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Photon 0.4.0

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@github-actions github-actions released this 21 Sep 07:59
· 102 commits to develop since this release
v0.4.0
3519498
This commit was created on GitHub.com and signed with GitHub’s verified signature.
GPG key ID: B5690EEEBB952194
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Learn about vigilant mode.

Ryan foreground launch, snappy launcher, native Settings, and macOS 26/27 chrome release.

Added

  • ⌘, opens Settings from anywhere Photon is running, including a key launcher. Settings use a System Settings–style NavigationSplitView with Photon's materials, accent, and typography.
  • Liquid Glass panel chrome when NSGlassEffectView exists at runtime (GitHub Actions macos-latest is macOS 26.6.2, Xcode 26.6, SDK 26.5). macOS 14 still builds with vibrancy fallback.

Changed

  • Launching or focusing an app hides Photon first, then activates the target with NSApp.yieldActivation and activateIgnoringOtherApps so it comes above everything.
  • Launcher show paints before index reload. App icons load off the main thread. Spotlight mdfind starts off the main actor. PHOTON_DEBUG=1 enables cheap PhotonTiming logs; production stays quiet.

Fixed

  • Packaged smoke proves a launched Calculator or TextEdit is frontmost, and a CGEvent ⌘, shows the Settings window. Files, clipboard, notes, drag, ember ranking, and recs-scroll are unchanged.

Signing

This build is ad-hoc signed and not notarized: the Apple signing secrets were not configured when it was built. macOS Gatekeeper will block the first launch of a downloaded copy.

  • macOS 14: Control-click Photon.app and choose Open, then confirm.
  • macOS 15 and later: try to open the app once, then open System Settings > Privacy & Security and click Open Anyway.
  • Or remove the quarantine flag: xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Photon.app

Install

brew tap ryan-stoffel/taps
brew trust ryan-stoffel/taps          # Homebrew 7+
brew install --cask ryan-stoffel/taps/photon

If Homebrew still references the retired singular tap, repair the existing installation with:

brew untap ryanstoffel/homebrew-tap   # only if that stale tap is present
brew tap ryan-stoffel/taps
brew trust ryan-stoffel/taps          # Homebrew 7+
brew update
brew upgrade --cask ryan-stoffel/taps/photon

Ryan's GitHub account was renamed from RyanStoffel to ryan-stoffel. GitHub redirects old repository links, but Homebrew records tap trust by name, so use ryan-stoffel/taps.

Or download Photon-0.4.0.zip (or the .dmg) below and move Photon.app to /Applications. Verify a download with shasum -a 256 -c SHA256SUMS after placing the file next to it.

Photon needs macOS 14 or later. It asks for Accessibility access on first launch for paste-back, the Hyper key, and window management; everything else works without it.

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