Window loses focus a few seconds into typing after update to v8.8.3 - Windows 11
-
Ever since updating to v8.8.3, if i’m not using NotePad++ for awhile and click on the window to start typing, after a few seconds (about 4-5 keystrokes), the window abruptly loses focus. It is highly annoying. i use Always On Top to keep the window active over my browser most of the time; not sure if it’s related. i’m running it on Windows 11 and have used NotePad++ for years, on this PC and others, without ever having this issue.
-
@Prelle said in Window loses focus a few seconds into typing after update to v8.8.3 - Windows 11:
the window abruptly loses focus
So, do you have any idea which other window gets the focus?
Also, there is the FAQ post (Notepad++ Crashes/Freezes/Unresponsive after Update) which refers to plugins and how to disable them for testing. Although I am doubtful that a plugin would cause Notepad++ to lose focus, it might be worth a check. Can you create the problem “on demand”?
Terry
-
@Terry-R i can’t trigger it on demand, no. It seems to occur when the window hasn’t been used in awhile. i don’t know that any specific window gets focus, as the keyboard strokes don’t seem to go anywhere else, but i’ll experiment with it a bit and see if i can figure that out.
The most common way i use the app when this happens is i have a maximized browser window where i spend most of my time, and occasionally switch to Notepad++ (which is set to Always On Top) by clicking on it, then start typing. This is when the problem occurs, as after just a few seconds the window loses focus and whatever i was typing does nothing. If it’s switching back to the browser, those keystrokes never seem to have impacted anything there.
-
@Prelle said in Window loses focus a few seconds into typing after update to v8.8.3 - Windows 11:
i don’t know that any specific window gets focus
I did a quick check (and test). If the status bar in Windows doesn’t indicate which window is active by colouring the icon for it differently, then use the Alt + tab key once and hold the alt key down. The window which appears should show open windows. The one highlighted is now the new one, and possibly the one to the left is what was the active window before hitting the alt + tab key.
I’ve never had the “always on top” option in use, so I don’t know what the ramifications are for it in operation.
Terry
-
This issue has been happening on and off for over a year, but recently it is now completely intolerable. Focus is randomly lost every few seconds when using Always on Top over an active browser window. i can’t actually use the app for taking notes the way i have in the past, so basically i’ve given up using this app for that. Which is a shame, because it’s otherwise a great app.
It would be great if we could figure out why this happens.
-
- Do you have your ?-menu’s Debug Info?
- Do you have plugins in Notepad++ that might be doing something in the background? (Maybe a plugin has popped up a dialog, but because they didn’t code it right, the dialog doesn’t go in fron of Notepad++'s always-in-front.)
- Do you have a file open that requires Admin privileges to write/save? If so, maybe Windows has popped up the UAC, but it didn’t get to take your full screen like it normally would (the UAC shield icon would be on your taskbar if it’s an issue with the UAC)
- Do you have anything other than Notepad++ and your browser running?
- Do you have any applications like AutoHotKey, which assign global hotkeys that maybe it’s interpreting some sequence of keystrokes you are using to
- Does your browser have any extensions/plugins that might be trying to steal focus away from Notepad++?
It will be easier to replicate and find if you give as many details and pieces of relevant information as possible, otherwise something as nebulous an unrepeatable as this is going to be difficult to find.
update: one more idea: in the older posts, they mentioned that they’d click in Notepad++ to activate, then after a few seconds of typing, the focus would be lost. Is that the case for you? If so, did you leave the mouse pointer somewhere over the Notepad++ window when you started typing? Or does the mouse pointer start drifting off accidentally (maybe you bumped the mouse while typing, or it gets shaken while you type fervently)? Or does the mouse pointer get moved off intentionally (for example, when I was experimenting with always-on-top, I would move the mouse pointer back over the Chrome window, then use the scrollwheel to scroll the browser tab without clicking in the browser). If your mouse pointer is back to being over the browser (or some third app), maybe something in that other app grabs focus when you leave your mouse lingering over it (I know that some linux GUI will give apps focus whenever the cursor hovers over them, even if they haven’t been clicked to the foreground… maybe some other app – your browser or something else – has given itself such a feature, even on Windows.)
Hello! It looks like you're interested in this conversation, but you don't have an account yet.
Getting fed up of having to scroll through the same posts each visit? When you register for an account, you'll always come back to exactly where you were before, and choose to be notified of new replies (either via email, or push notification). You'll also be able to save bookmarks and upvote posts to show your appreciation to other community members.
With your input, this post could be even better 💗
Register Login