desktop shortcut icon

[BillH]

I am trying out Firefox with the intention of possibly making it my
default browser. Currently I use Google Chrome.

One thing I don't like about Firefox is that it uses the favicon of the
site as the desktop shortcut icon when I drag the URL from the browser
address bar to the desktop. Chrome uses the Chrome logo for all desktop
shortcut icons which I like.

Is there any way I can get Firefox to use the Firefox logo for all
desktop shortcut icons?

I know I can change them individually after they are created on the
desktop, but I would like to change it so that all new icons use the
Firefox logo.

Thanks!
Bill

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If you want to send me an email, you must remove "NOSPAM" from my email
address before replying.

[Paul in Houston, TX]

BillH wrote:
> I am trying out Firefox with the intention of possibly making it my
> default browser. Currently I use Google Chrome.
>
> One thing I don't like about Firefox is that it uses the favicon of the
> site as the desktop shortcut icon when I drag the URL from the browser
> address bar to the desktop. Chrome uses the Chrome logo for all desktop
> shortcut icons which I like.
>
> Is there any way I can get Firefox to use the Firefox logo for all
> desktop shortcut icons?
>
> I know I can change them individually after they are created on the
> desktop, but I would like to change it so that all new icons use the
> Firefox logo.
>
> Thanks!
> Bill

I would try changing the favicon settings in about:config to FALSE.
Be sure to remember or write down the changes.

[BillH]

Paul,

Thanks for the reply. This sounded promising.

I changed browser.newtabpage.activity-stream.feeds.favicon to false and
browser.shell.shortcutFavicons to false.

Unfortuneatley this did not change the behavior. New desktop shortcut
icons still show the favicon from the web site rather than the Firefox logo.

[WaltS48]

On 11/23/19 2:17 PM, BillH wrote:
> I am trying out Firefox with the intention of possibly making it my
> default browser.  Currently I use Google Chrome.
>
> One thing I don't like about Firefox is that it uses the favicon of the
> site as the desktop shortcut icon when I drag the URL from the browser
> address bar to the desktop.  Chrome uses the Chrome logo for all desktop
> shortcut icons which I like.
>
> Is there any way I can get Firefox to use the Firefox logo for all
> desktop shortcut icons?
>
> I know I can change them individually after they are created on the
> desktop, but I would like to change it so that all new icons use the
> Firefox logo.
>
> Thanks!
> Bill
>

Pin the Firefox icon to the Windows taskbar.

Then drag and drop the sites link to the Firefox icon.

Right click the Firefox icon in the taskbar and select the site you want
to open, or use bookmarks. They are much easier and don't clutter up the
desktop.

--
OS: Ubuntu Linux 18.04LTS - Gnome Desktop
https://www.thunderbird.net/en-US/get-involved/

[BillH]

Walt,

Thanks for the reply. I really prefer to use desktop shortcuts, but I
will remember this method as a work around.

Do you happen to know if it is possible, in any way, to change the icon
that is used for new desktop shortcuts?

Thanks,

[WaltS48]

Nope. I use bookmarks.

[BillH]

On 11/23/2019 4:26 PM, WaltS48 wrote:

>>
>> Walt,
>>
>> Thanks for the reply.  I really prefer to use desktop shortcuts, but I
>> will remember this method as a work around.
>>
>> Do you happen to know if it is possible, in any way, to change the
>> icon that is used for new desktop shortcuts?
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Bill
>>
>
> Nope. I use bookmarks.
>

OK. I do use bookmarks, but typically at the "home" page for a web
site. When I have desktop shortcuts they are usually temporary links to
specific postings on a forum or lower level part of a website that I
need a quick link to.

[WaltS48]

On 11/23/19 7:53 PM, BillH wrote:
> On 11/23/2019 4:26 PM, WaltS48 wrote:
>
>>>
>>> Walt,
>>>
>>> Thanks for the reply.  I really prefer to use desktop shortcuts, but
>>> I will remember this method as a work around.
>>>
>>> Do you happen to know if it is possible, in any way, to change the
>>> icon that is used for new desktop shortcuts?
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>> Bill
>>>
>>
>> Nope. I use bookmarks.
>>
>
> OK.  I do use bookmarks, but typically at the "home" page for a web
> site.  When I have desktop shortcuts they are usually temporary links to
> specific postings on a forum or lower level part of a website that I
> need a quick link to.
>
> Thanks,
> Bill
>

For those I use History.

