at your own risk! Consider backing-up your profile or creating a new profile before attempting these tweaks.

Compatibility

Tweaks are tested for compatibility in Firefox 2.0, 3.0, 3.5 and pre-released/developmental versions of 3.6

Guide

For each version of Firefox tested compatibility is indicated by one of the three color coded values below:

NO - Tweak will NOT work for this version of Firefox
YES - Tweak will work for this version of Firefox
NOT FULLY - Part of a multi-part tweak will NOT work for this version of Firefox

How To Tweak

Most tweaks require the user to either change settings in their about:config settings or their userChrome.css file.

about:config

Some of the tweaks are done though the about:config interface where users preferences can be viewed and modified. To access the about:config settings follow these simple steps:

Open a new tab
In the address bar type about:config
Click the Go Button or press enter
If this is your first time accessing this interface you will get a humors warning (loaded gun or void warranty). Click the I'll be careful button to proceed.

More information on the about:config entries can be found on mozillaZine about:config entries.

Interface

At the top of the windows is text filed labeled Filter. This allows you to only show entries that contain the word or words entered. The filter only applies to the Preference Name and Value fields. Entries in bold have been changed from the default and their status will show as user set. Every entry is one of three types:

Boolean - value is either True or False
Integer - value is numbers only
String - value is any character (text, numbers and special characters).

Changing Entries

To change and entry, either right-click on the entry and select Modify or double-click the entry. For Boolean entries doing so will toggle the value. Integer and String entries will produce a dialog box promoting for the new value. In the event the wrong entry is modified or the change produces undesirable results, right-click on the entry and select reset (note: this changes the value back to the default, not what it was prior to being modified.

userChrome.css

Some of the tweaks require modification to your userChrome.css file located in the chrome folder within your profile folder.

Modifying userChrome.css

Changes made to the userChrome.css file can NOT be undone once saved. Therefore before making any changes to the userChrome.css file make a back-up copy first.

IMPORTANT Close Firefox before saving changes made to your userChrome.css file.

WARNING!!! DO NOT REMOVE the line which starts with: @namespace

This file should only be edited with a text-editor such as Notepad or Notepad++. It is NOT recommended using MS Word or similar Word Processor applications.

For best results we recommend using the ChromeEdit Plus Extension. The extension will automatically locate your userChrome.css file and open it in an external editor.

Tweak Categories

The tweaks fall into one or more of the following three categories: Display, Tabs or General. More information is available for each category below.

Display Tweaks

Display Tweaks make changes to the overall Firefox display or how information is displayed within the browser.

Add-Ons Manager or Downloads Manger in Sidebar: Allows the Add-Ons and/or Download Managers to be opened in a sidebar instead of pop-up window
Address Bar Tweaks: Changes the appearance and/or behaviour of the Firefox 3 Smart Location Bar aka AwesomeBar.
Always Display Go Button: Allows the Go button to always be displayed
Change Progress Bar Color: Changes the color of the progress bar in the status bar
Disable Apostrophe Opening QuickFind Bar: Prevents the Apostrophe and Slash keys from opening the QuickFind bar.
Disable Autoscrolling: Turns off the autoscrolling feature
Disable Drag & Drop (Preview) Images: Turns off graphical preview of text/image when dragging and dropping.
Full Screen Mode Tweaks: Make the location and tab bars visible in Full Screen mode.
Make Active Tab Wider: Makes the active tab wider than the other tabs.
Moving/Removing List All Tabs Button: Removes or moves the location of the List All Tabs Button.
Moving/Removing Search Box: How to move or remove the search box.
Moving the Sidebar: How to move the tab bar to the bottom of the browser window.
Pause/Disable Animated GIFs: Adds control over animated GIFs.
Removing Bookmark Star: Removes the Bookmark Star button added to the Firefox 3 address bar.
Removing Go Button: Removes the ‘'Go button from the address bar.
Removing Live Feed Button: Remove the Live Feed button from the address bar.
Removing Search Go Button: Removes the Magnifying Glass (Go) button from within the search box.
Removing The Throbber: Removes the Firefox Throbber from the toolbar.
Scroll Acceleration Tweak: How to enable the Scroll Acceleration features in Firefox 3.6

Tabs Tweaks

Tabs Tweaks make changes to the behavior of the tabs and/or the tab bar.

Close Tab Buttons: Changes the way the Close Tab buttons are displayed.
Disable Tab Tearing: Turns off the Tab Tearing feature
Full Screen Mode Tweaks: Make the location and tab bars visible in Full Screen mode.
Make Active Tab Wider: Makes the active tab wider than the other tabs.
Moving/Removing List All Tabs Button: Removes or moves the location of the List All Tabs Button.
Moving The Tab Bar: How to move the tab bar to the bottom of the browser window.
Open New Tabs Far Right: Changes how new tabs are opened from links on the tab bar.
Search Results In New Tab: Displays search results from the search box in a new tab (instead of the current tab)
Session Restore Tweak: Allows Firefox to start off where you were when you closed it, keeping all windows and tabs intact.
Tab Overflow: How to change or disable the Tab Overflow (scrolling tabs) feature.
Tab Preview Tweaks: How to enable the Tab Preview and Tab Preview Panel features in Firefox 3.6

General Tweaks

General Tweaks make changes to the behavior of the Firefox browser, not necessarily to the display and/or tabs.

Add-Ons Install Button: Adds an install button to the add-ons manager.
Address Bar Tweaks: Changes the appearance and/or behaviour of the Firefox 3 Smart Location Bar aka AwesomeBar.
Bookmarks: Backing up and Recovering: A how-to guide on recovering your Bookmarks.
Changing Mousewheel Behaviors: Allows customization of mousewheel (scroll wheel) behaviors.
Importing Dictionary: Allows you to import your custom dictionary from another profile.
Importing Saved Passwords: Allows you to import your saved passwords from another profile.
Managing Cookies in Firefox 3.5: How to access the Cookies controls in Firefox 3.5.
Overriding Add-ons Compatibility Check: How to disable to built-in Add-ons Compatibility Check
Removing Added Words From Fx Dictionary: How-to remove words added in error to the Firefox dictionary.
Speed Up Firefox Startup: Simple steps to greatly improve the startup speed of Firefox.
Spell Check Tweak: Allows the spell checker to check both single and multi-line text area fields
YouTube Jumpiness Tweak: Fix issues with 'jumpy' YouTube videos in Firefox