Bug on my AskMe answers page?

July 4, 2006 8:00 AM

Wondering if it's just me, or a bug: go to my answers on AskMeFi. Scroll down to the first answer, "comment posted at 11:35 AM CST on May-21-06", that is beneath the question, "I believe that another tenant has place an air "freshener" in the hallway out side of our apartments in violation of their lease. I want it removed. What should I do?".

When I click on this, my copy of Firefox goes a little bugshit. I can click on the tabs, but the actual display in the screen doesn't change at all, and a lot of the interface elements become unresponsive. I have to quit (not force quit, the menus are still accessible). I'm using Firefox v1.5.0.4 for Mac OS X, using the Whitehart-NC theme.
posted by WCityMike to bugs at 8:00 AM (26 comments total)

I see that problem too and I'm using Firefox 1.5.
posted by jessamyn at 8:18 AM on July 4, 2006

Works fine for me in WinXP with V1.5.0.4 of Firefox, and with IE6.
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 8:18 AM on July 4, 2006

Jess, you're using 10.5?

Really? If so, I must get the gossip via e-mail ... ;-)

Glad to know it's not me, though. All the other answers appear to be working fine (I'm spending some downtime looking through my Ask MeFi answers, to check to see if people ever filed conclusions ... )
posted by WCityMike at 8:20 AM on July 4, 2006

[sorry, corrected my own post, I'm using Firefox 1.5... still drinking coffee]
posted by jessamyn at 8:21 AM on July 4, 2006

It also works completely fine for me with Fx 1.5.0.4.
posted by Rhomboid at 8:30 AM on July 4, 2006

works for me. FF 1.5.0.4/win2000.
posted by Tuwa at 8:33 AM on July 4, 2006

Clarification: since Jess and I are both on Macs, I wonder if it's MacFirefox that's got a problem with it, or if we just have a mutually interfering extension ...
posted by WCityMike at 8:42 AM on July 4, 2006

I'm running TabX, DOM inspector, and Talkback extensions with the GrApple (Zaphod) theme. How about you?
posted by jessamyn at 8:55 AM on July 4, 2006

Wow, if that's the only extensions you've got installed, it must not be an extension that's the cause of the problem ... I don't have a single one of those installed.

I'm amazed you've got so few installed. :-) Here I figured you'd be one of those extension-nuts like I am. Here's my install (courtesy of the MR Tech Local Install extension):

Enabled Extensions: [65]
- Adblock Filterset.G Updater 0.3.0.4: http://www.pierceive.com/
- Adblock Plus 0.7.1: http://adblockplus.org/
- Alt-Text for Links 0.3: http://roachfiend.com
- Always Remember Password 0.3: http://roachfiend.com
- Autoclose Bookmark&History Folders 0.5.3.3: http://www.sephiroth-j.de/mozilla
- Back/Forward Dropdown Remover 1.0.1: http://purl.org/mooquackwooftweetmeow/dropdownremover
- BugMeNot 1.3: http://roachfiend.com
- CacheViewer 0.3: http://park2.wakwak.com/~benki/
- Clone Window 0.2.7: http://www.pikey.me.uk/mozilla/
- CoLT 1.3.2: http://www.borngeek.com/firefox/colt/
- Copy All Urls 0.6.2: http://www.plasser.net/code/xul/
- CSSViewer 1.0.1: http://www.google.com/search?q=Firefox%20CSSViewer
- CustomizeGoogle 0.49: http://www.customizegoogle.com/
- del.icio.us Complete 1.1: http://delicious.mozdev.org/
- Download Statusbar 0.9.4.1: http://downloadstatusbar.mozdev.org/
- Duplicate Tab 0.8.1: http://twanno.mozdev.org/
- Extended Statusbar 1.2.4: http://galeb.etf.bg.ac.yu/~ks040161d/firefox/extensions/esb/
- Fasterfox 1.0.3: http://fasterfox.mozdev.org/
- Feed Your Reader 1.5.1: http://projects.koziarski.net/fyr/
- File Title 1.1: http://www.jasnapaka.com/mozilla/filetitle/
- FireFoxMenuButtons 1.5.1: http://www.addonzilla.com
- Fission 0.8.5: http://forums.mozillazine.org/viewtopic.php?t=370248
- Formfiller 0.2: http://jbaldus.sixbit.org
- FoxClocks 1.2.77: http://www.stemhaus.com/firefox/
- Get File 1.2.1: http://www.pastouchexp.info/firefox/
- Greasemonkey 0.6.4: http://greasemonkey.mozdev.org/
- History Menu 0.44: http://www.google.com/search?q=Firefox%20History%20Menu
- keyconfig 20050313.1: http://mozilla.dorando.at/
- KeywordBar 0.3.1: http://schmidtsite.us/keywordbar
- Linkification 1.2.3: http://www.beggarchooser.com/firefox/
- Linky 2.7.1: http://gemal.dk/mozilla/linky.html
- Locate in Bookmark Folders 0.2.4: http://alex.muntean.name/
- McAfee SiteAdvisor Firefox Extension 22.0: http://www.siteadvisor.com/
- MediaPlayerConnectivity 0.6.3: http://membres.lycos.fr/sethnakht/
- Menu Editor 1.2: http://menueditor.mozdev.org/
- mozImage 1.4.5: http://mozimage.mozdev.org
- MR Tech Local Install 5.1.1: http://www.mrtech.com/extensions/local_install/
- Next Image 0.3: http://nextimage.mozdev.org/
- Open Link Host 1.3.0: http://www.captaincaveman.nl/extensions/
- OpenBook 1.3.4: http://www.chuonthis.com/extensions/
- OpenDownload 0.2.3: http://jgillick.nettripper.com/
- Organize Status Bar 0.3: http://www.beggarchooser.com/firefox/
- PageZoom 0.3.0: http://www.memb.jp/~deq/mozilla/pagezoom/
- PDF Download 0.7.2: http://www.pdfdownload.org
- Performancing 1.2: http://performancing.com/
- Preferential 0.8.1: http://preferential.mozdev.org/
- Read Easily 1.0.2: http://readeasily.mozdev.org
- Remove It Permanently 1.0.6.1: http://rip.mozdev.org/
- Restore Scroll Position 0.3: http://www.gozer.org/mozilla/extensions/
- Retro Find 1.4.1: http://s93731204.onlinehome.us/firefox/retrofind.html
- Save Image in Folder 0.9.1: http://www.achimonline.de/mozext/
- Show Image 0.4.1: http://showimage.mozdev.org/
- ShowIP 0.8.02: http://l4x.org/showip
- Slashdotter 1.7: http://www.efinke.com/slashdotter/
- Sort Bookmarks 0.7.0: http://www.google.com/search?q=Firefox%20Sort%20Bookmarks
- Sourceforge Direct Download 0.4: http://sfdirectdl.mozdev.org/
- Stop-or-Reload Button 0.2: http://v2studio.com/k/moz/
- Tab Mix Plus 0.3.0.5: http://tmp.garyr.net
- TabCounter 1.0: http://projects.felipc.com/tabcounter
- Thumbs 0.6: http://www.squarefree.com/extensions/thumbs/
- TinyUrl Creator 1.0.1: http://mozmonkey.com/
- Toolbar Buttons 0.2.5.3: http://tbutton.mozdev.org/
- TryAgain 1.2: https://addons.mozilla.org/addon.php?id=2462
- Update Notifier 0.1.3: http://www.longfocus.com/firefox/updatenotifier
- VideoDownloader 1.0: http://videodownloader.net/

