Thunderbird's icon has changed... to the "Applications" icon!

[Elrich]

Thunderbird is one of the applications that I have set to automatically open when I start up my Mac. Yesterday, though, it didn't start up. So I clicked on the icon in the Dock. Then, two things happened:

1. I got an error message saying that Thunderbird couldn't be found.
2. The Thunderbird icon in the dock changed to the Mac "Applications" icon!

I looked in the Applications folder, where the same icon change had occurred, but I was able to click that to start up Thunderbird, and use it normally... except the icon is still the Applications ion. Shutting down and starting up again doesn't help -- it's still there.

Is there any way to fix this? Uninstall and reinstall? Not functionally a problem, but annoying, at least to me.

(Oddly, the Activity Monitor DOES show the Thunderbird icon!)

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hello,

That is a strange issue. I would guess it would be corrected by downloading the newest Thunderbird and replacing the application currently installed in your Applications folder. It shouldn't delete any of your email or settings.

C

 

[Elrich]

My five-year-old Mac Book Pro has been doing a lot of weird little things lately. Right, the mail is stored outside the app so dumping it and reinstalling will probably fix it. I'll let you know what happens. Thanks.

 

[honestone]

I use Thunderbird also, and never have had this issue (I do not have it launch when I start up my Mac). Also, Cory meant to download and install the latest version. Actually, there is a setting in Thunderbird that will do that automatically for you whenever a newer version is released. Go to Preferences > Advanced > Update. Then check the one that says "Automatically install updates (recommended: improved security)".

As for your "weird behavior":

1. What exact Mac OS are you running?

2. Did you upgrade to that OS "in place", ie, just let the newer OS overwrite the older one?

3. This is critical: are you making backups to an external device? If you (hopefully) are, what software do you use for that task?

4. Have you ever done any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, from a software perspective? You can actually do a good amount of disk cleanup on your own, and there are some excellent programs available (both free and commercial) that can help with those tasks?

5. When you have upgraded to a newer version of the Mac OS, did you insure that any third party (ie, non-Apple) software you use is compatible with that OS? This site can help with that:

Application Compatibility Table — RoaringApps

Crowd-sourced application compatibility for macOS, iOS and Windows.

roaringapps.com

6. There is a possibility that you might have some malware/adware on your machine. You can check on that by downloading and in stalling the following 2 programs, in the order indicated:

1. Malwarebytes - https://www.malwarebytes.com/mwb-download/

It does a very good job in finding adware and/or malware.

2, ClamXAV - https://www.clamxav.com/

It goes "deeper" than Malwarebytes, and can find any viruses you might have on your Mac.

 

[Elrich]

Hi,
Thanks for your response.

I use Thunderbird also, and never have had this issue (I do not have it launch when I start up my Mac). Also, Cory meant to download and install the latest version. Actually, there is a setting in Thunderbird that will do that automatically for you whenever a newer version is released. Go to Preferences > Advanced > Update. Then check the one that says "Automatically install updates (recommended: improved security)".

I already had the automatic update on, so I'm up to date.

As for your "weird behavior":

1. What exact Mac OS are you running?

2. Did you upgrade to that OS "in place", ie, just let the newer OS overwrite the older one?

I tend to avoid OS updates because I'm always afraid they'll slow down my machine. This machine had Mavericks (10.9) when I bought it, and I've only updated as far as El Capitan (10.11).

3. This is critical: are you making backups to an external device? If you (hopefully) are, what software do you use for that task?

Using Time Machine.

4. Have you ever done any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, from a software perspective? You can actually do a good amount of disk cleanup on your own, and there are some excellent programs available (both free and commercial) that can help with those tasks?

5. When you have upgraded to a newer version of the Mac OS, did you insure that any third party (ie, non-Apple) software you use is compatible with that OS? This site can help with that:

Application Compatibility Table — RoaringApps

Crowd-sourced application compatibility for macOS, iOS and Windows.

roaringapps.com

6. There is a possibility that you might have some malware/adware on your machine. You can check on that by downloading and in stalling the following 2 programs, in the order indicated:

1. Malwarebytes - https://www.malwarebytes.com/mwb-download/

It does a very good job in finding adware and/or malware.

2, ClamXAV - https://www.clamxav.com/

It goes "deeper" than Malwarebytes, and can find any viruses you might have on your Mac.

Will look into these. Thanks.

