FF4, pdf's ignored

[Almost-retired]

Greetings;

One of the casualties of installing the newest firefox seems to be the total loss of any sort of pdf downloading or viewing functions.

I can click on a link in an email message, it transfers to the firefox address bar, tcpdump shows a dns lookup, and that is all, no more traffic until fetchmail kicks in.

Everything looks normal in about:config, and about:plugins says Reader is 9.4.something.  I even installed FoxitReader, but it doesn't seem to have a FF plugin.

How can I restore my ability to download and view pdf's?

Thanks.

Cheers, Gene

[menotu]

Can't duplicate on my FF4 - works on all PDFs - viewing and/or downloading from wherever I am in Firefox, be it in email or a regular web page.

Have you looked in

Firefox > Edit > Preferences > Applications 

to see which plugin is associated with PDF's?

[Almost-retired]

I just changed all that from"'use adobe reader" to "always ask" in 8 or so pdf related places.  But it doesn't ask, because according to tcpdump, it only does a dns lookup, then nothing.  If, after this failure, I do a "view page source", the page is totally blank, FF never requests it.

What would be the next thing to check?

Thanks & Cheers, Gene

[menotu]

Does this only happen when selecting the pdf email attachment? or in regular FF use as well?

These what happens in my Firefox setup:

The first screenshot below shows my PDF options in

Firefox > Edit > Preferences > Applications

and it always selects Mozplugger (although it says Evince is the default ) but Okular is always used - and that's how it's alway been and how I like it.......



The next screenshot shows what happens when I select an actual PDF link - it simply opens in a new tab but using Okular.



The next screenshot shows what happens if I choose Evince as the PDF viewer - it opens the PDF in a small window but actually in Evince (i.e. not as part of Firefox)

[Almost-retired]

"image of your prefs-app screen"
Here is mine:
<http://gene.homelinux.net:85/gene/edit-prefs-applications.png>

I have adjusted all of those to the always ask setting, but it never asks.  pdf's are, other than opening a blank tab, ignored.

And in about:config (search pdf) I found this: (I hope these work, they do work here FWIW.)
<http://gene.homelinux.net:85/gene/About-config-pdf.png>

But cleaning that out made no difference.  When passed a link like
<http://www.toshiba-components.com/motorcontrol/pdfs/TB6560AHQ_AFG_E_2003_20080407.pdf>

There is a single exchange with the dns server caught by tcpdump, acquiring the IP address of the link, then nothing further.  I can whois the address ok, and I can traceroute the FQDN, but the site apparently has no ping server, no response.

What else might I check?

Thanks & Cheers, Gene.

[AS]

Hello Gene,

in a slightly different situation another user had difficult with FF opening a file with the "wrong file manager", later solved as described here:
http://www.pclinuxos.com/forum/index.php/topic,86340.msg748918.html#msg748918

may be you want to take a look at the same file: /usr/share/applications/mimeinfo.cache, on my system the following command:

grep -i pdf /usr/share/applications/mimeinfo.cache

return:

application/x-bzpdf=kde4-okularApplication_pdf.desktop
application/pdf=gimp.desktop;AdobeReader.desktop;kde4-okularApplication_pdf.desktop;
application/x-gzpdf=kde4-okularApplication_pdf.desktop

Regards
AS

[Almost-retired]

Yours:
grep -i pdf /usr/share/applications/mimeinfo.cache

return:

application/x-bzpdf=kde4-okularApplication_pdf.desktop
application/pdf=gimp.desktop;AdobeReader.desktop;kde4-okularApplication_pdf.desktop;
application/x-gzpdf=kde4-okularApplication_pdf.desktop
=================
Here, I get:
[root@coyote gene]# grep -i pdf /usr/share/applications/mimeinfo.cache

application/x-gzpdf=kde4-okularApplication_pdf.desktop;FoxitReader.desktop;
application/pdf=kde4-okularApplication_pdf.desktop;AdobeReader.desktop;gimp.desktop;FoxitReader.desktop;
application/x-bzpdf=kde4-okularApplication_pdf.desktop;FoxitReader.desktop;

I have installed the FoxitReader, thinking (silly me...) that it might help.  It didn't.  Gimp, okular, and foxitreader all seem to work.  They run by themselves ok.

So, sadly,  I don't think we've found the magic button yet...

Thanks & Cheers, Gene

[AS]

Let me ask another thing:

in your screenshot:
<http://gene.homelinux.net:85/gene/edit-prefs-applications.png>

the default for "application/pdf" is actually set up to "Acrobat Reader 9", which is also the default.    (my default is set up to "acroread"),
wondering if this can be can be your issue. Worth to try change this to "acroread" ?

AS

[Almost-retired]

Just did, no diff.  pdf's are still ignored.

Thanks & Cheers, Gene

[menotu]

What happens when you right click on a PDF link - can you download it like that?

If you can, what happens when you open the downloaded file/pdf ?  Which (if any) PDF app opens up?

[Almost-retired]

On a file->open of a local pdf, a left click only highlights the name in the listing, and a right click bring up a menu asking about the size column (checked) and 'show hidden files' (unchecked).  No other action.

All 3 of the pdf readers I have, open them normally.  As does chrome if I copy/paste into its address bar.  But firefox?  nuh uh.  DNS lookup, then nothing more.

Thank you for the suggestion, Cheers, Gene