Should we still report and check for semi-minor issues and annoyances?

KurtE · August 10, 2024, 3:33pm

Sorry, in advance, I don't want this to sound like I am trashing IDE 2. There are a lot of things I like about it and all of my Current Arduino builds are done using it.

But when there are some fundamental issues like:
Issues with copy and paste out of the Serial monitor. Where many of these issues were reported at least a couple of years ago.

So I wonder if I should report things like: (Some I know have been reported before)

Arduino Lost my settings
Today: It appears like Arduino lost all of my user settings. I had done several compiles and the like, I opened up another window, and noticed that all of my Arduino windows are now drawn using the light theme where I was using the dark theme. Also I had the Serial monitor on the right hand side. Compiler warning are now back to none...

I can go through and reset my settings (again). This has happened a few times before.

Arduino appears to semi-hang
Most of the time this happens if my Windows PC has gone to sleep. Some of the times things just don't work right. like the Serial monitor can not connect back up to Serial port. Other times nothing works, and cannot even close windows, without going to task manager and killing the process.

Opens up Sketches on another drive Read only
Reported earlier. The one I reproduce this, is I keep most of my Github projects on another drive (d:\github...). For example I have my Arduino GIGA example sketches on d: and I create a junction to it:

C:\Users\kurte\Documents\Arduino>dir arduino_*
 Volume in drive C is OS
 Volume Serial Number is 7E8D-E873

 Directory of C:\Users\kurte\Documents\Arduino

02/06/2024  01:17 PM    <JUNCTION>     arduino_GIGA [d:\github\Arduino_GIGA-stuff\sketches]
05/21/2024  08:37 AM    <DIR>          Arduino_UNOR4
               0 File(s)              0 bytes
               2 Dir(s)  77,057,179,648 bytes free

Now if I open up sketches using the

The project opens up Read only and I cannot edit anything.
However if I then close the project and reopen it from the open recent it then opens up
fine and I can edit the project...

Sorry, I know I am just sort of whining.

Edit: Forgot to mention I am running the nightly build 20240630

sonofcy · August 10, 2024, 3:55pm

Strange, I have not encountered any of those problems. The only real problem I encountered was the non saving issue which I quickly fixed. I am on a Mac so am not plagued with device manager issues which is why I switched to Mac 7 years ago after 40 years of PC use. (yes, I was a PC beta tester when I worked at IBM)

gilshultz · August 10, 2024, 3:59pm

Sorry about your problems. Try selecting text right to left in the monitor, that works for me but left to right does not. It sounds like Win-doz messed you up. I use 1.1n on several different Linux machines and have had no problems like that. You can reload and see if the problems go away. I generally have two versions of the IDE and they do not compete with each other.

KurtE · August 10, 2024, 5:00pm

Thanks for the feedback.

Thanks, I have no problems selecting text. The main critical issue is, it will only copy to the clipboard, that portion of your selection, which is visible in the Arduino Monitor window....
Also, some niceties, like the ability to easily do a select all (like ctrl-a) would be nice.

I believe that many of these "Windows Only" issues are not necessarily a problem with Windows, but maybe how the Arduino software is written to interface to it. It also may be a symptom, of maybe not enough of the main Arduino developers "Eat their own Dog food".

That is suppose all (or almost all) of the main developers on Arduino, mainly used Ubuntu to do their work, and some issues like this arise that irrorate them, they are far more motivated to fix it. Been there...

sonofcy · August 10, 2024, 5:25pm

Device manager is the weakest part of widows, and very few know how to use it. In any case, isn't this all POSIX based stuff?

Merlin513 · August 10, 2024, 5:26pm

Yeah this is probably one of a couple of major issues still lingering around. Its really annoying to have to scroll up and down the screen to get all the data. Most of the time I use TyCommander so I can either capture everything in the serial monitor in TyComm or open the log file that it creates if it too much.

The other annoying thing that keeps popping on my Win11 machine - usually after a sleep or not being used for a while is that it just hangs and/or gives me a message that something changed and I have to restart. But when I do - i loose anything that I was currently working on and have to restart it a few times before I get the top menu bar back including the "X" to close the window.

sonofcy · August 10, 2024, 5:36pm

Thanks for reminding me why I don't miss Windows. I still do have a Win box (mini) and the odd time I use it am flabbergasted at how terrible the UI is.

KurtE · August 11, 2024, 3:54pm

Often times when I have seen this, the bottom of the window will show some status,
like: offline..

Or sometimes: Can not track such a large workspace (paraphrased)
I sometimes can get lucky, and when I notice a message like that, I can still do something like select all, and a copy operation...

Then I restart the IDE, and hopefully can paste in the update sources...

Glad you enjoy your MAC.

To me they (Windows, Mac, Ubuntu) all have their pluses and minus and I prefer not to bash one or the other. Windows 11 works fine for me. There are things I wish they would not have changed when they updated from Windows 10 to 11, but it is what it is.

