2.4.0

LaunchNext 2.4.0

This is the most complete and feature-rich release of LaunchNext so far, with major improvements across input, automation, updates, backup, accessibility, and overall system integration.

To me, LaunchNext 2.4.0 has finally reached 97% of my ideas for the macOS Launchpad. I hope you like it.

For detailed usage guides, setup instructions, and feature walkthroughs, please visit the website and documentation.

🌐 Landing page: https://closex.org/launchnext/
📚 Docs: https://docs.closex.org/launchnext/

Input and activation

Drag apps directly to the Dock

You can now drag apps from LaunchNext directly to the macOS Dock.

• Works with the Core Animation engine
• Supports configurable Dock side and trigger distance
• Keeps page navigation and Dock drag behavior separate

Native gesture support

LaunchNext now includes experimental native trackpad gesture support.

• Four-finger pinch in to open LaunchNext
• Optional four-finger spread to close
• Optional four-finger tap action

Hot Corner support

You can now open LaunchNext using a configurable Hot Corner.

• Choose a screen corner
• Adjust trigger delay and trigger area
• Optional close behavior when LaunchNext is already open

Better CLI for agents

LaunchNext continues to improve terminal-based automation workflows.

• Better support for AI agents using terminal interaction
• Improved command-line workflows for layout management and inspection

Layout and interaction

Separate config for fullscreen and compact

LaunchNext now supports separate settings for fullscreen and compact modes.

• Useful for users who want different layouts depending on mode
• Supports separate tuning for key layout-related options
• Makes switching between fullscreen and compact setups more practical

Folder voice/controller support

Folder interactions now have much better input support.

• Voice feedback now works inside folders
• Controller navigation is now wired into folder content
• Improves accessibility and non-mouse workflows

Instant open/close window option

LaunchNext now includes an instant window open/close option.

• Gives users a faster transition style
• Useful for users who prefer a snappier interaction model

Settings and interaction improvements

Several areas of Settings and interaction behavior were refined.

• Improved Shortcut & gesture settings layout
• Improved uninstall tool configuration UI
• Added clearer engine naming and recommendations

Updates and automation

Update tab improvements

The Update tab has been significantly improved.

• Release notes now support Markdown rendering
• Images in release notes are displayed inline
• Entering the Update tab can automatically trigger an update check
• A floating action bar keeps update actions accessible while scrolling

Notification API update

Update notifications now use the modern notification API.

• Improved notification handling on newer macOS versions
• Added a development test notification path for easier verification

Backup and maintenance

Backup improvements

Backup reliability has been improved.

• Fixed backup issues caused by temporary CLI socket files
• Backup export now handles edge cases more safely
• Improved failure handling and cleanup
• Preserves backup folder metadata more reliably

Voice accessibility update

Voice-related accessibility support has been improved.

• Better voice feedback coverage across the app
• Cleaner voice interaction flow in more navigation paths

Platform cleanup and maintenance

A large batch of older APIs and warning-prone paths were cleaned up.

• Replaced most deprecated notification APIs
• Updated controller input handling away from deprecated callbacks
• Replaced most deprecated APIs across the app
• Improved compatibility with newer macOS SDK behavior
• Reduced several runtime and build-time warnings

Stability

• Better stability around gesture recovery after sleep/wake
• Improved Dock drag behavior and preview handling
• Improved controller and voice interaction paths
• Multiple smaller UI and state synchronization fixes

✨

2.3.0

2.3.0

LaunchNext now has a good looking landing page and documentation.😁

🌐 Landing page: https://closex.org/launchnext/
📚 Docs: https://docs.closex.org/launchnext/

1) CLI / TUI automation support (for power users and agents)

You can now inspect and operate your layout from the command line.

• Supports: list, snapshot, search, move, create-folder, history, example
• Includes interactive TUI mode for terminal workflows
• CLI can be enabled/disabled in Settings, with built-in usage hints and copyable commands

Great for:

• Automated layout organization
• Batch app moves
• Quick structure snapshots/export

Terminal_compressed.mp4

Work with any AI agent that can use terminal such as Claude, Claw layer, Open Code or Codex.

2) First-run onboarding flow

A new step-by-step onboarding experience helps new users initialize faster.

• Introduces core capabilities
• Two layout initialization options:
  • Import system Launchpad
  • Apply Classic Layout Preset
• Global shortcut can be configured directly during onboarding
• Fully skippable (you can finish setup later in Settings)

3) Classic Layout Preset

Added a one-click classic preset layout, ideal for:

• Fresh installs on new Macs
• Fast initialization when system database import is unavailable
• Users who want a classic Launchpad-like starting point

4) Enhanced context menu

The right-click menu now includes more practical actions:

• Dissolve folder
• Batch select apps (Core Animation mode)
• Uninstall with configured tool

5) Configurable uninstall tool

You can now configure a third-party uninstaller (e.g., AppCleaner) in Settings.

