Indicator-applet Disappears After Closing a Conversation

[Lonnie Lee Best]

I run pidgin as a start-up application.

Since upgrading to Ubuntu 12.10, pidgin doesn't seem to sustain its applet-indicator (by the clock).

Pidgin is running, but I have no way to access it until someone messages me. After closing that conversation. I see no way to access my buddy-list other than trying to launching it again from the Unity dash.

I like pidgin to have its own indicator-icon by the clock. In 12.04, I could find pidgin's indicator-icon by clicking the envelope-icon-indicator by the clock, but in 12.10, I see no way to access my buddy list.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.10
Package: pidgin 1:2.10.6-0ubuntu2
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.5.0-17.27-generic 3.5.5
Uname: Linux 3.5.0-17-generic x86_64
NonfreeKernelModules: wl
ApportVersion: 2.6.1-0ubuntu1
Architecture: amd64
Date: Tue Oct 9 11:00:02 2012
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 12.04 LTS "Precise Pangolin" - Release amd64 (20120425)
ProcEnviron:
 TERM=xterm
 PATH=(custom, no user)
 XDG_RUNTIME_DIR=<set>
 LANG=en_US.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
SourcePackage: pidgin
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to quantal on 2012-10-04 (4 days ago)

[Lonnie Lee Best (launchpad-startport)]

In pidgin preferences, I have "Show system tray icon" set to "Always", but this doesn't sustain an system tray icon.

[Jason Conti (jconti)]

Pidgin hasn't been ported to the new indicator-messages API yet, this is bug https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/evolution-indicator/+bug/1040259

The system tray icon should work as a workaround, however in Unity, Pidgin must be whitelisted before it will appear. Something like:

gsettings set com.canonical.Unity.Panel systray-whitelist "['JavaEmbeddedFrame', 'Wine', 'Update-notifier', 'Pidgin']"

should work, though you may want to see what your current value is before appending Pidgin to the end, so that you don't lose any other status icons.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

[Roberson Campos (rc.teixeira)]

The same occurs with the Evolution in 12.10

[LGB [Gábor Lénárt] (lgb)]

I have whitelisted pidgin for systray icon (well not just pidgin but all). The stange thing: I cannot see pidgin's icon, however during switching workspaces, pidgin icon _can_be_ seen but only for that moment while workspace switching sliding effect is played, then it cannot be seen again ....

[jkao (jmk17)]

I'm also seeing the behavior that LGB describes after whitelisting all systray icons. In 12.10, this seems to affect Pidgin, VMware Workstation, and Vuze. In 12.04 it also affected Shutter, but no longer in 12.10. There seems to be some relationship between the icons disappear and workspace switching.

Immediately after logging in, all of the icons work properly. Any incident of the icons disappears seems to follow a workspace switch, although I'm not certain that the very first workspace switch after a login or unity reset results in the icons disappearing.

Once this occurs, the icons are still visible when the Dash is brought up or while switching workspaces or viewing all workspaces with Super-S, but are not clickable.

[jkao (jmk17)]

Screenshots of this behavior were reported in this question: http://askubuntu.com/questions/208366/disappearing-indicator-icons

[Richard Merren (richard-merren)]

I am seeing this same behavior with indicators for SpiderOak and BlueProximity. Both have been whitelisted. These indicators are visible when I start the computer, but at some point they disappear (usually after I suspend and resume, but sometimes without a suspend). I can see the indicators if I use CTRL-ALT-ARROW to switch desktops, but only while the desktop switch is taking place...then they disappear again. I cannot access them at all.

Other indicators (Remmina, dropbox, network manager, power, etc.) are unaffected (though sometimes the bluetooth icon is missing, though this might just be when it has no connection).

[Richard Merren (richard-merren)]

Also: entering "unity &" from a command line to restart Unity restores the lost icons. Possibly interesting info: when the top panel is rebuilding, the two missing icons appear first all the way to the right and then the rest of the icons and clock, etc. are added.

[Linus Nordin (gribber)]

I can confirm this bug, icon(s) disapper after entering a fullscreen app.
Pidgin, Google Chrome and Guake Terminal icons disappers, worth to mention is that Spotify and Remmina Remote Desktop Client icons stays visable

I can see them all while pressing Win-S or CTRL-ALT-ARROW