Teknoids

Ron,
Is there any chance that you downloaded the latest OS X update from Apple? 10.5.6 is reportedly causing significant problems according to some news articles.

As to getting another browser, go to you command line ftp client and open ftp.mozilla.org. Look in /pub/firefox/releases. Pick a version directory and have at it.
Ken Hirsh

-----Original Message-----
From: teknoids-bounces@ruckus.law.cornell.edu [mailto:teknoids-bounces@ruckus.law.cornell.edu] On Behalf Of Ronald Huttner
Sent: Friday, December 19, 2008 8:17 AM
To: Teknoids
Subject: Re: [teknoids] Total Inability To Download Anything At All From The Internet - Thanks !

Paul,
That's a fantastic response and I am very grateful indeed.
I'm in a Catch-22 though, because I can't at present download a
replacement browser.
I strongly suspect that it is my Safari that is the problem.
However I am perfectly able to browse the web with it.
And my email is working.
I think I may have to go in to Apple on Monday and ask them to put a
copy of Safari and/or Firefox on a disk for me.
By the way I NEVER go in for automatic software updates.
I always like to wait and see what others have to say first !!!
Thanks once again for your very full and helpful reply.

Ronald Huttner

On 20/12/2008, at 12:06 AM, marbux wrote:

> On Fri, Dec 19, 2008 at 2:22 AM, Ronald Huttner > wrote:
>
> Hi, Ron,
>
> I'm assuming that mouse clicks are still working in other apps. Have
> you tried with different web browsers or is this all with one browser?
> If the latter, I'd hazard a guess that your browser's code has been
> corrupted and that uninstalling then reinstalling the browser might
> cure the problem. But if you can't download, that would require that
> you have the installer for some browser at hand. Note that some
> browsers' installers will overwrite existing files safely (won't wipe
> out your bookmarks, etc. and that I've never run across a browser
> whose uninstaller removes critical files like bookmarks, passwords,
> etc.)
>
> Another conceivable explanation is that you have an automatic update
> enabled for the browser, an automatic update was applied, and it has a
> bug that clashes with your system. If so, reverting to an earlier
> build of the browser might cure the problem.
>
> If you do not have a browser installer on hand, you might research
> what files make up the installed version and check to make sure
> they're all there. Most major browser vendors have documentation
> online for the file list when installed.
>
> Armed with that information, you might also try restoring those files
> from your most recent backup before the misbehavior started.
>
> I have assisted several people who had the same problem, albeit not on
> a Mac. In each case, it was either a corrupted browser or an update
> with a bug that collided with a particular hardware brand and model.
> That doesn't rule out other possibilities such as newly installed
> software that creates a conflict, but I'd start with the browser as
> the suspect miscreant.
>
> I guess the wisdom here is:
>
> [i] it's good to have at least two different browsers installed and an
> archived copy of at least one browser's installer;
>
> [ii] automatic software updates are an evil to be avoided,
> particularly for apps that you depend on mightily; and
>
> [iii] it's good to wait and check on the Web whether a software update
> causes problems before applying updates. Not infrequently, software
> updates cause problems because the test systems were configured
> differently from your own.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Paul
>
> --
> Universal Interoperability Council
>