Browser notifications for when generation finishes
If you just enabled the "Notify me when done" toggle and want to know how it works (or why it isn't working), this page is for you.
GrandpaCAD can fire a browser notification the moment your 3D model finishes generating. That's the whole feature. The point is so you can switch tabs and do something useful while a slow generation runs, and still know the moment it's ready — without babysitting the chat.
Where it works
Browser notifications are a standard web API, but support is uneven in the places you'd expect.
- Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Brave, Opera on desktop — fully supported.
- Safari on macOS — supported, but the first time you'll need to grant permission when the browser prompts. You can also whitelist
grandpacad.com under System Settings → Notifications.
- Safari on iOS and iPadOS — only supported if you install GrandpaCAD to your home screen as a web app (tap the share icon in Safari, then "Add to Home Screen") and open it from there. Regular Safari tabs on iOS cannot fire notifications. That's Apple's rule, not ours.
- Chrome on Android — supported.
- Firefox on Android — supported.
- Incognito / private windows — usually blocked by the browser itself. The toggle will be visible but the permission prompt won't grant.
How to turn them on
Open the chat page, find the "Notify me when done" card below the input, and flip the toggle. The first time, your browser will ask for notification permission. Say yes.
If you said no and want to reverse it, reset the notification permission for grandpacad.com in your browser's site settings, then flip the toggle again.
Why you didn't get a notification
In rough order of how often I see each one:
1. The GrandpaCAD tab is still the active tab
Browser notifications are only useful when you're looking somewhere else. If the chat page is the tab you're currently viewing, the browser usually won't pop a notification — the UI updates live anyway and a notification would be redundant. Switch to another tab, another window, or minimize the browser while you wait, and the notification will fire.
2. You closed the GrandpaCAD tab entirely
The notification is fired by the chat page while it's running. If you close the tab, the page is gone and there's nothing to fire the notification. The generation still finishes on our side and you'll see the result when you open GrandpaCAD again.
We don't use push notifications, which is the piece that would let us notify you with the tab closed. More on that below.
3. Focus mode or Do Not Disturb is on
macOS, Windows, and most Linux desktops have an OS-level switch that suppresses all notifications — sometimes on a schedule you set once and forgot. Check the top-right of your menu bar (Mac) or the notification center (Windows) and turn it off, then try again.
4. Notifications are blocked for grandpacad.com
Look at the URL bar. Most browsers show a small lock or info icon on the left. Click it and find "Notifications". If it says "Block", switch it to "Allow" (or "Ask") and reload.
If the browser never prompted you in the first place, you may have dismissed an earlier request. Resetting the site permission and flipping the toggle again will re-trigger the prompt.
5. The browser itself is muted at the OS level
Separately from site-specific permission, the OS can mute a whole browser app. On macOS this is System Settings → Notifications → (your browser). On Windows, Settings → System → Notifications → (your browser). Make sure the browser is allowed to show notifications at all.
6. You're on iOS Safari in a normal tab
Already covered above — install GrandpaCAD to your home screen and open it from the home-screen icon. No way around this one without the PWA install.
7. An ad blocker or privacy extension is suppressing the Notification API
Aggressive privacy extensions occasionally strip or block calls to the browser's notification API. If you're running uBlock Origin with custom filters, Privacy Badger, or a similar tool, allowlist grandpacad.com and try again. Most people never hit this.
Privacy
The toggle's on/off state is stored in your browser's localStorage — that's a per-device setting, not tied to your account. We don't run a push service, we don't send anything to your device when you're offline, and there's no background job that wakes your phone. The notification is fired by the chat page you have open, nothing fancier.
If you turn the toggle off, we stop firing. If you clear your browser data, you'll need to re-enable it.
Still not working?
If you've gone through the list and still don't see a notification, let us know via the contact page. Please include your browser name and version, your OS, and whether you see the toggle at all. That information makes it a lot faster to work out what's going on.
