For some reason, every time I install or upgrade Thunderbird it refuses to load links in my browser. To achieve this, edit the prefs.js file that resides in your profile directory (probably something like .thunderbird/[random_string].default/prefs.js). You can find it with the following command:
find .thunderbird -name "prefs.js"
Example:
steph@localhost ~ $ find .thunderbird -name "prefs.js"
.thunderbird/8cwe8m4b.default/prefs.js
Add the following to prefs.js:
user_pref("network.protocol-handler.app.http", "/usr/bin/firefox");
user_pref("network.protocol-handler.app.https", "/usr/bin/firefox");
Of course, change /usr/bin/firefox to the location of your browser. If you don't know where that is, use the whereis command as follows:
whereis [browser]
Example:
steph@localhost ~ $ whereis firefox
firefox: /usr/bin/firefox /usr/X11R6/bin/firefox
You can specify your ftp program in a simlar fashion by adding the following:
user_pref("network.protocol-handler.app.ftp", "/usr/bin/firefox");