/alleycat/ - Alleycat BBS (cat scratch fever)

Some morsels before we get to the main course

The new Firefox UI is code-named "Proton" while the previous iteration was named "Photon". That's a difference of one character which pretty much sums up the actual difference between the two. The thing that I immediately noticed when I started up the new update was the ghastly waste of vertical space. Is that it? I dunno. Maybe I'm missing something. The last time I got pissed with Firefox was when I switched from Windows XP to Windows 10. What happened to the nice rounded tabs? I got used to it though. In general, I don't pay much attention to the user interface unless it gets in the way. The recent Firefox 89 update got in the way.

If you don't already know how to use "about:config" to access hidden features of the Firefox browser then go do some research and come back. Here's some flags that you need to know about:

browser.menu.showViewImageInfo (set this to true, default is false) - I think it was an update or two ago that this option disappeared from the context menu. Now why would the Mozilla team not want us to view image info? Oddly, though, this item appears disabled in the menu though it nonetheless works.

browser.proton.contextmenus.enabled (set this to false, default is false) - I don't know what this is supposed to do except that it makes a double border around the menus. Not compatible with my changes to the menu design.

browser.compactmode.show (set this to true, default is false) - Mozilla is so determined to waste vertical space that they actually removed the "compact mode" option in "Customize Toolbar". The option will now show up as "not supported". That's a warning that it will not be available in the next update, I guess.

browser.proton.enabled (set this to false, default is true) - I'm not saying that you must disable Proton since I made my UI fixes compatible with both Proton and Photon. The menus look exactly the same either way. There is a slight difference in the height of the tabs and in the placement of the sound icon.

toolkit.legacyUserProfileCustomizations.stylesheets (set this to true, default is false) - The options above are not mandatory but this one is. Firefox will not load "userChrome.css" or "userContent.css" by default. The Mozilla team was apparently concerned about the long loading times due to the bloated CSS files that users were installing (Mozilla has been taken over by leftist thinkers). Rest assured that the files that I am offering are very small so you won't see a difference in loading time.

On that note, though I could easily fit my chrome files into a post, I will instead keep them on my Koofer download site. That way, all of the updates will be in one place.

Go here and look for the folder named "Firefox": http://k00.fr/0asgwxc8

Update: the Koofr link no longer works.

Go to my GitHub page here: https://8chananon.github.io/dl/firefox-css/index.htm

So what is this chrome mod and how do I install it?

If you are already familiar with the installation of chrome mods then you may have noticed how big they usually are. I'm not sure how that happens but I'm guessing that the makers are using the Browser Toolbox to get at the settings and then saving their changes en masse along with the 90% of the settings that have not changed. That's just my guess since I don't operate that way. I take a different approach to this as I do with everything else that I design. I look for examples and then I learn from those examples in order to come up with something tight and compact. You can see this reductive design approach in Alleycat Player and my other tools. Power in a small package is my goal.

Anyway, self-congratulation aside, what can this chrome mod do for you? My main ambition was to fix the excess vertical space problem with Proton and then prettify with my own custom colours and other features. I could have simply settled with just disabling Proton but there is no guarantee that the next update will allow it to be disabled. Might as well dig into this now rather than later. The menus have been redesigned with new colours and borders and reduced vertical spacing. The other item is the tab bar which Proton fucked up totally. There are no separators between the tabs, the vertical spacing is excessive and the selected tab appears as a button. WTAF? So I decided to make the tabs look like tabs again. Each tab has rounded corners and spacing between them so they actually look like folder tabs sticking up from behind the other tool bars. The next step (before you ask) is to be able to position the tab bar below the other bars or even at the bottom of the screen. I haven't yet found a good example of how to do that so I may have to figure it out from scratch.

