FactoryTalk View SE Opens Chrome Window Behind Interface

[cdausti2]

I am attempting to generate a VBA script within FactoryTalk View SE to open a Google Chrome webpage (PI Vision) when an object is right-clicked. This is accomplished by using a shell command to run the chrome.exe application. This script works correctly and Google Chrome loads to the correct webpage, however it loads behind the FTV application and I'm not able to bring Chrome to the front since FTV is loaded in full screen. I'm only able to view the chrome window if I close the SE client.

Is there a way to bring the Chrome application to in front of FactoryTalk View in the same VBA script?

 

[glennz]

Have you seen/tried BF1786 from the Knowledgebase?

 

[Operaghost]

There is another Tech Note BFF15995 that references a utility called the W2KForegroundLockTimeout. This utility changes a registry setting. This setting determines how long that window will set in the background before it will be brought to the foreground. The default is 200 seconds. So after you trigger this screen to appear, take your hands off the mouse and keyboard and wait 200 seconds to see if that screen then comes to the fore.

The recommendation is to change this value to zero so it can immediately come to the foreground. I used this tool for years with RSView32 and later with earlier versions of FT View. Then I kind of forgot about it. I assumed FT View fixed this, or Windows fixed it. It never came up again. But in looking at my Windows 11 registry I can see it is still set for 200 seconds (actually it is set to 200,000 milliseconds).

So you can either use the utility I have attached from the RA Tech Note, or if you don't want to trust some stranger sending a file on the internet, search your registry for ForegroundLockTimeout and change it to zero.

The tool was created originally for Windows 98 and Windows 2000, but it still does the trick today.

OG