I have an older MacBook pro in the cabinet, that I occasionally use, and it works fine. However, there are some things I play around developing for, like MTP transfers that don't work that well on the MAC.

I have another machine set up with Ubuntu, that I also use occasionally. Although I think there are some issues with the hard drive, and their later Ubuntu releases sort of screwed up the drivers for my video card...

Merlin513 · August 12, 2024, 12:49pm

Yep I agree. Have seen that as well.

Just ran into another issue with using Version: 2.3.3-nightly-20240221 Date: 2024-02-21T03:19:18.874Z CLI Version: 0.36.0-rc.1.

Seems as though the IDE doesn't release Serial port on windows after an upload or closing the serial monitor. Was using Processing 3 to display data and Processing would keep saying serial port is busy. It would work though once I close the IDE.

Note; this does not exist when using IDE 1.8.19.

ptillisch · August 12, 2024, 9:16pm

Hi @KurtE.

Although high quality, unique, bug reports and feature requests are always welcome, the truth is that, with the extremely limited/non-existent resources available to the project, it is not feasible for the project maintainers and developers to act on some of them. A high quality issue still has great value even if it can only document a defect or specify a potential new feature, so the likelihood of an issue not being resolved in the foreseeable future is not a hard reason for not submitting one. Sometimes we find that an issue that was originally not actionable becomes actionable over time as we gather more information from the users, with the original issue serving as a central point for collecting that additional information. However, in a reality where we have more things to do than time to do it, an open source software contributor might want to focus their efforts on the things most likely to result in the highest benefit.

If this is the case for you, I recommend prioritizing reporting issues that are actionable. The most important factor is reproducibility. If content of the issue doesn't allow the developers to reliably reproduce the reported fault then it means they would need to spend a lot of frustrating time in trying to find a way to reproduce it before they can even get started on the investigation and development work that is their wheelhouse. This is likely to discourage them from wanting to work on those issues. In some cases, it is simply a matter of the reporter making the effort to provide instructions for the reproduction procedure, but unfortunately in other cases the nature of a bug makes it inherently not reliably reproducible.

Did anything happen to C:\Users\kurte\.arduinoIDE between the time the settings were present and when they were lost?

The user might sometimes intentionally clear this folder in order to attempt to restore Arduino IDE from a non-functional state, or if we want to simulate a fresh installation environment for purposes of beta testing, supporting other users, or experiementation.

Are you able to reliably reproduce the fault?

This is being tracked by the Arduino IDE developers here:

github.com/arduino/arduino-ide

IDE might get into a non-functional state after OS sleep/awake cycle

opened 07:56AM - 20 Jul 23 UTC

kittaakos

topic: code type: imperfection topic: theia

### Describe the problem Users reported that IDE2 could become non-functional… after waking the OS from sleep. It has happened on macOS and Windows ([eclipse-theia/theia#12707](https://github.com/eclipse-theia/theia/issues/12707)). I tried various [`pmset`](https://ss64.com/osx/pmset.html) options but could not reproduce the defect. Searching boards, libraries, and compile+upload do not work. ![CleanShot 2023-07-19 at 06 50 33@2x](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/assets/1405703/6b842104-91f4-4cf4-96b3-972d4b6ad8c1) ### To reproduce Sleep the OS for enough time (I do not know how much) while IDE2 is running, wake the OS, IDE2 does not work. Even quitting the app does not do anything. ### Expected behavior After the OS wake, IDE2 works. ### Arduino IDE version 2.1.1 ### Operating system macOS ### Operating system version 13.4.1 ### Additional context Related IDE2 change: https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/commit/30136b0ef208a48042ecb1e18407ef525b772252 Upstream issue: https://github.com/eclipse-theia/theia/issues/12707 #### Additional Reports - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/2297 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/2331 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/2148#issuecomment-2001967539 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/2467 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/ide-2-1-0-freezes-during-compile-after-a-period-of-sleep/1138808 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/ide-2-1-0-freezes-during-compile-after-a-period-of-sleep/1138808/4 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/need-to-close-ide-via-task-manager-after-sleep-win11/1257657 ### Issue checklist - [X] I searched for previous reports in [the issue tracker](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues?q=) - [X] I verified the problem still occurs when using the latest [nightly build](https://www.arduino.cc/en/software#nightly-builds) - [X] My report contains all necessary details

This is a bit of a disobedient bug in that it is not 100% reliably reproducible. However, even though it doesn't seem to occur after every sleep/wake cycle, I certainly experience it regularly and I think some of the other developers also encountered it.

