Ubuntu 9.04 and Firefox 3.5 (Shiretoko)
Jaunty users have it as easy as:
sudo apt-get install firefox-3.5
You can also install by way of Synaptic by searching for the firefox-3.5 package name.
That’s assuming one has the universe repository enabled. This will install FF 3.5 as Shiretoko, it’s developmental codename. It was decided to retain the Shiretoko name to differentiate it from FF 3.0 which is the default browser for Jaunty. It is planned that FF 3.5 will be the default for Karmic.
When FF 3.5 (Shiretoko) is first run, it will make a copy of your current ~/.mozilla/firefox directory to ~/.mozilla/firefox-3.5 so that all of your settings, preferences, add-ons, etc. from FF 3.0 will be the same in FF 3.5. Although, as in the past, new versions of Firefox may prevent some previous extensions from being seen as compatible. There is a workaround for this which I’ll cover briefly in my next post.
You’ll see it listed in the Internet menu as Shiretoko Web Broswer with a Firefox-less globe icon. Once installed, both versions will coexist happily on your computer. The only thing to remember is that any changes you make to one will not be mirrored by the other since they won’t share the same settings directory.
For the more advanced users who are brave enough, one can move the new directory to a new name and create a symbolic link to the original so that settings are shared between the two.
mv ~/.mozilla/firefox-3.5 ~/.mozilla/firefox-3.5-original
ln -s firefox firefox-3.5
Whenever Shiretoko looks to ~/.mozilla/firefox-3.5 it will actually find the ~/.mozilla/firefox directory. The only drawback to this is FF 3.0 and FF 3.5 constantly checking plugins when switching from one to the other.
July 20th, 2009 at 3:47 pm
I change the symbolic link in /usr/bin/
now, firefox points to firefox-3.5 by default
Hopefully nothin screws up…
July 20th, 2009 at 11:46 pm
I doubt anything would screw up with that workaround. Just remember that while you can launch 3.5 with firefox, 3.5 will still use ~/.mozilla/firefox-3.5 in Ubuntu’s Jaunty setup for settings and saved data. I haven’t seen any details if Karmic will be made to take that into consideration during an upgrade. Karmic will have 3.5 by default and will most likely use the default ~/.mozilla/firefox location.
July 22nd, 2009 at 12:27 am
“Once installed, both versions will coexist happily on your computer.”
More like “coexist crappily”, amirite?
Instead of trying to run them side-by-side, with Firefox as the default browser that pops up when you click a link, and Shiretoko having its own clone of your profile that doesn’t remember anything you did in Firefox since you installed it, with a kludgy workaround to restore your profile in the next release, and apt: links not working in Shiretoko, and so on and so on, why can’t there just be a package that removes Firefox 3.1 and installs 3.5 in its place?
I’m sure there’s a reason for being able to run both side-by-side, and that should be possible, but most people just want to upgrade, and run a single browser that actually works right. That should be possible as a package, too.
July 22nd, 2009 at 4:18 am
One way you can solve the issue of FF3.0 launching when clicking links, if you’re not planning to remove it, is by changing the setting for the Web Browser in Preferred Applications. Set it for custom and change the Command entry to read firefox-3.5 %s to have FF3.5 launch for clicked links.
The apt: url link support, for the few who actually benefit from it, comes from the ubufox plugin which wasn’t getting along with 3.5 and won’t be fixed for Jaunty.
The frustrations some are having over Ubuntu’s approach to providing 3.5 are understandable. However, it has always been Ubuntu’s strategy to support a clearly defined set of versions for each distribution. While there have been instances of newer versions of applications being backported, they still maintain support for only the versions that were a part of that distribution. Meaning, if you want FF3.5, Ubuntu’s not going to provide it pre-Karmic as a default. You’ll either have to accept Ubuntu’s Shiretoko setup, or install 3.5 on your own either manually from Mozilla or through the use of a PPA.
That shouldn’t stop anyone from using the packages provided by Ubuntu. I’ve been using 3.5 since before it went final with only the rarest issue. After a few tweaks, I didn’t have any reason to use 3.0.11 again.
August 7th, 2009 at 3:58 pm
I found a much easier solution for Ubuntu. On 9.04 I already had three symbolic links:
firefox-3.0
firefox-3.5
firefox
The last one, firefox, pointed at firefox-3.0. So to make firefox 3.5 the default browser, just destroy and recreate that symbolic link:
sudo unlink firefox
sudo ln -s firefox-3.5 firefox
Now firefox 3.5 will be your default browser for any programs that autolaunch firefox when clicking on links. And you can still start firefox 3.0 simply by editing the menu properties for the firefox launcher to point to ‘firefox-3.0 %u’
August 17th, 2009 at 11:06 am
I was wondering if the removal of FF3.0 is possible? Is Shiretoko not a stand-alone app in Jaunty?
August 18th, 2009 at 1:32 am
Removing FF3.0 is certainly an option which many have done. However, I don’t recommend it for a few reasons.
1. Backup. There are going to be some websites that simply won’t function correctly with Shiretoko because it won’t identify itself as Firefox. The argument from Ubuntu is that it shouldn’t be a factor and it is actually bad programming on the part of the website to look for “firefox” and not “gecko” from the browser’s identification string. While this may be true, it still doesn’t solve the issue.
2. Support. Shiretoko is not the “supported” browser for Januty. FF3.0 is. While Ubuntu maintains the same effort in keeping Shiretoko up-to-date with FF3.5 releases, it still isn’t considered the default. This will change with the release of Ubuntu 9.10 in October.
3. Ability. There is nothing inherently wrong with FF3.0. Obviously it doesn’t benefit from the advances made with F3.5, but in the end FF3.0 is still a very stable and secure browser.
August 26th, 2009 at 9:24 pm
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