[Wilf]

On 23/11/2019 19:17, BillH wrote:
> I am trying out Firefox with the intention of possibly making it my
> default browser. Currently I use Google Chrome.
>
> One thing I don't like about Firefox is that it uses the favicon of the
> site as the desktop shortcut icon when I drag the URL from the browser
> address bar to the desktop. Chrome uses the Chrome logo for all desktop
> shortcut icons which I like.
>
> Is there any way I can get Firefox to use the Firefox logo for all
> desktop shortcut icons?
>
> I know I can change them individually after they are created on the
> desktop, but I would like to change it so that all new icons use the
> Firefox logo.
>
> Thanks!
> Bill
>

I've never tried to drag a URL to the desktop before, but trying it out
now, mine all show the Firefox icon and not the web site's. No idea what
is different about my configuration but it shows it is possible.

Wilf

[Chris Ilias]

On 2019-11-23 6:14 p.m., BillH wrote:
> I changed browser.newtabpage.activity-stream.feeds.favicon to false and
> browser.shell.shortcutFavicons to false.
>
> Unfortuneatley this did not change the behavior.  New desktop shortcut
> icons still show the favicon from the web site rather than the Firefox
> logo.

Hi Bill,
You can reset |browser.newtabpage.activity-stream.feeds.favicon|, as
that has nothing to do with desktop shortcuts. :) It's best not to edit
preferences that you do not know. It may cause things to break in the
future, and it will be very hard to troubleshoot.

For |browser.shell.shortcutFavicons| to take effect, you will need to
restart Windows.

--
Mailing list/Newsgroup moderator

[BillH]

Chris,

I had already set both options back to true. I changed
browser.shell.shortcutFavicons back to false and restarted the computer.

It doesn't seem to always work.

Some websites still result in the favicon for the site being used for
the shortcut. For me several examples include fhug.org.uk and
toodledo.com.

Some websites do use the Firefox logo on a black background. Examples
for me are komonews.com and feedly.com.

One other question. Can the default icon to use for the shortcuts be
changed to the first one in the program... the larger logo without the
black background? Or, is the one with the black background the only option?

Thanks,

[BillH]

Wilf,

Good to know. Which icon is used for your shortcuts? Is it the small
Firefox logo on a black background or the large Firefox logo with no
background?

Thanks,

[Wilf]

Bill,

It's the large one with no background.

Wilf

[BillH]

Wilf,

Very strange.

I changed the option in about:config that Chris suggested and rebooted
and now I sometimes get the Firefox logo and sometimes the favicon for
the site.

When I get the Firefox logo, I get the small Firefox logo on the black
background. I never get the larger one without the background which is
the one I'd want.

[Wilf]

Very strange. I have no idea why the difference.

Wilf

[Sailfish]

My bloviated meandering follows what BillH graced us with on 11/23/2019
11:17 AM:

> I am trying out Firefox with the intention of possibly making it my
> default browser. Currently I use Google Chrome.
>
> One thing I don't like about Firefox is that it uses the favicon of the
> site as the desktop shortcut icon when I drag the URL from the browser
> address bar to the desktop. Chrome uses the Chrome logo for all desktop
> shortcut icons which I like.
>
> Is there any way I can get Firefox to use the Firefox logo for all
> desktop shortcut icons?
>
> I know I can change them individually after they are created on the
> desktop, but I would like to change it so that all new icons use the
> Firefox logo.
>

This may be a Windows System Registry setting issue. Are you comfortable
with interrogating it with regedit?

--
Sailfish
Rare Mozilla Stuff: http://tinyurl.com/z86x3sg

[BillH]

On 11/25/2019 8:40 AM, Sailfish wrote:
>>
> This may be a Windows System Registry setting issue. Are you comfortable
>  with interrogating it with regedit?
>

I would be willing to try if it doesn't require too much knowledge of
the registry. I have made minor changes there before.