To install the mod, you need to open your Firefox profile folder. Pull down the "Help" menu and select "More Troubleshooting Information". Look for "Profile Folder" and click the "Open Folder" button. Create a new folder called "chrome" (if it does not already exist). Place the files called "userChrome.css" and "userContent.css" inside this folder. That's it for installation. Now you need to apply the new chrome mod. You could just exit and restart but the better option is to simply refresh (faster and you won't lose all of your tabs). Return to "Troubleshooting Information" and select "Clear startup cache" to refresh Firefox. You will now see the changes to your Firefox chrome.

There are only two settings in the "userContent.css" file. One is to change the default colours of the scrollbars. Unfortunately, there is nothing else that can be done to the scrollbars besides changing the width (which I have not done). The other setting is to get rid of the blue outline on the following items: input, button and textarea. I'm sure that there are others that I missed but that seems fine for now. I'll be exploring other possible settings such as the spacing in dropdown lists which has been a problem for over two years now and Mozilla seems to have forgotten about it. That was actually the main motivation for customizing the dropdowns in Alleycat Player.

This is enough typing for now. Head out to my Koofer site and get the files. The files must be renamed to "userChrome.css" and "userContent.css". The capitalization doesn't matter on the Windows platform but it does matter on Linux and (I think) Apple Mac. Feel free to modify the files if the settings are not to your satisfaction. Enjoy and please offer suggestions and feedback.

Application note

The colours that I chose for the tabs and the menus are intended to be compatible with a certain theme. I have tried a lot of different themes and they all look stupid and ugly to me. Do I have bad taste? Kek, don't answer that. Anyway, here's the theme that I use:

Pastel theme: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/user/14124594/

I have also included a sample colour palette for dark themes. Just comment out the current settings and uncomment the dark theme settings. The colour choices are not ideal so you will need to customize them further to match whatever ugly and unreadable dark theme that you are using. Read my comments in "userChrome.css" in case there is anything else that you might want to change. Remember to refresh Firefox to apply the changes.

Two handy sites for looking up colour names:

http://www.html-color-names.com/ (note: missing RebeccaPurple)

https://www.w3schools.com/colors/colors_names.asp

>>1008

finally allowed (accidentally) firefox update. it sucks. agree waste of vertical space is annoying AF. can i go back to previous version, or am i doomed?

>>1015

>Mozilla ESR

>>1016

>Mozilla ESR

thx. I guess. I think I fucked up, royally. dld'd latest ear version and installed. suggested that I NOT keep my profile and instead create a new one. now I can't find the old profile and all my history, passwords, etc are lost.

can someone pls help?

>>1016

>>1017

>thx. I guess. I think I fucked up, royally.

ok.... emily litella moment.... i panicked and posted my desperate plea for help. then i calmed down and managed to muddle my way thru the process of recovering the old profile.

i hate computers.

On a board that normally gets zero traffic, it surprises me to have four posts show up from two different anons with a separation of only a few hours. How does that happen? Of course, just one anon spamming pointless posts is not really surprising.

Anyway, I'm finally updating the CSS files. We now have the ability to put the tab bar below the other bars. It does not appear to be possible to put the tab bar at the bottom of the browser window (I don't see why anybody would want that anyway). Stay tuned.

CSS update with tabs bar below the other bars

I've split the userChrome.css file into four files for easier management. This is the current file layout:

userChrome-v2.css

v2-menus.css

v2-tabs-bar.css

v2-tabs-to-below.css

You will need to rename "userChrome-v2.css" to "userChrome.css". I hate to point out obvious shit like this but some people do get confused or just miss the obvious. The new arrangement makes it easier to include or exclude CSS features. For example, if you want the tabs bar to remain at the top then delete or comment out the line @import url("v2-tabs-to-below.css") in the main CSS file.

