The latest version of firefox for android seems to have an annoying
interstitial page where is shows the fox logo before launching any new
website ... any way to disable it?

On 29 Oct 2023 07:08:02 +0000 Andy Burns wrote:
>The latest version of firefox for android seems to have an annoying
>interstitial page where is shows the fox logo before launching any new
>website ... any way to disable it?

It doesn't for me. This is 120.0a from 22/10 - are you using 121.0a?
--
(Remove numerics from email address)

On Sun, 29 Oct 2023 07:08:02 +0000, Andy Burns wrote:

> The latest version of firefox for android seems to have an annoying
> interstitial page where is shows the fox logo before launching any new
> website ... any way to disable it?

Not here. Firefox for Android 119.0.

* If I tap on a link _in_ Firefox to open a new website, this
does _not_ happen here.

* If I tap on a link _outside_ Firefox to open a new website
in Firefox, this does _not_ happen here. This is whether or
not Firefox has been 'quit' (not running, not minimized to
'recent tasks').

But...

* If Firefox has been 'quit' (not running, not minimized to
'recent tasks') and I tap on the Firefox icon to open it,
Firefox does shows the Firefox logo briefly before showing
the Homepage. This is _only_ after Firefox has been 'quit',
and _only_ if it is the Homepage, not a new website.

--
Kind regards
Ralph Fox

𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘱𝘳𝘶𝘯𝘨, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘪𝘻, 𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘪𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘴.
𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘴𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘪𝘳𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 — 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘥; 𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘪𝘳𝘥.

Ralph Fox wrote:

> Andy Burns wrote:
>
>> The latest version of firefox for android seems to have an annoying
>> interstitial page where is shows the fox logo before launching any new
>> website ... any way to disable it?
>
> Not here. Firefox for Android 119.0.

I must admit I can't make it do it today (v118.2 on tablet v119 on phone)

> * If I tap on a link _in_ Firefox to open a new website, this
> does _not_ happen here.
>
> * If I tap on a link _outside_ Firefox to open a new website
> in Firefox, this does _not_ happen here. This is whether or
> not Firefox has been 'quit' (not running, not minimized to
> 'recent tasks').
>
> But...
>
> * If Firefox has been 'quit' (not running, not minimized to
> 'recent tasks') and I tap on the Firefox icon to open it,
> Firefox does shows the Firefox logo briefly before showing
> the Homepage.

I thought it was doing it when launching a web page from another app,
I'll keep an eye on it ...

> This is _only_ after Firefox has been 'quit',
> and _only_ if it is the Homepage, not a new website.

Andy Burns <usenet@andyburns.uk> wrote:

> The latest version of firefox for android seems to have an annoying
> interstitial page where is shows the fox logo before launching any new
> website ... any way to disable it?

How are you getting to the Internet from your phone? Are you somewhere
that has you using their Internet access method (e.g., wifi)? Any
Internet provider, or even a DNS provider, can interject a page when you
attempt to connect to web sites, like they want you to verify you paid
for access to use their Internet service.

Right now I'm using the wifi in my cable modem to my ISP to gain
Internet access to my phone. No interstitial page shows in Firefox
Mobile in that setup. When I use someone else's Internet access via
wifi, yep, I might get their interstitial "access" page. That would
happen whether I used my phone or laptop: they provide Internet access,
but you have to verify you can use their service, or they want to ensure
you know you're using their service.

I do see the app-load screen for Firefox Mobile aka splash screen. Apps
don't load instantly, and some take longer to load, especially on slow
phones. The slower the phone, the longer the splash screen is shown.
To make users feel comfortable that an app they selected is actually
loading, the app shows something to placate the user rather than not
showing anything making the user wonder if the app is still loading, or
crashed.

Example: A programmer got called to resolve slow screen loads for a
real-time application (airline scheduling terminals at airport). When
he arrived, and because the complaint was screens weren't showing up
until users started to wonder if the program had stalled, he simply
added "progress" screens before the load of another. This let users
know the program was still working and doing something. That calmed
the users to eliminate the complaints, and gave him plenty of time to
work on why the screen data was taking so long from database queries
resulting in the next screen not showing up for a while.

Could be a screen showing a logo, or a progress bar that moves while
displayed. Not all smartphones are equally fast or have equal amounts
of system memory, so the same app on one smartphone could take longer or
shorter than loading the same app on another smartphone, especially
considering how Android doesn't unload apps until memory space is
required for a newly loaded app.

The more add-ons you install into Firefox, the longer it takes to load.
Unlike Chrome Mobile, Firefox Mobile does allow installing add-ons. If
the Fox logo is hanging around too long for your taste, disable all
add-ons you installed into it, force a stop on Firefox, and reload it to
see if the Fox logo disappears more quickly.

Alas, unlike Firefox Desktop, at one time you could go into about:config
for Firefox Mobile, but Mozilla took away the advanced config editor in
Firefox Mobile quite a while ago. So, no chance of going into advanced
settings to find a logo load settings. On my phone, the Fox log flashes
by so quickly that I hardly notice it unless I'm specifically looking
for it.

When you got into Firefox Mobile's settings (3-dot menu), select
Customize Homepage. Deselect all that fluff. Load to a blank page.

For Firefox Mobile on Android, I'm at version 119.0 released 10/24/2023.
The splash screen only appears when Firefox wasn't still running when
you loaded it. Remember Android doesn't unload apps until their memory
is needed for a newly opened app, or when you do a force-stop on an app.
I have to force-stop Firefox Mobile to then see its splash screen when
the app is newly loaded.

Firefox Mobile (Android) doesn't support profiles, so no way to create a
new/fresh Firefox profile devoid of all add-ons and tweaks to test if
Firefox loads faster to minimize how long the splash screen is shown.

