Xnew will not Launch Firefox

  • Thread starter Thread starter Howard Schwartz
  • Start date Start date
H

Howard Schwartz

My (latest test version of) xnews will not launch my default browser,
firefox when I double click a URL within a news post.

Anyone know where or how to set the browser for Xnews? I do not
see a field in its options, just one for an external editor.
Does Xnews use the default association for http, or does it
define its browser in the registry?
 
Howard Schwartz wrote :
Anyone know where or how to set the browser for Xnews? I do not
see a field in its options, just one for an external editor.
Does Xnews use the default association for http, or does it
define its browser in the registry?
Click to expand...

Xnews uses the default association and writes nothing in the registry,
except for some metrics and list contents. I once had the same problem
as yours after testing a new browser, and I fixed it with this little
program :

http://www.pc-tools.net/win32/setbrowser/

Hope that helps.
 
["Denis Vanneste"; Mon, 18 Apr 2005 10:32:05 GMT]
http://www.pc-tools.net/win32/setbrowser/
Click to expand...

Some have found success with this, but not I. I've been using Xnews for
years now and links still open in IE. Firefox is my default browser and I've
tried just about everything. My point is that it might be something you have
to live with for a while. Report any results to us, though.
 
Some have found success with this, but not I. I've been using
Xnews for years now and links still open in IE. Firefox is my
default browser and I've tried just about everything. My point is
that it might be something you have to live with for a while.
Report any results to us, though.
Click to expand...

Some have reported success with

1. Open IE and set it to be your default browser.
2. Close IE.
3. Open Firefox and set it to be your default browser.
4. Reboot.

(J44xm, I'm sure you've tried that, but it might help the OP.)

I've never had the problem, so I don't know what else to suggest.
 
»Q« said
Some have reported success with

1. Open IE and set it to be your default browser.
2. Close IE.
3. Open Firefox and set it to be your default browser.
4. Reboot.

(J44xm, I'm sure you've tried that, but it might help the OP.)

I've never had the problem, so I don't know what else to suggest.
Click to expand...

Linux ? ;-D
 
["Denis Vanneste"; Mon, 18 Apr 2005 10:32:05 GMT]
http://www.pc-tools.net/win32/setbrowser/
Click to expand...

Some have found success with this, but not I. I've been using Xnews
for years now and links still open in IE. Firefox is my default
browser and I've tried just about everything. My point is that it
might be something you have to live with for a while. Report any
results to us, though.
Click to expand...

I have used setbrowser before. But, my default browser for opening URLs
for ftp and http and so on is absolutely, definitely, firefox. Other
applications respond correctly (e.g., mail clients), but Xnews does not.
As I recall, prior versions of Xnews worked OK, as did the old News
Express that partially inspired it.

Perhaps there is a magic secret line you can place inside something
like, Xnews.ini that would specify the default browser?

I suspected, IE, as you suggested because I used Iradicator long ago to
purge as much of IE from my system as possible. A registry cleaner
recently noticed a few IE references still in the registry. I will try
deleting them and see if that helps.
 
I have used setbrowser before. But, my default browser for opening
URLs for ftp and http and so on is absolutely, definitely, firefox.
Other applications respond correctly (e.g., mail clients), but Xnews
does not. As I recall, prior versions of Xnews worked OK, as did the
old News Express that partially inspired it.
Click to expand...

Doesn't seem like Xnews is at fault. I use the same version and Xnews
opens links in whichever I have set as default browser. I just tried
switching between FF and IE and back again. I had Xnews closed each
change, reopened and tried a link, Default browser used each time.
Perhaps there is a magic secret line you can place inside something
like, Xnews.ini that would specify the default browser?
Click to expand...

Perhaps there is a magic secret line in one of your ini files that forces
Xnews to use IE ?
 
PS.

More knowledgeable folks at news.software.readers

Add the following to your Xnews score.ini file to filter out posts about
other newsreaders.

% in newsreader group
[readers]
% kill anything NOT Xnews
Score: -9999
~Subject: Xnews
 
["Doc"; Tue, 19 Apr 2005 07:09:32 GMT]
% in newsreader group
[readers]
% kill anything NOT Xnews
Score: -9999
~Subject: Xnews
Click to expand...

Is this more thorough?

[news.software.readers]
% kill anything not about "Xnews" % Score: -9999
% ~Subject: Xnews|XNEWS|xnews|x-news|X-news|X-NEWS
 
["Doc"; Tue, 19 Apr 2005 07:09:32 GMT]
% in newsreader group [readers]
% kill anything NOT Xnews
Score: -9999
~Subject: Xnews
Click to expand...

Is this more thorough?

[news.software.readers]
% kill anything not about "Xnews" % Score: -9999
% ~Subject: Xnews|XNEWS|xnews|x-news|X-news|X-NEWS
Click to expand...

It's not case sensitive, so you don't need quite so many.
 
Doesn't seem like Xnews is at fault. I use the same version and Xnews
opens links in whichever I have set as default browser. I just tried
switching between FF and IE and back again. I had Xnews closed each
change, reopened and tried a link, Default browser used each time.


Perhaps there is a magic secret line in one of your ini files that
forces Xnews to use IE ?
Click to expand...

ggogled most suggest cannot ini default browser, but
http://groups.google.co.uk/[email protected]

tells how it was done with opera. seems not only must browser be set as default browser in windows, but maybe each filetype
must be set to certain app (the new browser)? It seems as if filetype associations would be done automatically when setting
default browser in win, but....

moz has a similar page full of default filetypes in prefernces.

i don't see the same in ff options.
 
ggogled most suggest cannot ini default browser, but
http://groups.google.co.uk/groups?threadm=Xns9293C95AB29Elinearfunctoro
perama%40127.0.0.1

tells how it was done with opera. seems not only must browser be set
as default browser in windows, but maybe each filetype must be set to
certain app (the new browser)? It seems as if filetype associations
would be done automatically when setting default browser in win,
but....

moz has a similar page full of default filetypes in prefernces.

i don't see the same in ff options.
Click to expand...

Firefox does have a option to set it as default. But I do not know, but
could test what it changes in the registry. On the other hand I recently
tested the program setbrowse.exe and discovered why it may not work for
firefox. It asks you, and does indeed set a browser as default for lots
of protocols: ftp, mailto, http, shttp and son on. But its settings
assume a browser that takes a URL as a simple argument:

firefox http://somesite.com

is expected to launch firefox and have it to to the URL. Firfox, however
opens (html) files if you give it a simple argument. If you want the
argument treated as a url you need:

firefox -url http://somesite.com

Since setbrowse does not know this, it gets it wrong in the registry.
 
On the other hand I recently
tested the program setbrowse.exe and discovered why it may not
work for firefox. It asks you, and does indeed set a browser as
default for lots of protocols: ftp, mailto, http, shttp and son
on. But its settings assume a browser that takes a URL as a simple
argument:

firefox http://somesite.com

is expected to launch firefox and have it to to the URL. Firfox,
however opens (html) files if you give it a simple argument. If
you want the argument treated as a url you need:

firefox -url http://somesite.com

Since setbrowse does not know this, it gets it wrong in the
registry.
Click to expand...

But Firefox /does/ take URLs as simple arguments, without the -url
switch.
 
Back
Top