Press [ENTER] twice in Safari on Sierra

Question

Level 1

43 points

Press [ENTER] twice in Safari on Sierra

Okay, this issue/glitch has been going on for quite some time now.

The problem I am having is the following: Every time I want to do a search, i.e. google for "the first Mac," I must press enter twice to do the search. The first press highlights my search, and the second does the search.

The glitch only happens when I search for something, not when I go directly to a website URL. Recently, I have switched from Google to DuckDuckGo, simply for the privacy aspect, but also to check if this was the issue. It was not. I still have the problem.

Any suggestions, helpful tips, or comments are much appreciated. Thanks!

MacBook Pro with Retina display, OS X El Capitan (10.11.6)

Posted on Jun 16, 2017 10:47 AM

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Answer 1

Eric Root

Level 10

685,311 points

Jul 10, 2017 9:26 AM in response to JamesMacak

You are welcome. Sorry I can be more helpful.

When I enter what you originally posted and hit return, the typing gets highlighted, but after a couple of seconds the page loads without me having to hit return again. I just tried it using the Google search engine and the Yahoo search engine. I am using Safari 10.1.1

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Answer 2

Jun 16, 2017 10:55 AM in response to JamesMacak

Try playing with the settings in Safari, Preferences, Search. Look for the ones under Smart Search Field and the "Include search engine suggestions."

Often what happens is your Internet connection has trouble reaching the servers that provide these functions. The delay could only be a few seconds, but that is enough for the search field to "wait" for the response and thus ignore your first Return. I turned off "Include search engine suggestions" when I had this problem and it worked. I turned it back on some weeks later and it seemed to work OK again as the latency issue was probably temporary.

Also, I have hear that some people have cleared this up with a NVRAM reset. So try that if the first suggestion doesn't work. How to reset NVRAM on your Mac - Apple Support

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Answer 3

Eric Root

Level 10

685,311 points

Jun 16, 2017 8:43 PM in response to JamesMacak

Safari/Preferences/Advanced - enable the Develop menu, then go there and Empty Caches. Quit/reopen Safari and test. Then try Safari/History/Show History and delete all history items. Quit/reopen Safari and test. You can also try try Safari/Clear History…. The down side is it clears all cookies. Doing this may cause some sites to no longer recognize your computer as one that has visited the web site. Go to Finder and select your user/home folder. With that Finder window as the front window, either select Finder/View/Show View options or go command - J. When the View options opens, check ’Show Library Folder’. That should make your user library folder visible in your user/home folder. Select Library/Caches/com.apple.Safari/Cache.db and move it to the trash.

Go to Safari Preferences/Extensions and turn all extensions off. Test. If okay, turn the extensions on one by one until you figure out what extension is causing the problem.

Safari Corruption See post by Linc Davis

Safari Reset

If that doesn't work, try running this program in your normal account , then copy and paste the output in a reply. The program was created by etresoft, a frequent contributor. Please use copy and paste as screen shots can be hard to read. On the screen with Options, please open Options and check the bottom 2 boxes before running. Click “Share Report” button in the toolbar, select “Copy Report” and then paste into a reply. This will show what is running on your computer. No personal information is shown.

Etrecheck – System Information

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Answer 4

JamesMacak Author

Level 1

43 points

Jun 16, 2017 9:58 PM in response to Eric Root

EtreCheck version: 3.4 (420)

Report generated 2017-06-17 00:53:39

Download EtreCheck from https://etrecheck.com

Runtime: 2:39

Performance: Excellent

Click the [Lookup] links for more information from Apple Support Communities.

Click the [Details] links for more information about that line.

Click the [Clean up] link to delete unused files.

Problem: Other problem

Description:

While searching through Safari on macOS Sierra I must press the enter key twice to perform the search. First press only selects, (highlights) the text, while the second press performs the search. This only occurs when doing a normal search, not when going directly to a website’s URL.

Hardware Information: ⓘ

MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Late 2013)

[Technical Specifications] - [User Guide] - [Warranty & Service]

MacBook Pro - model: MacBookPro11,1

1 2.4 GHz Intel Core i5 (i5-4258U) CPU: 2-core

4 GB RAM Not upgradeable

BANK 0/DIMM0

2 GB DDR3 1600 MHz ok

BANK 1/DIMM0

2 GB DDR3 1600 MHz ok

Bluetooth: Good - Handoff/Airdrop2 supported

Wireless: en0: 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac

Battery: Health = Normal - Cycle count = 558

iCloud Quota: 136.85 GB available

Video Information: ⓘ

Intel Iris - VRAM: 1536 MB

Color LCD 2560 x 1600

VK228 1920 x 1080 @ 60 Hz

Disk Information: ⓘ

APPLE SSD SD0128F disk0: (121.33 GB) (Solid State - TRIM: Yes)

[Show SMART report]

EFI (disk0s1 - MS-DOS FAT32) <not mounted> [EFI]: 210 MB

(disk0s2) <not mounted> [CoreStorage Container]: 120.47 GB

Recovery HD (disk0s3 - Journaled HFS+) <not mounted> [Recovery]: 650 MB

USB Information: ⓘ

USB30Bus

Apple Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad

Apple Inc. BRCM20702 Hub

Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

Logitech USB Receiver

Thunderbolt Information: ⓘ

Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus

Virtual disks: ⓘ

Macintosh HD (disk1 - Journaled HFS+) / [Startup]: 120.10 GB (12.30 GB free) (Low!)

