Firefox can't focus on one Window when there are many open (on Linux with XMonad)
This has been happening recently, probably since the last update. I'm on Firefox 23.0, but I'm not sure what was the previously installed version.
I'm using a tiled window manager - XMonad - and I often have several Firefox windows open on different workspaces. I can't narrow down the specifics, but often when I switch focus from one window to a Firefox window, it won't accept keyboard input. If I hunt down, I'll find that the input is going to another Firefox window, sometimes one that isn't even visible. Clicking again on the address bar or on a text input has no effect, the focus remains on the other window.
Can someone help me debug this issue?
All Replies (4)
a shot in the dark: one can spawn several Firefox windows either by starting FX several times, or by tearing off an open tab. To be honest, I do not know if it does not eventually amount to one and the same thing; my gut feeling however says, probably it does not, with tearing off a tag the better alternative of the two.
Modified by smo
This could very well be a problem with how that window manager works.
Can you check this with another window manager? It shouldn't be a problem to open multiple windows in different workspaces.
Are that all Firefox windows that you opened manually yourself (i.e. no pop-up windows)?
Thanks for your suggestions. I'll try Gnome as window manager to check if the problem is with XMonad.
They were all windows I opened manually. Sometimes with Ctrl+N, other times launching the "firefox" executable again (which spaws a new window on the current process). I'll try to pay attention to my behavior to see if I narrow down the issue.
This bites me, too: whole firefox windows won't accept keyboard input (mouse is okay), neither location input, search input nor any HTML inputs work (no text input cursor, keyboard input is sent somewhere else).
I have no clue what might trigger this, it just happens now and then, but sometimes with high frequency (say 5 times a minute).
I usually have a lot of windows, some of which contain a number of tabs (1-20 is normal). I start firefox only once, then I use "New window", "New tab" and occasionally "Move to new window".
Firefox windows are spread over several desktops. I have two monitors.
A lot of the tabs I keep open are heavy with Javascript (most notably FogBugz [a bugtracking system, see http://www.fogcreek.com/fogbugz/]).
The focus problem happens on two different desktop managers:
- On icewm -- here I have a simple workaround: switching a desktop to the left and back (using the keyboard) seems to "free" the focus; on selecting the firefox window again everything is fine (for a while).
- On KDE -- here the problem is more severe and very annoying, because I don't know how I can force the focus to a window; it seems that the focus problem affects all of firefox' windows and tabs on the same desktop; I usually start killing tabs and the focus eventually returns -- no idea if it is because of me closing tabs.
It always seems to happen when switching windows -- I never saw the focus go away while typing or interacting with a single web site.