Um, on Windows, the easy (and only recommended) way to restore is to 
single-click the file on the task bar.  Or you can use Alt-Tab and other 
techniques to cycle through the open documents and restore the one you want by 
selecting it among those displayed.  (In some applications, you can get to any 
document instance, minimized or not, via a "Window" menu option, but it means 
you need the some application window restored to get the menu.)

I imagine that double-clicking on the file name in the documents directory 
location (understood to be a request to open/launch the resource) runs into the 
lock on the already-open file and, since the lock is from a running instance, 
it simply ignores the second open attempt.  This appears to be 
application-specific behavior and is probably an expedient solution that 
doesn't require separating out edge cases (file being open and locked in a 
different application than the one associated with the file name, for example). 
 I suggest that the current behavior is preferable to a typical default 
behavior when an already-locked document is encountered (for some apps: offer 
to open read-only, over-ride the lock, or cancel).  I suppose another option 
would be to drop the current instance and open the document anew.

You are welcome to make a feature request in the Bugzilla.  Please be specific 
about which operating systems you want the behavior on, because I don't think 
what you are asking for is "usual" for Windows.  I have seen the Microsoft 
Office behavior you describe.  It takes great care to get it right.  I suspect 
the behavior was added to protect users from opening two instances on the same 
document and/or not simply report that the document is already open in some/the 
application.

 - Dennis

-----Original Message-----
From: Hans Zybura [mailto:[email protected]] 
Sent: Thursday, May 17, 2012 05:44
To: [email protected]
Subject: [USER EXPERIENCE] Double clicking file name of minimized document

Currently with AOO 3.4, double-clicking a file name of an open document that
has its document window minimized or in the background does not change the
state of the document window at all. The only result on Windows is the mouse
pointer changing to hourglass for a short time - nothing else happens. The
same is true with earlier Versions of OOo. This is inconvenient and unusual
behavior. 

I didn't test this with AOO 3.4 on MacOs and Linux, but earlier Versions of
OOo showed similar results when double clicking file names of minimized
document windows on both OS's,  i.e. nothing happened at all.

Propose (target AOO 3.5): Double-clicking a [file name of | icon of | link
to] a minimized document should result in restoring the document window to
its previous size and position, make it the topmost window and give it the
focus. If not minimized but in the background, make it the topmost window
and give it the focus.

Most applications on Windows (AFAIK on MacOS and Linux, too) handle it the
way I propose. Some applications, e.g. Microsoft Excel, will additionally
ask whether they should re-open the document and warn that unsaved changes
may be lost then. I don't think the Excel way is better.

Any comments on this before I write an issue in bugzilla?

Regards, Hans Zybura


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