Browser Firefox 3.0 & Mac 10.5.4

Question

Browser Firefox 3.0 & Mac 10.5.4

I've always used Firefox as a second browser for my 10.3.9. Now that I have a Leopard, I downloaded the only version of it that works with 10.5.4.

Three downloads and installs later, I still can't seem to find out how to export bookmarks from Firefox. Never had this problem before as did it once a month with all the earlier versions.

The bookmark Import option is there. However, it only recognizes Safari as an option (and it won't turn off Safari as an option. I'm stuck with Safari even though I also have the latest Camino--which incidentally exports and imports just fine, but doesn't have the add-ons I need.

Under the Import option there is no Export option.

Since version 2.0.0.14 would not work with Leopard, the Firefox 3.0 I downloaded was not installed as an overwrite. The two other attempts at downloading and installing were overwrites.

I've put this quandary to the Firefox forum, but days later no answer from them.

I'm stumped---or did Firefox move the Export function to some hidden location in the browser? Also, does anyone know what file would contain the bookmarks information so I can try saving the information from there?

MacMini, Mac OS X (10.5.4), 2.0 Ghz Intel

Posted on Jul 8, 2008 8:35 AM

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Answer 1

Jul 8, 2008 9:00 AM in response to KathleenTarget

It is not clear what you want to do. I will take what you say on face value -- you want to export your bookmarks from Firefox.

1. Open Firefox
2. Bookmarks/Organize Bookmarks...
3. Go to top level of the tree
4. File/Export...

-fred

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Answer 2

Jul 8, 2008 9:06 AM in response to KathleenTarget

By the way... I just installed 3.0 and it installed as an overwrite. No export/import needed.

-fred

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Answer 3

Jul 8, 2008 9:22 AM in response to Frederick Avolio

Because my old Mac's Firefox version will not work on Leopard, I downloaded and installed Firefox 3.0. The 3.0 install would not recognize any bookmarks to import into itself except from Safari. To get around this I installed my HTML export of my old Firefox 2.0.0.14 bookmarks into Safari and then had Firefox 3.0 upload them.

Days later I wanted to export my Firefox 3.0 bookmarks (now with some new additions) to html format to save in my storage drive. To my chagrin, I could not find anywhere on 3.0 where it says "Export". This includes the pathway from Organize Bookmarks. From File the last options (going down) are Print, Import, and Work Offline. As previously stated, I the Import will only work with Safari despite having Camino and two other html exported bookmarks on my Desktop taken from my old Panther machine.

Besides the one main install, I've done two more downloads and overwrites of Firefox 3.0 and each one does not have the Export option to export the bookmarks from Firefox 3.0 into an html file (or anywhere else for that matter.)

I was beginning to wonder if all Firefox 3.0 versions for Mac had this oversight on them, but apparently not and I am the only one afflicted thus. How my Apple 10.5.4 is causing my downloads to miss the Export bookmarks part of Firefox is beyond my ken. Since I don't know what file Firefox bookmarks are stored in on the hard drive (Library? Cache?) I can't check either. Frustrated.

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Answer 4

Jul 8, 2008 9:32 AM in response to KathleenTarget

E.g.:
~/Library/Application Support/Firefox/Profiles/em4iew5x.default/bookmarks.html

the em4iew5x.default might be different on your system.

-fred

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Answer 5

Jul 8, 2008 9:39 AM in response to KathleenTarget

Sorry! The "how to export" was from FF 2.*.

I did find it in FF3

1. Organize Bookmarks. A Window opens that says Library
2. Click on the grey "STAR"
3. You'll see Backup, Restore, Import... and Export...

-fred

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Answer 6

Jul 8, 2008 9:49 AM in response to Frederick Avolio

Wooo!

I can't believe they changed the pathway so much and don't mention this on the Firefox Help pages! I can't believe the Firefox Forum people couldn't answer this for me before! I even stated I was going to delete Firefox until they came up with a new update because of this and still got no answers.

Not sure what the 'points' system of Solve and Help do, but I wish I could award you double of 'em. Thank you! Thank you!

Now I'm wondering why in the world they have an Import under File, but put import/export within an obscure icon on the Library page. What a headache they've caused me (and many hours of unnecessary dial-up downloads.)

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Answer 7

The hatter

Level 9

60,980 points

Jul 8, 2008 9:54 AM in response to Frederick Avolio

Firefox 3 and Minefield (which is what I use) stores bookmarks as

places.sqlite

Which is why some programs like Safari and Bookit won't "see" or be able to import it, and why you have to export as html format.

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Answer 8

Jul 8, 2008 10:22 AM in response to The hatter

Found mine where he said it would be (but under the slightly different file name.) Also found the add-on files. Wonder if it's possible to save those for inputting since Firefox doesn't seem to allow you to save those for later install when getting a totally new Firefox version. When I moved my files to Leopard, I ended up having to re-download every add on I wanted. Fortunately, most are small and don't take long even with dial up. Still, looking them up took awhile.

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Answer 9

bulldoc

Level 1

0 points

Jul 14, 2008 4:11 PM in response to KathleenTarget

I was having the same problem with finding the export feature. Thanks to this thread I have now found that and I have saved the .html file. However, when I try to Import using similar steps, it does not take affect on my new machine.

Any thoughts on what could I be doing wrong?

I go to Bookmarks - Organize Bookmarks - The Star icon - Import HTML - open. But nothing has changed. I tried restarting Firefox and rebooting my computer, but no dice.

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Answer 10

pluis

Level 1

4 points

Jul 31, 2008 7:09 AM in response to bulldoc

I had the same problem as bulldoc. I am installing 10.5 on my mother's iMac G4 after a persistent Carbonlib library error prevented her from opening Office programs and watching internet videos with 10.4.11. I made a backup of her disk, then did a new install with Leopard and tried to get things running again. Firefox 2 was saved, Firefox 3 installed. I simply copied the ~/Library/Applications Support/Firefox/* files from backup to drive, and this worked okay for the admin-user. For a 'standard' user this failed, however. Setting permissions via the Terminal didn't solve this problem. I thus tried to export the bookmarks from the admin users to the Shared folder, and then import it again in the new account. But this didn't work, seeing the same as bulldoc described.

Finally the workaround was to have Safari import the Firefox bookmark-file from the original location (~/..../Firefox/Profiles/blabla/bookmarks.html), hence NOT the bookmark file that was exported by Firefox itself! Then in Safari I managed the bookmarks by cutting, copying and pasting things around so that I had what I wanted to import in Firefox 3 (although you can do this later in Firefox of course). Then I closed Safari, went to Firefox 3, found the [import HTML] option mentioned in earlier posts, and opted to import 'Safari' bookmarks. Then it suddenly looked okay (with just a little editing).

Sorry for not having written a fool proof recipe, but I am still configuring my mom's G4 so pressed for time.

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