Clicking macOS desktop notifications opens new window
Asked by Keenan Mock:

When clicking on a macOS desktop notification, a new window is opened to the card indicated on the notification, instead of navigating the already-open window to the card in question.

Is there any way to change this behavior? If not, are there plans in the roadmap to change this behavior? It's annoying to have more windows than needed, and and up having to do manual navigation anyway.

Thanks.


Answers:
author: Mike
body: Hi Keenan,

Great question---this is indeed intended behavior. The rationale being that when you get a notification, you might be in the middle of something else, or working on something, and clicking that notification and then sweeping you away to something else might be a bit disruptive. I see your point, though, that this way isn't ideal either!

I'll pass your comments on to the team, and they'll consider that for future updates to the Trello app!

comments: author: Keenan Mock
body: Hi Michael,

Thanks for the reply! Good to know that at least it is indeed the intended behavior and it's not just our systems.

I suppose I would argue that if we're in the middle of working on something else in the Trello app and we get a notification, that we would only click on said notification if we realized it was more important/pressing than what we're currently working on. In which case we would want to be whisked away to that other issue. Otherwise we would just continue working on our current task, and allow the notification to go away, at which point it just turns into a badge on the "bell" icon, and we can address later.

Thanks again!


author: Geoff Washam
body: I second removal of this behavior. No other program I have uses this logic. This software is very helpful but opening an entirely new window each time is a bloat I don't need. Also, in OSX at least, we can't easily alt-tab between all the open Trello windows like you can with Windows. Instead, it CMD-Tab's to the most recently used one. The rest are only accessible by using touchpad gestures to see all open windows/programs.  

Having said all that, at least give us a toggle in preferences for this behavior, that way everyone can have it the way they want and it doesn't bog down into who's "right" or "wrong".


author: Hans Dorsch
body: Hey, any updates on this strange behaviour?   
Can't you just check, if there's an open window and use that?

I am on a Mac and actually working on one board only most of the time. And when I bring up Mission Control, I get a whole screen of the same window.


author: Rick Johnston
body: Mike - I am imploring you to reconsider this issue.

This is a very real problem that disrupts the lives of those that use Trello daily.

We need your help!


author: Ross Geesman
body: I would also like to request that this behavior be made optional. It creates more issues than it solves and on a Mac it doesn't even really solve the problem that it was intended to fix.  
If I click a notification, the previous Trello window I was in is now hidden and I have to use the mouse or trackpad to go find it again which IMO is just as disruptive as making me find the card I was working on. Why not just provide a back button or a specific view of the event that triggered the notification so the user can easily get back on task?


author: Jack Walsh
body: Can we change this feature already? This is killing me. I'm trying to get my team onto an enterprise version of Trello, but I can't have dozens of notifications opening dozens of windows.   

Please have the notifications simply direct us to the existing open application window.


author: Nick Becker
body: Mike, can we reopen this? This is not resolved, and is incredibly frustrating. No workaround is ideal other than allowing users to toggle this behavior on or off. Thanks.


author: Olivia Henao
body: Checking in from 2024, still begging this behavior be made an optional setting so users can choose their preference!!!


author: Rick Johnston
body: This has now become a real problem, as having multiple Trello instances open on Mac means I get duplicate/triplicate/etc. notification nows. Please give this some attention!!

comments: author: Fran?ois Lavigne
body: I agree with Rick 100%, at least offer the option.


author: Rick Johnston
body: +1 to seeing this behaviour removed

Having two instances open every time a notification is clicked is the single most annoying thing that happens to me (30+ times) every day!

comments: author: Thomas Sohet
body: Incredibly annoying


author: Chris Maddern
body: Very surprising to hear this is intended behavior - it's incredibly frustrating.

Please at least allow an option to choose the sensible policy of keeping a single Trello app window.


author: Geoff Washam
body: (Removed and placed in-line as a reply. Please remove this answer)


Tags: mac

notification