Window manager setting "Automatically give focus to newly created windows" suggests that an application may steal focus from another application by creating a window. (This may happen e.g. when Update manager is working.) If you uncheck it, even an application's own window opened from the application itself doesn't get focus automatically. I think it is better to give focus to new windows within focused application only.
Related Launchpad bug: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xfwm4/+bug/250101 See also http://bugzilla.xfce.org/show_bug.cgi?id=4795
Even when starting another application, it is sometimes better to give focus to new window: e.g. if you launch xfrun4 by Alt-F2 or in terminal, you probably want to give focus to it right away, if you are not specially interested in its terminal output, and you don't have to wait long time before the dialog is ready for input. (I used to be able to start some programs minimized using command "kstart --iconify PROGRAM" in Xubuntu, but with latest ubuntu 8.10 where KDE version is 4 it does not work as expected with Xfce 4.6 beta1.)
As mentionned in bug #4795, the option does exactly what it says, ie give focus to newly mapped windows (or not) - There've been no change in this since xfce 4.0 so I don't understand what you mean with kstart not working as expected anymore. BTW, you cannot focus unmapped windows so if you start an application iconified, it will not receive focus anyway. If you are talking about focus stealing prevention, please refer to the big #4795 for a (simplified) explanation on how that works why this won't work when an application started from a terminal. xfrun is running as a daemon and triggered from dbus so it might not have the initial timestamp set properly, that's not a bug in the WM (I am still not sure if you are talking about focus stealing prevention or simply the "focus new windows" option though)
(In reply to comment #3) > As mentionned in bug #4795, the option does exactly what it says, ie give focus > to newly mapped windows (or not) - There've been no change in this since xfce > 4.0 so I don't understand what you mean with kstart not working as expected > anymore. https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/kdebase-runtime/+bug/317122 I mentioned "kstart --iconify" as just a way to start an application in background. Is there an equivalent in Xfce? > BTW, you cannot focus unmapped windows so if you start an application > iconified, it will not receive focus anyway. Good. > If you are talking about focus stealing prevention, please refer to the big > #4795 for a (simplified) explanation on how that works why this won't work > when an application started from a terminal. I don't understand what you a are asking. > (I am still not sure > if you are talking about focus stealing prevention or simply the "focus new > windows" option though) Doesn't the "focus new window" break focus stealing prevention?
I have these settings for Xfce 4.6 beta3: In Window Manager Settings / focus / -New window focus: unchecked -Raise on focus: unchecked In Window Manager Tweaks / Focus / Activate focus stealing prevention: checked Honor standard ICCCM focus hint: checked. This is how the preferences dialog of certain applications is opened then: Claws Mail version 3.7.0: risen, focused Firefox version 3.0.5: Not risen, not focused Thunar 0.9.93: risen, not focused (I would prefer Claws Mail's behavior for a preferences dialog.)
In Gnome I found that if you start e.g. Firefox from panel, it will focus and raise, unless you explicitly give focus to other application. That way Firefox does not get in your way, if it takes too long to start and you decide to work by other application meanwhile, but if you just want to wait and work by Firefox next, it is readily focused and risen there. Could this kind of flexible procedure be implemented in xfwm?
Did you enable startup notification in the panel? Please note that bugzilla is not intended for general discussions of this sort. it's aimed at reporting clearly identified bugs, with a defined, clear and limited scope. You should use instead the mailing list or IRC to ask such questions.
(In reply to comment #7) > Did you enable startup notification in the panel? Why? It should not affect to the raising and focusing behavior of a window. > You should use instead the mailing list or IRC to ask such questions. I'd prefer a web forum. Is there one? Anyway I have been in the IRC channel.
(In reply to comment #7) > You should use instead the mailing list or IRC to ask such questions. Now I have mailed about this to xfce mailing list.