I always quit safari when I'm done with it so that the dot underneath goes away, but recently I'll quit safari, the dot goes away, and close my MacBook Pro, only for the dot to be back when I open my MacBook again. So it seems that safari has been active even after I quit. Is this a real issue or just nothing but a random glitch?
MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 13.4
It is not intentional behavior, but it is nothing to be concerned about. The reason is that the concept of an "open" app has become outdated in recent macOS version. You can quit an app and have its Dock "dot" extinguish, yet one or more of its processes can remain active. Safari works that way, but other apps might also. The converse is also true: an app that is "open" with its reassuring "dot" apparently confirming that fact, yet it may be using zero system resources.
macOS has borrowed extensively from iOS in that regard. When you exit an iOS app and return to the home screen, the app usually exists in a suspended state, but not all of them do. Bear in mind there is no equivalent of a Dock in iOS. The dot's presence (or absence) in the macOS Dock is almost without meaning.
In fact a prerelease version of macOS did away with it altogether, but only for a very brief time. Beta testers complained — loudly — and Apple quickly restored the essentially meaningless Dock "this app is running" dot. The lesson for Apple was that people demand their illusions, so don't take them away lightly.
It is not intentional behavior, but it is nothing to be concerned about. The reason is that the concept of an "open" app has become outdated in recent macOS version. You can quit an app and have its Dock "dot" extinguish, yet one or more of its processes can remain active. Safari works that way, but other apps might also. The converse is also true: an app that is "open" with its reassuring "dot" apparently confirming that fact, yet it may be using zero system resources.
macOS has borrowed extensively from iOS in that regard. When you exit an iOS app and return to the home screen, the app usually exists in a suspended state, but not all of them do. Bear in mind there is no equivalent of a Dock in iOS. The dot's presence (or absence) in the macOS Dock is almost without meaning.
In fact a prerelease version of macOS did away with it altogether, but only for a very brief time. Beta testers complained — loudly — and Apple quickly restored the essentially meaningless Dock "this app is running" dot. The lesson for Apple was that people demand their illusions, so don't take them away lightly.
Safari stays active
