<![CDATA["Open WhatsApp in sidebar" shortcut never fires, other messenger shortcuts work (135.0.5973.92, Linux)]]>Opera 135.0.5973.92, Linux Mint 22.3, Cinnamon, X11.
The "Open WhatsApp in sidebar" shortcut does nothing. The binding registers and displays correctly in opera://settings/keyboardShortcuts, it just never fires. Started around the 133 to 134 update in early August.

What I isolated:

  • Alt+W assigned to "Open WhatsApp in sidebar": nothing happens, on the start page and inside a web page alike.
  • The same Alt+W assigned to "Open Discord", "Open Facebook Messenger" or "Open Instagram" in sidebar: all work.
  • Alt+Y assigned to "Open WhatsApp in sidebar": also nothing, so it is not the key.
  • Alt+G assigned to "Open Gmail in sidebar": works.
  • WhatsApp is enabled in sidebar setup, opens by clicking its icon, and opens via Ctrl+Shift+M.

Already ruled out:

  • Updated 135.0.5973.76 to .92, no change.
  • Same behaviour in a private window.
  • Removed WhatsApp from the sidebar, restarted, re-added it, no change.
  • Cleared the stored panel state directly (ui.browser.sidebar.item_prefs.Whatsapp and .item.Whatsapp) with Opera closed, no change.
  • No extension binds Alt+W, and there is no desktop level Alt+W shortcut.

Every messenger shortcut works except WhatsApp's, and the WhatsApp panel itself is fine. Only the "Open WhatsApp in sidebar" action is dead.

Can anyone on Windows or macOS check whether "Open WhatsApp in sidebar" works for them? That would tell us if this is Linux only.

Possibly the same area: in opera://settings/keyboardShortcuts, Threads and Twitch are still listed under "Messengers shortcuts", although RNA-3053 (changelog 132) moved them to Social Media in the sidebar. Telegram, Slack, Instagram and VK are not in that Messengers list at all.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/topic/89486/open-whatsapp-in-sidebar-shortcut-never-fires-other-messenger-shortcuts-work-135-0-5973-92-linuxRSS for NodeTue, 08 Sep 2026 12:37:00 GMTSat, 05 Sep 2026 13:47:34 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to "Open WhatsApp in sidebar" shortcut never fires, other messenger shortcuts work (135.0.5973.92, Linux) on Sat, 05 Sep 2026 23:44:02 GMT]]>@CrazyFreak
Opera 135.0.5973.92, Windows 11.
I had the same problem, and surprisingly, I used the same key combination for WhatsApp, ALT+W.
And exactly the same testing I've performed, with ALT+W assigned to Facebook Messenger and working ok, but not on Whatsapp, and assigned another combination, like ALT+Q still don't work for Whatsapp, but working ok for other messengers from sidebar.
Of course, CTRL+SHIFT+M is working ok, it opens the Whatsapp messenger, but I consider this shortcut to be too complicated (besides the fact that is generic, and it will also open other sidebar messengers that I've used before, including Whatsapp, so is not very practical).

So, in short, the same problem is in Opera for Windows, so is not a Linux only problem.

I hope that somebody will find a solution for this problem, or if this is a bug, it will be corrected in a future update.

]]>https://forums.opera.com/post/409052https://forums.opera.com/post/409052Sat, 05 Sep 2026 23:44:02 GMT