There is one issue that I've found with the first version of the CSS. The greying of disabled menu items seemed to work correctly until I right-clicked on a video. Most of the menu items appear greyed even though they are not actually disabled. This is now fixed and it is the only change to the menu CSS. Here's another useful setting that you should change in "about:config":

browser.tabs.tabMinWidth (default is 66, change it to 100 or whatever)

The default setting is just too narrow. Setting it a larger value allows you to see more of the window title when the number of open tabs overflows your browser width. If you want to study the default chrome settings in order to make your own changes, the best way seems to be to open the Inspector tool in a tab with the following URL:

chrome://browser/content/browser.xhtml

However, there is a bug in Firefox. You will need to open the Inspector tool first in a blank tab and then load the URL. Be prepared to wade through a complicated bullshit mess. Here's the navigation path to get to the browser tabs part of the DOM:

box > toolbox#navigator-toolbox > vbox#titlebar > toolbar#TabsToolbar > hbox@toolbar-items >

hbox#TabsToolbar-customization-target > tabs#tabbrowser-tabs > arrowscrollbox#tabbrowser-arrowscrollbox >

tab@tabbrowser-tab > stack@tab-stack

Yeah. Have fun. Files are here: https://8chananon.github.io/dl/firefox-css/index.htm

Performance issues with Firefox 90

The latest version of Firefox has issues with video playback performance as well as excessive CPU usage with rolling thumbnails and animations. When using the brightness control on Alleycat Player, the video gets jerky and the sound may go out of sync.

None of this is related to the userChrome changes.

Fix for the performance issues on Firefox 90

Open "about:config" and change this entry:

gfx.webrender.force-disabled (set this to true, default is false)

I don't know what the heck this is or why it works. It may be related to the graphics card and thus it may not work for everyone. The solution was found here:

https://old.reddit.com/r/firefox/comments/okt66e/if_youre_experiencing_tearinglag_after_the_v90/

Something else I noticed since the upgrade is that the current tab in the tabs bar may sometimes vanish from view but it will reappear if you move the mouse over it. This does not seem to happen with the tabs at the top. Weird.

Update for Firefox 91

So the latest Firefox version no longer allows us to revert to the Photon UI. The only impact as far as my userChrome goes is that a few minor tweaks are needed to realign the elements in the tabs bar. I have uploaded a new file called "v2-tabs-bar2.css". All you need to do is download the file to your "chrome" folder and change the relevant "@import" line in your "userChrome.css" to use the new file.

The only visible difference between Photon and Proton is that the sound icon is on the left of the tab rather than next to the close icon. Menus are unaffected.

Second update for Firefox 91

So I noticed that the new Firefox now uses the root var "--tab-border-radius" which overrides my own root var of the same name. For that reason, the border radius (rounded corners) at the top of the tabs was rendering at 4px instead of 6px. It's a small difference so I did not notice when I updated the CSS for the tabs bar. That's now fixed. I made some other adjustments while I was at it. Check my comments in the file.

I did not create a new file but simply overwrote the file "v2-tabs-bar2.css" on my Koofer download site.

holycrap cats

FF 91.4.1 unstable as hell

>do not want.cat meme

>>1109

What the hell, dude? You're still at Firefox 91? Latest version is 95.0.2.

For me, no instabilities on Windows 10. If anything, I'm shocked at the amount of punishment that Firefox has been able to take from all of my tinkering and hacking. It just keeps going like the Eveready bunny.

>>1110

91.4.1 on the esr track because the weekly/rapid release sucks moar often

>>1111

rollan back from 91.5.0esr

daily crashes and

>restart tab, restart tab, restart tab

91.3.0esr has been sweetest so far

>>1138

91.6.1 on the esr track seems sweet

>perri piper surrounded.meme

>allycat doesn't here anymore

>>>/tech/

>perri piper'd

>>1142

>allycat doesn't here anymore

Not true. I check the board every day. I just don't feel like posting for an audience that doesn't make itself known. You have posted here several times and nobody cares. Kek.

Waiting for the end of the world or a new world order to arrive. One or the other needs to happen soon. I am so tired of waiting and pretending that anything is normal anymore. I'm still working on my software but I don't have the energy to release any of it. As for shitpostiing, which I used to do regularly, I don't have the energy for that either.

