fusion360 still steals focus

[jamie.q.white]

I'm returning to designing after some weeks fabricating things I designed.

Fusion360 still steals focus.  I would have though this issue would be fixed by now.  

It is particularly problematic because Fusion 360 is so slow. I'm a one-man operation and I don't have the 2 hours or so a day to waste while Fusion360 is doing whatever it does, so every time I click in Fusion360 and don't get a response (which is often), I switch to doing the books, or my taxes, or posting on the forum or tagging crap on instagram because we all have to do that nowadays. But when I look back to the screen, I've spent who-knows-how-long typing my tax information into Fusion360. Or this post. I just typed the last several sentences into F360 because it came back from whatever it was doing and I was looking at something else while I was typing. 

When I PUT Fusion360 into the background, it needs to STAY in the background until I get back to it. Seriously. Take a few release cycles and fix this problem before adding more features.

thanks,

-jamie

[kinsleymark]

I completely agree!

This has been a major annoyance of F360.

[maruska]

yes, please!

[Anonymous]

I have noticed this as well...If fusion is left to "think" (like when generating toolpaths) when it is done, it will grab focus. Same if you are pasting a large sketch element, etc. Basically, Fusion pops up to the forefront once it is done loading something.

I hope this is fixed soon as well.

[secorw · Accepted solution]

Hi @jamie.q.white, we are working on fixing this.

-Will

[jamie.q.white]

Hi Will,

Come. On. The focus problem has been around for years now. F360 is literally the only Mac program that does this. It is really annoying, and really, really affects daily productivity.

I look at the roadmap and I think, all that new stuff and still this basic issue is not fixed, along with many others, like basic performance and usability.   I think I can be excused for being a prickly about it.  This is a basic, everyday problem.  AD has already had plenty of time.  Fix it.  Right away. Like in the next release. Seriously.

-jamie

[Anonymous]

I too have had this problem.  And it should be fixed.  Conversely, I think it's a small price to pay for an [almost] free 3D modeling and CAM application of this caliber.  

btw, I've found that if I minimize the main F360 window when I switch to other apps, it doesn't grab focus back.  When I want to head back into the F360 rabbit hole I simply click on the minimized window in the dock and I'm back in action.  

[jamie.q.white]

Thanks: I have not tried minimizing.

Rant: I am really, really tired of the "almost free" argument. I am trying to make a living designing things and I would gladly pay 10x the amount for a "stable and usable" version with the functions I need (scan, mesh, print workspaces). Something that doesn't take hours of my time with workarounds and posting problems to the forums.

Make it work. Well. Stable & fast. I don't care if it is more expensive.

[JetForMe]

I'm still having this issue, even after opening a support ticket (case 11469363), having it acknowledged on said ticket, and several releases later. It's still barging to the front, and it happens all the time:

1. Start making a toolpath in CAM
2. Switch to a feed & speed calculator app outsideof F360
3. Enjoy as F360 clamors for your attention, preventing the use of the other app
4. Close the toolpath
5. Try again.

Worse, I can no longer re-open the case, and Autodesk seems to have removed the ability for us regular folk to open new cases.

[Phil.E]

Thanks for the steps to repeat the problem. I've added them to the bug report.

The reason this is not yet fixed relates to long standing dependencies which we are only now getting a chance to fix. We've literally been working on this for as long as you all have been reporting it. Thanks for your patience as we work to fix this.

[JetForMe]

Just so you know, this still happens, and it's still annoying.

[Anonymous]

I use to be a Mac user and Fusion was waaay tooo slooow. Internet also can slowww things down as it always does. I have a decent workstation now and it make allllll the difference in the world.. Only issues now are large scanned meshes which I use Zbrush and Rhino for then Fusion for a final body... I will never ever use a mac or smaller version in this program because yes it will spin forever... spin ... spin.... spin... 

[JetForMe]

I find performance to be acceptable, at least for my uses so far. No way am I going to switch away from macOS for anything other than VR gaming.

[Anonymous]

Just one last tid bit. PC workstations can and do have special graphics card directly for cad performance and not efficient for gaming. Fusion is something special in between the worlds of both. I have found that a gaming PC many times does not do well with Fusion for files that can stretch beyond 50-200mb. I've been there and man can it be painful... Throw the computer out the window for the second time painful.. 

[TrippyLighting]

Fusion 360 uses the Direct X API, wich is optimized for gaming but works well for Fusion. For larger models you'll need at least a 2GB card, better 4 GB. That should be a gaming card.

Do not get any of the "workstation" graphics cards e.g. Nvidia Quadro or AMD Fire GL graphics cards. While the hardware is pretty much the same as gaming graphics cards, the software drivers are optimized and "certified" for Open GL performance, the API most other CAD softwares use. 

[lodderj]

When will this be fixed?

[Phil.E]

It's unlikely this will be fixed any time soon. There are lots of applications that steal focus when they start. The problem with Fusion is it is more than one application as far as the OS is concerned, so it gets focus a couple times. For now, you should start Fusion and be patient during startup. On my machines this usually takes around 30-40 seconds. I've also noticed that when Fusion starts on a second monitor, it does all this by itself and I can continue working on my other monitor. 

Sorry for the inconvenience.

Regards,

[chrisplyler]

Something else Fusion screws up on:

When I click on an f3d file here in the forum, and choose to "Open with Fusion 360," Fusion opens another instance of itself instead of checking to see if it's already open and just starting a new tab like it should.

[andrewjodonohue]

 Have you guys gotten any closer to having this fixed? It's been over four years, several new workspace additions and a complete UI overhaul, and this is still a constant problem

[Anonymous]

Yup.. There is still no way to tell when the computer will come back..Spin,spin,spin, save your work often! Innovation at a snail's pace..