I see this report:

github.com/arduino/arduino-ide

Serial Monitor loses connection after PC sleeps

opened 03:15AM - 20 Feb 23 UTC

per1234

topic: code type: imperfection topic: serial monitor

### Describe the problem **Serial Monitor** is the primary tool for Arduino I…DE users to get runtime feedback from a sketch program. Since it is not intrusive and does not interfere with the usability of the other Arduino IDE UI components, the average user likely has the **Serial Monitor** open most of the time. Putting the computer through a sleep/wake cycle while **Serial Monitor** is open causes loss of connection to the port. 🐛 When in this state, **Serial Monitor** does not show data sent by the board and does not transmit messages the user sends from the message field. It does not give any indication of the lost connection to the user. ### To reproduce 1. Upload a sketch that produces periodic serial output and also has an observable response to serial input: ```cpp unsigned long previousMillis; void setup() { Serial.begin(9600); } void loop() { if (Serial.available() > 0) { while (Serial.available() > 0) { Serial.write(Serial.read()); delay(10); } } else if (millis() - previousMillis >= 1000) { previousMillis = millis(); Serial.println("hello"); } } ``` 1. Open the **Serial Monitor** view. 1. Select "**9600**" from the baud rate menu. 🙂 `hello` is printed in the **Serial Monitor** output field at 1 Hz. 1. Type `foo` in the **Serial Monitor** message field. 1. Press the <kbd>**Enter**</kbd> key. 🙂 `foo` is echoed in the **Serial Monitor** output field. 1. Put the computer to sleep. 1. Wake the computer. 🐛 `hello` is no longer printed in the **Serial Monitor** output field at 1 Hz, even though the **TX** LED on the Arduino board shows it is transmitting serial data. 🐛 There is no indication of a lost connection in the **Serial Monitor** UI. 1. Type `foo` in the **Serial Monitor** message field. 1. Press the <kbd>**Enter**</kbd> key. 🐛 The **RX** LED does not blink on the Arduino board to indicate serial data was received. 🐛 `foo` is not echoed in the **Serial Monitor** output field. ### Expected behavior Putting computer through a sleep/wake cycle does not cause the loss of **Serial Monitor**'s connection to the port. **-OR-** The loss of the connection is clearly communicated to the user (related issue: https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/1508). ### Arduino IDE version #### Original report d68bc4a (with [**serial-monitor**](https://github.com/arduino/serial-monitor) 0.13.0) #### Last verified with 8f8b46f (with [**serial-monitor**](https://github.com/arduino/serial-monitor) 0.13.0) ### Operating system - Windows - macOS ### Operating system version - Windows 11 - macOS Ventura ### Additional context I was not able to reproduce the issue on my Linux (Ubuntu 22.04) machine. --- The fault does not occur under the same conditions when using [`arduino-cli monitor`](https://arduino.github.io/arduino-cli/latest/commands/arduino-cli_monitor/), the Arduino CLI [gRPC interface](https://arduino.github.io/arduino-cli/latest/rpc/commands/#monitorrequest) with [**grpcurl**](https://github.com/fullstorydev/grpcurl), or Arduino IDE 1.8.19 --- When the `arduino.cli.daemon.debug` setting is enabled, I see this in the logs from the time the PC is put to sleep: ```text 2023-02-19 19:07:01 2023-02-20T03:07:01.601Z monitor-service INFO stopped monitor to COM34 using serial 2023-02-19 19:07:01 2023-02-20T03:07:01.603Z daemon INFO 51 | ERROR: EOF 51 | REQ: {} [36mINFO[0m[0036] sending command [36mcommand[0m=CLOSE [36mmonitor[0m=serial-monitor 2023-02-19 19:07:01 2023-02-20T03:07:01.609Z daemon INFO [36mINFO[0m[0036] received message [36merror[0m=false [36mevent_type[0m=close [36mmessage[0m=OK [36mmonitor[0m=serial-monitor [36mINFO[0m[0036] sending command [36mcommand[0m=QUIT [36mmonitor[0m=serial-monitor [36mINFO[0m[0036] received message [36merror[0m=false [36mevent_type[0m=quit [36mmessage[0m=OK [36mmonitor[0m=serial-monitor [36mINFO[0m[0036] Killing monitor process [36mmonitor[0m=serial-monitor [31mERRO[0m[0036] stopped decode loop: EOF [31mmonitor[0m=serial-monitor 2023-02-19 19:07:01 2023-02-20T03:07:01.614Z daemon INFO [31mERRO[0m[0036] Waiting for process end [31merror[0m="exit status 1" [31mmonitor[0m=serial-monitor [36mINFO[0m[0036] Monitor process killed [36mmonitor[0m=serial-monitor 51 STREAM CLOSED ``` But there is no equivalent log output to indicate an attempt to start the monitor process again after the PC wakes. --- The fault occurs both with boards that have a dedicated USB chip (e.g., Uno) and boards with native USB (e.g., Leonardo). --- Originally reported at: https://forum.arduino.cc/t/ide-disconnect-form-the-board-after-pc-suspension/1092323 #### Additional reports - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/1895#issuecomment-2200565437 <a name="workaround"></a> #### Workaround 1. Click the **X** icon on the "**Serial Monitor**" tab in the bottom panel of the Arduino IDE window to close the tab: ![image](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/8572152/215050213-e6c41c1a-0eae-448a-ae91-f2acefedf793.png) 1. Open **Serial Monitor** again by clicking the icon on the IDE toolbar or selecting **Tools > Serial Monitor** from the Arduino IDE menus. ### Issue checklist - [X] I searched for previous reports in [the issue tracker](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues?q=) - [X] I verified the problem still occurs when using the latest [nightly build](https://www.arduino.cc/en/software#nightly-builds) - [X] My report contains all necessary details

