Windows lose focus, seemingly at random

Anonymous

Since upgrading from Vista Business to 7 Business, I've run into an intermittent issue. Windows seem to lose focus at random. It may be happening more than I realize, since I have to be actively using the window to notice when it stops accepting my input. For instance, I might be scrolling to the bottom of a web page when I realize that moving the scroll wheel on my mouse no longer has any effect, or I might be typing something in Word while looking away from the screen, only to realize upon looking back that half of the sentence I'd typed was ignored because of a shift in focus. If I'm reading a particularly long web page, I'll occasionally notice the color of the transparent title bar change slightly when the focus changes, as though I'd clicked over to another program. I haven't been able to figure out what is stealing the focus whenever this happens, and it's a new occurrence under 7. Unfortunately, it's sporadic enough that trying to turn off programs running in the background to determine if they're the cause may prove kind of tricky. Has anyone else run into anything like this? If so, any fixes? I have a feeling the culprit may be the GMail Notifier or Trillian Astra, since they both pop up notices from time to time, but many (if not all) of those notices typically don't cause problems.

Any help you can offer would be great.

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments

Answer accepted by question author

Anonymous

Hey karpar,

Any third party software conflicting with Windows components can result to this behavior. Hence, putting your system in clean boot state can help in determining the culprit application or program. A clean boot loads only those files and programs that are absolutely required by the Operating System. Upon determining the background application causing the issue, you may contact the vendor for assistance.

Steps to perform clean boot:

1) Click Start, type msconfig in the Start Search box, and then press ENTER.

2) If you are prompted for an administrator password or for a confirmation, type the password, or click Continue.

3) On the General tab, click Selective Startup.

4) Under Selective Startup, click to clear the Load Startup Items check box.

5) Click the Services tab, click to select the Hide All Microsoft Services check box, and then click Disable All.

6) Click OK.

7) When you are prompted, click Restart.

After the computer starts, test and see whether the sporadic behavior of Windows loosing focus continues.

If not, we definitely know for sure that the behavior is contributed by third party software conflicts.

To determine which application, follow the steps mentioned in the article below.

How to troubleshoot a problem by performing a clean boot in Windows Vista or in Windows 7

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929135

After you determine the startup item or the service that causes the problem, contact the program manufacturer to determine whether the problem can be resolved

Having done so, don’t forget to return your computer to start normally.

Reset the computer to start as usual

1) Click Start, type msconfig.exe in the Start Search box, and then press ENTER.

2) If you are prompted for an administrator password or for confirmation, type your password, or click Continue.

3) On the General tab, click the Normal Startup option, and then click OK.

4) When you are prompted to restart the computer, click Restart.

Hope this resolves the issue.

Regards,

Shinmila H - Microsoft Support

Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forumand let us know what you think

0 comments

74 additional answers

Anonymous

2013-07-27T14:14:53+00:00

ofc i tried.. but after that day i didnt have this problem that i could note off its just pops up randomnly when i am in a game hasnt happend after that day but it will forsure pop up again :P
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2013-07-25T01:50:02+00:00

Have you ran msconfig to try isolating the problem?
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2013-07-24T23:54:49+00:00

Hello

I've tried too do all that's recommended but at no vail, It is still happening and its freakvently.

When it comes too trying out other things that could be the case like cellphone charging and unplugging the keybaord and i can comfirm that right after i unplugged it happening when i was looking.

Now i am like "Ehhh" its happening while i write aswell but as i try too understand the problem i've seem too see that i also have a wifi problem witch makes it intressting, my computer just started today making me dc from the wifi ( i've patched the wifi just a 2weeks ago and was fine until 2days ago so.) can it be that my computer fighting some software fight? That i dont know yet.

Please i need some issue solving here. i think as a customer ive tried mine fair share.

Ty.
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments
Anonymous

2013-05-18T03:23:19+00:00

I have this problem of 'losing focus' I notice it most using Gmail, since that's where I do most writing. However I think it might also have happened elsewhere..

I use a Lenovo E130 i5 ultrabook, which I think is a wonderful little machine as I installed the maximum 8Gb memory, and replaced the drive with an SSD (quite a difference..)

Anyhow, although the problem came with the machine, and although I blamed the machine at first, I came to realise that together with the machine came Windows 7 64bit Home Premium.

I like the operating system, it's pretty fast and clean. But I think that the problem probably exists in that OS; although I'm not sure I would want to exonerate Google altogether..

I've read the remarks written by others, covering about three years of use, not all in Win 7, and I note many quite specific reasons that people have given: many of those reasons are entirely different from other people's reasons! So I don't think it's a Lenovo or a Dell, or Windows of whatever flavour, or maybe even Google.

I think it's a she-devil.

They like to play with us humans.

I once had a manual Chrysler Valiant (in Sydney, Australia -- where else would you be given a horrible huge MANUAL Valiant??) -- anyhow, one day I was innocently doing my job; sales, that is; and the clutch stopped working. I heard rattles, I looked under the car; the clutch linkages had fallen off onto the road!

They were using hydraulic clutches in the late '50's in England, whoever heard of METAL clutch linkages except Chrysler Australia in the '70's?? No wonder they were closed down by the late '70's, ghastly cars.

Back to the focus bizzo, it just lost focus again. I really do think it's primarily the Google Chrome browser, 'coz right now I'm not in Gmail! I was watching, had my hand raised off the keyboard for a moments thought, then saw the coloured bit above the menu bar suddenly lighten, and, bingo, focus gone!

Trouble with typing too much is it hurts my left hand a bit; a trifle arthritic.. I don't think that's caused by Chrome though.
Was this answer helpful?

0 comments No comments