Fails to open browser window if browser is already open

[Adam]

Binary package hint: apport

This bug is very similar to bug #214951, and similar to bug #269968.

I attempted to send a few bug reports, one concerning my random system crashes while running Firefox, another concerning the fact that jack sensing wasnt enabled by default in 9.10. However, these reports never got sent because I had Firefox open at the time that i tried to send them.

Apport normally opens a browser window for you to add information to the bug report after it has finished collecting and sending the data needed to fix the bug. Thus, after submission of the data, Firefox should open, and you can add information to the bug report. However, due to the design of Apport and Firefox, this does not work correctly if Firefox is already open.

This bug was noted on a Compaq Presario R3055CA, running Ubuntu 9.10. Open programs at the time of attempted report are Firefox, OpenOffic.org Writer, and Evolution.

This bug occurs because Firefox is designed to have only one instance of its self open at any given point in time. When Apport attempts to open the web page to add information to the bug data, it does so by attempting to open a new instance of Firefox. Since Firefox doesn't allow more than one instance open at the same time, the web page that should open, fails to appear.

To recreate the bug, one must:
1) Open Firefox, and make sure you can see the browser window.
2) Use preferred method to report a bug. This can be manually starting Apport from the Run Application box, or by crashing a program, or by choosing Report a Problem in any program.
3) Let Apport do what it normally does.
4) After Apport submits the data for the bug report, it should attempt to open a web page so you can add information to the bug you just reported. However, this web page will not show up.

[John Vivirito (gnomefreak)]

Does this happen on firefox-3.5 as well?
if you use ubuntu-bug to report bugs it should give us alot more info about your system.
Please try using
apport-collect 484950
that should give us more about the system you are using.

[Micah Gersten (micahg)]

Moving to Firefox 3.5 since there's no Firefox 3.0 in 9.10

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

[Expired for firefox-3.5 (Ubuntu) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]