• Set uninstaller app path
• One-click open configured tool
• Trigger “Uninstall with configured tool” directly from context menu

---

⚙️ Settings and interaction improvements

1) Hidden Apps / Custom Titles page overhaul

• Smoother search (with debounce)
• Pagination / incremental loading for large app libraries
• Fixed issue where apps inside folders could be missing from settings search/list

2) Global shortcut settings improvements

• Clearer shortcut configuration entry point
• Improved default behavior and setup flow

3) Mouse wheel paging refactor

• More stable page switching behavior
• Improved scroll-related preferences (including direction options)

4) High-resolution folder preview option

• Toggleable high-res folder previews
• Better control over visual quality vs. performance

---

🧠 Performance and stability

• Fixed blank pages not disappearing automatically
• Better stability in large libraries after list pagination/search optimizations
• Multiple UI and state synchronization improvements
• Onboarding copy and flow polish

What's Changed

• Ultra Super Korean Localization Plus Pro Max Prime by @likegravity in #209
• Settings menu improvement by @Muuulya in #215

New Contributors

• @Muuulya made their first contribution in #215

Full Changelog: 2.1.0...2.3.0

2.1.0

2.1.0

Auto Detect Light/Dark Mode for Icons 🌃

• Icons now follow system appearance changes automatically, with cache refresh to keep launchpad consistent after mode switches.
  #199

Next Engine with Core Animation

• New GPU‑accelerated renderer with smooth ProMotion 120fps animation.
• Lower RAM usage in typical scenarios and more responsive scroll/drag behavior.
• Many thanks to Turbo1123 for providing the idea and working prototype of Core Animation. Appreciate that! 👍

You can enable this in Setting -> Performance

Customizable Launchpad Background Mask

• Add a background mask behind Launchpad with separate colors for light and dark
  modes.#185

Per‑Display Page Indicator Customization

• Configure page indicator offset and top padding independently for each monitor.

Game Controller Menu Toggle

• Press the controller Menu button to toggle LaunchNext on/off (configurable in Settings).

Full Changelog: 2.0.0...2.1.0

2.0.0

2.0.0

New UI update

Redesigned the entire settings interface. It now looks more organised and modern. The buttons and icons are familiar, but fully optimised for corner radius and shadows.

General Tab

The 'General' Tab now looks like MacOS's native Settings, it simply looks better and all the functions remain.

About Tab

The 'About' tab now includes a lightweight hero image containing LaunchNext's name and version. The new information card now shows operating system, processor and display information, so opening an issue with a screenshot of the About page would help me to understand your hardware better and fix the issue more easily.

Update Tab

The Update tab has also been redesigned to look more modern. The release notes section is more detailed to help you read it more easily.

Less RAM Usage And Better Performance

• On-Demand Icon Loading (Next Engine)

Previously, all icons were loaded into memory at once during scanning/restoration.

Now, icons are loaded only when actually displayed, caching only a small portion currently in use with controlled cache size. It automatically reclaims memory during system shortages.

Result: Memory usage no longer scales linearly with app count, significantly reducing startup and page-turning peaks,More stable long-term memory usage with fewer stutters.

• Folder Preview Caching (CPU Load Reduction)

Previously, each drag-and-refresh redrew 3×3 preview tiles, causing high CPU fluctuations. Now previews cache based on content changes and reuse unchanged tiles.

Result: Smoother folder opening/rearranging with reduced CPU spikes.

New Backup And Better Import Function

New Backup

• The backup area has been upgraded from a placeholder to full management: select backup directory, create backups, display backup history (time/size).
• The history list supports one-click import/delete, and also supports multi-select delete with confirmation prompt.
• Backup content includes layout data + preference settings (written together during export).

Better Import

• The import popup now supports selecting import content:

  • Layout & data (layout and data)
  • Preference settings groups: General / Appearance / App Sources / Hidden Apps / Titles

• You can import only preference settings, or only layout, or both at the same time.

Better External Hardrive Support

Managing external hard drives is now more streamlined.

In “App Sources,” you can expand a specific external drive path to view all apps on that disk. You can then remove residual items from the layout on a per-app basis, without needing to delete the entire path or perform a full rescan. After unplugging an external drive, cleanup is more intuitive and hassle-free.

Fixed Folder Icon Drag issue

• Fixed an issue where dragging items within folders caused positional errors, such as dragging from the bottom being treated as dragging from the top.

• Dragging coordinates are now more accurate after scrolling, resulting in more stable drag-and-drop sorting.

Fully Removed AI Overlay Function

Originally, I wanted to create an AI Overlay inside LaunchNext as an optional function, similar to SKY which was acquired by OpenAI, but after had a chance to experiencing the Doubao AI phone, I feel that this logic of Function calling + VLM + RAG + Context-Window is still too primitive, the interaction is also very primitive, and it's not suitable to implement in LaunchNext. The Doubao phone's background operations and various system-level permission functions are actually very well perfected in terms of experience, and after checking the internal on-device models and engineering via ADB, they are very solid. The current iPhone looks a bit like a product from the previous era. If we can use the current large enough RAM and chip processing power to make most key functions on-device and create a separate ROM for it, that should be quite interesting.

