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[Feature Request] Allow direct interaction with icons when clicking in the menu bar / Thaw Bar, without first expanding/popping them from the collapsed section #845

Description

@douxiaohu

Pre-submission Checklist

  • I searched existing issues (open & closed) and found no duplicates
  • If this is about macOS 27 / Golden Gate, I have read

Problem / Use Case

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Description

I'm currently using Thaw as my menu bar manager and really appreciate the tool.

Current behavior:
When I want to interact with an icon that is in the hidden / always-hidden section (or shown via the Thaw Bar), clicking it first causes the icon to be temporarily expanded / “popped out” into the main menu bar (from the collapsed state). Only after that temporary insertion can I actually interact with the item’s menu.

This extra step feels less direct and sometimes results in the system menu appearing far from the click position (especially noticeable with the Thaw Bar).

Desired behavior:
I would like to be able to click the icon directly in the taskbar / Thaw Bar and interact with it immediately, without the intermediate step of first expanding/popping the icon out from the collapsed section into the main menu bar.

In other words: treat the click on a (hidden) icon as a direct action that opens its menu / performs the interaction at the click location, rather than requiring the temporary relocation + second interaction.

Thank you for maintaining Thaw!

Proposed Solution

Possible approaches (just suggestions):

  • Allow Thaw Bar (or collapsed section) icons to trigger the native menu / action directly at the click position, without temporarily inserting the status item into the main menu bar.
  • Or provide an option to “Direct click interaction” for items in the Thaw Bar / hidden section.

Alternatives Considered

No response

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featureNew capability that did not exist beforemenubarHide/show, sections, control items, backends, capacity

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