Whatever. Nice to see that you care enough to pass by here once in a while. You should check out my new website if you haven't seen it yet.

https://8chananon.github.io

>>1144

pin this bro

The Firefox Chrome files are now accessible on my GitHub account:

https://8chananon.github.io/dl/firefox-css/index.htm

>>1323

Koofr just fucked me big time. I used to have a perma link to my repository there (for the Firefox CSS and a bunch of other stuff) but they made a policy change and links now expire after two weeks. That's one way to force me to move to a paid account but, quite frankly, it's not worth it to me. Too bad because they gave me a hefty 10GB storage limit some months ago and I've only used 5% of that.

I'm not doing shit at archive.org either because they took away the ability to run HTML. Something about a security risk but that seems like a pretty lame excuse (Koofr does this too). My Europa item has a forced login to view the content. That happened when the visitor count hit 5000. What the fuck? Seems like censorship. See here: https://archive.org/details/@8chananon

In other news, ZippyShare has left this mortal plane. It was my first file sharing site but I quickly moved to Koofr because Zippy expires files in 30 days if nobody downloads them. See here: http://www.zippyshare.com

GitHub doesn't impose any funky limits. I could upload gigabytes of software if I had that much to share but I don't imagine that they would be cool with videos (unless they're software related). GitHub is the place to be until something changes.

I have an account at Jumpshare but the storage limit is a measly 2GB and I've already used 25% of that. Not great for video uploads. Also, Vimeo deleted my account. Kek. I told them to shove their website up their ass and I got an auto-reponse from their emailer. Stupid fucks.

Update for Firefox 113

The CSS attribute called "-moz-box-ordinal-group" is no longer valid. The name has been changed to simply "order". This breaks the CSS for placing the tabs bar below the other bars.

Just download the file "v2-tabs-to-below2.css" to replace "v2-tabs-to-below.css".

All files are here: https://8chananon.github.io/dl/firefox-css/index.htm

>>1326

thanks for the timely update

>>1327

You're welcome. Thanks for dropping by.

Were you just as pissed as I was when the tabs started going to the top after the FF update? Kek.

Update for Firefox 116.0.1

Mozilla crapped on my userChrome again. The separator line in the menus appears thicker because of a single-pixel line being drawn inside of it. This is fixed by changing the text colour to transparent and adjusting some other parameters to restore the intended look.

This is the new code:

menupopup > menuseparator {

padding: 0 !important; margin: 2px 4px !important;

height: 2px !important; color: transparent !important;

background-color: var(--menu-color-separator) !important;

border: none !important;

}

Previous code:

menupopup > menuseparator {

padding: 1px 0 !important; margin: 0 !important;

background-color: var(--menu-color-separator) !important;

border: 2px solid var(--menu-color-bg-normal) !important;

}

You can make the change manually in your copy of "v2-menus.css" or download the file from my GitHub repo. Also, the menu bar at the top of the screen needs more space if you are using the tabs-to-below css. This is the change in "v2-tabs-to-below2.css":

New code:

#navigator-toolbox {

padding-top: var(--tab-min-height) !important;

}

Previous code:

#navigator-toolbox {

padding-top: calc(var(--tab-min-height) - 2px) !important;

}

https://8chananon.github.io/dl/firefox-css/index.htm

Firefox 116.0.2 is broken

The CSS for putting the tabs below (v2-tabs-to-below2.css) has been broken my Mozilla. FF is ignoring some of the CSS settings. In particular, the setting for id "navigator-toolbox" which is supposed to reserve space at the top of the browser window to fit the menu bar. I can't find a way around this. The same situation occurs if I just push the tab bar to the bottom. It goes there but is mostly not visible because, again, there appears to be no way to reserve the space for it.

For now, just remove the reference to "v2-tabs-to-below2.css" in userChrome.css till Mozilla fixes this.

