Text not displaying fully in opera (12.x)

[whichonespink?]

i use mint 17 cinnamon.
yesterday i installed the opera browser. all was going well and i was adjusting it to suit me personally.
suddenly all the text on/in the browser disappeared!
now where there were words things like: -- 12 / ___ __13 appear. so in bookmarks for example its mainly empty except for the odd dash and number here and there.

i have no idea if it was me who did this by checking or unchecking a box in 'prefererences' or not? i mean, what would be the point of the browser looking like this?
i've used opera for years and i've never seen this happen before.
obviously i cannot go back into any menu and see if i can fix this as the menus no longer have words in them!

i decided to uninstall it and start again. the trouble is everytime i re-install it, i literally get back the particular browser that i was actually using. complete with all the bookmarks and such that have been replaced by various symbols, numbers and blank space.
so i don't get a brand new, fresh opera browser. mint just keeps bringing back the old one.
is there a way to get an untouched, new opera browser that i can then use?

i really dislike other browsers so i'm hoping someone can help? although i think i've had it!

[xenopeek]

Remove your personal Opera settings. Reinstalling generally doesn't do anything useful. Your personal settings aren't touched by removing or installing an application. No idea where Opera stores those, but they are somewhere in your home folder. Press Ctrl+H to show hidden files and folders in your file manager and look for a folder likely to be for Opera.

[whichonespink?]

thanks for replying.
well i did that, and i now have a fresh opera browser installed. unfortunately even though it is not my old opera, the same thing is happening, no text!
i don't understand!
would it be something i've adjusted in the mint settings?

[xenopeek]

Let's clear one thing up first;
- are you using Opera 12.x
- or 24.x? (http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?f=61&t=171186)

[whichonespink?]

i'm using opera 12.x.

[whichonespink?]

could i go into 16 and move the opera files on to a usb stick and then put that in mint 17? or does it not work like that?

[whichonespink?]

well i just copied opera from mint 16, and then replaced the existing opera in mint 17 with it.
and of course nothing happened!
i wonder if there is a way though?

i'm using midori nowadays. its ok i suppose.
i installed konqueror but the text it uses is like some 'olde european' language, very difficult to understand it.