Thunderbird Biff Version History

25 versions

Be careful with old versions!

These versions are displayed for reference and testing purposes. You should always use the latest version of an add-on.

Version 2.5.1.1-signed.1-signed 108.3 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 56.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 57.0

Enabled for use with Pale Moon browser at a user's request. Also made a number of code changes to conform with Mozilla requirements.

Version 2.5.1-signed.1-signed 107.5 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 30.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 24.*

Fixes a bug introduced when Firefox 29 removed the addon bar. To use this addon now in Firefox 29+, you must customize your toolbar and add this addon's toolbar button in order to see any user interface from this addon. There are several addons which claim to put the addon/status bar back into Firefox and code remains to try and support this. But this has not been tested. So for Firefox 29+, the only UI for this addon which IS supported is the toolbar button. Sorry to see the addon/status bar go but...

Version 2.4.1-signed.1-signed 107.5 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 29.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 24.*

Adaptations to Firefox and Thunderbird 24.

Version 2.3.5.1-signed.1-signed 107.2 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 21.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 17.*

Fixed a minor change in the Spanish locale which caused the Options window to not display.

Version 2.3.4.1-signed.1-signed 107.2 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 24.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 17.*

1. In response to a bug report that this addon in Thunderbird does not always survive suspend/resume on some computers and after discovering that this is due to issues in the Mozilla toolkit, added a notification to the user upon resume that this addon may not operate properly and offers to restart Thunderbird at that point..
2. In response to a suggestion made in a user review by "russff", added the capability to select those email accounts to be monitored by this addon. By default, all email accounts are monitored. But users may employ the multiple-select list box in the addon's options panel to select a subset in which they are interested.
3. Updated the addon's Options Panel which was very much in need of some attention. Now it better supports users who are not on the Windows platform. Now all platforms will behave almost identically with changes to settings being saved as soon as they are made. There is no longer a need for Windows users to dismiss the dialog in order for changes be saved. This also results in validation checks being run on non-Windows platforms that have been ignored until now.

Version 2.3.3.1-signed.1-signed 99.8 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 14.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 14.*

1. Brought up to new Mozilla standards for addons: all preference names for this addon have been prefixed with "extensions." and code has been added to automatically migrate any user settings of these preferences.
2. Fix minor bug preventing use of versions of Thunderbird and Firefox in excess of 9.
3. Fix minor bug reported in Polish translation.

Version 2.3.0.1-signed.1-signed 99.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 10.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 10.*

Adds support for Firefox and Thunderbird 5.x

Version 2.2.1.1-signed.1-signed 99.2 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 4.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 3.1.*

Adds support (at least main functions work) on Firefox 4.

Also adds Swedish (sw-SE) localization thanks to Mikael Hiort af Ornas at Babelzilla. Thanks!

Note that on FF4, the location of the status bar icon does not work as it used to. This is due to changes made to the status bar in FF4 and are beyond my control. Please let me know if you find any other problems. Thanks!

Version 2.2.0 87.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 3.6.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 3.1.*

This release provides fixes for long-standing bugs in the toolbar button from this addon. Thanks to Francois Palmieri for kicking my butt to get this fixed at last. Sorry to all for the delay.

Version 2.1.9 83.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 3.6.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 3.1.*

1. Support for Polish (pl-PL) localization thanks to Leszek (teo) Zyczkowski at BabelZilla.
2. Support for Simplified Chinese (zh-CN) localization thanks to Feng Chao at BabelZilla.
3. Support for German (de-DE) localization thanks to Sportsman79 at BabelZilla.
4. Support for TB 3.
5. Support for FF 3.6.

Version 2.1.8 68.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 3.5.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 2.0.0.*

Fixed issue with email startup on Mac platforms with the help of Alan Collins of the UK. Mac installs and manipulates Thunderbird ad a "bundle" (typically called Thunderbird.app) rather than a single executable file. This addon will now properly open the bundle. So on Mac, be sure to set the email path option to point at your Thunderbird.app location.

Version 2.1.7 68.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 3.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 2.0.0.*

Prior to the release of Firefox 3, this addon was able to launch the user's default email client using a Firefox-provided facility. Not only has this mechanism been broken due to errors within the Firefox 3 code, but the response to my bug report clearly states that the facility being used will not be fixed and will be removed from Firefox all together in the future. So with this release, a new option has been added which permits the user to specify the fully qualified path to their Thunderbird executable. With this option correctly set, this addon will be able to launch Thunderbird properly on all clients and OS's. Sorry for the inconvenience. But I am convinced that we all will be better off in the long run.

