MacPilot Window Manager

Use MacPilot to control application windows on macOS - list, move, resize, snap to positions, minimize, fullscreen, and manage across Spaces and displays.

When to Use

Use this skill when:

• You need to arrange or organize application windows
• You need to move/resize windows to specific positions
• You need to snap windows to screen halves or corners
• You need to list what windows are open
• You need to focus or bring a specific window to front
• You need to manage windows across multiple Spaces/desktops
• You need to save and restore window layouts

Window Commands

List Windows

macpilot window list --json                        # All visible windows
macpilot window list --app "Safari" --json         # Windows for specific app
macpilot window list --all-spaces --json           # Include all Spaces

Focus Window

macpilot window focus "Safari" --json                          # Focus app's main window
macpilot window focus "Safari" --title "GitHub" --json         # Focus by title substring

New Window

macpilot window new "Safari" --json                # Open new window in app

Move Window

macpilot window move "Safari" 100 50 --json        # Move to x=100, y=50

Resize Window

macpilot window resize "Safari" 1200 800 --json    # Set width=1200, height=800

Close Window

macpilot window close --app "Safari" --json        # Close frontmost window

Minimize / Fullscreen

macpilot window minimize "Safari" --json           # Minimize to Dock
macpilot window fullscreen "Safari" --json         # Toggle fullscreen

Snap to Position

macpilot window snap "Safari" left --json          # Left half of screen
macpilot window snap "Safari" right --json         # Right half of screen
macpilot window snap "Safari" top-left --json      # Top-left quarter
macpilot window snap "Safari" top-right --json     # Top-right quarter
macpilot window snap "Safari" bottom-left --json   # Bottom-left quarter
macpilot window snap "Safari" bottom-right --json  # Bottom-right quarter
macpilot window snap "Safari" center --json        # Center of screen
macpilot window snap "Safari" maximize --json      # Fill entire screen

Save / Restore Layout

macpilot window restore --save --json              # Save all window positions
macpilot window restore --json                     # Restore saved positions
macpilot window restore --save --app "Safari"      # Save specific app only

Spaces / Desktops

macpilot space list --json                         # List all Spaces
macpilot space switch left --json                  # Switch to left Space
macpilot space switch right --json                 # Switch to right Space
macpilot space switch 2 --json                     # Switch to Space 2
macpilot space bring --app "Slack" --json          # Bring app to current Space

Workflow Patterns

Side-by-Side Layout

macpilot window snap "Safari" left
macpilot window snap "VS Code" right

Quarter Layout (4 Apps)

macpilot window snap "Safari" top-left
macpilot window snap "Terminal" top-right
macpilot window snap "Finder" bottom-left
macpilot window snap "Notes" bottom-right

Presentation Setup

# Maximize the presentation app
macpilot window snap "Keynote" maximize
# Or go fullscreen
macpilot window fullscreen "Keynote"

Dev Environment Layout

# Editor on left 60%, terminal on right 40%
macpilot window move "VS Code" 0 25
macpilot window resize "VS Code" 1152 775
macpilot window move "Terminal" 1152 25
macpilot window resize "Terminal" 768 775

Collect All Windows

# Bring scattered windows back to current Space
macpilot space bring --app "Safari"
macpilot space bring --app "Terminal"
macpilot space bring --app "Finder"

Save and Restore Workspace

# Before a meeting - save your layout
macpilot window restore --save

# After the meeting - restore it
macpilot window restore

Tips

• Use window list --json to see current positions/sizes before rearranging
• The snap command uses the display where the window currently resides
• window focus is preferred over app focus when multiple windows exist
• Use display-info --json to get screen dimensions for precise positioning
• Coordinates use top-left origin (0,0 is top-left of primary display)
• On multi-monitor setups, secondary displays may have negative x coordinates (left of primary) or x > primary width (right of primary)