I know you are already aware of it, but for the benefit of other readers of this thread, I'll add a link to the formal bug report where this is being tracked by the developers:

github.com/arduino/arduino-ide

Serial monitor selection range shifts chaotically upon scroll

opened 05:58AM - 19 Jun 22 UTC

boundmaidlea

topic: code type: imperfection topic: serial monitor

### Describe the problem When selecting text on the serial monitor (with the …connected device paused) upon scroll the range of the selection shifts in unpredictable patterns (at least i didn't see a reproducable pattern) which prevents selecting more then one page of the output. As of #812/#105 using ctrl+a is also not an option to select text in that tab. As i do not have the problem of new text triggering a redraw which removes the selection, i do not consider this a duplicate of #812/#105, but feel free to correct me. ### To reproduce * print multiple pages text on the serial monitor once e.g. in the setup() function. * when all text is received select a bit of it * scroll the output up and down a bit ### Expected behavior The selection should stay between the first and last selected characters, and not randomly jump around. ### Arduino IDE version #### Original report 2.0.0-rc7-nightly-20220615 #### Last verified with 9a6a457bc44fb16f646b9e61a9e8b336b3666412 ### Operating system Windows ### Operating system version 10.0.19044.1706 Pro ### Additional context My Nightly Build is 4 days old, but the 3 commits since then do not have any relations to this issue. #### Additional reports - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/1710 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/1817 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/2262 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/2431 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/2098#issuecomment-2131369133 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/1 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/19 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/30 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/34 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/35 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/37 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/39 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/49 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/50 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/60 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copying-from-serial-monitor/1071503/1 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copying-from-serial-monitor/1071503/6 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copying-from-serial-monitor/1071503/8 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/coping-multiple-lines-on-monitor-screen/1019346 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-serial-monitor-not-possible-options/1058964 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/why-does-click-into-serial-monitor-ctrl-a-mark-the-source-code/1128016 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/text-selection-broken-in-ide-serial-monitor-2-1-1/1160156 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/how-can-i-copy-the-whole-content-of-the-serial-monitor/1168904/2 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/how-to-copy-entire-serial-monitor-output/1175060 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/your-reason-for-not-switching-to-the-2-x-ide/1176322/47 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-from-serial-monitor/1179986 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/exception-decoder/1055759/9 ### Issue checklist - [X] I searched for previous reports in [the issue tracker](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues?q=) - [X] I verified the problem still occurs when using the latest [nightly build](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide#nightly-builds) - [X] My report contains all necessary details

I know you are already aware of it, but for the benefit of other readers of this thread, I'll add a link to the formal bug report where this is being tracked by the developers:

