Mac OS环境下聚焦窗口下层应用Tooltips异常弹出问题

The Issue #

You're dealing with a frustrating quirk on Mac OS 10.13.3 (using GTK+3 installed via HomeBrew and XQuartz 2.7.11): when GTK+3 apps like Komodo Editor 10/11 or Glade 3.20.2 are in the background behind Finder, their tooltips still pop up when you hover over the areas where those tooltips would normally show—even though the app is completely obscured and Finder is the focused window. Your guess that this ties back to GTK+3 is absolutely correct.

Why This Happens #

On macOS, GTK+3 doesn't use the native windowing system directly—it relies on XQuartz to handle X11 window rendering. The core problem here is a disconnect between XQuartz's window management and macOS's native focus/visibility rules:

• XQuartz might not properly receive or act on macOS's signals that a window has been moved to the background and is no longer visible to the user.
• GTK+3's tooltip logic is likely checking only the mouse position relative to the app's own window coordinates, instead of verifying if the window is actually in the foreground and unobscured.

Fixes & Workarounds #

Here are some actionable steps to try:

1. Update Your Tools First
   Outdated versions of GTK+3 or XQuartz could be the culprit. Run these commands in Terminal to get the latest releases via HomeBrew:

   brew update
   brew upgrade gtk+3
   brew upgrade xquartz
   

   Restart your Mac after updating to ensure changes take effect.

2. Disable Tooltips System-Wide for GTK+3 Apps
   If you can live without tooltips, you can turn them off entirely for all GTK+3 apps. Create or edit the file ~/.config/gtk-3.0/settings.ini and add these lines:

   [Settings]
   gtk-enable-tooltips = 0
   

3. Tweak XQuartz Window Settings
   Open XQuartz preferences, go to the Windows tab, and play around with options like "Click through" or "Focus follows mouse". These settings can alter how XQuartz handles interactions with background windows, which might stop the rogue tooltips.

4. Try a Different X11 Window Manager
   Some users have had luck switching to a lightweight X11 window manager like openbox to fix focus-related issues. Install it via HomeBrew:

   brew install openbox
   

   Then set it as your default window manager in XQuartz by editing your ~/.xinitrc file to add exec openbox.

Bonus: Consider Upgrading macOS (If Possible) #

This issue is most prevalent on older macOS versions like 10.13. Newer releases have better integration with XQuartz and GTK+3, so upgrading to a more recent OS might resolve the problem entirely if that's an option for you.

内容的提问来源于stack exchange，提问作者gone