Set Web e-mail as default Firefox e-mail

In olden days, when you clicked on an e-mail link in your browser, it had to have an e-mail client to launch. That method doesn't work if you use a service such as Gmail or Yahoo Mail as your main account.

Firefox 3 to the rescue. Watch our video on how to do this tip, then come back here for the written steps.

Go to Tools and options (Firefox and Preferences on a Mac).

Choose Applications.

Search "mailto".

In the drop-down menu Choose Yahoo Mail.

What? You don't use Yahoo Mail? Thanks to Lifehacker.com for publishing the instructions for how to use Gmail.

Open your Gmail in Firefox.

You'll need this string of code to enter.

javascript:window.navigator.registerProtocolHandler("mailto","https://mail.google.com/mail/?extsrc=mailto&url=%s","GMail")

Press add application.

And now when you click an e-mail link, it will ask you which Web mail program you'd like to use.

Get a few more non-video Firefox tips at Webware.com.

[mmckaibab]

The instructions for GMail make no sense whatsoever. Where, exactly, do you enter the listed string of code? Where do you see this "Add Application" button? Can someone please review these instructions and provide specific, step-by-step instructions that actually work?

[mmckaibab]

I've tried this several times and it just does not work. When I paste the code into the address box and press Enter I just get a blank page.

[rluckey77]

Besides the previous two comments, I noticed that, at least *the way this article displays to me*, the code that is mentioned that we should paste ends with both an unclosed quotation mark and an unclosed parenthesis, which seems likely to me to not be correct (tho I know nothing about writing any kind of program code...)

[rluckey77]

Hmmmm.... thinking that perhaps it was just the layout of the page that was for some reason blocking the full view of the line of code there, I copied a bit of the page, including above and below that line of code, and lo & behold, looking at the text that went to the clipboard, the code text does continue beyond what is visible to me on the page. Dunno if this comment box allows hypertext, but if it does, going to post the complete line of code here. The complete line is:
javascript:window.navigator.registerProtocolHandler("mailto","https://mail.google.com/mail/?extsrc=mailto&url=%s","GMail")

[rluckey77]

Sigh....
Okay... that didn't work, too long, text didn't wrap around. There's two parts of that line of code, first part is easily visible, and is:
javascript:window.navigator.registerProtocolHandler
The line continues, with no spaces, with the following text:
("mailto","https://mail.google.com/mail/?extsrc=mailto&url=%s","GMail")

[rluckey77]

PS... (Yeah, I know, I'm camping out on this page all friggin' day, lol....) For a clarification of the instructions on how to do this, follow the link in the article to the video demonstration!! It shows that you don't just paste that code into Firefox - you first open your Gmail account in Firefox, then paste the code in, and hit return, at which point a little "Add Application" button slides out for you to click on...

[m18981]

it does not work ,there is nothing like add application ,I am using a windows xp ,this is what i did instead
- choose other ,it opens a windows application folder ,
- and I choose thunderbird it comes up in the mail to window ,
- I click email link in a webpage ,nothing happens

[RoccoGraz]

Gmail worked great. When choosing to use Yahoo, the "mailto:" is placed in the To: space. Also when using Yahoo with Craigslist, it places the "mailto:" in addition to the Craigslist Description all in the To: field. The Gmail in this regard worked flawlessly. Gmail knows what to place in the subject line.

[Brian_Johnson]

Hey people, just to let you all know, you must be on gmail before you paste the code (in the adress bar) then you will get the "add application" thing. Works Great for me, thanks Tom XD

Brian

[johnnyzero]

I went through quite a bit of effort to make FF3's Mailto-related functions work correctly with the "new" Yahoo Mail Classic. I finally ended up using an extension called Webmail Compose to make it work. Everything works great, except Firefox's Send Link function.

Anyway, in the process I deleted the Yahoo Mail protocol handler (not needed, since Webmail Compose intercepts any MailTo functions), and I suspect this is why Send Link doesn't work.

I'd like to restore that protocol handler, but I can't figure out how to do that. I tried re-installing FF3, since I'm pretty sure the Yahoo Mail protocol handler is "bundled" with it. I also tried installing Yahoo Toolbar, thinking that might re-install the protocol handler. No go...

If anyone can go into their about:config file and let me know the values for that protocol handler, I should be able to use registerProtocolHandler to restore it.

Any help will be much appreciated.

JohnB

[wollac]

If You Did not uninstall before re-installing it re-installing would not have had an effect so try uninstalling first then re-install again.

[wollac]

It Works fine but the instructions were rubbish. Just follow the instructions given at the top of the site until you are at you google mail page then past the code given into the address bar, click add application then go back into options and go to mailto in the applications tab and select gmail which is now on the drop-down.

[gmb_mary]

Works perfect for me and I like it. Thank you!

[billnem]

Any way to get firefox to send mailto links to MobileMe webmail? Thanks.