github.com/arduino/arduino-ide

Missing "Select All" capability for Serial Monitor

opened 11:30PM - 05 Feb 22 UTC

KurtE

topic: code type: imperfection topic: serial monitor

### Describe the problem Let's say I have 1000 lines of debug output in the s…erial monitor window, how do I do a select all, such that I can copy it to the clipboard? With 1.8.19, I click the mouse into the monitor window and hit <kbd>**Ctrl**</kbd>+<kbd>**A**</kbd> and it selects all of the text. I can then hit <kbd>**Ctrl**</kbd>+<kbd>**C**</kbd> to copy to clipboard. ### To reproduce Run a sketch and try to select all of the text from Serial Monitor. 🐛 The contents of the sketch editor are selected when you press <kbd>**Ctrl**</kbd>+<kbd>**A**</kbd>: ![image](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/1558080/152662108-23aa8254-be0d-4026-aa65-d57120a7447c.png) ### Expected behavior I expected hitting <kbd>**Ctrl**</kbd>+<kbd>**A**</kbd> would select everything in that window not the source window. ### Arduino IDE version #### Original report Nightly build #### Last verified with 9a6a457bc44fb16f646b9e61a9e8b336b3666412 ### Operating system Windows ### Operating system version Not provided ### Additional context And/Or alternative solution - context menu like for example TyCommander ![image](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/1558080/152662265-638a9dd7-afdb-4a37-b19c-31d179ad41e4.png) --- Additional reports - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/899 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/1817 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/1654 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/1918 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/2328 - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/2431 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-of-the-serie-monitor-output/1056049/1 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-of-the-serie-monitor-output/1056049/5 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/serial-monitor-copy-only-copied-the-visible-logs/1051846/1 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/serial-monitor-copy-only-copied-the-visible-logs/1051846/4 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/using-v-2-0-serial-monitor-print/1034093 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/serial-monitor-issues-hopefully-fixed-before-release/1026548 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/serial-output-window-select-all-copy/1024251 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/coping-multiple-lines-on-monitor-screen/1019346 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/text-selection-serial-monitor/1005262 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/upgrade-the-serial-monitor-for-better-function/980128 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/ide-2-0-copy-from-serial-monitor-limited/1078391 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/random-seed-does-not-deliver-random-numbers/1006762/10 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copying-from-serial-monitor/1071503/3 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/5 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/19 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/21 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/23 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/32 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/38 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/39 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/45 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/46 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/48 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/copy-paste-data-from-the-serial-monitor/1041585/60 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/arduino-ide-2-0-3-serial-monitor-cant-use-cntrl-a-to-capture-everything/1095266 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/arduino-ide-serial-monitor-bug/1112653/7 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/why-does-click-into-serial-monitor-ctrl-a-mark-the-source-code/1128016 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/cannot-select-all-of-serial-data/1158236 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/how-can-i-copy-the-whole-content-of-the-serial-monitor/1168904/1 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/your-reason-for-not-switching-to-the-2-x-ide/1176322/47 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/code-in-the-arduino-is-fine-but-the-display-show-nothing/1204977/33 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/ide-2-addition-suggestions-open-source-participation/1204792 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/save-serial-data/1253788 #### Related - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/1081 ### Issue checklist - [X] I searched for previous reports in [the issue tracker](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues?q=) - [X] I verified the problem still occurs when using the latest [nightly build](https://www.arduino.cc/en/software#nightly-builds) - [X] My report contains all necessary details

It is actually macOS they are using.

I always expected software developers, who are power computer users and tend to also be open source fanatics, to prefer Linux. However, I have noticed that macOS seems to be prevalent (throughout the industry; not limited to Arduino developers alone). I think the reason is that the Mac hardware is (at least perceived) to be very high quality. It makes sense for a professional to select the highest quality options available (even when it comes at a price premium) when it comes to the tools they spend their days using.

The Arduino IDE developers are tracking this bug here:

github.com/arduino/arduino-ide

Title bar unexpectedly switches to "custom" style

opened 04:20PM - 21 May 24 UTC

rickdharms

topic: code type: imperfection

### Describe the problem Whenever I create a new sketch, the "File,Edit,Sketc…h,Tool, Help" menu is incorporated into the "verify, upload and debug" menu, rendering some parts unavailable and the window cannot be moved: ![image](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/assets/8572152/98f091ab-d82f-464d-ac59-9dc378a01a6f) This is accompanied by a dialog that says: > A setting has changed that requires a restart to take effect. > > Press the restart button to restart Arduino IDE and enable the setting. ![image](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/assets/8572152/174f16f1-c24f-4baa-a767-819ddfeb4aa8) If The "**RESTART**" button in the dialog is pressed, the menu bar on the current sketch is placed in the same situation as above. At first, a couple of clicking on new sketch would solve the problem. Now, it is constant. ### To reproduce do not think you can reproduce. ### Expected behavior to work properly ### Arduino IDE version - 2.3.2 - latest nightly build ### Operating system Windows ### Operating system version 10. Windows keep bugging me to upgrade, but I am concerned. ### Additional context Discussion: https://forum.arduino.cc/t/ide-2-3-2-issue/1262578 #### Additional reports - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/a-setting-has-changed/1167019/1 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/a-setting-has-changed/1167019/3 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/a-setting-has-changed/1167019/20 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/problem-with-ide2-1/1193160/14 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/funky-title-bar-after-reset/1248431 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/many-background-tasks-with-ide2-3-2/1263835 <details> <summary><b>Keywords</b></summary> <p> - "window.titleBarStyle" - "native" </p> </details> ### Issue checklist - [X] I searched for previous reports in [the issue tracker](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues?q=) - [X] I verified the problem still occurs when using the latest [nightly build](https://www.arduino.cc/en/software#nightly-builds) - [X] My report contains all necessary details

Are you able to reliably reproduce it?

I just gave it a try and the port was closed when I closed the Arduino IDE Serial Monitor, no problem.