Version 2.1.6 66.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 3.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 2.0.0.*

This version offers only internal changes for the benefit of easier localization. No changes should be visible to the end-user. Also tested with FF 3.0b5 under Windows XP and appears to work as expected. Please report any discrepancies.

Version 2.1.5 65.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 2.0.0.*

At the prodding of Steve Ablin, added the ability to display an icon on a toolbar button as well as on the statusbar. Thanks Steve! However, this has a few limitations:

1. When shown in the toolbar button palette, the button displays no icon - only the label "ThunderbirdBiff".

2. When initially placed onto a toolbar, the button's icon may not be correct until the next email state change in ThunderBird.

Version 2.1.4 64.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 2.0.0.*

Fixed bug causing the default mail program to be launched/shown every time a new Firefox window is shown. Thanks to Gary who first reported this!

Version 2.1.3 64.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 2.0.0.*

Version 2.1.2 55.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 2.0.0.*

(a) Support for localization at the prompting of Jean-Bernard Marcon of BabelZilla. Thanks Jean-Bernard!

(b) Long-lived bug caused by email accounts using Local Folders for storage has been resolved with the help of Frank Ho and Markh (at BabelZilla). Thanks to you both!

(c) Add-on now has a website at http://thunderbirdbiff.mozdev.org

(d) Added help for each of the add-on's option settings. Just click the label next to the item on the Options panel.

(e) Added a Help button to the add-on's Options panel to display addon help in a popup window.

(f) Added a link on the add-on's Options panel to open the add-on's website.

(g) Minor code modifications made to repair (and avoid future) variable name collisions with other add-ons.

(h) Now includes localization support for the following locales: fr-FR, it-IT, nl-NL, and es-ES. Thanks to all you translators at BabelZilla - great work!

Version 2.1.1 24.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 2.0b1

New in version 2.1.1 of ThunderbirdBiff

(a) Support for use of skins to control this add-on's icon. Code and impetus provided by J. Lester Novros II. Thanks!

(b) Having discovered the ability to note contributors publicly, added Andy McDonald for his work in creating Javascript components. Thanks!

(c) Added new boolean option, thunderbirdbiff.startupEmail" for Firefox and Sunbird clients which (if not disabled by default) causes the default email client on the local system (hope it is Thunderbird) to be started. If the email client is already started, it should be shown. This option only makes if the "thunderbird.hostname" is set to point at the local system.

Version 2.1 23.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 2.0b1

New in version 2.1 of ThunderbirdBiff

(a) Refinements in server-side processing of multiple BiffState folder events occurring within a very short time. This generally happens only at Thunderbird startup. This should offer little visible change to the end user.

(b) Added a reminder to install in both clients and Thunderbird on the add-on's Options dialog.

(c) Now "supports" Thunderbird 2 beta versions. I put "supports" in quotes because I have not personally tested this and all I did was change the MaxVersion attribute in the install.rdf file. But the result has been tested by and approved by an actual user of Thunderbird 2 (on Windows XP) - thanks Don!

(d) Encouraged and helped enthusiastically by Andy McDonald (author of the FoxClocks add-on) who provided a set of essential "boiler plate" code for doing this, I have recast much of this add-on's code in the form of Javascript XPCOM components. This permits me to remove the last of the "ugly hacks" I employed in previous versions of this add-on (at least of which I am aware). Again, there is no visible change to the user from this effort. Thanks once
again Andy! Could not have done this without you - I would not have even tried.

(e) Added a boolean option (named "thunderbirdbiff.logToFile") controlling verbose logging to a file. This option is diabled by default. Changing this option requires a restart to take effect. The add-on's options dialog shows the directory where these files will be stored. Log file names begin with "thunderbirdbiff" and are suffixed with the Mozilla application name (firefox, sunbird, thunderbird). A new log file is created each time an application is started and these files can become large. So this option should typically be
enabled only for debugging purposes. As always, detailed log information is also sent to the console if the application is started with the -console option (and the preference "browser.dom.window.dump.enabled" is true). Messages of general importance and errors are, as before, sent to the Javascript Console in Thunderbird and the Error Console in Firefox and Sunbird as well.

(f) I am not sure if this will be required... But due to the changes in (d) above, upgrading users MAY need to remove the files compreg.dat and xpti.dat found in their client and Thunderbird profile directories (by default C:Documents and SettingsApplication DataThunderbirdProfiles and C:Documents and
SettingsApplication DataMozillaFirefoxProfiles). Then restart all applications. Doing so will force each application to re-register its add-ons. Sorry for this inconvenience should it be required.

