Bump, this is an irritating thing

Hi, SAFE MODE

• https://support.mozilla.org/kb/Safe+Mode
• https://support.mozilla.org/kb/Troubleshooting+extensions+and+themes

In Firefox Safe mode these changes are effective:

• all extensions are disabled (about:addons)
• default theme is used (no persona)
• userChrome.css and userContent.css are ignored (chrome folder)
• default toolbar layout is used (file: localstore-safe.rdf)
• Javascript JIT compilers are disabled (prefs: javascript.options.*jit)
• hardware acceleration is disabled (Options > Advanced > General)
• plugins are not affected
• preferences are not affected

TEST''''is issue still there ?

If issue is still there then please give this a try : uninstall Firefox. Then Delete the Mozilla Firefox Folders in C:\Program Files , C:\Program Files(x86) & C:\ProgramData Then restart system. Then run Windows Disk Cleanup. (Note: This should be Pinned and run Weekly, If never done below expect 10's of gig's) Then run it again and click the button that says Cleanup System Files. Note: your Firefox Profile is saved. But you should make a back up before you do :

• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/back-and-restore-information-firefox-profiles
• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/export-firefox-bookmarks-to-backup-or-transfer

Reinstall with Current Release Firefox 61.0.2 with a Full Version Installer

• https://www.mozilla.org/firefox/all/

If the above program control files reinstall did not work then please try this : Profile : Make a new one and test ...:

• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/profile-manager-create-and-remove-firefox-profiles

If is your Profile :

• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/recovering-important-data-from-an-old-profile
• http://kb.mozillazine.org/Transferring_data_to_a_new_profile_-_Firefox

Please let us know if this solved your issue or if need further assistance.

You can check this pref on the about:config page.

• spellchecker.dictionary

You can consider to use the user.js file in the profile folder to initialize this pref on each Firefox start.

• http://kb.mozillazine.org/user.js_file

You can use the button on the "Help -> Troubleshooting Information" (about:support) page to go to the current Firefox profile folder or use the about:profiles page.

• Help -> Troubleshooting Information -> Profile Directory:
  Windows: Show Folder; Linux: Open Directory; Mac: Show in Finder
• http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_folder_-_Firefox

See also:

• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-to-fix-preferences-wont-save

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-to-fix-preferences-wont-save

Note: Some software, like Advanced SystemCare with Surfing Protection, can protect files in the Firefox profile folder against changes. If you have such software then check the settings or uninstall this software.

Pkshadow said

Hi, SAFE MODE

• https://support.mozilla.org/kb/Safe+Mode
• https://support.mozilla.org/kb/Troubleshooting+extensions+and+themes

In Firefox Safe mode these changes are effective:

• all extensions are disabled (about:addons)
• default theme is used (no persona)
• userChrome.css and userContent.css are ignored (chrome folder)
• default toolbar layout is used (file: localstore-safe.rdf)
• Javascript JIT compilers are disabled (prefs: javascript.options.*jit)
• hardware acceleration is disabled (Options > Advanced > General)
• plugins are not affected
• preferences are not affected

TEST''''is issue still there ? If issue is still there then please give this a try : uninstall Firefox. Then Delete the Mozilla Firefox Folders in C:\Program Files , C:\Program Files(x86) & C:\ProgramData Then restart system. Then run Windows Disk Cleanup. (Note: This should be Pinned and run Weekly, If never done below expect 10's of gig's) Then run it again and click the button that says Cleanup System Files. Note: your Firefox Profile is saved. But you should make a back up before you do :

• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/back-and-restore-information-firefox-profiles
• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/export-firefox-bookmarks-to-backup-or-transfer

Reinstall with Current Release Firefox 61.0.2 with a Full Version Installer

• https://www.mozilla.org/firefox/all/

If the above program control files reinstall did not work then please try this : Profile : Make a new one and test ...:

• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/profile-manager-create-and-remove-firefox-profiles

If is your Profile :

• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/recovering-important-data-from-an-old-profile
• http://kb.mozillazine.org/Transferring_data_to_a_new_profile_-_Firefox

Please let us know if this solved your issue or if need further assistance.

I am sorry you could re-read my question because what you wrote is irrelevant. You are telling me to enter safe mode, thus disable any spelling dictionary and see what then?

My problem is that Mozilla forces its own dictionary at every start instead of the one I installed and selected as default.

cor-el said

You can check this pref on the about:config page.

• spellchecker.dictionary

You can consider to use the user.js file in the profile folder to initialize this pref on each Firefox start.

• http://kb.mozillazine.org/user.js_file

You can use the button on the "Help -> Troubleshooting Information" (about:support) page to go to the current Firefox profile folder or use the about:profiles page.

• Help -> Troubleshooting Information -> Profile Directory:
  Windows: Show Folder; Linux: Open Directory; Mac: Show in Finder
• http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_folder_-_Firefox

See also:

• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-to-fix-preferences-wont-save

In my about:config, there are 4 entries with "spell" in them but I am not sure what I should change.

See attachment

AlexandrosArxaggelos said

In my about:config, there are 4 entries with "spell" in them but I am not sure what I should change.

Would this article help  ?

http://kb.mozillazine.org/Layout.spellcheckDefault

You can try to create a new string pref spellchecker.dictionary and set its value to the preferred language.

• http://kb.mozillazine.org/about:config

See also this comment:

• https://dxr.mozilla.org/mozilla-release/source/editor/spellchecker/EditorSpellCheck.cpp#817

My reply might sound pissed, but this is not my intention. I am not going to code anything, nor try to create any weird rules etc, it just seems mozilla has an issue.

