Starting applications without keeping their windows open

I wanted ChatGPT and Proton Pass to start when I logged in without leaving their windows open on the desktop.

The requirement sounded small. In practice, it involved deciding when the automation should act and when it should stop.

Starting an application automatically is only part of the behavior I wanted.

Allowing time for startup

The applications did not necessarily present their windows at the same moment.

A single action immediately after login could miss a window that appeared later. The extension therefore needed a limited period in which it could handle the startup windows.

The accepted version monitors them for 45 seconds. During testing, both applications reached their trays, including window instances that appeared later within that period.

Letting me open the applications afterward

The extension also needed to leave deliberate use alone after startup.

If I open an application later, I expect its window to remain available. An automation that keeps hiding it would create a new inconvenience.

The accepted behavior stops monitoring after approximately 45 seconds, without a final forced close. Manual opening after that period worked normally.

There is still a limitation: intentionally opening a window during those first 45 seconds can interfere with the startup rule. That belongs in the description of the feature.

Keeping the acceptance specific

The tests confirmed the startup-to-tray behavior.

They did not separately establish ChatGPT Work continuity or Proton Pass SSH-agent functionality. Those are different questions, even though they involve the same applications.

I wanted the acceptance record to say what had actually been checked.

Preserving a way back

The accepted extension and the previous 90-second implementation were backed up with restoration instructions.

An older, disabled extension remained installed because a final check detected a changed GNOME-settings digest. The available historical evidence could not explain which settings had changed.

That did not undo the successful startup tests. It left a separate cleanup question unresolved.

For this adjustment, convenience meant having the applications ready while allowing normal use afterward. Defining where the automation stopped was as important as defining what it did.