Ubuntu – Cannot find firefox in Lubuntu desktop

firefoxlubuntulxde

I have just installed lubuntu-desktop on top of ubuntu 12.04. I understand that chromium is the default browser in lubuntu but I was expecting Firefox to show up under the Internet menu. It is installed in my computer, and it shows in the Lubuntu Software Center under installed applications but I cannot find it anywhere. How do I have it show up on the Internet menu?

Best Answer

Here's what you can do. While in a Lubuntu session:

  • Open two windows of your file manager side-by-side.
  • In one window, go to /usr/share/applications and make sure that the Firefox icon is visible.
  • In the other window, go to ~/.local/share/applications and make sure you have enabled viewing "hidden files and folders". (In case you do not have ~/.local/share/applications, just create such a folder.)
  • Now, copy the Firefox desktop file from /usr/share/applications to ~/.local/share/applications. (You should be able to do this without needing sudo.)
  • Right-click on the copied file (do not double-click, please).
  • Choose to open with a simple text editor (gedit or leafpad).
  • Find the line that says "OnlyShowIn=Unity;". Delete that line if that is the only content on that line or comment it out by placing a # at the beginning of that line. Else, carefully, delete just "OnlyShowIn=Unity;". Note that the "opposite" of OnlyShowIn=, is NotShowIn=. I understand that TargetEnvironment=, which would be synonymous to OnlyShowIn=, is now deprecated.
  • At this point, if you save and close the file and check in your Lubuntu menu, you should see Firefox listed.

To minimize confusion, you could do some more by further editing the desktop file in ~/.local/share/applications.

  • Search for all lines exactly beginning with Name=. (There could be more than one.)
  • Replace Firefox with L-Firefox or whatever.

After saving and closing the desktop file, you'll see whatever name you have provided appear in the menu (along with regular Firefox when you run Unity).

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