pidgin should honour specific virtual workspace/desktop setting

[Tim Kornhammar]

Binary package hint: pidgin

I've selected "only on this desktop" in Pidgin but new conversations pop up on the active desktop which is a problem if you're running full screen applications on some of the desktops. Best solution to this is to give an option deciding what the user wishes to do with new windows.

ProblemType: Bug
Architecture: amd64
Date: Wed Jan 9 11:05:14 2008
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 7.10
ExecutablePath: /usr/bin/pidgin
NonfreeKernelModules: fglrx vmnet vmblock vmmon
Package: pidgin 1:2.2.1-1ubuntu4.1
PackageArchitecture: amd64
ProcCmdline: pidgin
ProcCwd: /home/tim
ProcEnviron:
 PATH=/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin:/usr/games
 LANG=sv_SE.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
SourcePackage: pidgin
Uname: Linux ubuntu 2.6.22-14-generic #1 SMP Tue Dec 18 05:28:27 UTC 2007 x86_64 GNU/Linux

[wolfger (wolfger)]

I can't see an "only on this desktop" option. Can you give me the exact steps to reproduce?

As a possible work-around (if you are using KDE) you can right-click on the title bar of the Buddy List and select:
Advanced -> Special Application Settings -> Geometry and check the Desktop checkbox, select Force from the 1st dropdown and select your desired desktop from the second dropdown.

[Tim Kornhammar (tim-kornhammar)]

(I'm using Gnome, thought that wasn't necessary to say since Ubuntu uses Gnome as default.)

(This applies to all applications) If you right-click on the title bar or on the task bar and choose "Only On This Workspace" (not desktop, silly me) the application should stay on that workspace and not open new conversations on the other workspaces.

I don't have any option like that in Gnome but are you saying that it is a Gnome problem and not Pidgin (I don't know so I'm asking)?

[wolfger (wolfger)]

Yes, that sounds like a GNOME or GDM issue to me. I am not seeing this on Kubuntu. I'll reassign this away from the Pidgin package to GDM, which is what I think controls this menu you're using.

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

gdm is the login screen and not the right component, looks rather a window manager thing. Do you use the desktop effects? Does it happen without those?

[Tim Kornhammar (tim-kornhammar)]

Yes it is more likely something with Gnome than Gdm, but I don't know where to move it know...

No I don't currently use desktop effects.

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

reassigning to pidgin, there is no reason to open all the windows on a same workspace, that's something the application should require

[wolfger (wolfger)]

I disagree with your assessment. The bug is in the behavior of "Only On This Workspace", which is not a Pidgin setting at all. and it's not something Pidgin "should require" (I happen to like the fact that it opens chat window on whichever desktop/workspace I'm currently using). Furthermore, it's not an issue on KDE.

[Tim Kornhammar (tim-kornhammar)]

I got another example that is when you click a link in some workspace in Gnome and you have one browser session that is the default workspace/browser to open the link on and I think it should be like that. But then again, an option in every program seems like too much. I don't know how the code looks but my reasoning goes like below...

It seems like two different views of it:
Gnome should block new windows from opening on other workspaces.
 or
Pidgin should check which option in Gnome is being used and adopt after it.

Not sure that I like the idea that Gnome should block apps if the app is built to interact with another workspace and still stay on the first workspace.

[Magnus S (magnuss)]

No one has touched this bug for almost a year. Is this issue still present in modern time?

//magnus

[wolfger (wolfger)]

Over 2 months with no response. We are closing this bug report because it lacks the information we need to investigate the problem, as described in the previous comments. Please reopen it if you can give us the missing information, and don't hesitate to submit bug reports in the future. To reopen the bug report you can click on the current status, under the Status column, and change the Status back to "New". Thanks again!