sensible-browser starts mozilla/opera/etc instead of preferred webbrowser

[Stuart Bishop]

After installing the mozilla-browser package (a required dependancy in my case),
/usr/bin/sensible-browser runs Mozilla instead of Firefox (which is configured
as my default web browser using the preferred applications control panel). Gaim
and possibly other tools are configured y default to use this script to launch a
web browser.

This also happens with Opera, who sets 90 as the priority in update-alternatives. A proper fix should be developed. It would consist on a high-priority entry on sensible-browser that would launch whatever browser was configured on the GNOME tool for prefered applications, or its KDE counterpart.

[Thom May (thombot)]

for a quick workaround, `sudo update-alternatives --config x-www-browser` and
select the one you desire.
We should change mozilla's priority as a real fix.

[Matt Zimmerman (mdz)]

Such applications should probably be configured to use the GNOME browser
facility rather than sensible-browser.

Alternatively, we could provide a high-priority browser alternative which
launches the preferred GNOME browser.

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

I think we should just bump the alternative priority of the default browser

[Matt Zimmerman (mdz)]

Perhaps, but that still leaves us with two places to configure the preferred
browser, and they can easily fall out of sync if the user changes either one.
It would be much less surprising to have a single setting.

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

yes, good point. BTW it's late for warty now I guess, marking this for hoary

[Matt Zimmerman (mdz)]

*** Bug 9500 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

[Thom May (thombot)]

17:05 ~/work/packages% update-alternatives --display x-www-browser
x-www-browser - status is auto.
 link currently points to /usr/bin/mozilla-firefox
/usr/bin/mozilla-firefox - priority 85
 slave x-www-browser.1.gz: /usr/share/man/man1/mozilla-firefox.1.gz
/usr/bin/mozilla - priority 80
 slave x-www-browser.1.gz: /usr/share/man/man1/mozilla.1.gz
/usr/bin/epiphany - priority 85
 slave x-www-browser.1.gz: /usr/share/man/man1/epiphany.1.gz
Current `best' version is /usr/bin/mozilla-firefox.

This is now fixed with current firefox and e epiphany.

Reassigning to seb for fix to gnome apps.

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

do you have a list of applications to fix ?

[Thom May (thombot)]

No, merely reacting to Matt's comment that we should fix apps to use gnome's
browser rather than sensible browser - I guess gaim at least.

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

closing this bug, if you have issues with some apps feel free to open bugs on
the concerned applications

[Michael Trunner (trunneml)]

That bug is now again in Dapper

[Batwam (batwam)]

...and Edgy.

I totally agree with the "Perhaps, but that still leaves us with two places to configure the preferred browser, and they can easily fall out of sync if the user changes either one.
It would be much less surprising to have a single setting" solution

[Batwam (batwam)]

...and in Intrepid as well as Debian... Can't believe this is not fixed...

[Hendrik (joker-x)]

I had the same problem on Intrepid with Opera: Firefox was configured as default in "preferred applications", but Opera ended up as "sensible-browser" via "x-www-browser".
Thom May's fix from above resolved this. (Thanks!)

From what I've read about this issue, I get the impression that calling "sensible-browser" on a Gnome platform is pretty much deprecated. Wouldn't it then make sense to automagically (re-) set "sensible-browser" to the one specified as default whenever either one is changed?
To me, the "right" place to set the default browser on Ubuntu seems to be via "preferred applications". And, as has been pointed out previously, when the two settings get out of sync things can become really confusing.

[Emilio (turl)]

Still not fixed for karmic! Let's get this done for Lucid :)

[Vish (vish)]

Thank you for bringing this bug to our attention. However, a paper cut should be a small usability issue, in the default Ubuntu install, that affects many people and is quick and easy to fix. So this bug can't be addressed as part of this project.

- This problem does not arise with the default apps , hence not a papercut.
For further information about papercuts criteria, please read https://wiki.ubuntu.com/PaperCut.

Don't worry though, this bug has been marked as "Invalid" only in the papercuts project.

[Jānis Kangarooo (kangarooo)]

Seamonkey also rewrites x-www-browser.. bad..
so instead of installing www programm it shouldnt overtake settings
and
gnome and exo (for xubuntu) and x-www-browser settings should be the same..
so if i change something in gnome settings then it should change also x-www

[Thibault Lemaitre (thibault.lemaitre)]

As mentioned in the Bug #562476, comment #5, see [1] for details :
"Yes, it's the same issue for sensible-browser too.

This is a long-standing issue, and it is well known that the alternatives system sucks for this type of thing. The alternatives system is not a user-configurable preference, but is a system-wide preference that can only be configured by the root user. In an ideal world, applications shouldn't be using x-www-browser and gnome-www-browser at all, as there are other ways to do this"

[1] : https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/gnome-control-center/+bug/562476/comments/5