Window focus behavior: opening file from Nemo switches workspace to existing window instead of current workspace

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Assessment

Difficulty
5/5
Estimated time
Over a week
Newbie friendliness
28/100
Issue type
Feature
Clarity
Needs clarification
Activity status
Quiet
Tech stack
javascript, linux
Domain
desktop, operating-systems

Research direction

No file or test is named. Start by locating Muffin's EWMH activation path for gio/xdg-open requests, then clarify whether current-workspace, existing-window, or smart behavior is intended. Done should include an agreed setting or desktop-entry hint and tests showing that opening a file does not unexpectedly switch workspaces.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Description

Issue

When opening a file from Nemo (via gio open / xdg-open), if the target application already has an open window on another workspace, Cinnamon (Muffin) switches to that workspace and raises the existing window instead of opening a new window in the current workspace.

Expected behavior

Option to open files in the current workspace (new window or new tab in current workspace) without switching workspaces.

Current behavior

Muffin follows EWMH "activate existing window" behavior: switches to the workspace where the application window already exists and raises it.

Workarounds tried

  • gsettings set org.cinnamon.muffin window-focus-mode 'sloppy' — no effect
  • gsettings set org.cinnamon.muffin raise-on-click false — partial
  • Application-specific --new-window flags — app-dependent

Request

Add a setting in Muffin/Cinnamon settings:

  • org.cinnamon.muffin window-open-behavior = current-workspace | existing-window | smart
  • Or per-application hint via .desktop file (X-Cinnamon-Open-In-Current-Workspace=true)

Environment

  • Cinnamon 6.x / Linux Mint 21.x
  • Muffin 6.x
  • Nemo 6.x
Dominant language
JavaScript
Stars
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Forks
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Avg merge
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Merged PRs (30d)
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