Archive for May 2008
Excessive CPU usage in FireFox Beta 3
With the latest version of Ubuntu comes also the latest beta version of Firefox (which is, at time of writing, version FF 3 beta 5). Now, this version is still a beta version, which means that it may contain bugs. In fact, it contains 1 serious bug, being the fact that the CPU gets a 100% usage load when you use Firefox.
The problem lies in the security-settings of Firefox. In a default configuration, Firefox checks if you are accessing a suspected attack site. If you have enabled it, it even checks if you’re accessing a phishing site (a forgery site, as it is called). When you access a site containing Javascript, Firefox will go nuts, and this will eventually result in a high processor load – which is never good.
Now, there is a very simple workaround, given the fact that you will have to turn off the security settings. Go about it as follows:
(1) in Firefox, go to your preferences (Edit -> Preferences). Go to the Security-tab, and uncheck following options:
- Tell me if the site I’m visiting is a suspected attack site
- Tell me if the site I’m visiting is a suspected forgery site
Then, close down Firefox completely.
(2) go to your Home Folder (Places -> Home Folder). Make sure you’re able to view hidden files and folders (by pressing either Ctrl+H, or go to View -> Show Hidden Files).
(3) navigate to /home/(username)/.mozilla/firefox/xxxxxxxx.default/
The folder may vary, but the name always ends in .default .
(4) delete the file urlclassifier3.sqlite and (if present) the file urlclassifier3.sqlite-journal.
(5) restart Firefox. The file urlclassifier3.sqlite will be recreated, but this time, it will stay about 9 kB, without getting any bigger.
Note: you have to repeat this for every user account!
Enjoy your Firefox v3!
Hardy Heron on the Dell 1501 Inspiron
As I’ve said, my own first resource for my Ubuntu installation is redDEAD’s site. He posted an evaluation on installing the latest Ubuntu on his site, which I’ll paste here, and fill in my comments.
On with yee!
Hi all!
Been a long time. Looking at the posts, it’s been almost a year! So, happy 1 year of doing nothing on my blog for me – hooray! 
So, what to do? First off, I’m going to kick this site back into action. From now on, this site will continue from Ubuntu 8.04, the newest release.
I think, without further ado, I’ll just start posting. But not before mentioning the site that inspired me of starting my own blog in the first place: redDEAD’s site. I’m not going to rewrite all his articles, you’ll find them at his site