However, there is a known bug that causes this when using Serial Plotter (but not Serial Monitor):

github.com/arduino/arduino-ide

Port left open after closing Serial Plotter

opened 11:50AM - 12 Sep 22 UTC

per1234

topic: code type: imperfection criticality: medium

### Describe the problem If one process has a serial port open, another can n…ot access it. Arduino IDE is designed to automatically manage access to ports by the various operations and components that use them: - Uploading sketches - Serial Monitor - Serial Plotter - Updating radio module firmware - Uploading SSL certificates to radio module The user may also use the port from an external application during sketch development in Arduino IDE. They will be responsible for managing the access of the port by the IDE and the external application. This means that the IDE must always relinquish port access when the user closes a component using the port 🐛 The port is left open after closing the Serial Plotter window. ### To reproduce 1. Select a serial port in the Arduino IDE. 1. Select **Tools > Serial Plotter** from the Arduino IDE menus to open the "**Serial Plotter**". 1. Close the "**Serial Plotter**" window. 1. Open the port in an external application. 🐛 Opening the port fails. ### Expected behavior Port is closed when Serial Plotter window is closed. ### Arduino IDE version 2.0.0-rc9.4 ### Operating system Windows, Linux ### Operating system version Windows 10, Ubuntu 20.04 ### Additional context From Windows Task Manager and GNOME System Monitor, I can see that the [serial-monitor](https://github.com/arduino/serial-monitor) process is not being closed when the Serial Plotter window is closed. --- I bisected the introduction of the issue to df8658e --- The problem does not occur if the procedure described above is performed using Serial Monitor instead of Serial Plotter (in fact cycling Serial Monitor open and then closed again closes the port after it was left open by Serial Plotter). --- The issue does not occur when using Arduino IDE 1.8.19 Serial Monitor --- Some options for external applications that can be used for the final step in the demo: - Arduino CLI - Arduino IDE 1.x - [PuTTY / Plink](https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/) - [`screen`](https://www.gnu.org/software/screen/manual/screen.html) - [Realterm](https://realterm.sourceforge.io/) ```text $ arduino-cli upload --fqbn arduino:avr:uno --port COM7 avrdude: ser_open(): can't open device "\\.\COM7": Access is denied. ``` ```text $ arduino-cli upload --fqbn arduino:samd:mkrzero --port COM47 TOUCH: error during reset: opening port at 1200bps: Serial port busy No device found on COM47 Error during Upload: Failed uploading: uploading error: exit status 1 ``` ```text $ arduino-cli monitor --port COM7 Port monitor error: command 'open' failed: Serial port busy ``` Opening the port in Arduino IDE 1.x Serial Monitor ```text Error opening serial port 'COM7'. (Port busy) ``` #### Additional reports - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/1423#issuecomment-1777313509 ### Issue checklist - [X] I searched for previous reports in [the issue tracker](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues?q=) - [X] I verified the problem still occurs when using the latest [nightly build](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide#nightly-builds) - [X] My report contains all necessary details

KurtE · August 12, 2024, 11:50pm

Thanks @ptillisch,

Surprised about the MAC, but still same suggestion. The more diverse they are on which machines/platforms they work on the more likely platform or machine specific things get fixed. Worked on a project many years (decades) ago, where everyone was only using IBM PCs and kept getting strange reports that things were not working right on some others like, Zenith, Compaq, HP...
So we purchased some from many of the different vendors, which really helped...

Settings getting reset. Nothing I know of... Had a few other Windows open, and I opened up a new one. Don't remember if it was using new or opening an existing... And then I noticed the window was using the light scheme... Then looked and noticed the others were as well. But who is to say that maybe Norton Virus or Utilities decide to do a scan of the system...

As for quirk about opening sketch from open that is physically on another drive, I verified it again today, by setting up a different machine. Not a critical bug, but if you wish to try it:

Steps on the other windows machine. I added 2nd drive as this one did not have one... In this case an external SSD with USB interface.

I created a d:\github directory
I downloaded this github project into it:
KurtE/Arduino_GIGA-stuff: This is my GIGA test sketches and other like stuff for Arduino GIGA boards (github.com)
This time I did it by zip, but does not really matter how...

In windows terminal I went to where my sketches are stored:
Like on main machine: c:\users\kurte\documents\arduino
On that machine it was on onedrive\desktop\arduino ...

I create a link to it: with command like:
mklink /J arduino_GIGA d:\github\Arduino_GIGA-stuff\sketches

If I do a directory of it, it shows up like:

C:\Users\kurte\Documents\Arduino>dir ard*
 Volume in drive C is OS
 Volume Serial Number is 7E8D-E873

 Directory of C:\Users\kurte\Documents\Arduino

08/23/2023  07:51 PM    <DIR>          Arducam_ov5642
02/06/2024  01:17 PM    <JUNCTION>     arduino_GIGA [d:\github\Arduino_GIGA-stuff\sketches]
05/21/2024  08:37 AM    <DIR>          Arduino_UNOR4
               0 File(s)              0 bytes
               3 Dir(s)  79,662,346,240 bytes free
type or paste code here

The window opens like:

Now close the window and then open it from the recent menu:
It opens up fine:

And then side thing. If you are setup with a GIGA with a GIGA display and have either an SD or USB Stick with photos on it, it will display all of the BMP files on it. And if you have the JPEGDEC library installed it shows jpeg files as well, dito for PNGDEC both BITBANK2...
Then maybe show pictures like:

Merlin513 · August 13, 2024, 3:35pm

As @KurtE said - thanks for the detailed reply. As for the Serial Monitor issue - probably a non-issue. My fault. I keep closing the serial monitor window using the icon just to right of the monitor when I have the SM on the right side instead of using the icon on the menu bar.

