can't close pidgin conversations when opened with messaging-menu

[Cameron Matheson]

Binary package hint: pidgin-libnotify

I don't have tabs enabled in pidgin. After clicking on a notification in the indicator applet, the conversation is opened in a tabbed window. Attempting to close any conversation in this tabbed window just moves the tabs position to the end of the list (that is, it's impossible to close any conversation after clicking on a notification in the indicator applet).

This is what I expect to happen: when I click on a notification in the menu, it opens a conversation window. When I then close that window, it goes away.

This is what really happens: I click on a notification and it opens up a tabbed conversation window. It is impossible to get rid of this window (and any conversations therein) without quitting pidgin.

Description: Ubuntu 10.04 LTS
Release: 10.04

pidgin-libnotify:
  Installed: 0.14-1ubuntu14
  Candidate: 0.14-1ubuntu14
  Version table:
     0.14-1ubuntu14 0
        500 http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ lucid/main Packages

[Cameron Matheson (cameron-matheson)]

I'm attaching this patch that fixes the issue for me. This method of showing the conversation is the same that is used by upstream pidgin-libnotify.

[Dan Hilton (danhiruton)]

This bug affects me as well, and I DO have tabs enabled in pidgin.

[Cameron Matheson (cameron-matheson)]

I should note that this is bug is particularly bad if you have the "Hide new IM conversations" setting to "Always", because then one will always encounter this bug when opening new conversations from the messaging menu.

[Ted Gould (ted)]

The problem with not using the timestamp is that it's required to defeat some of the focus-stealing-prevention that is in the window manager. I wonder if we could do present, and then bring the window forward again with the timestamp?

[JockeTF (jocketf)]

I had the same problem, Cameron Matheson's patch fixed it for me.

[Etan Reisner (deryni-pidgin)]

Does a patch that uses purple_conversation_present(conv) and then pidgin_conv_window_switch_gtkconv(gtkconv->win, gtkconv) also work?

purple_conversation_present just triggers the present ui_op but does so in a valid, safe, supported fashion rather than by poking internals directly. The switch_gtkconv call is only necessary because of http://developer.pidgin.im/ticket/8692 and ideally if we fix that the extra call will become unnecessary.

[hackel (hackel)]

I face this bug pretty much every day, and I use Pidgin constantly. Any way we can elevate the priority so that it can be resolved for Natty?

[calimocho (d-martinez7)]

I agree with @hackel. I have taken to following this procedure when I get an IM now:

Click on me-menu to see who the message is from
Click on pidgin item in me-menu to open up buddy list
Scroll down to buddy who sent message and double-click to open chat window.

This way they're closeable, but it is a bit circuitous.

[James Gregory-Monk (jamgregory)]

I hate to put in another one of these 'me too!' posts but I'm also facing this same issue every day with Pidgin.

If Cameron's patch fixes this issue (and it seems that purple_conversation_present is somewhat broken, or just pidgin-libnotify's implementation?) then could the patch be applied to make this work?

[njdove (njdove)]

I apologize if my experience is slightly off topic, but I was also unable to close tabs in Pidgin (Ubuntu 11.04 beta, Pidgin 2.7.11) - the tab would just re-open as the right-most tab. Further, when I closed the containing window, the tabs would alternately close and cause Pidgin to become nonresponsive. I resolved the problem by going to Tools...Preferences, and enabling "[x] Close IMs immediately when the tab is closed" in the [Conversations] tab. YMMV, of course.

[Mike Doherty (doherty)]

Over a year later, the bug still isn't fixed. If the patch works, what do we need to get it included upstream?

[David Schweikert (david-schweikert)]

This makes pidgin practically unusable for me under Ubuntu 13.04. Before I could disable the libnotify plugin and use the systray icon, but now this is also not possible anymore.

You have an important problem reported by multiple persons and a patch since 3 years! Anybody here?

[StewVed (stewved)]

This bug is still present in Ubuntu 13.10 (pidgin-libnotify version 0.14-9ubuntu2)

Pidgin is so much better than Empathy it is unreal that Pidgin isn't the default IM. This libnotify issue is the ONLY issue I know of, so i'd love it is some Ubuntu dev just sorts it. (how hard can it be, when there is a working patch already done?!?!?)

In the mean time (as it has been almost half a decade since this bug was reported) how can a 'normal' ubuntu user apply the patch that is known to fix this?