I've just launched the application
Honestly even this is questionable. If a running app gets focus between me asking for the new app to launch and that app actually launching, I probably want the existing app that has focus to keep focus until I actively click on the window of the new app.
I'd amend rollcat's statement to say something like: "I've just launched this application and not pressed another key or clicked a mouse button since then."
Once you do that, too fucking late application. Should've been faster, now you don't get focus until I actively do something.
That being said, I've only ever really noticed focus stealing issues happening on Windows or OS X, never Linux.
Correct, so the launch token should get invalidated when the user breaks the figurative focus queue by changing focus
Agree.
Applications should take about 1s to launch (median for Apple's native apps), including under moderate load, so this problem should never be perceptible. But the fallback behavior you describe is perfectly reasonable.
I think it's unreasonable for any app to be so slow to launch that this matters. Modern SSDs have 7000MB/s or more read speeds. Assuming a ridiculously bloated app of 100MB, that's enough to load the whole thing into RAM in less than a frame at the most common monitor refresh rate. The only explanation for slow load times on modern hardware is bad software.
I think it's unreasonable for any app to be so slow to launch that this matters.
That doesn't change the fact that very many apps are in fact that slow that it does matter.
I'm on an HDD and Signal Desktop is 400+ MB, so
The network is always down, the disk is always slow, and the OS never schedules your threads. Keep those in mind and your code might be good
I bet there's concerns with users who don't have a robust mental model of what applications/windows are currently alive or starting up or whatever just losing track of a window completely if it doesn't grab focus, and getting annoyed at programs seemingly failing to start up at all (because they only create a window hidden behind a newly focused window).
One-size-fits-all woes I guess.
There's a bounce animation with the application icon in the dock, and then there's a dot next to the icon to show that the application is open. That should be enough for all users.
Bring back splash screens! If your application takes ages to open, throw up a nice little title card.
Powe user ish thing i guess, but i do start multiple applications without waiting for any launch to finish, and I'd love for the one I actually want to stay focused.