News & Observer | newsobserver.com | Fix Firefox's vanishing arrow

Published: May 07, 2008 12:30 AM
Modified: May 07, 2008 05:27 AM

Fix Firefox's vanishing arrow

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Q: I use Firefox on my Power Mac. The down arrow in my scroll bar disappears whether the scroll bar is at the bottom or the top. This occurs on most pages when the page is pulled to more than about three-fourths the area on the monitor. At that time, the down arrow is gone or occupies the same space as the page expansion logo square. Please help!

D.E., Olympia, Wash.

A: If the up arrow on the scroll bar is visible but the down arrow is not, you may need to display the status bar, according to Firefox online support.

In the "View" menu, put a check by "Status Bar." The down arrow should reappear.

The support page also suggests another option having to do with themes.

One of the neat things about Firefox is that you can customize the browser with different "skins" that change the look. My husband's Firefox interface is sleek and black; mine is UNC-themed.

But some themes can cause the scroll bar to disappear.

Try switching back to the default theme. In the Tools menu, choose "Add-ons." At the top of the Add-ons window, click "Themes." Click on "Firefox (default)" and click "Use Theme."

Exit and restart Firefox for the changes to take effect. On a Mac, that means quitting through the menu bar.

With Firefox back to using the default theme, the scroll bar should return.

Q: I have recently synchronized a new Blackberry with my laptop. I have used Outlook Express 6 as my default e-mail. I would like to switch to Office Outlook as my default provider so that I can synch the calendar, etc., with the Blackberry and receive all e-mails on Office Outlook. How do I do this?

D.V., Mount Pleasant, S.C.

A: The Microsoft Knowledge Base is a good place to start when you're trying to answer Microsoft-based questions, says Joe Vohwinkel, president of Agave Partners Consulting in Raleigh. He suggests a Knowledge Base Entry that provides detailed instructions on how to import your mail account settings into Outlook from Outlook Express (support.microsoft.com/kb/287073).

In Outlook, click on the "File" menu, then "Import and Export." In the "Choose an action to perform" box, click "Import Internet Mail Account Settings," then click "Next." In the "Select the e-mail client to import" box, click "Microsoft Outlook Express." Click "Next."

You'll go through several more screens. Make sure the name that's displayed, the e-mail address, incoming/outgoing mail servers and account name and password are all correct, and click "Next" after each one.

Click the method that you use to connect to the Internet, then click "Next." Finally, click "Finish" to import your mailbox settings.

To set Outlook as your default e-mail program, first quit Outlook.

Click on the "Start" button, choose "Settings" and then click "Control Panel." Double-click the "Internet Options" icon, and then click the "Programs" tab. In the E-mail list, click "Microsoft Outlook" and then click "OK" to save the changes.

Send your technology questions to stumpthegeeks@newsobserver.com. Please include your name, city and a daytime phone number. Sorry, we can not give responses
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