MATLAB R2011b windows become unresponsive after minimizing on OS X 10.7.2

Hi all,

I have a new computer with a fresh MATLAB install, and I've noticed that if I leave a MATLAB window (i.e. main window, editor, etc) minimized for a while, it's often unresponsive when I pull it back up.

The cursor doesn't blink, and nothing I type shows up on the screen. Things still seem to be happening in the background. For instance, if I type a command in the Command Window and hit enter, the Command Window doesn't respond, but my command shows up in the Command History pane. Has anyone else experienced this?

I'm running OS X 10.7.2 on a MacBook Pro with an external Thunderbolt display.

Versions:

MATLAB Version 7.13.0.564 (R2011b)

MATLAB License Number: XXXXXX

Operating System: Mac OS X Version: 10.7.2 Build: 11C74

Java VM Version: Java 1.6.0_29-b11-402-11M3527 with Apple Inc. Java HotSpot™ 64-Bit Server VM mixed mode

Answer 1

[Daniel Larremore]

Murphy, I have the same issue as you. I am running OS X 10.7.2 with no external display, and MATLAB R2011b. I have changed the display colors from the default colors—have you, Murphy? (e.g. I prefer a black background with white text).

I am able to cause this issue by minimizing MATLAB for any amount of time. Hiding (in OSX, cmd-H) instead of minimizing does NOT cause this issue!

The system is not "unresponsive" as Jedediah notes, but everything that is typed is invisible indeed. Quite frustrating! I haven't found a way to fix this short of quitting and restarting MATLAB.

Answer 2

[Jed F.]

It's not "unresponsive" it's just that everything you type in is 'invisible'. Try typing 'help' or '2+2'. It's working you just can't see anything.

Edit: Ok, 2+2 doesn't do anything. But almost any other command does if it prints an output.

Answer 3

[Murphy]

Jedediah, you're correct in that the program hasn't frozen, and I noted that processes are still occurring in my original post. But to clarify, MATLAB might be called unresponsive in the following ways:

1) When the Editor is affected, any keystrokes I enter are not applied on screen to the file I'm editing.

2) When the Command Window is affected, my commands produce no result in the Command Window, i.e. if I type '2+2<enter>' nothing happens in the Command Window (however, '2+2' does pop up in the Command History). Interestingly, the 'help' command does display help, and after issuing the 'help' command, the results of other commands start showing up in the Command Window, i.e. after typing '2+2<enter>', '4' is now displayed. What I type is still invisible. If I type 'clc', MATLAB stops showing the results again.

Daniel,

I have not adjusted my colors. Does this happen to MATLAB every time you minimize it?

Answer 4

[Jed F.]

Every single time. I just noticed you can't click on files either. Minimize and then try and do anything in the "Current Folder" pane.

Can anyone from Mathworks comment? It's getting really annoying to kill Matlab every time I use Command-M (which is just second nature by now for me). Is this fixed, do I need to update Java, X11 or something else?