macOS

macOS says the app is damaged, or refuses to open it

OpenRay’s macOS builds are not code-signed or notarised, because that needs a paid Apple Developer account. Gatekeeper therefore quarantines the download, and depending on your macOS version it will either refuse to open it or claim the app “is damaged and can’t be opened”.

Nothing is damaged. Strip the quarantine attribute and it opens normally:

xattr -cr /Applications/openray.app

Run that once, after moving the app to Applications. If you put it somewhere else, point the command at that path instead.

You can also right-click the app and choose Open the first time, which offers an override in the dialog, though on recent macOS versions the xattr command is the reliable route.

Only do this for software you actually trust. It is the same step every unsigned open-source Mac app requires, and it is worth understanding rather than pasting blindly: it removes the com.apple.quarantine flag that Safari or your browser attached to the download.

The palette does not steal focus

On macOS the palette is an NSPanel rather than an ordinary window. Showing it leaves the app you were in frontmost in the menu bar, which is what lets OpenRay paste back into that app rather than into itself.

OpenRay also runs without a Dock icon (ActivationPolicy::Accessory). Use the tray icon or the hotkey to bring it up.

Cmd+Space conflicts with Spotlight

The default hotkey on macOS is ⌘ Space, which Spotlight also owns by default. If both are bound, both open at once: Spotlight holds the OS-level binding, and OpenRay’s global-shortcut hook fires independently of it.

Unbind Spotlight first, under System Settings → Keyboard → Keyboard Shortcuts → Spotlight → Show Spotlight search. This is the same prerequisite Raycast documents for itself. Alternatively, pick a different hotkey in Settings → General.

Accessibility permission

Pasting into another app, and snippet auto-expansion, both need Accessibility permission. OpenRay asks for it before its first keystroke injection, and macOS shows the system dialog with a link into System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility.

Until you grant it, a paste falls back to copying to the clipboard only and says so rather than silently doing nothing. Input Monitoring may also be prompted for the snippet keystroke listener.

What is verified on real hardware

Confirmed on a real Mac: the non-activating panel, the default hotkey and the Spotlight conflict above, and snippet auto-expansion expanding a keyword in place with the clipboard preserved.

Still unverified on real hardware: app launch through open -a, paste injection landing in the right app, the Accessibility dialog itself, the hidden Dock icon, and the native Import / Export file dialogs. The full breakdown is in Platform verification.