>>1349

I'm an idiot. I updated "v2-tabs-to-below2.css" on August 7 but I made an error in this comment:

/* August 7, 2023 - remove -2px offset */

I missed the comment closure. I have updated the file on GitHub. So it seems that I made the error when I added the comment at the last minute before uploading the file but I didn't notice that I had done something wrong because I kept the browser running for 4 days until the new update showed up. And then my menu bar broke and I blamed Firefox and spent oodles of time trying to figure out what was wrong but completely failed to see the broken comment. Firefox updated again and the problem was not fixed so it had to be something that I did.

Groan. I thought about just deleting my previous post and pretending that it never happened but that isn't my style. I would rather come clean and admit my stupidity. So this is a reminder for my future self. Kek.

>>1350

wish i could help you, all i can do is read your words

keep going!

hey 8chananon, just letting you know that your video player stopped working as of yesterday

it has been a great tool for me and has undoubtedly prolonged the life of my machine since YT began its attack on those running adblockers

you were kind enough to post the link to your player several months ago on QR when anons were discussing the overheating and fan blowouts occurring from YT attacks

thank you for being anon

>>1357

I just happened to be browsing through the board and saw your post. You posted just yesterday so that's incredibly good timing, kek. I'm changing some things because I'll be getting back into action real soon with some new software.

So, yeah, Youtube changed something but I have just completed the fix. What exactly are you using? The demo version? I haven't even checked that for a long while since nobody has bothered to give me any feedback. I'm keeping the full version up-to-date though I haven't bothered to post an update for quite a while. Do you want the fix?

>>1358

wow, the synchronicity here always astounds

I've just been using your online version at this link:

https://8chananon.github.io/dl/yt-player.htm

I don't know if you're inclined to update it; as of this post it is still not working

I always enjoy watching the classic vids you have posted on that page

great to hear that you're getting back in the software saddle and are keeping your work alive and kicking

many thanks for your efforts and generosity

>>1362

>I always enjoy watching the classic vids you have posted on that page

Heh, I can't stop watching them myself. Great for testing.

I've updated the app on GitHub. Post a PSA on QR next time you're lurking there. I'll do that also.

>>1365

https://8kun.top/qresearch/res/21185942.html#21186622

o7

>>1366

Your post got two replies but mine was ignored. Sniff.

https://8kun.top/qresearch/res/21179981.html#21180008

>>1365

posted it again; no replies

then Trump got shot

things are all happening

are you tuned-in to the timeline?

our reality is about to change in unimaginable ways

I hope you are a Believer and suffering no delusions about the viability of this temporal existence

God bless you and yours, 8chananon

>>1368

>are you tuned-in to the timeline?

Let me just say this: if there was ever a good time to stage an assassination attempt, it would be right about now.

Not saying that's what happened but everything is fake. We don't know the truth about anything anymore.

This is a wild wild time to be alive and on the Internet.

Bless everyone and all.

New userChrome for Firefox 133

Mozilla messed around with the userChrome again. One change (which appeared in the previous Firefox version) is to make the sound icon on the tabs much more obvious by using a white-on-black motif. This is ugly and the image is much too small. Plenty of users have complained about it so I'm not gonna try to fix this since Mozilla is likely to change it again.

The other change is actually a good one. The method for moving the tabs below the other toolbars is now very much simpler (just one CSS tweak). Nice though I do totally despise having to update my CSS.

Download the new files from my GitHub repository: https://8chananon.github.io/dl/firefox-css

>>1385

To be perfectly clear, you need the following 4 files:

userChrome-v3.css, v2-menus.css, v2-tabs-bar2.css, v2-tabs-to-below3.css

Be sure to rename "userChrome-v3.css" to "userChrome.css".

>>1386

I had to make an additional tweak. The height of the tabs bar was not correctly set. I updated "v2-tabs-bar2.css" with the fix for Firefox 133.