65140 - The message windows loses focus after hitting "N".

Status: RESOLVED WORKSFORME

(SeaMonkey :: MailNews: Message Display, defect)

Description

[James "Dexter" Akula]

BuildID:    20010109

In Communicator, if you were looking at a mail or newsgroup message, and you
clicked in the message frame, the arrow keys on the keyboard would scroll it if
it was longer than a page.  If you hit "N" to be taken to the next message you
could still scroll the message text with the arrow keys.  Likewise, if you had
the focus on the headers frame, pressing "N" would not remove the focus (so
arrows would scan through messages).

Reproducible: Always
Steps to Reproduce:
1)  Load a message longer than the window.
2)  Click in the message frame.
3)  Press "N" to view the next message.
4)  Try to scroll with the arrows.  The focus is lost.

I really found this to be a useful feature of Communicator, as I try to use my
mouse as little as possible.  Can we get it back please?

Comment 1

[Keyser Sose]

WORKSFORME
Platform: PC
OS: Windows 98
Mozilla Build: 2001010904

Comment 2

[Keyser Sose]

WORKSFORME
Platform: PC
OS: Linux 2.2.16
Mozilla Build: 2001010908

Marking WORKSFORME. Reopen if this still occurs in the latest nightlies.

Comment 3

[James "Dexter" Akula]

I just downloaded todays build, 20010112, and it is definately still not
working.  Perhapse my description wasn't good enough.  I'll try again.

In the mail/news windows there are 4 frames.  Going clockwise: the first lists
your accounts and folders, the second lists mail subjects and newsgroup headers
(depending on what you're viewing).  The third displays the actual message or
article, and the fourth contains my sidebar tabs.

If you select a message in the subject frame, it displays below in the message
frame.  If you then click in the message frame, the arrow keys on the keyboard
will scroll that window.  Now, if you hit the "N" key, you will see the next
message dispayed in that same window.  Here is where things go wrong.

In Communicator, if you then pressed the arrow keys, the message would scroll
just as the last one did.  In NS6/Mozilla, you need to click in the message
window again to get the arrow keys to work.  This is because, for some reason,
Mozilla looses the "focus" on the appropriate frame when you hit "N".  It should
retain the focus properly.

Does that make sense?

Comment 4

[Fabian Guisset]

Confirmed, I can reproduce with 0.7 on win32. Focus needs to kept in the message
window, currently focus goes nowhere (not even in the header pane).
Marking new.
Thanks for the explanation James Akula, hence the important "steps to reproduce" ;)

Comment 5

[laurel]

I swear I've seen this reported before (I remember confirming the behavior),
looking for duplicate, but can't find it right now.

Comment 6

[Jesse Ruderman]

This bug sounds similar to bug 61024.  (I haven't tried to reproduce either bug 
because I don't have Mozilla MailNews set up.)

Comment 7

[laurel]

*** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of 61024 ***

Comment 8

[fenella]

.

Comment 9

[James "Dexter" Akula]

This problem is back.  It is no longer a focus issue as in bug 61024.  The focus
is held on the message window frame (as indicated by a darkening around the
edges), but clearly this is an illusion.  The arrow keys do nothing in the
message window.

This is with the 2001041104 build.

Comment 10

[Aaron Leventhal]

I'm tempted to mark this with the "Access" keyword, even though it's not
completely necessary. However, it would be a very useful polish for
keyboard-only users with disabilities.

Comment 11

[Mike Cowperthwaite]

This bug is not reproducible by me, 1.4Final Win2K.  "Dexter," if Mozilla is 
working OK for you, please mark this bug   Resolved | WorksForMe

Comment 12

[James "Dexter" Akula]

Using Netscape 7.1, all seems well with this bug.  Resolving.

Comment 13

[Mike Cowperthwaite]

Reopening to fix resolution

Comment 14

[Mike Cowperthwaite]

Dexter, please use WorksForMe unless there is a specific patch associated with 
the bug (or if you can point to another bug whose fix you *know* also fixed the 
bug).