From b4d0d8214111fd101bcbcbdc11fed3d080ff9e97 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Scott Idem <stidem@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, 22 May 2026 18:10:37 -0400
Subject: [PATCH] fix(launcher): fix VLC stopping 10-15 seconds after open on
 macOS
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

Root cause: run_cmd uses exec() which blocks until the child exits. The
direct VLC binary forks its GUI process and exits — exec returns and the
post_script begins. The old post_script polled for VLC focus (up to 10s)
then sent Cmd+F, which fired mid-playback and stopped the video.

Fix 1 — nohup + &: detaches VLC from exec immediately so run_cmd returns
in ~0ms. This decouples the launcher flow from VLC's lifecycle.

Fix 2 — --fullscreen flag: VLC opens fullscreen directly via CLI option.
Eliminates the Cmd+F keystroke that was the proximate cause of the stop.

Fix 3 — > /dev/null 2>&1: silences VLC's verbose logging to prevent
exec's 1MB stdout buffer from overflowing and killing the process.

post_script simplified to a single `tell application "VLC" activate`
to bring VLC to the foreground after the 3s startup delay.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4.6 <noreply@anthropic.com>
---
 .../ae_launcher__default_launch_profiles.ts   | 46 ++++++++++---------
 1 file changed, 24 insertions(+), 22 deletions(-)

diff --git a/src/lib/ae_events/ae_launcher__default_launch_profiles.ts b/src/lib/ae_events/ae_launcher__default_launch_profiles.ts
index 0b8a2f8c..02c80e86 100644
--- a/src/lib/ae_events/ae_launcher__default_launch_profiles.ts
+++ b/src/lib/ae_events/ae_launcher__default_launch_profiles.ts
@@ -55,33 +55,35 @@ export interface LaunchProfile {
 /**
  * macOS VLC profile — uses direct binary path for max reliability.
  * Bypasses `open -a` argument-handling quirks that could lose file path or re-use existing process.
+ *
+ * WHY nohup + &:
+ *   run_cmd uses exec() which blocks until the child process exits (or the 30s timeout fires).
+ *   The direct VLC binary forks a GUI process then exits — exec returns early and the code
+ *   proceeds to the post_script. The old post_script polled for VLC focus (up to 10s) then
+ *   sent Cmd+F, which was firing exactly 10–15 seconds into playback and stopping the video.
+ *   nohup + & detaches VLC immediately so exec returns in ~0ms, decoupling run_cmd from
+ *   VLC's lifecycle entirely.
+ *
+ * WHY --fullscreen:
+ *   Starting VLC fullscreen via flag avoids the need to send Cmd+F via AppleScript. The old
+ *   keystroke approach was the proximate cause of the video stopping — Cmd+F may have hit the
+ *   wrong VLC window, triggered a menu action, or paused playback during the fullscreen
+ *   transition. Using the flag is simpler and more reliable.
+ *
+ * WHY > /dev/null 2>&1:
+ *   VLC logs verbosely to stdout/stderr. exec() buffers output (1MB default). Without
+ *   redirection the buffer could overflow and kill VLC mid-playback.
  */
 function make_vlc_mirror_mac_profile(): LaunchProfile {
     return {
         app: 'VLC (macOS)',
         display_mode: 'mirror',
-        // Direct binary path ensures VLC receives media file + flags reliably.
-        // `--no-play-and-exit` prevents closing on end, `--play-and-pause` holds final frame.
-        open_cmd: '/Applications/VLC.app/Contents/MacOS/VLC --no-play-and-exit --play-and-pause "{{path}}"',
-        post_delay_ms: 2000,
-        // Poll until VLC is frontmost before sending Cmd+F. Re-activate on every iteration —
-        // a single activate at the top is blocked by macOS focus-stealing prevention when VLC
-        // is spawned as a child of Electron (which stays frontmost). Retrying activate each loop
-        // keeps nudging macOS until it yields focus. Max wait: 20 × 0.5s = 10s after initial delay.
-        post_script: `repeat 20 times
-    tell application "VLC"
-        activate
-    end tell
-    delay 0.5
-    tell application "System Events"
-        if frontmost of process "VLC" is true then exit repeat
-    end tell
-end repeat
-delay 0.3
-tell application "System Events"
-    tell process "VLC"
-        keystroke "f" using command down
-    end tell
+        open_cmd: 'nohup /Applications/VLC.app/Contents/MacOS/VLC --no-play-and-exit --play-and-pause --fullscreen "{{path}}" > /dev/null 2>&1 &',
+        post_delay_ms: 3000,
+        // Activate VLC after it has had time to open. Fullscreen is already set by the flag
+        // above — this just ensures VLC is the frontmost app and the presenter sees it.
+        post_script: `tell application "VLC"
+    activate
 end tell`
     };
 }