 

[honestone]

OK, thanks for the reply.

Regarding your OS upgrade, did you upgrade from Mavericks to El Capitan directly, or did you first upgrade to to Yosemite, OS 10.10, and then to El Capitan, OS 10.11? Also, are you running the final version of El Capitan, OS 10.11.6? If not, you can get the OS 10.11.6 Combo Updater from here:

Download OS X El Capitan 10.11.6 Combo Update - Apple Support

The OS X El Capitan 10.11.6 Combo update improves the stability, compatibility and security of your Mac, and is recommended for all El Capitan users.

support.apple.com

Again, I ask if you upgraded "in place"?

As for disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, what about that? As it is, the internal drive inside your machine is 5 years old, and just like required maintenance on automobiles, neglecting to do that could result in issues. The two cleanup "things" you need to consider are:

1. Your downloads folder. If there is anything there you do not need, it would be best to get rid of them.
2. Permanently removing deleted EMails. When you delete an EMail, it does not get permanently removed without further steps. In Thunderbird, that is easy to do. After you delete EMails, they appear in the Thunderbird's Trash folder. All you need to do is double click on that folder, click on one of the deleted EMails, press Command-A on your keyboard (that does a Select All), and finally right click on your Mouse and select "Empty Trash". You'll get a dialogue asking to confirm that. Select Yes, and those selected EMails will be permanently removed.

 

[Elrich]

OK, thanks for the reply.

Regarding your OS upgrade, did you upgrade from Mavericks to El Capitan directly, or did you first upgrade to to Yosemite, OS 10.10, and then to El Capitan, OS 10.11? Also, are you running the final version of El Capitan, OS 10.11.6? If not, you can get the OS 10.11.6 Combo Updater from here:

Download OS X El Capitan 10.11.6 Combo Update - Apple Support

The OS X El Capitan 10.11.6 Combo update improves the stability, compatibility and security of your Mac, and is recommended for all El Capitan users.

support.apple.com

Again, I ask if you upgraded "in place"?

I'm on 10.11.6 now. Yes, in place; I wasn't aware of other ways of doing it.

I'm trying to remember if I ever had Yosemite. I think I might have put it off so long that El Capitan came along, and then I upgraded.

As for disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, what about that? As it is, the internal drive inside your machine is 5 years old, and just like required maintenance on automobiles, neglecting to do that could result in issues. The two cleanup "things" you need to consider are:

1. Your downloads folder. If there is anything there you do not need, it would be best to get rid of them.

Yeah, there's a lot of crap in there.

1. Permanently removing deleted EMails. When you delete an EMail, it does not get permanently removed without further steps. In Thunderbird, that is easy to do. After you delete EMails, they appear in the Thunderbird's Trash folder. All you need to do is double click on that folder, click on one of the deleted EMails, press Command-A on your keyboard (that does a Select All), and finally right click on your Mouse and select "Empty Trash". You'll get a dialogue asking to confirm that. Select Yes, and those selected EMails will be permanently removed.

Actually, I tend not to delete e-mail, except Spam. I always think I'll want to consult the old ones later, and occasionally I do. My trash folders are empty.

 

[honestone]

Thanks for the reply.

Regarding the OS, one can do a clean, fresh, "virgin" installation of a newer Mac OS, and then "migrate"/copy needed "stuff" from a backup. Thus, you could do it, but it is not as convenient as having a bootable backup/clone of your system, like I do with using SuperDuper!.

As for disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, it is important for you to clean up all that "junk". Remember, taking care of a computer is akin to taking care of an automobile. One free program that is helpful is Onyx, available from here:

Titanium Software | Operating System Utilities for Mac - OnyX

OnyX is a multifunction utility that you can use to verify the startup disk and the structure of its system files; run cleaning and computer maintenance tasks; configure some hidden parameters of many Apple applications; and more.

www.titanium-software.fr

You will need to get V 3.1.9.

While Onyx is helpful, you still need to do as much desk cleanup as you can on your own. When your Mac operates with a cluttered drive that also does not have much free space on it, that is not good. Also, it would be best if you think about investing in a commercial program to help with those tasks.

I can understand why you keep deleted EMails, but remember that they are taking up more and more disk space. Maybe look through some "older" ones that are no longer needed.

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hi Elrich,

Did the reinstall of Thunderbird fix the issue? Any new issues?

Just following up

C