Installing 32-bit firefox on AMD64 to solve problems ?

WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot · 11-07-2006, 02:16 AM

g'day
i cant get flash to play on linux owing to it being only for 32-bit arch. firefox cannot play flash enabled objects or access sites that require flash as all my attempts at installing flash have failed. i was wondering though, can i compile it from source and force it to be a 32-bit version ? that way i can get this functionalityu back, im sure the linux kernal is backwards compatible and can support 32-bit stuff on it.

jschiwal · 11-07-2006, 03:34 AM

Some distro's package both a 32-bit and a 64-bit version.

Double check and see if the 32-bit version is available for your distro (FC or Ubuntu ?).
file $(locate firefox-bin | grep '/usr/lib') | awk '{ print $3 }'

The firefox startup script checks which version you have:

Code:

##
## Variables
##
MOZ_DIST_BIN="/usr"
MOZ_DIST_LIB="/usr/lib/firefox"
MOZ_APPNAME="firefox"
MOZ_PROFILE=".mozilla/firefox"
MOZ_PROGRAM="$MOZ_DIST_LIB/$MOZ_APPNAME-bin"

mozilla_lib=`file $MOZ_PROGRAM | awk '{ print $3 }'`
case $mozilla_lib in
  64-bit)
      LIB=lib64
      ;;
  *)
      LIB=lib
      ;;
esac

If you have a 32bit package you may want to either edit the variables in the script so the 32-bit version starts, or uninstall the 64-bit version first.

Broder · 11-07-2006, 03:46 AM

I had the same problem with my 64-bit processor. I just installed 32-bit firefox onto the machine and then installed flash and java apps that wouldn't work under 64.

Works fine now. A 64-bit flash would be nice though.

WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot · 11-07-2006, 09:36 AM

thats great to hear Feelda. i will try out your method jschiwal.

WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot · 11-07-2006, 09:38 AM

nope, it says i only have the 64 bit version. i was about to install firefox 2.0 from source as it is, is it possible to compile/install it in 32 bit mode ?

rickh · 11-07-2006, 09:42 AM

Gnash works fairly well on 64-bit Debian. I don't know if there is a 64-bit .rpm for it, but it seems likely.

WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot · 11-07-2006, 05:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickh

Gnash works fairly well on 64-bit Debian. I don't know if there is a 64-bit .rpm for it, but it seems likely.

umm what is gnash again ?
just to let everyone know this is for Ubuntu 6.06.

rickh · 11-07-2006, 07:09 PM

Gnash is a "free" Flash Movie Player ... Also has a Mozilla plugin, and maybe one for Konquerqr, as well

WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot · 11-09-2006, 02:14 PM

well i solved the problem by installing the 32-bit version of fasterfox. used automatix in ubuntu and it installed all the plugins for it as well. everything works perfectly now.

nonsense28sal · 11-09-2006, 04:35 PM

Another way around the Flash/64 bit issue is to install Firefox using Wine. I've done this on my 64 bit machine in order to have flash to to be able to enjoy youtube. All you have to do is install the 32bit wine. If you're using (K)ubuntu, you can use these directions. Then install Firefox. There is a known bug that Firefox 2.0 will not install yet through wine and gives an error saying there is not enough hard drive space, but it works fine with Firefox 1.5.0.7. I then go to a site like www.battleon.com and install the Flash plugin. It works like a charm.

-Stacey