As for this problem - hope it gets fixed soon. Just happened again to this morning but was able to save the sketches first. took a couple of restarts to get it back to a normal state.

NOTE: I have been using 2.3.3 2/22/24 consistently and usually don't have any major issues. With the exceptions of improvements @KurtE mentioned with select all etc.

ptillisch · August 13, 2024, 4:13pm

Ah, I see now. The icon in the "Activity Bar" only toggles the expansion or collapse of the left side panel that is the container for the "Serial Monitor" view. The Serial Monitor continues running even when the panel is collapsed. It is only the Serial Monitor icon on the Arduino IDE toolbar (or the "Toggle Serial Monitor View" command) that actually closes the monitor and frees the port.

I submitted a formal report to the Arduino IDE developers about this on your behalf:

github.com/arduino/arduino-ide

Free serial port when panel of the Serial Monitor view is collapsed

opened 04:12PM - 13 Aug 24 UTC

per1234

type: enhancement topic: code topic: serial monitor

### Describe the request When the Serial Monitor view is opened, the monitor …opens the selected port. When the view is closed, the port is closed, allowing it to be used by other processes. The bottom panel or right side panel of the Arduino IDE window serve as the containers for the Serial Monitor view. The user can control the visibility of these panels. From a user's perspective, there isn't a significant difference between collapsing the panel in which the view is located and closing the view because either results in the visual disappearance of the view. However, there is a significant functional difference in that the port remains open in Serial Monitor when its view is collapsed. Not realizing that the port is still being used can be problematic because it blocks any other application (even [including Arduino IDE's own upload operation in some cases](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/1783)) from opening the port. 🙂 A more intuitive behavior would be for Serial Monitor to close the port when the view's panel is collapsed. ### Demo 1. Press the <kbd>**Ctrl**</kbd>+<kbd>**Shift**</kbd>+<kbd>**P**</kbd> keyboard shortcut (<kbd>**Command**</kbd>+<kbd>**Shift**</kbd>+<kbd>**P**</kbd> for macOS users) to open the "Command Palette". A menu will appear on the editor toolbar: ![Command Palette](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/assets/8572152/a117c17d-82f8-417d-addd-221d524b04ea) 1. Select the "**Preferences: Open Settings (UI)**" command from the menu. **ⓘ** You can scroll down through the list of commands to find it or type the name in the field. A "**Preferences**" tab will open in the Arduino IDE main panel. 1. Type `arduino.monitor.dockPanel` in the "**Search Settings**" field of the "**Preferences**" tab. 1. Select "**right**" from the menu under the "**Arduino › Monitor: Dock Panel**" setting. **ⓘ** The behavior is not specific to the right panel, but the demo is more compelling in this configuration. The reason being that the right panel is only used for the Serial Monitor view and its toggle control is very discoverable, so the user is likely to collapse the right panel during normal use. conversely since the bottom panel it is also the container for the frequently used "Output" view, and since its primary toggle control is less discoverable, the user is less likely to ever collapse the bottom panel 1. Close the **Preferences** tab by clicking its **X** icon. 1. Select any port from the **Tools > Port** menu. 1. Select **Tools > Serial Monitor** from the Arduino IDE menus. The Serial Monitor view opens in the right side panel. 1. Click the magnifying icon in the right activity bar. The right side panel collapses, making the Serial Monitor view no longer visible. 1. Open the port in any other application. **ⓘ** You can use [`arduino cli monitor`](https://arduino.github.io/arduino-cli/dev/commands/arduino-cli_monitor/) for this purpose, the Arduino IDE 1.x Serial Monitor, a standalone terminal emulator like [**PuTTY**](https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/), or whatever else you have on hand. 🙁 The other application can't open the port. 1. Click the "Serial Monitor" icon on the Arduino IDE 2.x toolbar. The right activity bar disappears. 1. Open the port in any other application. 😕 The application is now able to open the port. Note that these two icons are very similar, and adjacent, yet have very different functions. The difference between the two is not well communicated to the user: ![image](https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/351efc86-6c6d-44b9-964d-2f0862ff1e16) ### Arduino IDE version aa9b10d ### Operating system - Windows ### Operating system version - Windows 11 ### Additional context Originally reported by @mjs513 at https://forum.arduino.cc/t/should-we-still-report-and-check-for-semi-minor-issues-and-annoyances/1290531/9 ### Issue checklist - [X] I searched for previous requests in [the issue tracker](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues?q=) - [X] I verified the feature was still missing when using the latest [nightly build](https://www.arduino.cc/en/software#nightly-builds) - [X] My request contains all necessary details

KurtE · August 13, 2024, 6:16pm

I was curious, so I pulled out my MAC.
@ptillisch I also did the same steps I mentioned in previous post on how to get the read only files...
Did more or less the same steps except of using
ln -s instead of mklink /J

