macvim-dev / macvim-dev/macvim
Window doesn't open when launched from the Dock or Finder
Nobody has claimed this yet.
- Dominant language
- Vim Script
- Stars
- 7.9k
- Forks
- 691
- PR merge metrics
- No merged PRs in 30d
Description
Steps to reproduce
- Launch MacVim from the Dock or Applications folder
- New window does not appear.
- File -> New Window and File -> Clean Window does nothing.
I removed .vimrc, .gvimrc, .viminfo, and all plugins and the issue persists.
If MacVim is launched directly in terminal via /Applications/MacVim.app/Contents/bin/mvim, everything works as expected. Similar issue was raised in a Google Groups discussion.
Expected behaviour
A new window should appear when launching the app.
Version of Vim and architecture
9.1.727, r180, arm64
Environment
Operating system: macOS 15.0
How MacVim was installed
Downloaded from GitHub
Logs and stack traces
No response
Vim configuration where issue is reproducable
No response
Issue has been tested with given configuration
- by running MacVim.app from GUI macOS interface
- by running vim/gvim/etc installed by MacVim
- by running other versions of vim (e.g. /usr/bin/vim)
Issue has been tested with no configuration
- by running
mvim --clean(orgvim, supplied by MacVim distribution) - by running
vim --clean(in terminal, supplied by MacVim distribution) - by running
vim --clean(in terminal, other suppliers, e.g. /usr/bin/vim)
Other conditions
- The both Homebrew packages "vim" and "macvim" are installed
Contributor guide
First steps
- Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
- Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
- Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
- Open a pull request that references the issue number.
Research direction
Start by comparing launching MacVim from the Dock or Applications folder with /Applications/MacVim.app/Contents/bin/mvim, since the issue reports different behavior between these entry points. Reproduce the missing-window behavior on macOS 15.0 with the listed MacVim version, then verify that a new window appears when the app is launched graphically and through File → New Window.
Written by the indexing model from the issue text.
Assessment
- Tech stack
- macos, vim
- Domain
- desktop
- Issue type
- Bug
- Difficulty
- 4/5
- Estimated time
- 3-5 days
- Activity status
- Stale
- Clarity
- Mostly clear
- Newbie friendliness
- 35/100