Chicago (IL) - Following the Firefox 3.0.2 update last week, Mozilla has posted another update yesterday. Firefox 3.0.3 eliminates a bug in the browser's password manager that refuses to fetch previously saved passwords in forms. The issue is now fixed, but it seems to have paved the way for another known bug, also in the password manager. For now, Mozilla offers a workaround and promises to patch the bug with Firefox 3.0.4.

Days after releasing Firefox 3.0.2 update last week, Mozilla posted Firefox 3.0.3, fixing a problem with the password manager. Firefox 3.0.2 brought "improvements" for the password manager, but the browser update also highlighted a bug which prevents users from retrieving saved passwords or saving new passwords. This is due to a known bug in the password manager that causes the browser to incorrectly read encrypted passwords and usernames in saved forms. However, many users are reporting that the issue is not fixed with the 3.0.3 update.

Mozilla confirmed the problem and said that there is another bug that resets the UTF8 converter after it encounters an invalid data entry. The developers promise that the issue will be resolved with Firefox 3.0.4.

For now, there is a simple workaround in case you experience problems with the password manager after you apply Firefox 3.0.3 update: Try logging in to any password-protected service using a bogus password. Save the password when prompted and restart the browser. Firefox should now store any following passwords correctly in its password manager.

Here's a better work around...

Sep 29, 2008 09:59     

.... remember your own password and don't use a manager for it. Honestly, I don't think password management should be built into FF. It should be an extension, at best.
FFfan report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +10

drop firefox...

Sep 29, 2008 11:44     

thats why im using Internet Explorer 8. its a lot better than firefox cause there is no bug.
John Labatte report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -98

IE

Sep 29, 2008 17:37     

I'm guessing IE users are so used to bugs they're now seen as features! ;)
Matt report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +31

"Re: Drop Firefox"

Sep 30, 2008 01:24     

@John Labatte: No password manager bug, sure. However, it has an even worse bug: It's called Internet Explorer. j/k However, switching browsers because of a single bug is foolish. Whatever, to each his own.
Jay report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +17

IE the best

Sep 30, 2008 04:23     

I don't know why everyone hates IE(I think just because it belongs to Microsoft). I have been using it since years and rarely have problems. When it comes to FireFox, it seems good is as it gives us plenty of additioinal features in "Add-Ones" but I don't get confortable with it as I noticed it didn't disply some pages very well and using so much memory when it launched instead of IE.
Adnan report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -38

IE Sucks

Sep 30, 2008 14:09     

Pages that do not render correctly with firefox is because micorsoft bastardize website coding with internet explorer. and now that firefox is gaining in popularity we can finally go back to having some web standards for making websites
IE Sucks report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +1

to Adnan

Sep 30, 2008 14:09     

firefox do not use more memory than IE. don't look at your XP's memory usage, it gives you virtual memory. firefox uses reserve memory for faster implementation. plus, ie doesn't release the used memory after closing. and the pages that don't open in firefox can be solved by a small add-on called IE-tab.
stoc report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +1

@Adnan

Sep 30, 2008 14:13     

@Adnan That is because IE doesn't support some web standards properly. Because IE is so popular (due to the fact that its part of the windows OS) developers/designers often design sites to work with IE (and they may not even notice that they don't work in other browsers/ are lazy). The only real way to fix this problem is to make sure your site follows W3C standards and good old QA testing. I work at a company now that only designed their sites to work with IE6 and I have spent the past 6 months fixing the code. Firefox, Safari, and Opera do a much better job at supporting the standards for the web. Microsoft is just slow to catch up.

Brad report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +1

RE: IE the best

Sep 30, 2008 14:20     

IE makes a mess of CSS and generally is a headache for web developers. It has held back the evolution of web design and how content can be delivered to you on the internet. I would seriously reconsider your point of view that IE is the "best".
AK47 report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +1

Re: IE is best

Sep 30, 2008 14:30     

@Adnan: There is a more important reason people don't like IE. The problem is that Microsoft doesn't adhere to standards very well. Microsoft is driven to sell copies of Windows, which happens to include IE. As such, they have decided to extend the standards with proprietary extensions. Then, many web developers develop pages that work only in IE, and then customers are forced to use IE, and by extension, use Windows. Then, Microsoft can sell more copies of Windows. Standards are supposed to be neutral and not depend on which browser you use. Firefox does a better job of adhering to standards because Mozilla (who makes Firefox) is not biased towards any operating system.

Eric report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +1

Yeah OK

Sep 30, 2008 14:35     

LOL, IE the best? ROTFL!!! I'll have what hes smoking! LMAO Jiff www.privacy.es.tc
John Collins report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

oh? It works now?

Sep 30, 2008 15:09     

I have the update and the passwords still are not provided.As of 16:00h, 9-30-08
phil report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

firefox

Sep 30, 2008 15:10     

does anyone even use the password manager on firefox? its more than annoying if anything if you ask me.
ski report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Contin'd

Sep 30, 2008 16:49     

When I said that I said as a normal internet user and not an advanved one like a developer. I gree with you it is stupid to IE to come along with OS and can't be uninstallled. Anyway,how can Firefox use less memory than IE and when I opened the second one (IE7) it launched instantly?
Adnan report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -1

RE: IE

Sep 30, 2008 17:15     

Firefox 2.0.0.X does have memory issues that slow it down, yes, but they have since been addressed in 3.0.X, and 3.1 promises to be even faster with a new JavaScript engine. However, if you really want speed, Opera is the way to go, ATM. IE, on the other hand doesn't support web page standards. All those pages that look correctly in IE are buggered deliberately to make them compatible with a buggy browser, instead of following what works for every other browser. For developers, supporting both IE and EOB (every other browser) is a huge, costly, time-consuming pain in the neck, and the cost of supporting both is passed on to you users in the form of more ads and/or higher subscription costs. If you are going to use IE, and you don't care about the security risk of surfing the net with a browser tied to the heart of your O/S (just try uninstalling it) at least use IE8, it makes it easier (emphasis on the -er) for us, and cheaper in the long run for you.

v.dog report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

@IE the best - I think NOT

Oct 01, 2008 04:50     

IE is slow as mud. I'm rock'in 35 tabs in FF on my P4 PC 'HA!' and its smooth. I use the password manager because I have lots and lots of Passworded sites I goto daily. By the time the economy is balanced an I have enough money to get a New PC IE8 should have all the kinks worked out and I can upgrade from XP to windows 7 LOL
WPJ report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Firefox 3.0.3 exploit

Oct 01, 2008 13:06     

Firefox 3.0.3 exploit: http://www.milw0rm.com/exploits/6614
tango report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -1

add-on seems to work

Oct 01, 2008 17:19     

I use Sxipper - haven't had any problems.
ddjango report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

tango, which is fixed in upcoming 3.0.4 and in deve...

Oct 03, 2008 19:52     

tango, which is fixed in upcoming 3.0.4 and in developmental Trunk for 3.1. It is marked in the lowest level and is not critical, but fixed anyways.
J report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0