Version 2.00 18.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 1.5.0.*

(a) Changed socket handling to reduce overhead. This may occasionally cause an additional polling cycle to be required before a client (Firefox/Sunbird) is
properly updated. I see this as an acceptable trade-off versus the allocation and use of a new TCP port with every polling cycle by every client.

(b) Permit the port used for IPC between both sides of the add-on to be configured in case the default of 25501 is in use. This is controlled via the new integer preference "thunderbirdbiff.port". If the value given is in the range of "well-known ports" (< 1023), the setting is ignored and the default used. This value MUST be identical in both Thunderbird and any/all clients for this add-on to function.

(c) In version 1.02, the new mail icon was changed to employ an animated gif to yield a "flashing arrow" effect. It is possible that animated gifs may be
blocked or otherwise disabled. So the animated gif can now be replaced with a static image, if desired. This is controlled via the new boolean preference
"thunderbirdbiff.useAnimation". By default, animations are enabled and the value of this preference is true. This preference can vary between Thunderbird and clients.

(d) In previous versions, both sides of the add-on engaged in a polling activity based upon the value of the integer preference called "thunderbirdbiff.intervalSeconds". With this version, all polling activity has been removed from the Thunderbird side of the add-on. Hence, the
"thunderbirdbiff.intervalSeconds" preference is required only in any/all clients using this add-on. If specified in Thunderbird, it is ignored.

(e) In previous versions, the user was given no control over the location of this add-on's icon in the statusbar. At the suggestion of Andy McDonald, I
have offered this capability. Based upon the value of a new string preference called "thunderbirdbiff.position", an attempt is made to position this add-on's icon on the far left or far right of the statusbar. Values equal to "left" or "right" are accepted. The default is "right". Unfortunately, different add-ons contend for these highly desired locations and there seems to be no way to warranty that either one will be respected after all add-ons have been loaded. This preference can vary between Thunderbird and clients.

(f) In previous versions, changes made to this add-on's preferences required a restart of the application to take effect. At the suggestion of Andy McDonald, I have added support for the changing of preferences dynamically. A restart of the application is no longer required for the changes to take effect.

(g) This add-on uses TCP/IP sockets for communication between Thunderbird and clients. In previous versions, the add-on REQUIRED that both server and clients be running on the same computer. For those who wish otherwise, this version now permits you to specify the hostname of the computer on which the client side of the add-on will seek the running Thunderbird to which it should connect. This is controlled by the new preference called "thunderbirdbiff.hostname". The default value for this preference is "localhost" but you can enter the name or IP address of any "reachable"
computer (try ping'ing that name first). The "thunderbirdbiff.hostname" preference is required only in the client portion of the add-on. If specified
in Thunderbird, it is ignored.

(h) As a by-product of support for a user-specified hostname (see g above) for this add-on to use in Firefox, the add-on can now support multiple clients polling from different computers. When Thunderbird's new mail state changes, all connected clients receive notification.

(i) Added at least rudimentary support for Sunbird version 0.3 as a client for this add-on. Note: it seems that sometimes you must manipulate the main Sundbird window before this add-on's icon is displayed properly. I am not sure why this is so.

(j) Some bug fixes and extensive renaming and encapsulation of methods to avoid potential (and, in one case apparently, actual) collision with symbols
defined by other extensions.

(k) Now includes an add-on Options Panel so that configuration is much easier.

Version 1.04 9.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 1.5.0.*

Changes to eliminate a "stutter" or short delay seen by some users in scrolling within Firefox and typing within Thunderbird. Also changed how errors are reported to the Javascript Console in Thunderbird and the Error Console in Firefox. These did not always show up in previous versions if the javascript.options.showInConsole preference was not set to true (which is seems to be by default in Thunderbird but NOT in Firefox).

Version 1.03 9.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 1.5.0.*

Fixes a bug introduced in version 1.01 which caused the add-on to stop functioning in Firefox after a second window is opened and then closed. Also added display of error and occasional info messages in the javascript/error console. However, running FF or T-Bird from a command prompt with the -console flag is still required for verbose output most helpful in debugging.

Version 1.02 9.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 1.5.0.*

Internal cleanup and fixes. Added a flashing arrow to the newly arrived mail icon. In both FF and T-Bird, a right click on the add-on's icon shows the version of the add-on in use.

Version 1.01 7.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 1.5.0.*

The initial version created a new client with each new Firefox window. I have now managed to create and share a single instance of the client among all Firefox windows. This simply reduces the overhead (however slight) imposed by this add-on.

Version 1.0 6.0 KiB Works with Firefox 2.0 - 2.0.0.*, Thunderbird 1.5 - 1.5.0.*