167271 - [RFE] Context-menu appears on click instead of release

Status: NEW

(Core :: XUL, enhancement)

Description

[Sybren Stuvel]

The context menu in the browser appears on the right-click on all non-windows
platforms/OSses I know.

Expected behaviour: the context menu appears on releasing the right mouse button.

This would really help the gestures project at http://optimoz.mozdev.org/
because these gestures are hardly usable now on any other platform than Windows.
Setting the LMB to the gestures button makes it hard to select text without
making a gesture. The MMB causes selected text to be pasted, which is also very
inconvenient if you only want to move one tab to the left/right (for instance).
Using the RMB for gestures interferes heavily with the context menu.

One of the beauties of Mozilla is that it behaves the same no matter what OS
you're using. This is one of the small details where things are different, and
it really matters in this case.

Comment 1

[Michiel van Leeuwen (email: mvl+moz@)]

In the few linux apps I tried, the conext menu opens on mousedown. Mozilla
should be consistent with the rest of the platform.

Comment 2

[Jo Hermans]

*** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of 89308 ***

Comment 3

[Jo Hermans]

Oh wait, bug 89308 was about fixing that bug on Windows. You really want to move
that *bug* to all other platforms ? That is exactly the opposite. I'll reopen
this one.

And I'm still against, BTW. Opening a context menu should take one click, not 2.
If this creates problems with gestures, then the problem has to be fixed.

Comment 4

[Sybren Stuvel]

I agree that this should be fixed in the cleanest way possible. Another approach
is a way to:

1) prevent the context menu from popping up
2) make the context menu pop up from any code

This way, the gestures module can prevent the context menu from popping up until
it's clear that you're not making a gesture. After that, it can still show you
the context menu. That would make the context menu appear with only a single
click of the RMB, and still allow nice gestures!

Comment 5

[Christopher Curzio]

The menu is drawn on MouseDown for a reason. It exhibits the same behavior as
the toolbar menus. 

1. Right-click to bring up the context menu, but don't release the mouse button. 
2. Drag the pointer to an active selection. 
3. Release the button. 

This is actually more efficient, as you can select a menu option with two events
instead of four. (MouseDown and MouseUp instead of MouseDown+MouseUp
MouseDown+MouseUp)

Comment 6

[Sybren Stuvel]

To start: that's very useful, and I use it too. No argue there.

It would be nice, though, to allow certain addons to alter this behaviour in
favour of additional functionality. Someone who simply uses mozilla should get
the desired behavior as you described. Someone installing an addon should get
the behaviour that the addon provides. In order to do this, there should be a
way for addons to influence the behavior of the context menu.

It won't interfere with the regular operation of Mozilla, and it gives more
power to the addons that which to use this. Seems like a good solution to me.

Comment 7

[Christian :Biesinger (don't email me, ping me on IRC)]

-> xp toolkit

Comment 8

[John Morrison]

Confirming RFE to "make it a pref", although that's not to say that the 
module owner will necessarily accept this. We've already been through this
more than once...

Comment 9

[Alfonso Martinez]

*** Bug 190603 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 10

[Alfonso Martinez]

*** Bug 203522 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 11

[Sybren Stuvel]

The ability to properly use mouse gestures with the right mouse button is at
least working on Firefox. As far as I (the reporter of this bug) am concerned,
it can be closed.