Applications stealing focus - reg key no longer fixes

Anonymous
2010-04-08T18:42:59+00:00

I want to prevent any applications from stealing focus in windows 7 (and Vista).  Tweakui used to modify the below Registry key to 0.  Then there was a key that affected the number of flashes a "want to steal focus" window would make in the taskbar.

ForegroundLockTimeout

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop

This reg key is apparently no longer working.  Focus stealing is a major problem, from canceling/oking window that pop-up, to getting virus's from IE windows.  Applications are still written to do this, including MS Office 2007.  If you are typing an email something can pop up and get the next key stroke.  I need to fix this.  Any ideas, or has Windows completely removed a needed feature.

tags: steal focus apps active regedit

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Apps

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Anonymous
2011-10-23T11:13:03+00:00

I solved the problem in this way:

I noticed that just before the focus was "stolen", the PC got "busy" for a second (beside the mouse appeared the small circle indicating the processor is working hard on sth).

So I started the Task Manager and gave a close look at the processes. I noticed that one process took over a relevat percentage of CPU usage exactly an instant before the focus was stolen from the task manager window.

Since it was a process that I don't need to be active all the time (sth about Vodafone Mobile connection, which I rarely use) I just stopped the process and then didn't allow the process to be started every time I turn on the PC. I did this last step using Piriform's free software  "CCleaner", but I'm sure you can find different tools for this...

This was enough to fix it ...

Hope this helped!

Bye!

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  1. Anonymous
    2010-12-08T15:44:55+00:00

    This answer is not true.  I have had apps steal focus on Windows 7 just as readily as any other version of Windows.  Don't kid yourselves that this is fixed, it isn't.  Focus stealing still happens.  In fact, I just had Chrome do this right in the middle of working in the Gimp.  In fact, Chrome even opened its window from a minimized state, and threw itself up and took focus away from the other app.  Definitely not fixed. 

    For specifics, I was on Verizon's store web site.  The site 'timed out' and threw up a 'are you still there' kind of question and opened Chrome from a minimized state taking over focus from The Gimp.

    And no, don't just run out and tell Chrome developers to fix their code.  This clearly isn't the answer. If one developer can do this, they all can.  This means Windows 7 needs to be fixed or to have a setting that users can manage.  I also don't understand why Windows developers insist on removing useful functionality and 'claiming' that it's fixed when it clearly isn't.

    [UPDATE 12/17/10] Just had it happen again.  AmazonMP3 downloader popped up a requester at the end of downloading MP3 files which stole focus away from Chrome.  This issue is DEFINITELY NOTfixed.

    --Brian

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  2. Anonymous
    2011-01-04T03:47:04+00:00

    This is definitely a major usability issue for Windows in general. If you have a brand new 4 or 6 core system with 12+GB of ram and try to do multiple things at a time, Windows throws up focus stealing dialogs like reboot prompts for updates - you just can't truely multitask without getting interrupted. It would be nice to have the choice to allow the OS to ignore focus stealing requests.

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  3. Anonymous
    2011-01-14T00:13:33+00:00

    And I thought is was Just me, this bug truly sux.

    FIX IT MICROSOFT, hey they put a man on the MOON in 1969!

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