Physical disk: disk0s2 120.47 GB Online

System Software: ⓘ

macOS Sierra 10.12.5 (16F73) - Time since boot: about 10 hours

Gatekeeper: ⓘ

Anywhere [Fix Gatekeeper security]

Clean up: ⓘ

/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.wdc.WDPrivilegedHelper.plist

/Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/com.wdc.WDPrivilegedHelper

Executable not found!

/Library/LaunchDaemons/org.wireshark.ChmodBPF.plist

/Library/Application Support/Wireshark/ChmodBPF/ChmodBPF

Executable not found!

2 orphan files found. [Clean up]

Kernel Extensions: ⓘ

/Library/Application Support/Avast/components/fileshield/unsigned

[loaded] com.avast.FileShield (3.0.0 - SDK 10.9) [Lookup]

/Library/Application Support/Avast/components/proxy/unsigned

[loaded] com.avast.PacketForwarder (2.1 - SDK 10.11) [Lookup]

/Library/Application Support/VirtualBox

[loaded] org.virtualbox.kext.VBoxDrv (5.1.10) [Lookup]

[loaded] org.virtualbox.kext.VBoxNetAdp (5.1.10) [Lookup]

[loaded] org.virtualbox.kext.VBoxNetFlt (5.1.10) [Lookup]

[loaded] org.virtualbox.kext.VBoxUSB (5.1.10) [Lookup]

/Library/Application Support/com.adguard.Adguard/kext

[not loaded] com.adguard.nfext (1.0.5 - SDK 10.12) [Lookup]

/Library/Extensions

[loaded] com.Logitech.Control Center.HID Driver (3.9.5 - SDK 10.8) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.Logitech.Unifying.HID Driver (1.3.5 - SDK 10.8) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.driver.LogJoystick (2.0 - SDK 10.10) [Lookup]

[not loaded] com.logitech.driver.LogiGamingMouseFilter (1.0 - SDK 10.10) [Lookup]

[not loaded] com.logitech.driver.LogiWheelDriver (1.0 - SDK 10.10) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.logitech.manager.kernel.driver (6.60.1 - SDK 10.11) [Lookup]

/System/Library/Extensions

[not loaded] com.logitech.LogiWheelForceFeedback (1.0 - SDK 10.10) [Lookup]

[not loaded] com.ni.Fantom.nxtfwdl (1.1.1) [Lookup]

Startup Items: ⓘ

Fantom: Path: /Library/StartupItems/Fantom

HWNetMgr: Path: /Library/StartupItems/HWNetMgr

HWPortDetect: Path: /Library/StartupItems/HWPortDetect

StartOuc: Path: /Library/StartupItems/StartOuc

Startup items no longer function in OS X Yosemite or later

System Launch Agents: ⓘ

[not loaded] 6 Apple tasks

[loaded] 169 Apple tasks

[running] 93 Apple tasks

[killed] 14 Apple tasks

14 processes killed due to insufficient RAM

System Launch Daemons: ⓘ

[not loaded] 42 Apple tasks

[loaded] 174 Apple tasks

[running] 95 Apple tasks

[killed] 7 Apple tasks

7 processes killed due to insufficient RAM

Launch Agents: ⓘ

[running] com.Logitech.Control Center.Daemon.plist (Logitech Inc. - installed 2016-11-09) [Lookup]

[running] com.avast.update-agent.plist (AVAST Software a.s. - installed 2017-05-11) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.avast.userinit.plist (Shell Script bb25154c - installed 2017-05-11) [Lookup]

[running] com.logitech.manager.daemon.plist (Logitech Inc. - installed 2017-06-14) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist (? a063f0f7 be93c7fb - installed 2017-05-14) [Lookup]

Launch Daemons: ⓘ

[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist (? 2afb3af7 225fb24b - installed 2017-06-09) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.avast.init.plist (Shell Script fc55b6fa - installed 2017-05-11) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.avast.uninstall.plist (Shell Script 22f94791 - installed 2017-05-11) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.avast.update.plist (Shell Script d6c32197 - installed 2017-05-11) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.malwarebytes.HelperTool.plist (Malwarebytes Corporation - installed 2017-02-02) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.microsoft.autoupdate.helper.plist (Microsoft Corporation - installed 2017-05-02) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.microsoft.office.licensingV2.helper.plist (Microsoft Corporation - installed 2017-04-09) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist (Shell Script e3fefdd2 - installed 2017-03-15) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.wdc.WDPrivilegedHelper.plist (? 9f7f4405 0 - installed 2017-02-21) [Lookup] - /Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/com.wdc.WDPrivilegedHelper: Executable not found!

