Firefox Google search defaults to US when in Australia

[Timothy Arceri]

When default timezone is set to Australian time Firefox still defaults to doing google searches using the US site. Keyboard layout cannot be used to detect an Australian user as we use the default US keyboard layout here. It is very annoying having to add .au to the google url after every search. Firefox on windows can work out I'm in Australia it would be nice if Linux/Ubuntu were able to do this by default also.

[Timothy Arceri (t-fridey)]

When default timezone is set to Australian time Firefox still defaults to doing google searches using the US site. Keyboard layout cannot be used to detect an Australian user as we use the default US keyboard layout here. It is very annoying having to add .au to the google url after every search. Firefox on windows can work out I'm in Australia it would be nice if Linux/Ubuntu were able to do this by default also.

[Gavin Sharp (gavin-sharp)]

I'm not sure why you bring up the time zone - it has no impact on Firefox's behavior. Firefox by default redirects all searches to google.com, and relies on Google doing locale-detection on their end. I don't think they factor in local time in that detection - the relevant factors are usually IP geolocation, accept-language settings, and perhaps also your build's locale. You say that your Windows machine behaves correctly - I assume it's in the same location/using the same internet connection? Are you using the stock Ubuntu Linux distribution of Firefox, or a version distributed from mozilla.org? Have you tried a new profile?

[Timothy Arceri (t-fridey)]

Yes windows running on the same machine, and location/using the same internet connection.

Not everything seems to be handled by google. If I go to www.google.com google will redirect me to www.google.com.au which is fine but the if I use the searchbox I'm sent to www.google.com search results. This is not just something happening to me there are many post scattered across the internet relating to this issue, its also seems UK users are also sent to the US site. See: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1354830 and http://ubuntugenius.wordpress.com/2010/08/18/add-google-australia-or-your-specific-country-to-the-firefox-search-bar/

This could possibly be due to ubuntu customisations I'm not sure, the search url looks like this: http://www.google.com/search?client=ubuntu&channel=fs&q=test&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

[Gavin Sharp (gavin-sharp)]

If this is the result of Ubuntu customizations, there isn't much we (Mozilla) can do about it. Does the same problem occur in a Firefox downloaded from mozilla.org, with the ubuntu customizations disabled (in about:addons)?

[Timothy Arceri (t-fridey)]

After downloading the linux build from mozilla I can confirm it redirects searches to the Australian site. Thanks for all your help, I will continue hassling the devs over at Ubuntu now.

[Gavin Sharp (gavin-sharp)]

You're welcome, hope you find a solution to the problem!

[Chris Coulson (chrisccoulson)]

Google should be autodetecting this based on your location and locale settings. If that's not working, then there's not really much we can do

[Timothy Arceri (t-fridey)]

The default version of mozilla works, its only the customized Ubuntu version that doesn't.

This is a Ubuntu issue. Ubuntu needs to make sure its client searchs in google work for locals other than US.

[Timothy Arceri (t-fridey)]

How to reproduce the issue.

From a non US location go to the url:
http://www.google.com/search?client=ubuntu&channel=fs&q=test&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

Google will not redirect this seems to be caused by client=ubuntu

If I change client=firefox it redirect to the local google site as it should.

[Chris Coulson (chrisccoulson)]

We don't differ from upstream at all here other than the referral code. If "client=ubuntu" is what breaks it, then that is a Google problem. FWIW, searching with non en-US locales works fine here.

[Chris Coulson (chrisccoulson)]

And Ubufox really does have nothing at all whatsoever to do with search plugins

[Timothy Arceri (t-fridey)]

Even if its a google problem its caused by Ubuntu developers changing the client parameter therefore its a Ubuntu issue. Someone from Ubuntu should contact google about this rather than just leaving it up to users to fix.

If canonical is worried about the referral code they should realise people are installing alternative search addons to get around this problem meaning that they are loosing referrals anyway. See: http://ubuntugenius.wordpress.com/2010/08/18/add-google-australia-or-your-specific-country-to-the-firefox-search-bar/

[Cruz Bishop (cruzjbishop)]

Works in Chrome 22, still broken in Firefox 14

[Timothy Arceri (t-fridey)]

I sent feedback to Google about this problem using their feedback form and a week or so later its all working. Who would have thought.