Hold. Point. Launch.
A radial app launcher for macOS, triggered by hotkey.
Orbit is a weapon-wheel style radial menu that lives in your menu bar. Hold your hotkey, point toward an app, release — done. No clicking, no searching, no Dock diving.
- Hold a mouse button or keyboard shortcut
- Point toward the sector of the app you want
- Release to instantly switch to it
The menu appears at your cursor, shows your recent apps (or pinned favorites), and disappears the moment you let go.
- Radial Menu — Glassmorphic floating overlay with smooth spring animations. 8 configurable sectors, each holding a recent or pinned app.
- Flexible Hotkey — Trigger with mouse side buttons (Mouse4/Mouse5) or any keyboard shortcut with modifier keys (
⌃⌥⇧⌘). - Sector Pinning — Pin your most-used apps to fixed positions. Unassigned sectors auto-fill with your recent apps.
- Menu Bar Native — Lives quietly in your menu bar. No Dock icon, no window clutter. Open settings or quit from the menu bar popover.
- macOS 15 (Sequoia) or later
- Swift 6 toolchain
# Clone
git clone https://github.com/Bowl42/Orbit.git
cd Orbit
# Build and install to /Applications
bash scripts/bundle.shThis creates /Applications/Orbit.app, code-signed to preserve system permissions.
On first launch, Orbit will ask for two system permissions:
| Permission | Why |
|---|---|
| Accessibility | Intercept global hotkey events |
| Input Monitoring | Detect keyboard and mouse button presses |
Grant both in System Settings > Privacy & Security. Orbit checks status automatically — no restart needed.
- Launch Orbit — it appears in the menu bar
- Hold your hotkey (default: Mouse 4 / Side Button)
- Move mouse toward the app you want — the sector highlights
- Release to switch to that app
- Release in the center dead zone or press Esc to cancel
| Setting | Default |
|---|---|
| Trigger | Mouse 4 (Side Button) |
| Sectors | 8 (all recent apps) |
| Modifiers | None |
Open settings from the menu bar popover or on first launch.
- Trigger type: Keyboard hotkey or mouse button
- Key / Button: Space, Return, A–Z, Mouse 3/4/5
- Modifiers: Any combination of
⌃⌥⇧⌘ - Live preview: See your hotkey combo as you configure it
- Ring preview: Click any sector dot to select it
- Recent: Auto-fills with your most recently used apps
- Pinned: Lock a specific app to that sector position
- App picker: Search and select from all installed apps
Config is stored at ~/Library/Application Support/Orbit/config.json.
Orbit/
├── OrbitApp.swift # @main, MenuBarExtra
├── AppDelegate.swift # Lifecycle, permissions
├── OrbitController.swift # Core orchestrator
├── HotkeyManager/
│ ├── HotkeyManager.swift # CGEvent tap listener
│ └── KeyCombo.swift # Key combo model
├── RadialMenu/
│ ├── RadialMenuView.swift # SwiftUI radial UI
│ ├── RadialMenuPanel.swift # NSPanel overlay
│ ├── SectorView.swift # Sector wedge component
│ └── RadialMenuViewModel.swift
├── Actions/
│ ├── OrbitAction.swift # Action protocol
│ └── LaunchAppAction.swift # App launch action
├── Config/
│ ├── ConfigManager.swift # JSON I/O
│ └── OrbitConfig.swift # Config model
├── RecentApps/
│ └── RecentAppsTracker.swift # Recent app tracking
└── Settings/
├── SettingsView.swift # Settings UI
├── AppPickerView.swift # App picker modal
└── InstalledAppsFinder.swift
Key design decisions:
- NSPanel (non-activating) — menu never steals focus from your active app
- CGEvent tap — low-level, reliable global hotkey detection
- SwiftUI + AppKit bridge — modern UI with native macOS window management
- @Observable — reactive state without Combine boilerplate
| Layer | Technology |
|---|---|
| UI | SwiftUI with .ultraThinMaterial glassmorphism |
| Window | NSPanel (non-activating, transparent) |
| Hotkey | CGEvent tap via CoreGraphics |
| App launch | NSWorkspace |
| Config | Codable JSON |
| Build | Swift Package Manager |
| Signing | Apple Development identity |
MIT
Built with SwiftUI on macOS Sequoia.