Firefox and Thunnderbird keep disappearing

B

Barry Garsson

Barry
I recently purchased my 2nd Mac (Mini) and want to use Firefox and Thunderbird as I did with my old OS. I downloaded & installed both, but whenever I restart the computer I find one or the other is gone.

Yesterday it was Thunderbird. The profile folders were where they should be but the program itself was no longer on either the desktop or the dock. I used the "find" function but couldn't locate it. I downloaded a new copy, and found all of my settings and mail folders were in place (guess that was because the profile folder was untouched?). But I have no idea why the executable file should have been missing. Did I do something wrong when shutting down?

This morning it was Firefox. The icon was in the dock, but when I tried clicking on it to open it, it was dead. I went to "Finder -> applications -> Firefox" and received a message about an "alias" that needed to be deleted or fixed. I tried "fixing" it but had no idea what it wanted me to do, deleting the alias wiped out the icon into the trash.

I had to go to the Mozilla.Com site and reload and re-install Firefox. What's going on here? Never had this problem in the Linux OS (or XP) and the Mac is otherwise seamless. Is it me?

Barry
 
Are you copying the apps to your hard disk Application folder or running them from the disk image?

Others have made this mistake.
 
Firefox now works OK (i.e.: it stays put in the dock and opens easily) but Thunderbird is driving me nuts. It simply will not stay put in the dock if I restart, or just quit using it.

In the Applications folder I see the default folder for it, and I see a "Thunderbird Alias" which does nothing. In order to open Thunderbird, I have to click on my saved "Thunderbird 2.0.0.0.dmg" file which effectively reinstalls it every time (the profiles are unscathed so at least I haven't lost anything).

This is making me very frustrated. Everything else on the Mac is seamless, why am I unable to install Thunderbird like everything else?

One more question: both Firefox and Thunderbird, when opened, leave icons on the desktop, nothing else does that. Is that normal?

Barry
 
Barry Garsson said:
...

One more question: both Firefox and Thunderbird, when opened, leave icons on the desktop, nothing else does that. Is that normal?

Barry
Click to expand...
I don't know what you are doing, but you are clearly not doing it correctly.

Double-click on the disk image file (*.dmg). A mounted volume will appear on your Desktop.

Open the mounted volume.

Drag the Firefox/Thunderbird application icon into your Applications folder.

Close your mounted volume.

If you want Firefox/Thunderbird to appear in the Dock, then the icon from the Applications folder to the Dock.
 
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