Installed Themes: [7]
- Firefox (default): http://www.mozilla.org/
- GrApple (Graphite Pro) 3.5: http://www.takebacktheweb.org/
- GrApple (Graphite) 3.5: http://www.takebacktheweb.org/
- HaikuFox 0.4.2: http://www.sheltonfamily.org/firefoxtheme/Install.htm
- Mostly Crystal 1.5.0.18: http://www.tom-cat.com/mozilla
- Phoenity 1.5.910: http://phoenity.com/
- Whitehart_nc 0.1.7: http://www.bytecave.net/anders/theme

Installed Plugins: (6)
- Default Plug-in
- Java Embedding Plugin 0.9.5+c
- QuickTime Plug-in 7.0.4
- RealPlayer Plugin
- Shockwave Flash
- Verified Download Plugin
posted by WCityMike at 8:58 AM on July 4, 2006 [1 favorite]

Jesus wept.
posted by cortex at 9:02 AM on July 4, 2006

it's a wonder the damn thing even loads.
posted by quonsar at 9:06 AM on July 4, 2006

Actually runs pretty well, oh extension-o-phobes. :)
posted by WCityMike at 9:25 AM on July 4, 2006

How do you ever know if it's a firefox problem or an extension problem?
posted by raedyn at 10:34 AM on July 4, 2006

it's usually the web site's fault.
posted by quonsar at 11:11 AM on July 4, 2006

Raedyn — I'd assume it's a Firefox-on-Metafilter problem because both Jessamyn and I (see above) are experiencing the same problem despite having no similar extensions installed.
posted by WCityMike at 12:34 PM on July 4, 2006

yes, in this case. I just mean in general with your set up with so many extensions, how do you ever determine where the problem is? It was pretty much a rhetorical question. I was just astounded to see such a long list of extensions & plugins.
posted by raedyn at 1:10 PM on July 4, 2006

I don't get out much, mmkay?
posted by raedyn at 1:10 PM on July 4, 2006

So, mathowie, you dere? Any idea why me and Jessamyn's browsers go nutso on that particular link?
posted by WCityMike at 4:59 PM on July 4, 2006

Works for me with no weirdness on each of: Opera 9, Camino, and Firefox (no extensions, no themes). I'm only logged in in Opera though. Maybe I'll try logging in with Firefox, and see what happens then.
posted by evariste at 5:50 PM on July 4, 2006

Sorry, should have mentioned Firefox 1.5.0.4.
posted by evariste at 5:51 PM on July 4, 2006

I logged in and repeated the experiment, still no discernible wonkyness.
posted by evariste at 5:53 PM on July 4, 2006

do people really routinely run more than, say, five firefox extensions?
posted by crazyray at 9:12 PM on July 4, 2006

Crazyray, I have 14 running (two of them are new--Adblock and its filterset--but the rest not so much).
posted by Tuwa at 9:50 PM on July 4, 2006

P.S. generally it's not a problem, but I've noticed that loading a number of tabs and closing them adds up over time so that extensive link checking can quickly get Firefox up to several hundred MB of RAM. Apparently it's a memory leak; there's a known one in the program itself but I haven't checked with all extensions turned off to make sure it's not also one or more of the extensions.
posted by Tuwa at 9:55 PM on July 4, 2006

FWIW, I'm using Firefox 1.5.0.4 on Windows XP, with a ton of extensions, and have no problem with the link.
posted by cerebus19 at 10:07 PM on July 4, 2006

I am not having this problem with this link in particular, but I have had it with other anchor links on MeFi in the past two weeks. I'm unable to reproduce the problem at all right now. I have no extensions on this machine besides DOM Inspector and Talkback as I just moved over from Safari, FF 1.5.0.4 and OSX 10.4.7. My best guess is that it's related to the memory issues mentioned above.
posted by modofo at 12:35 PM on July 6, 2006