Right-click works BUT not on *desktop*

topar wrote:

OK I just figured it out.

Sharing info in case someone else needs it:

The problem is that this setting was turned off:

System Settings > Desktop & Dock > Desktop & Stage Manager > Show Items > On Desktop > checkbox

(I had it unchecked bc my policy is to never put items on the Desktop, and this setting "enforces" that policy.)

Once the "Show Items > On Desktop" checkbox is on, then right-click context menu works on the desktop.

I guess Apple figures the context menu is useless if you're not showing any items, but I was still using it to change wallpapers.

Good computing topar !

Greatly appreciate your update here on the resolve to your issue.

topar wrote:

1. Since upgrading to macOS Sequoia, I noticed a couple different desktop behaviors:

I used to be able switch to a new Space (virtual desktop) and hit Cmd-N to always get a new Finder window, but now that only happens if Finder is the active app. That's ok, I'll live with it.

2. I used to be able to right-click on the Desktop to get a context menu. That stopped working recently, maybe after the 15.6.1 update.

3. Desktop wallpapers take a long time to load after waking up. This used to be instantaneous in previous macOS versions, but in Sequoia it's really slow regardless of whether the custom wallpapers folder is inside Documents or in my home folder. I have several desktop Spaces, each one with a different wallpaper that helps me know which workspace I'm in (because I work on different projects on different virtual desktops).

Before anyone recommends: "try Ctrl-trackpadClick or Ctrl-leftClick" or "check your mouse/track settings", let's bypass that stuff because the settings are fine. Both right-click and `Ctrl-click` work perfectly when doing it on a file or a window. It has simply changed behavior on the desktop.

The problem for me is that I can't use it to change the wallpaper for that virtual desktop anymore. I'm guessing that this change in behavior is intentional (maybe due to Stage Manager), so it is going away in macOS Sequoia and will not return. I mean, maybe I missed some setting (e.g. in System Settings > Desktop) or smtg, but to me the phase-in of incremental changes to the desktop is a signal that Apple is doing this deliberately.

For those of you who have the same habit of right-clicking on the desktop, how have you all adapted?

I suppose I should just make a keyboard shortcut to System Settings...

TIA, --t

I have no issue with Control click on the Desktop...macOS 15.6.1

Have you shut down and restarted more than once since your 15.6.1 point update(?)

A SafeBoot Start up your Mac in safe mode - Apple Support will sort many anomalies

Login and test. Reboot as normal and test. Caches get rebuilt automatically.

Good work my friend 👍🏽