if you change themes or addon extensions the program tells you it needs to be restarted. Is it safe just to say yes to this instead of stopping and restarting the program?
My worry would be that instead of restarting the portable program it would just start the normal program instead.
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Our portable launchers detect restarts and keep things portable for all the Mozilla apps.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
Excellent. Thanks!
the AllowMultipleInstances factor to consider.
As it isn't even fully supported in Firefox and not recommended for anyone but developers testing multiple versions, it's not really an issue. Multiple instances isn't fully portable and will leave non-personal files and empty directories behind. This isn't made any worse by restarting, though.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
I just thought your initial response assumed something which might not be true for either the OP or someone else reading it, namely, that recommended (and default) settings are being used (which is--at the least--sometimes not the case).
My initial answer applies to multiple instances, too. Nothing is made worse by restarting in that case, it's just as portable as it is without restarting in both cases.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
Not really talking about restart making a difference here. With the AllowMultipleInstances setting as 'true', the launcher is no longer even running, so it's not going to be monitoring or controlling anything. And there are users [of this setting] who won't be aware of this.
As already stated, users with AllowMultipleInstances can restart just the same as users not using it. It's EXACTLY as portable as it is when you don't restart. AllowMultipleInstances introduces some issues that violate portability on its own. Restarting doesn't introduce anymore for those users. This thread is about whether restarting messes things up. It doesn't. AllowMultipleInstances does a bit, but that's an entirely different topic and doesn't belong here anymore than someone setting Firefox as the PC default altering the local PC would.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
Your statement implies** that the launcher is always there "detecting" and "keeping things portable", yet that is not always the case. Yes, there is no need to "fear" that a restart will screw up one's environment. But, no, one shouldn't presume other factors aren't in play which affect that environment (in a way that the uninformed might not expect). I'm merely pointing out that your initial response is--for lack of a better term--incomplete. I just thought it needed to more "complete". (Since your statement was made in this thread, I think it's appropriate to "expand" on it in this thread. That can only be helpful, right?)
(**Granted, the "implication" might simply be an "inference" because I'm so familiar with the software and the environment.)
Again, AllowMultipleInstances doesn't matter here. The answer is in the frame of the original question. Which is, is it safe to restart. It is. Period.
While I understand your desire for thoroughness, there's a difference between accuracy and the pedantic lunacy
of trying to explain every possible unrelated qualifier. AllowMultipleInstances is an unrelated qualifier. As is setting it to be the local default. As are a few other things which could similarly affect portability. None of those matter to this discussion. The question was asked and accurately answered. Please, let's move on.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
"pedantic lunacy"? (Same old John
)
Well, anyway, that's neither here nor there--you've already confirmed my premise: the launcher being there or not being there is irrelevant to restoring the environment you had before the restart--either way, that's what you get.
You have a great site based on a great concept. Don't get so "touchy" when someone points out that one of your statements could be more accurate. (If that makes me "pedantic", then good on me.)
For what it's worth, a large number of people use Firefox P.E. for reasons having nothing whatsoever to do with portability. And a large number of these people take advantage of AllowMultipleInstances (or, more precisely, '-no-remote'). And any number of these--as well as other--people could be unaware of the effect this setting has on the launcher; so pointing this out can only be a "good thing" (especially since this topic keeps coming up in the forums).
Thanks.