If I am going to have to code to get a simple dictionary to be set as default then this browser just failed.

Thanks everyone for their effort to help, but mozilla keeps getting less and less user friendly and I have little to no expectation they will ever start seeing their product before they release it.

You never mentioned trying the link that FredMcD gave you :

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-to-fix-preferences-wont-save

McCoy said

You never mentioned trying the link that FredMcD gave you : https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-to-fix-preferences-wont-save

I did, it doesn't solve the problem that the default dictionary keeps changing back to the default. These 0, 1 or 2 options are irrelevant to my problem. By default it was in 1 and I changed it to 2 (0 means disable it) and the problem still persists.

AlexandrosArxaggelos said

I did, it doesn't solve the problem that the default dictionary keeps changing back to the default. These 0, 1 or 2 options are irrelevant to my problem. By default it was in 1 and I changed it to 2 (0 means disable it) and the problem still persists.

Just to make sure : After you changed the value of that preference, did you then close and restart Firefox, in order for the change to take effect  ?

The spellchecker.dictionary pref may not exist by default and in that case Firefox might choose a dictionary randomly. If you want to set a specific default dictionary then you will have to create a new Boolean pref with the name spellchecker.dictionary and set its value to the dictionary you want to use (Greek = el-GR).

Type about:config in the location (address) bar and press the Enter key to open the about:config page like you open a website by typing the URL in the location bar.

• if you see a warning message then you can confirm that you want to access the about:config page.
• new preferences can be created via the right-click context menu: New -> String, Integer, Boolean

Name: spellchecker.dictionary
Value for Greek: el-GR 
Value for English: en-US

See also:

• http://kb.mozillazine.org/about:config

cor-el said

The spellchecker.dictionary pref may not exist by default and in that case Firefox might choose a dictionary randomly. If you want to set a specific default dictionary then you will have to create a new Boolean pref with the name spellchecker.dictionary and set its value to the dictionary you want to use (Greek = el-GR). Type about:config in the location (address) bar and press the Enter key to open the about:config page like you open a website by typing the URL in the location bar.

• if you see a warning message then you can confirm that you want to access the about:config page.
• new preferences can be created via the right-click context menu: New -> String, Integer, Boolean

Name: spellchecker.dictionary Value for Greek: el-GR Value for English: en-US See also:

• http://kb.mozillazine.org/about:config

So do I choose string or integer or boolean? And I do not want two options for spell checking, I have ONE dictionary that has both English and Greek spell checking abilities at the same time and I want this to be the default. It worked for years this way and one day Mozilla decided to keep changing the default dictionary to the default language that Mozilla is installed on. I don't even have an option in what language to install Mozilla, it automatically changes according to my location, which I never asked for.

McCoy said

AlexandrosArxaggelos said

I did, it doesn't solve the problem that the default dictionary keeps changing back to the default. These 0, 1 or 2 options are irrelevant to my problem. By default it was in 1 and I changed it to 2 (0 means disable it) and the problem still persists.

Just to make sure : After you changed the value of that preference, did you then close and restart Firefox, in order for the change to take effect  ?

It still changes to the default after a restart. I disabled the spell checker from mozilla hoping that it would stop forcing its own spell checker, but it also disabled the spell checking dictionary I installed.

So this wouldn't work either. I'll have to live with changing the language every time, this is such a solo incident, I doubt many people around the planet use double dictionary addons to have this problem, hence mozilla will think their product's decisions are correct.

I really hate chrome and I do not want to go there.

Stab in the dark :

Would you uninstall the dictionary and then reinstall it  ?

(but you may already have tried .... )

I was just about ready to open a new thread as I had the same issue and have been looking for days for a solution. All threads I could find were quite old and offered no fix.

Even though I found the about:config / spellchecker.dictionary solution, the string was not there and I had no clue I could add one. I am using this dictionary: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/greek-english-spell-dictionary/ And to fix the problem I used the solution suggested by cor-el. I created a new string named spellchecker.dictionary and saved the value el-GR-en-US and problem solved. I just hope it won't come back later.

Thanks cor-el.

McCoy said

Stab in the dark : Would you uninstall the dictionary and then reinstall it  ? (but you may already have tried .... )

Yes I did it and it didn't solve it

purple said

I was just about ready to open a new thread as I had the same issue and have been looking for days for a solution. All threads I could find were quite old and offered no fix. Even though I found the about:config / spellchecker.dictionary solution, the string was not there and I had no clue I could add one. I am using this dictionary: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/greek-english-spell-dictionary/ And to fix the problem I used the solution suggested by cor-el. I created a new string named spellchecker.dictionary and saved the value el-GR-en-US and problem solved. I just hope it won't come back later. Thanks cor-el.

I use a similar by Papadakos. It worked like a charm all these years, but Mozilla decided to fix things that didn't need to be fixed.

Somebody in mozilla developing team woke up one day and decided to add code that will turn the default dictionary to the original by Mozilla no matter your own preference. that guy needs to be fired.

This combined dictionary doesn't have a valid language code, so I'm not sure if/how you can set it as the default.

See also:

• https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/multilingual-dictionary/

cor-el said

This combined dictionary doesn't have a valid language code, so I'm not sure if/how you can set it as the default. See also:

• https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/multilingual-dictionary/

In case you were replying to me, I don't know what to say. It works repeatedly after every restart. Since I did as I described above, I did not have to change the dictionary that is being used. Firefox will now always use that custom dictionary as the default. And I'm really glad it is finally working as I want it to work.

It would be really helpful though if Firefox gave the option to choose a default dictionary so that we wouldn't have to mess with about:config to do so.