Windows Bookmark Icon: Why Does It Change?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the changing appearance of the bookmark icon for the Physics Forum in different web browsers, specifically Internet Explorer (IE) and Firefox. Participants explore the reasons behind the icon's variability, including technical aspects of how browsers handle site icons.

Discussion Character

  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant notes that the bookmark icon sometimes appears as a square root symbol and at other times as a generic icon.
  • Another participant suggests switching from IE to Firefox, implying potential advantages of using Firefox.
  • Concerns are raised about compatibility issues with online banking and Windows updates when using browsers other than IE.
  • A participant clarifies that the icon is actually a generic vBulletin icon, describing its appearance in detail.
  • It is mentioned that most browsers do not save site icons permanently, leading to them disappearing after the session ends.
  • One participant shares their experience that Firefox retains the site icons in the bookmarks folder.
  • Another participant describes how bookmark icons in IE can revert to a lower case "e" after some time, requiring clearing of bookmarks to restore them.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing experiences with bookmark icons across browsers, indicating no consensus on the behavior of icons in IE versus Firefox. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the best browser for retaining bookmark icons.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include potential dependencies on specific browser versions and settings, as well as the lack of clarity on how different browsers manage bookmark icons over time.

Janitor
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Sometimes the bookmark for this Physics Forum has a square root icon that shows up in my Favorites list. But other times the icon is generic looking, like most of the other icons in my Favorites. What makes it change?
 
Computer science news on Phys.org
Thanks. I am using IE. Do you know of any downside to Firefox?
 
Some online banking sites only work with IE. I personally haven't had any trouble with this, but it is a problem to some. Also Windows updates only works with IE. But this isn't such a big deal since you can't get rid of IE anyway. Just run IE when you need to update windows.
 
Alright then!
 
The icon is actually the generic vBulletin icon. It's not a square root, it's a vee.

Also, most browsers don't save the site icons on disk -- the first time you look at the site, its icon will be downloaded and stored for that session. The next time you start the browser up, though, it'll be gone again. I think Firefox does this too.

- Warren
 
Vee, okay. But I will say it is a vee with an extra bar sticking out to the left from the left prong of the vee, and with the right prong being taller than the left prong.
 
I've bookmarked many sites in firefox that have the the little icon and it always keeps the picture in the bookmarks folder
 
With IE, my fancier bookmark icons eventually turn into lower case "e"s until I clear things out and start over.
 

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