Also working on a simple open-source browser extension called TranslateNext. Almost finished, but not sure when it will be released.

This update involves significant changes. Please remember to back up your data.

Full Changelog: 1.1.3...2.0.0

1.1.3

• Fixed crash when dragging icons out of folders. #162

• Added Folder Drop Zone Size to control folder creation or icon placement. #161

• Binds new settings to top padding of page indicator; uses adjustable scale for drag hit area.

• Updated terminal update prompt (added transparent button description)

• Added pt-BR language support #146

• Optimized Japanese translations: #154

• Optimized Korean translations: #170

• Optimized Italian translation: #152

What's Changed

• Added Italian translation in Localization.swift by @Dino0005 in #152
• Update French translation by @Guilouz in #156
• Refine Korean localization strings by @likegravity in #170

New Contributors

• @Dino0005 made their first contribution in #152

Full Changelog: 1.1.2...1.1.3

1.1.2

What's New in 1.1.2

• Silent launch: LaunchNext can now start quietly at login with no splash screen or pop-up window, providing a seamless startup experience without interrupting your workflow.

• Drag-and-drop polish: Experience smoother cross-page icon moves, improved folder drop behavior, and significantly reduced jitter during heavy drag operations for a more fluid user experience.

• Icon rendering upgrade: Native icons now fully respect system dark mode settings, preserve alpha transparency for better visual quality, and automatically scale for Retina displays out-of-the-box.

• Custom sources: External volumes are now monitored automatically—when you remove a custom source from settings, all apps from that source are automatically and cleanly removed from the launcher as well, keeping your launcher synchronized with your source configuration.

• Lock Layout Mode: When this mode is enabled, scrolling through pages and dragging to navigate will not accidentally move or rearrange icons, preventing unwanted layout changes and keeping your organization intact.

Thank you! Please tell me if there are any issues.

What's Changed

• Update French translation by @Guilouz in #132
• feat(i18n): update Czech translations by @JiriSko in #135

Full Changelog: 1.1.1...1.1.2

1.1.1

Dear valued LaunchNext user,

This is LaunchNext version 1.1.1. It's more stable, with many bugs fixed. It also has new features.
LaunchNext's goal is to build the best open-source launchpad for macOS 26. It should be better than 99.99% of closed-source and paid launchpads. 😂🎉

Bug Fixes

• Fixed app names showing incorrectly - Safari no longer shows as "浏览器" on English systems, VS Code shows full name instead of just "Code", "Microsoft Word" become "Word". (I need more feedback here. Please let me know if this work. Many Thanks to @wurui1994 's idea, #23 and @liyuhaolol #89)
• Fixed icons disappearing during drag - Icons being moved no longer vanish until you release the mouse
• Performance optmiazation
• Reduced backdrop opacity for better visibility
• Updated system requirement to macOS 26.0 to avoid unwanted issues from MacOS 15

New Features

• Hide Dock option - System Dock can now auto-hide when Launchpad is open

Due to my academic pressure, the update frequency for LaunchNext will be slightly reduced.

Thank you for your support!🫡

What's Changed

• Update French translation by @Guilouz in #120
• Update French translation by @Guilouz in #121

Full Changelog: 1.1.0...1.1.1

1.1.0

What's Changed

• Update French translation by @Guilouz in #113
• feat(i18n): add Czech localization by @JiriSko in #109

New Contributors

• @JiriSko made their first contribution in #109

Full Changelog: 1.0.9...1.1.0

The README now supports Italian and Czech.

The software now supports Italian and Czech.

This release serves to test whether the automatic update program implemented in version 1.0.9 functions properly.

Thank you for your support. More optimizations and updates are underway. Welcome to open a PR!

1.0.9

What's Changed

• feat: Add F4 hotkey and fix window focus issue by @derkan in #103

New Contributors

• @derkan made their first contribution in #103

Full Changelog: 1.0.8...1.0.9

feat: replace Python updater with Swift CLI

• bundle the prebuilt universal SwiftUpdater binary and sign it at build time
• update Settings → Updates to launch the Swift CLI with existing arguments
• add SwiftUpdater subtree with documentation for rebuilding https://github.com/RoversX/Swift_Updater

1.0.8

What's Changed

• Update French translation by @Guilouz in #94

Full Changelog: 1.0.7...1.0.8

What's new?

Supports automatic updates and uses a Python script to ensure low storage usage. 50 KB. :)

I tried a few different options for auto-update:

1. Rust + Ratatui Updater: a reliable TUI updater with a good-looking interface, but it would be around 7 MB, which some people might think is too big.

2. SwiftUI: not visually appealing and increases the complexity of the main program; an extra updater is needed.

3. Python script: It's not that attractive, but it gets the job done and is only 50 KB. (use curses as TUI)

i18n support	updater view