Andy Burns wrote:

> Ralph Fox wrote:
>
>>   *  If Firefox has been 'quit' (not running, not minimized to
>>      'recent tasks') and I tap on the Firefox icon to open it,
>>      Firefox does shows the Firefox logo briefly before showing
>>      the Homepage.
>
> I thought it was doing it when launching a web page from another app,
> I'll keep an eye on it ...

I've realised where it was consistently doing it. From the home screen,
when swiped left to the google page, clicking on a news story or a
search result to launch it in firefox gives the fox logo zooming into
place. I just swipe left to return to the google page, so I don't "kill"
firefox, if I swipe up to look at recent apps, it's still there running.

On this Sun, 29 Oct 2023 16:09:09 +0000, Andy Burns wrote:

>> Not here. Firefox for Android 119.0.
>
> I must admit I can't make it do it today (v118.2 on tablet v119 on phone)

Can you record the screen when you do it to capture when it happens?
adb shell screenrecord /sdcard/Download/myscreen.mp4

On 30 Oct 2023 00:20:35 +0000 Andy Burns wrote:

>I've realised where it was consistently doing it. From the home screen,
>when swiped left to the google page, clicking on a news story or a
>search result to launch it in firefox gives the fox logo zooming into
>place. I just swipe left to return to the google page, so I don't "kill"
>firefox, if I swipe up to look at recent apps, it's still there running.

Not something I ever do.

Sounds like the 'intent' is displaying the logo from the target
application's manifest. Perhaps it's just telling you that you're opening
content in another app. Does Google do that if it displays content in any
other non-Google app? Intents don't normally do that.

--
(Remove numerics from email address)

Charlie wrote:

> Can you record the screen when you do it to capture when it happens?
> adb shell screenrecord /sdcard/Download/myscreen.mp4

will grab a screen recording later ...

Dave Royal <dave@dave123royal.com> wrote

> On 30 Oct 2023 00:20:35 +0000 Andy Burns wrote:
>
>>I've realised where it was consistently doing it. From the home screen,
>>when swiped left to the google page, clicking on a news story or a
>>search result to launch it in firefox gives the fox logo zooming into
>>place. I just swipe left to return to the google page, so I don't "kill"
>>firefox, if I swipe up to look at recent apps, it's still there running.
>
> Not something I ever do.
>
> Sounds like the 'intent' is displaying the logo from the target
> application's manifest. Perhaps it's just telling you that you're opening
> content in another app. Does Google do that if it displays content in any
> other non-Google app? Intents don't normally do that.

In trying to help, I must first openly admit I don't really know what an
"intent" is, other than it seems to "send" stuff to another application.
<https://i.postimg.cc/mgzvw0mv/unknowntracker01x.jpg>

However, I do (think I) know what an "activity" is, where I use this
program to find what "public" activity has been run at any given time.
*Shortcut Widgets (+Inspector)*
Unfortunately it is no longer on Google Play Store as of 8/2023)
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cemique.shortcutwidgets>

But it can be found elsewhere if you're not afraid of sideloading it.
<https://apkcombo.com/shortcut-widgets-inspector/com.cemique.shortcutwidgets/>
<https://m.apkpure.com/shortcut-widgets-inspector/com.cemique.shortcutwidgets>

My suggestion?

Andy load that activity inspector to let that inspector tell Andy what the
errant Package/Activity is (if it calls a public activity, of course).

Once he knows the package & activity name, he can reproduce it at will.

Here's an example of where I did that for the screen-zoom activity debug.
<https://i.postimg.cc/Xv6LbXDH/screenzoom.jpg>

Steps:
1. Start the activity inspector
2. Make the thing you want to debug happen
3. Go back to the activity inspector

If you're lucky, the packagename and activityname will show up as it did
there (but it will only show up if it's a public activity, AFAIK).
--
Usenet is an approach to find people who know more than you do, and then to
discuss problems with them such that you learn from their knowledge too.

On 30 Oct 2023 17:38:42 -0400 Wally J wrote:
>Dave Royal <dave@dave123royal.com> wrote
>
>> On 30 Oct 2023 00:20:35 +0000 Andy Burns wrote:
>>
>>>I've realised where it was consistently doing it. From the home screen,
>>>when swiped left to the google page, clicking on a news story or a
>>>search result to launch it in firefox gives the fox logo zooming into
>>>place. I just swipe left to return to the google page, so I don't "kill"
>>>firefox, if I swipe up to look at recent apps, it's still there running.
>>
>> Not something I ever do.
>>
>> Sounds like the 'intent' is displaying the logo from the target
>> application's manifest. Perhaps it's just telling you that you're opening
>> content in another app. Does Google do that if it displays content in any
>> other non-Google app? Intents don't normally do that.
>
>In trying to help, I must first openly admit I don't really know what an
>"intent" is, other than it seems to "send" stuff to another application.
> <snip>

An 'intent' is the method by which one Android app sends data to another
to do something with. For example an RSS reader might send an article link
to a browser or an mp3 attachment to a media player.

It's actually the name of the API which the sending app uses:
<https://developer.android.com/reference/android/content/Intent>

An app has a manifest, an XML file, advertising what it can do - display
html files or URLs in the case of a browser.
--
(Remove numerics from email address)

Wally J wrote:

> load that activity inspector to let that inspector tell Andy what the
> errant Package/Activity is (if it calls a public activity, of course).

I'll probably have to get back to this tomorrow ...

Charlie wrote:

> Can you record the screen when you do it to capture when it happens?
> adb shell screenrecord /sdcard/Download/myscreen.mp4

I tried, but got

/system/bin/sh: screenrecord: not found

That's on a Huawei tablet, running Android 9 (thanks America for killing
firmware upgrades).