In case you hadn't seen in another reply, Chris suggested changing an
about:config setting which I did. Now the shortcuts are sometimes the
Firefox logo and sometimes the Favicon for the site. The Firefox logo
that is used is the small one on a black background whereas I would
prefer the larger logo without a background.

Thanks,

[Sailfish]

My bloviated meandering follows what BillH graced us with on 11/25/2019
8:48 AM:

> On 11/25/2019 8:40 AM, Sailfish wrote:
>>>
>> This may be a Windows System Registry setting issue. Are you
>> comfortable with interrogating it with regedit?
>>
>
> I would be willing to try if it doesn't require too much knowledge of
> the registry. I have made minor changes there before.
>
> In case you hadn't seen in another reply, Chris suggested changing an
> about:config setting which I did. Now the shortcuts are sometimes the
> Firefox logo and sometimes the Favicon for the site. The Firefox logo
> that is used is the small one on a black background whereas I would
> prefer the larger logo without a background.
>

Before dabbling with registry settings, first try the following.

On one of the shortcuts that display the site, right-click it and select
Properties then click Web Document tab then click Change Icon button.

In Change Icon dialog, click Browse and navigate to Fx installation
folder and select the Firefox.exe file and select Fx icon. Then click OK
button twice and see if shortcut icon changed.

[BillH]

I had already tried this and it works fine. It is just new shortcuts
created by dragging the URL from the address bar to the desktop that get
the favicon in some situations.

[Sailfish]

My bloviated meandering follows what BillH graced us with on 11/25/2019

9:36 AM:

Open Control Panel and select Default Programs. The select 'Set your
default programs'. Then select Firefoxon left pane and then select
'Choose defaults for this program'.

Are all the extensions and Protocols checked and showing Firefox as
Current Default?

[Sailfish]

My bloviated meandering follows what BillH graced us with on 11/25/2019

10:10 AM:

> I am on Windows 10 rather than Windows 7 so my options look a bit
> different. I had to go into Settings to see what extensions and
> protocols were set to Firefox, but everything looks fine as far as I know.
>
Ugh! Win10 can be such a turd when working at the system level. Here's
the associations Win7 displays for filetypes and protocols.
https://imgur.com/gallery/tKqWzW3

Does your Win10 show Firefox for each of these?

[BillH]

Yes, all of those show Firefox.

[Sailfish]

My bloviated meandering follows what BillH graced us with on 11/25/2019

12:59 PM:

I'll need to think about this a bit more but right now, regrettably,
since I cannot reproduce what you're experiencing, I am at a loss.

[BillH]

OK... thanks for trying. It is weird. So far it seems as if nobody has
any ideas.

Thanks,
Bill

[Sailfish]

My bloviated meandering follows what BillH graced us with on 11/25/2019

7:50 PM:

>
> OK... thanks for trying. It is weird. So far it seems as if nobody has
> any ideas.
>

Interestingly, once my Fx70.0.1 URL DnD problem was resolved (refer to
Alice Wyman's posts on that thread) then when I DnD'd a web site
bookmark to the desktop, I encountered the same problem you mentioned
about non-Fx icon for the shortcut. Note: I wasn't able to replicate
this before because of the DnD issue with Fx70.0.1 and it worked fine on
my default browser Fx 52.9ESR.

So, now following the steps I suggested before, see below
//

On one of the shortcuts that display the site, right-click it and select
Properties then click Web Document tab then click Change Icon button.

In Change Icon dialog, click Browse and navigate to Fx installation
folder and select the Firefox.exe file and select Fx icon. Then click OK
button twice and see if shortcut icon changed.

//
After doing that the icon did change to the Fx logo. However, once I
exited Fx70.0.1, restarted and tried again, it reverted back to
displaying the site favicon.

My best guess is that this issue is related to DnD problem in so far as
it has to do with the added tracking protection that has been added
recently.

Only suggestion I have at this time would be to file a bug report using
Bugzilla:
https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/home

Cheers

[BillH]

@Sailfish,

Thanks for the confirmation that I'm not the only one. It doesn't
bother me too much since I usually get the Firefox icon after applying
the change Chris suggested. So I'll probably hold off creating a bug
report for now anyway.