I want my old Firefox back!

Factual Questions
1

So, I upgraded to the latest Mozilla Firefox version, and I kinda wish I hadn’t.

When I used to “clear private data”, the history in the url bar would also clear, but now it doesn’t. But it’s weird, because it seems to keep some random (to me at least) list of web addresses and I can’t figure out how to get rid of them. I’m not sure what the right term for that list is-- it’s not the actual “History” list, but just those recently visited web sites that are accessable by clicking on the down arrow at the right end of the url bar.

Anybody know what’s going on and how I can clear all that stuff?

2

I don’t get an url history when I do that, I get bookmarks. I can’t even figure out how to get an url history anymore. If I can’t back into it or don’t have it bookmaked, I have to type in the url all over again.

3

I’d wager that the links you’re seeing in the URL bar (after clearing private history) are your bookmarks. For some reason, Mozilla thought it would be a good idea if all your bookmarks showed up in the URL bar (or “Awesom Bar” as they call it). Here are two extensions that should help restore the familiar behavior of Firefox 2.

Firefox 2 URL bar appearance:
https://addons.update.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/6227

Hide bookmarks from URL bar:
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/7429

4

Wow, hadn’t noticed that. They combined the history sidebar with the bookmark window. Mine shows regular browsing history, though. Do you have a “history” button up top? I think it’s not there by default, you have to put it in. Go to the “view” menu, select toolbars, then customize. A window opens up which will let you select the buttons in the navigation toolbar.

5

I love the new URL workings in Firefox. It uses the new Tags system in Bookmarks. For instance, I tag all my film bookmarks as ‘movies’. Then, when I type ‘movies’ into the URL bar I get a dropdown list of all my movie sites.

It’s a great system once you get used to it.

6

I can’t figure out how they list them. Fark stays at the top, although I only go to it rarely. It isn’t alpabetical. Because the next one is StackOverflow and the next one after that is Craigslist. So, it isn’t most recent, it isn’t alphabetical and it isn’t the one I go to the most… So how DO they decide the order? I think I would prefer most recent at the top.

7

It took some of most least used bookmarks and mixed them with some of my most used ones. It’s very strange. At any rate, I don’t want them showing up there. There must be a way to get rid of those things! I’ll try what hobscrk777 recommends.

8

Haven’t cleared my private history recently (and don’t want to), but the links in my URL bar that I see when I click the little down-arrow to the right of it are not my bookmarks. None of the entries currently in that list on my computer are bookmarks; they are all sites that I visited in the not-too-distant past.

9

I just never click on that down arrow. I don’t need to for anything I do so I don’t care what is there. Solves the problem for me. Ignorance is bliss… and all that… :smiley:

10

To edit what gets nuked when closing FF:
Tools -> Options -> Privacy tab -> Settings -> Specify what gets nuked

To make the URL bar behave more like the original FF (note that editing your config file can really fuck shit up so do this at your own risk):

type in “about:config” in your address bar, acknowledge that you may end the world by proceeding

search “url”

Change:

browser.urlbar.matchOnlyTyped;true (make sure this is to true-- to edit right click, modify, type in true for the value)

and

browser.urlbar.matchBehavior;2

You can also add to the number of your most commonly visited sites by changing this value:

browser.urlbar.maxRichResults;20 (numerical value is number of sites shown in the drop down URL bar)