Launch Apps & Window Layout
Auto-open your working set of apps and arrange their windows when a Project activates.
A Project can do more than block — it can set up your workspace: open a set of apps and snap their windows into a layout the moment the Project activates.
Configuring
In the Project's Launch Apps tab, click Add App and pick from your installed apps. For each entry you choose:
- A window position — center, full screen, maximize, left/right/top/bottom half, any quarter, thirds, or two-thirds layouts.
- An enable/disable toggle.
FocusMo warns you if an app is set to both launch and be blocked in the same Project.
When it triggers
Each Project has an Auto-Trigger mode:
| Mode | Behavior |
|---|---|
| Manual | Apps launch only when you explicitly run the Project. |
| Only on Task Start | Activates when you start a task assigned to this Project. |
| Always | Activates whenever any task starts or resumes. |
What happens on activation
- Blocking rules turn on (always).
- The configured apps launch (if the trigger mode allows, or you ran the Project manually).
- After a moment, windows are arranged into their positions.
A live notification shows progress; if something fails (say, an app was uninstalled), you're told which part didn't work.
Window arranging requires the macOS Accessibility permission. Without it, apps still launch, but their windows won't be positioned — and the Project configuration screen will warn you.
macOS Spaces
Assigning Projects to dedicated macOS Spaces is coming in a future update — the Launch Apps tab shows a notice until then.