How do I get Mozilla Suite to not open up its browser when I click a mailto link?

March 1, 2006 8:05 PM

why does mozilla thunderbird, whenever you cllick a 'mailto:' link on the web, open up the navigator (browser) before it opens up the composer (email client)? Is there anyway to stop the navigator from opening, for it to go directly to the email composer?

Its annoying to always have to close the blank open navigator window.
I'm using the Mozilla Suite, but I dont use navigator (I use IE instead). THunderbird tho is defined as my default email app.

posted by jak68 to computers & internet (5 comments total)

Wow. Terminology overload here.

Last time I checked, the Mozilla Suite did not include Thunderbird. The suite is a browser (Navigator), mail/news (no fancy name), and a webpage editor (Composer). The Mozilla Foundation has discontinued support on the suite for their standalone apps (Firefox, Thunderbird, and the third party Nvu respectively).

These standalone apps are not simply the suite components split apart. They are complete rewrites of many features, only retaining the core framework. This bears repeating: Thunderbird != the suite mail/news app. It may look similar and behave similarly, but it's its own product.

That being said, if mail/news is the only part you're using then you should uninstall the suite and install Thunderbird. On my vanilla install for OS X clicking a mailto link brings up a new message window right away.
posted by sbutler at 9:23 PM on March 1, 2006

Yeah, pretty much what sbutler said. In order to get a good answer, we need to know:

1) Do you have both Mozilla Suite (Navigator, Composer, etc.) and Mozilla Thunderbird (standalone email) installed?

2) Once you confirm 1), could you reconfirm that Thunderbird is your default mail application?

3) Is IE set as your default web browser?

4) Mac or Windows? Are all your Mozilla apps fairly recently updated?

So, it is a little unclear what your exact setup is, but here are some links that may be related to your problem anyway:

http://www.mozilla.org/support/firefox/faq#email
http://kb.mozillazine.org/Default_mail_client
http://mozex.mozdev.org/
posted by misterbrandt at 10:24 PM on March 1, 2006

hi guys,
sorry for terminology confusion - yes, its the mozilla suite (composer) and not 'thunderbird' (tho they do look an awful lot alike).
I used to have thunderbird, removed it when it crashed on me a few times. Mozilla suite on the other hand has been working fine for a long time.
-Thats why i went with mozilla suite/composer rather than the stand alone thunderbird.
-So my default app is composer (from the mozilla suite). I dont have thunderbird anymore.
-IE is indeed set as the default browser.
-Its windows. Win XP sp2 home edition
-mozilla apps are recently updated.

Thanks for the links, i'll check them out. Meanwhile if anyone has any other ideas, i'd be happy to hear them!
posted by jak68 at 10:47 PM on March 1, 2006

There should be a shortcut on your start menu titled "Set Program Access and Defaults" - you might run it, and check to see if the OS is set to use the same applications as you use in practice.
posted by unmake at 6:01 AM on March 2, 2006

If you look in the preferences for navigator, you can see what is started by default when you launch the suite. Navigator is set to always be started, once you uncheck that, it will not start up when you want to use the composer. I can't tell you exactly where it is, as it's been a long time since I used the suite, but it is the preferences.
posted by chrisroberts at 11:05 AM on March 2, 2006