[not loaded] org.virtualbox.startup.plist (Shell Script 700b9385 - installed 2016-12-02) [Lookup]

[loaded] org.wireshark.ChmodBPF.plist (? d4207e05 0 - installed 2016-07-28) [Lookup] - /Library/Application Support/Wireshark/ChmodBPF/ChmodBPF: Executable not found!

User Launch Agents: ⓘ

[loaded] com.avast.home.userinit.plist (Shell Script 426d7675 - installed 2017-05-11) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist (Google, Inc. - installed 2017-03-28) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.skype.skype.shareagent.plist (Skype Communications S.a.r.l - installed 2017-06-14) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.spotify.webhelper.plist (Spotify - installed 2016-10-28) [Lookup]

[loaded] com.valvesoftware.steamclean.plist (? 29d65467 7ed0c99 - installed 2017-05-17) [Lookup]

[not loaded] org.virtualbox.vboxwebsrv.plist (Oracle America, Inc. - installed 2016-12-02) [Lookup]

User Login Items: ⓘ

iTunesHelper Application (Apple, Inc. - installed 2017-05-15)

(/Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/MacOS/iTunesHelper.app)

WDSecurityHelper Application

(/Applications/WD Security.app/Contents/WDSecurityHelper.app)

WDDriveUtilityHelper Application

(/Applications/WD Drive Utilities.app/Contents/WDDriveUtilityHelper.app)

Internet Plug-ins: ⓘ

Silverlight: 5.1.41212.0 (installed 2016-08-30) [Lookup]

FlashPlayer-10.6: 26.0.0.126 (installed 2017-06-14) [Lookup]

QuickTime Plugin: 7.7.3 (installed 2017-05-22)

Flash Player: 26.0.0.126 (installed 2017-06-14) Outdated! Update

JavaAppletPlugin: Java 8 Update 131 build 11 (installed 2017-05-14) Check version

Safari Extensions: ⓘ

[disabled] Grammarly for Safari - Grammarly - https://www.grammarly.com (installed 2017-06-16)

[disabled] Adguard AdBlocker - adguard - http://adguard.com (installed 2017-06-16)

3rd Party Preference Panes: ⓘ

Flash Player (installed 2017-06-09) [Lookup]

Java (installed 2017-05-14) [Lookup]

Logitech Control Center (installed 2016-11-09) [Lookup]

Logi Options Launcher (installed 2017-06-14) [Lookup]

Time Machine: ⓘ

Skip System Files: NO

Mobile backups: OFF

Auto backup: NO - Auto backup turned off

Volumes being backed up:

Macintosh HD: Disk size: 120.10 GB Disk used: 107.80 GB

Destinations:

My Passport for Mac [Local]

Total size: 2.00 TB

Total number of backups: 6

Oldest backup: 2/21/17, 4:51 PM

Last backup: 5/14/17, 8:41 PM

Size of backup disk: Excellent

Backup size 2.00 TB > (Disk size 120.10 GB X 3)

Top Processes by CPU: ⓘ

12% mds

5% WindowServer

2% kernel_task

1% mdworker

Top Processes by Memory: ⓘ

581 MB kernel_task

116 MB com.avast.daemon

105 MB WindowServer

87 MB cloudd

82 MB spindump

Top Processes by Network Use: ⓘ

Input Output Process name

348 KB 55 KB mDNSResponder

53 KB 151 KB apsd

144 KB 36 KB netbiosd

61 KB 10 KB com.avast.proxy

6 KB 6 KB ntpd

Top Processes by Energy Use: ⓘ

7.48 WindowServer

3.56 cloudd

0.98 opendirectoryd

0.76 apsd

Virtual Memory Information: ⓘ

1.29 GB Available RAM

34 MB Free RAM

2.71 GB Used RAM

1.26 GB Cached files

52 MB Swap Used

Software installs: ⓘ

Real Racing 2: 1.1.2 (installed 2017-05-22)

World of Tanks Blitz: 3.9.0 (installed 2017-05-25)

Logitech Options: (installed 2017-06-05)

radare2-1.5.0: (installed 2017-06-07)

Logitech Options: (installed 2017-06-14)

Adobe Flash Player: (installed 2017-06-14)

Install information may not be complete.

