There is a small feature in the new Firefox 3 called the smart location bar, but some users may find it annoying if you’re used to previous versions of Firefox. This article will describe how to disable the smart location bar in such a way that makes Firefox 3 perform similar to Firefox 2. But, be warned that this procedure should only be done if you’re comfortable making changes to your browser configuration files.
How to Find Your Browser Config Files
In order to make the changes necessary to alter your smart location bar, you need to access your Firefox browser config files. You can change your Firefox browser’s configuration files by typing about:config in the location bar.
After you hit the enter key, a warning screen will appear that tells you that “This might void your warranty!” If you really want to continue, click the “I’ll be careful, I promise!” button. If you never want to see this warning again, uncheck the “Show this warning next time”.
After you make the necessary changes to your browser config files (as described below), close down Firefox and restart the program to see the results of your changes. You do not need to restart your computer when making changes to the browser config file.
Stop Bookmarks From Showing Up in the Smart Location Bar
In order to remove the bookmarks from the smart location bar in Firefox, you need to change one line in your browser config file. Scroll down through the config settings until you find the “browser.urlbar.matchOnlytyped” entry or type browser.urlbar.matchOnlytyped in the filter bar. Double-click the line to change the value to true.
Completely Disable the Autocomplete List in the Smart Location Bar
If you don’t like anything to show up when you’re typing URL’s into the location bar, you can completely disable the autocomplete list in Firefox 3. Scroll down through the config settings in the Firefox browser preferences until you find the “browser.urlbar.maxRichResults” entry or type browser.urlbar.maxRichResults into the filter bar. Double-click the line to bring up an “Enter integer value” box and change the value from 12 to -1. Hit the “OK” button and you’re done.
Change Your Settings Back to Normal
If you ever want to change your configuration settings back to the original settings, just reverse the instructions above and you’ll be back to normal.