And again if I close the window, and then open it from the open recent
it opens up fine

This is NOT a high priority issue... But was curious to see if the MaC did anything differently.
side note: CMD+shift+space+4 is completely obvious for getting a snapshot image of a window

Merlin513 · August 14, 2024, 12:08am

@ptillisch
Thank you for submitting it - thought it was just me but then @KurtE mentioned that it got him a few times as well. Hope it clears it up for other folks as well.

ptillisch · August 14, 2024, 12:23am

The Arduino IDE developers are tracking this bug here:

github.com/arduino/arduino-ide

Read-only editor when opening a sketch from a symlink/Windows directory junction link inside sketchbook

opened 04:07PM - 06 Feb 23 UTC

shua5115

topic: code type: imperfection

### Describe the problem Arduino IDE's editor view has two distinct modes: th…e normal mode where the text can be edited, and a "read-only" mode where the contents of the file are displayed, but the user is prevented from modifying them. The "read-only" mode is indicated to the user by the presence of a closed padlock icon on the editor tab, a "Read-only" suffix on the editor tab tooltip, and a "Cannot edit in read-only editor" message appearing if the user attempts to edit. The IDE intentionally puts the editor into this mode under any of the following conditions: - The file is outside the sketch path (which would typically occur when a file is opened via "Go to definition"). - The read-only file attribute is set in the file system. 🐛 If a sketch is a symbolic link or Windows directory junction, when that sketch is opened via the IDE's **File > Sketchbook** menu or the "**SKETCHBOOK**" view, the editor is incorrectly put into the "read-only" mode. ### To reproduce 1. Select **File > New** from the Arduino IDE menus. 1. Select **File > Save As...** from the Arduino IDE menus. 1. Save the sketch with the name "Target" in the root of the sketchbook folder. **ⓘ** The specific name and location of this sketch are not required conditions for the fault to occur. They are only specified to simplify the instructions in this demonstration. The fault will occur even if the link target is not under the sketchbook folder. 1. Select **File > Quit** from the Arduino IDE menus. 1. Open a command line terminal in the sketchbook folder. 1. Type the following command: - **If you are using Linux or macOS:** ```text mkdir link && ln -s "$PWD/Target" "$PWD/link/Target" ``` - **If you are using Windows PowerShell:** ```text New-Item -ItemType "directory" -Name link; New-Item -ItemType Junction -Path ".\link\Target\" -Value ".\Target" ``` - **If you are using Windows cmd:** ```text mkdir link & mklink /J link\Target Target ``` 1. Start Arduino IDE. 1. Select **File > Sketchbook > link > Target** from the Arduino IDE menus. 1. Try to edit the sketch file. 🐛 The edit is not allowed and a tooltip appears: > **Cannot edit in read-only editor** ### Expected behavior Sketches opened from symbolic links/directory junctions should be editable. ### Arduino IDE version #### Original report 2.0.0-rc3 #### Last verified with aa9b10d ### Operating system - Linux - macOS - Windows ### Operating system version - Ubuntu 22.04 - macOS Sonoma - Windows 10 - Windows 11 ### Additional context The fault does not occur if the sketch is opened via any of the alternative methods: - **File > Open** - **File > Open Recent** - Opening the sketch via file association to the Arduino IDE application - Passing the sketch path via command line argument to the Arduino IDE invocation - IDE restoring previously opened sketches on startup #### Additional reports - https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues/850 - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/sketch-opens-up-read-only/1221298 #### Related - https://forum.arduino.cc/t/symbolic-link-sketch-opens-in-read-only-mode/960917 ### Issue checklist - [X] I searched for previous reports in [the issue tracker](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues?q=) - [X] I verified the problem still occurs when using the latest [nightly build](https://www.arduino.cc/en/software#nightly-builds) - [x] My report contains all necessary details

KurtE · August 19, 2024, 1:35pm

Thanks again,

Minor annoyance/curious about why the code formatter if an initialize array:

const uint8_t pict4bpp[] = {
    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x33, 0x33, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x33, 0x33, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x33, 0x33, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x33, 0x33, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00
};

Is formatted it is left alone...

However if there is a trailing ,

const uint8_t pict4bpp[] = {
    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x33, 0x33, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x33, 0x33, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x33, 0x33, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x33, 0x33, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x22, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x00, 0x00, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x11, 0x00,
    0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00, 0x00,
};

it is formatted like:

const uint8_t pict4bpp[] = {
    0x00,
    0x00,
    0x00,
    0x00,
    0x00,
 ...
   0x00,
    0x00,
    0x00,
    0x00,
};

(like 128 lines)
just a curiosity, which I now know how to avoid...

Again, thanks for all the stuff you do.

Topic		Replies	Views
Several bugs/issues IDE 2.x	2	2341	February 20, 2022
Poll: is solving the serial monitor-issue important for you or not? IDE 2.x	22	563	January 19, 2024
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