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 Post subject: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Mon Feb 25, 2019 5:38 pm 
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It appears the running indication for Windows 10 universal applications is not shown on the dock (unless there is a setting I need to enable), can include in next release showing running indication for universal apps?


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 Post subject: Re: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Mon Feb 25, 2019 6:08 pm 
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Not true.

Try the following: open the Windows Calculator (in Windows 10 it's a UWP app)

Assuming you have the dock showing running applications, the calculator icon will appear on the right side of the dock. Right click on it and select 'Pin to Dock'.

You should now see the Calculator icon on the left side of the dock *with a running indicator* (which goes away when you close the Calc window).

What specific UWP app are you having a problem with? Please post a screenshot of the Dock Entry Properties dialog of the problematic UWP app.

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Jorge Coelho
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 Post subject: Re: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Mon Feb 25, 2019 6:21 pm 
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I'm talking about sticky notes. I have a shortcut to this app in the dock and when I start it, the running indicator is not shown. I tested with calculator app and it shows running indicator i.e., I added a shortcut to calculator app and started it and it shows a running indicator below the app icon. Note, I'm not using the "show running applications" option.


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 Post subject: Re: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Mon Feb 25, 2019 7:23 pm 
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Figured it would be something weird like that.

Sticky Notes seems to be a rather weird UWP app, as when I launch it here it appears in the taskbar not as an individual icon but as part of the 'Windows Explorer/explorer.exe' group of applications. I'll have to look a bit deeper into it to try and figure out what MS is doing with it.

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Jorge Coelho
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 Post subject: Re: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Tue Feb 26, 2019 2:21 pm 
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Ok, just had a chance to look a bit more into this. Basically what is happening is that Microsoft is breaking its own rules left and right.

A window is only supposed to appear on the list of running applications if it passes certain tests. One of those is that it is a top-level window, i.e.; it does not have a parent window.

What Windows 10 is doing with Sticky notes is giving the UWP app a parent window, which is NOT UWP and is owned by Explorer.exe. The direct result of this is that what appears in the list of running applications is NOT the UWP app itself, but the Explorer owned window.

This is why pining it to the dock resolves into a link to Explorer.exe instead of the sticky notes UWP app, and also why the Sticky Notes window appears grouped with other Explorer windows.

If MS makes up its own rules as they please and as they go along, it becomes very difficult - if not impossible - to make order out of chaos. This sort of thing does not happen with other, normal, UWP apps, as you could see by yourself with the Calc example above.

Not sure what I can do in this case, other than opening an exception. I'll have to look deeper into this.

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 Post subject: Re: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Tue Feb 26, 2019 2:47 pm 
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Ok, I've made the Sticky Notes appear as individual icons in the list of running applications. However, I made this work by removing the parent window test from UWP app windows, which can lead to problems elsewhere (haven't tested this enough yet).

This means that a shortcut to Sticky notes in the dock now gets a running indicator, and also that right clicking on that icon in the list of running applications and selecting 'Pin to Dock' results in the actual UWP app instead of a shortcut to Explorer.exe.

Doing it this way leads to a couple of quirks though: first you get two entries for Sticky Notes, one for Explorer, and the other for the UWP app itself. Second, clicking on the Sticky Note icon in the list of running applications does NOT minimize the note, only brings it to the foreground. The only way to minimize the note (in this case, ALL notes if you have more than one) is to click the Explorer entry in the list of running applications.

Nice, eh (not!)? lol

Not sure if I will keep it this way or find an alternate way to deal with this more in line with how the Windows taskbar does it.

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 Post subject: Re: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Wed Feb 27, 2019 12:27 am 
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Ok, I ended up going the other way and doing it more like the Windows Taskbar does (e.g.; the Explorer window and the Sticky Note windows are merged into a single entry in the running applications list).

This allows us to control it exactly like the Windows taskbar does and also pin it to the dock as an UWP app. Seems to be working fine, at least for Sticky Notes. Not sure if there are other UWP apps in the same circumstances (i.e.; also owned by Explorer).

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 Post subject: Re: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Thu Feb 28, 2019 4:50 am 
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I didn't anticipate this but reading your message was educational. I commend you for your diligence and promptness. I just now updated a beta-is your new change in that beta?


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 Post subject: Re: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Thu Feb 28, 2019 4:56 am 
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Yes. Test it out and please let me know.

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 Post subject: Re: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Thu Feb 28, 2019 6:09 am 
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Joined: Thu Mar 18, 2004 12:11 am
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Location: Pollock Pines, CA
Jorge, I've had Sticky Notes in my Quicklaunch for a while now. When I click the Sticky Notes icon, I get a Sticky Note. But it does show up in the tasklist an an Explorer window. Can't tell you how the latest beta changes things because my license expired and payday isn't until NEXT Friday.

Did that make sense? Eu estou bêbado.

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 Post subject: Re: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Fri Mar 01, 2019 2:18 am 
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I can confirm that on my system, the latest beta separates the Sticky Notes from the Windoze Explorer windows in the taskbar. Nicely done.

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 Post subject: Re: universal app running indication in dock
PostPosted: Fri Mar 01, 2019 2:21 am 
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Thanks, Paul. :)

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