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several clicks required to open link in outlook email, window focus issue

Anonymous
2019-12-18T14:15:53+00:00

We have Enterprise Office 365 with Office 365 licenses. My routine each morning when I arrive at work includes reading news from various technology mailing lists that arrive as emails in Office. I have difficulty clicking links in the emails to open designated web pages. When I click a link it remains a blue color indicating the click has not registered, and I click again and again until it turns purple indicating the click has taken and then wait for the browser window to open. Sometimes I must click five or six times. This does not represent slowness in the machine, for if I wait, nothing happens. I must keep clicking until the link turns purple. If the browser already has a window open I must click several times for a new tab to appear.

A window focus problem exists with Outlook in both the message list window and email window. If an Outlook window does not have focus, meaning some other window active, clicking a control in the Outlook window does not do anything. Focus moves to the Outlook window with the first click, then a second click will always fire the control.

I hate this window focus nuisance and feel the same focus issue causes the link problem, that often they do not open unless clicked several times, and the windows not receiving focus and working controls, otherwise.

I have a lot of software on the machine and make software, with window focus a very important subject for me in development. Having noticed this Outlook issue, I meticulously pay attention to whether an Outlook window already has focus when I click within the window. The described focus issue only applies to Outlook and no other application in the Office suit.

Outlook | Windows | Classic Outlook for Windows | For home

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Anonymous
2019-12-24T15:28:42+00:00

@Vaidya,

I used the "change" selection for Microsoft Office 365 ProPlus in programs and features. That gave me "quick repair" and "online repair" options. I chose online. This pulled the latest version of Office 365. Because I have admin rights on the workstation I could do that without having to submit a work order to have the software updated.

I must say this version has much more responsiveness and works better. I have seen links in an email fail to open a web page two times with this version. With the previous version I may have to click several times on a link, with the first click seldom working. With this version, all links opened on the first click with the exception of two, which did open on the second click. Also the links would open a web page if clicking in the window when it did not have focus. Previously one click would change focus to the window with a second click needed to open the web page.

Thank you for your recommendation which did help me.

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  1. Anonymous
    2019-12-20T22:10:21+00:00

    Hi dmcdivitt,

    Thank you for your reply. Regarding this issue, I have tested this issue from my side but I could not reproduce this issue and your other users also have no issue, right?  So, it should not be bug.

    So, I'd like to recommend you that at once kindly try to perform my above mentioned troubleshooting information steps from your side and kindly feel free to contact us with your updated result information. We will be very glad for further assistant. I'm truly appreciating your cooperation in our forum community.

    Regards,

    Darpan

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  2. Anonymous
    2019-12-18T20:50:53+00:00
    1. The issue happens with all URL links.
    2. When I opened the email from trash I did not have any issues. The problem does not happen at the moment. In the morning with a fresh email I will left click some links and right click some links. I know it happens every morning without fail when I read email and click on links.
    3. I forwarded to another user. She had no problem. But she also has Windows 7. I think I remember this starting to happen when I upgraded to Windows 10. I do not have anyone available with Windows 10 with sufficient control to do a good test. Without sufficient control and observation the test would have no value.

    4) 

    1. I can try to make a video of the problem happening. Doesn't Microsoft have a problem reporting tool included with Windows to do that? I'll see if I can find it.
    2. Same as #3 above.

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  3. Anonymous
    2019-12-18T17:43:20+00:00

    Hi dmcdivitt,

    Thank you for the posting in our forum community. I'm truly appreciating your cooperation in our forum community.

    Regarding your description, May I please confirm following information from your side about this issue.

    1.    May I please confirm that that whether this issue has happened with all URL links or any specific URL links in Outlook emails?

    2.    Kindly try to right click on links and select open hyperlink option and try to identify that if there have make any difference in the issue about link Outlook.

    3.    Kindly try to identify that if the issues still persist in another PC in Outlook. For this, kindly try to open your Office 365 email account in Outlook in another user’s PC and kindly try to identify the issue result.

    4.    Meanwhile, may I please know that whether this issue has happened after updating the latest version of Outlook? Could you please provide us detailed screenshot of your Office and Outlook client version?

    For knowing Office and Outlook version: https://support.office.com/en-us/article/what-version-of-outlook-do-i-have-b3a9568c-edb5-42b9-9825-d48d82b2257c

    5.    For further analysis of issue, could you please provide us detailed video about this whole issue via private message?

    6.    Does this issue has happened with other user in the organization?

    Kindly provide us above detailed video information via this private message link: https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/privatemessage/inbox. For your privacy we will send you private message for collecting it.

    Kindly provide us above information as per your convenient time

    Regards,

    Darpan

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