Yes, though I often add a new .desktop file with a different name to the same directory, to try out my changes.

--dave

Greetings To GTALUG Members,

I boot debian 11 live from a USB memory stick.

The bootable USB stick was created using a command like this:

sudo dd if=/.../debian-live-11.5.0-amd64--gnome+nonfree.iso of=/dev/sdb bs=4M conv=fdatasync status=progress

* * *
* * *

When I left-click Activities at the top left-hand corner of the Gnome desktop, the column of favorite app icons appears, including a Firefox icon. When I right-click the Firefox icon, a block with clickable selections appears beside the Firefox icon, including New Window.

Currently, the Firefox icon's New Window selection launches Firefox 91.13.0esr (64-bit). I assume that this Firefox version comes from the bootable debian 11 live usb memory stick.

Recently on startup, this  Firefox 91.13.0esr (64-bit) has been displaying Mozilla notices about the coming obsolescence of this Firefox version. Mozilla provides a Firefox apt repository, so I dutifully installed the current Firefox .deb using instructions on this web page:

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/install-firefox-linux?utm_source=www.mozilla.org&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=firefox-download-thanks&_gl=1*8gv942*_ga*MjA2NDcyMzM3OS4xNzMxNjgyMTQ5*_ga_MQ7767QQQW*MTczMTY4MjE0OS4xLjEuMTczMTY4MjE3OC4wLjAuMA..#w_install-firefox-deb-package-for-debian-based-distributions

The Mozilla Firefox .deb installation went fine and a second Firefox icon appeared on the Gnome favorites menu.  The new Firefox launched OK.

Unfortunately, as I have experienced with other .deb installations, when I re-booted debian 11 live from the USB stick, the new Firefox had disappeared. I install so few .deb apps that my workaround for this disappearing-app issue has been simply to re-install the disappeared app as necessary.

However, the installation process for the Firefox .deb is quite lengthy, and I am always using Firefox, so I do not wish to have to do a Firefox .deb re-install from the Mozilla apt repository, every time I re-boot debian 11 from the USB stick.

* * *
* * *

Next, I downloaded Mozilla's firefox-128.4.0esr.tar.bz2 and used the Archive Manager to extract the Firefox app. I can start this version of Firefox by right-clicking on the firefox file in the iinstallation's top firefox directory, and selecting Run. The new Firefox starts and when I display the Help > About Firefox window, I see confirmation that Firefox is up to date and 128.4.0esr (64-bit).

So, I now have installed a current version of Firefox ESR that runs fine and does not disappear with every debian 11 live re-boot from the USB stick.

* * *
* * *

If I left-click Activities, and type firefox into the search field that appears under the date/time at the top of the desktop, Gnome displays the icon for the old Firefox 91.13.0esr.

When I execute a which firefox command and then invoke that firefox at a command prompt, the old Firefox 91.13.0esr starts.
...
user@debian:~$ which firefox
/usr/bin/firefox
user@debian:~$ /usr/bin/firefox
...

* * *
* * *

In directory /usr/share/applications there is a file firefox-esr.desktop

In this file is a line:

Exec=/usr/lib/firefox-esr/firefox-esr %u

My knowledge of how the Gnome applications business works is so sketchy, that paranoia prevents me from messing with this firefox-esr.desktop file to change the Exec= line to point to the new firefox-128.4.0esr firefox file that I can start by a right-click > Run.

* * *
* * *

My question for GTALUG members is: how can I safely manually add a new icon to the Gnome favorites column, for the new Firefox I installed by extracting firefox-128.4.0esr.tar.bz2 into a directory ??

Steve Petrie

Etobicoke (Toronto), Ontario, Canada

apetrie@aspetrie.net
416-233-6116

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-- 
David Collier-Brown,         | Always do right. This will gratify
System Programmer and Author | some people and astonish the rest
davecb@spamcop.net           |              -- Mark Twain