Diagnostics Information: ⓘ

2017-06-16 21:07:37 Minecraft.app Crash [Open]

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Answer 5

Eric Root

Level 10

685,311 points

Jun 17, 2017 7:51 AM in response to JamesMacak

You are welcome. At the present time, you don't really need an anti-virus program when using a Mac. The OS does a good job taking care of itself. If you still want one, the one below was the least invasive of the ones I have tested.

ClamXav

Try these troubleshooting steps.

Do a backup, using either Time Machine or a cloning program, to ensure files/data can be recovered. Two backups are better than one.

Try setting up another admin user account to see if the same problem continues. If Back-to-My Mac is selected in System Preferences, the Guest account will not work. The intent is to see if it is specific to one account or a system wide problem. This account can be deleted later.

Isolating an issue by using another user account

If the problem is still there, try booting into the Safe Mode using your normal account. Disconnect all peripherals except those needed for the test. Shut down the computer and then power it back up after waiting 10 seconds. Immediately after hearing the startup chime, hold down the shift key and continue to hold it until the gray Apple icon and a progress bar appear. The boot up is significantly slower than normal. This will reset some caches, forces a directory check, and disables all startup and login items, among other things. When you reboot normally, the initial reboot may be slower than normal. If the system operates normally, there may be 3rd party applications which are causing a problem. Try deleting/disabling the third party applications after a restart by using the application un-installer or by using the developer’s uninstall instructions. For each disable/delete, you will need to restart if you don't do them all at once.

Safe Mode - About El Capitan also Sierra

Safe Mode Startup – El Capitan. also Sierra

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Answer 6

Eric Root

Level 10

685,311 points

Jun 26, 2017 5:37 PM in response to JamesMacak

Unfortunately, I'm out of ideas. The only other suggestion might be a bit drastic, but it would be to do a backup, preferable 2 separate ones on 2 drives. Boot to the Recovery Volume (command - R on a restart or hold down the option/alt key during a restart and select Recovery Volume). Run Disk Utility and select First Aid. Reformat the drive using Disk Utility/Erase Mac OS Extended (Journaled), then click the Option button and select GUID. Then re-install the OS.

OS X Recovery

OS X Recovery (2)

When you reboot, use Setup Assistant to restore your data.

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Answer 7

JamesMacak Author

Level 1

43 points

Jun 16, 2017 11:08 AM in response to MacMostGary

Thank you for the help.

Unfortunately, neither of the two suggestions seemed to help. I tried both, in the proper order, as well as, switching back to Google after the reboot; but it is still not working.

I see how the latency issue might be the cause. Currently, I am getting about 5mbps down on speedtest.net, but that still should be fast enough for basic searches.

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Answer 8

Eric Root

Level 10

685,311 points

Jun 17, 2017 6:01 AM in response to JamesMacak

Clean up: ⓘ

/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.wdc.WDPrivilegedHelper.plist

/Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/com.wdc.WDPrivilegedHelper

Executable not found!

/Library/LaunchDaemons/org.wireshark.ChmodBPF.plist

/Library/Application Support/Wireshark/ChmodBPF/ChmodBPF

Executable not found!

2 orphan files found. [Clean up]

Click [Clean up].

Uninstall Avast. It tends to interfere with the computer's operation while providing minimal to no benefit.

Avast

Avast Un-install

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Answer 9

JamesMacak Author

Level 1

43 points

Jun 17, 2017 7:01 AM in response to Eric Root

Okay, I did both of the steps you suggested but it's still the same way it was.

Do you possibly have any more ideas? This search thing is really annoying.

Also, I know in the entire security community everybody has their own idea of which piece of software is best, and it can get overwhelming. But now that I removed Avast, do you recommend a replacement?

Thanks for all your help so far!

Reply

Answer 10

JamesMacak Author

Level 1

43 points

Jun 20, 2017 8:25 AM in response to Eric Root

I have done everything you mentioned except removing each of my 3rd party applications and reinstalling them. Do I need to go through every program/application on my computer, one-by-one removing them until I find the problem?

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Answer 11

ishadoe

Level 1

63 points

Jun 23, 2017 1:34 PM in response to JamesMacak

Have you checked to make sure a key isn't being pressed while searching or something is being held down? It sounds to me like something is pressing on a left mouse key thus creating the highlight of the text and making you press enter twice.

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Answer 12

JamesMacak Author

Level 1

43 points

Jul 10, 2017 6:53 AM in response to Eric Root

I truly appreciate all of your help with this problem I've been having. I followed the all of your steps exactly as you stated but unfortunately, it is still not working; even after the reinstall. Perhaps the double press is a "feature" in macOS Sierra? Do you have the same issue? And are you running Safari Version 10.1.1?

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Answer 13

JamesMacak Author

Level 1

43 points

Jul 10, 2017 9:26 AM in response to Eric Root

Okay, now it seems to load properly when I press enter once, but it still remains highlighted. I guess that's just how Safari is designed at the moment.

Thanks again for all of your help! Have a great day!

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