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+# URL Launcher
+
+A Chrome extension for opening a list of URLs as tabs — ideal for workflows that involve opening the same set of pages repeatedly (dashboards, research sessions, daily reading lists, etc.).
+
+Paste a raw list of URLs, or dump any arbitrary text and let the extension extract the links automatically. Tabs can be opened immediately or loaded lazily — only when you actually focus them — with optional staggered timers so your browser isn't hammered all at once.
+
+
+### Why this exists
+
+Chrome Web Store extensions are a well-documented supply chain attack vector. Extensions can be silently updated after installation, sold to new owners, or compromised to inject malicious code into your browser — with full access to cookies, form data, and page content. Several popular tab-management extensions have been hijacked this way.
+
+This extension was built as a self-hostable, auditable alternative to a Chrome Store extension I relied on. The entire codebase is four short files you can read in a few minutes. Because you load it as an unpacked extension, it never updates without you explicitly pulling changes — and you can review every diff before you do.
+
+---
+
+## Features
+
+- **Bulk open URLs** — paste one URL per line and open them all as background tabs in one click
+- **Extract URLs from text** — paste any text (emails, docs, HTML, markdown, Slack messages) and extract every link automatically, deduplicated and cleaned of trailing punctuation
+- **Wait for focus** — tabs open as lightweight placeholder pages and only navigate to their target URL when you switch to them, keeping memory and network usage low
+- **Delayed load** — each tab gets a staggered auto-load countdown (1s, 2s, 3s…) so URLs load progressively even without you focusing them, preventing browser overload
+- Live URL counter with instant validation
+- "Load now" escape hatch on every placeholder page
+
+---
+
+## Screenshots
+
+![URL Launcher](screenshot.png)
+
+---
+
+## Installation
+
+This extension is not on the Chrome Web Store. Install it in developer mode:
+
+1. Download or clone this repository
+2. Open Chrome and navigate to `chrome://extensions`
+3. Enable **Developer mode** (toggle in the top-right corner)
+4. Click **Load unpacked**
+5. Select the repository folder (the one containing `manifest.json`)
+6. The **URL Launcher** icon will appear in your Chrome toolbar
+
+To update after pulling new changes, go back to `chrome://extensions` and click the **↺ refresh** icon on the extension card.
+
+---
+
+## Usage
+
+### Basic — open a list of URLs
+
+1. Click the extension icon in the toolbar
+2. Paste one URL per line into the text box
+3. Click **Open URLs**
+
+All URLs open as background tabs. Invalid lines are silently skipped.
+
+### Extract URLs from arbitrary text
+
+1. Paste any text into the box — an email thread, a webpage, a markdown document, anything
+2. Click **Extract URLs**
+3. The text box is replaced with one clean URL per line, duplicates removed
+4. Click **Open URLs**
+
+### Wait for focus to load
+
+When the **Wait for focus to load** checkbox is enabled (default), each tab opens as a minimal placeholder page instead of loading the real URL immediately. The target URL only loads when you click on that tab.
+
+This is useful when opening many tabs at once — the browser stays responsive and pages don't all race to load in parallel.
+
+### Delayed load
+
+When **Delayed load** is also enabled (default, requires Wait for focus), each placeholder page gets an automatic countdown timer:
+
+| Tab | Auto-loads after |
+|-----|-----------------|
+| 1st | 1 second |
+| 2nd | 2 seconds |
+| 3rd | 3 seconds |
+| … | … |
+
+The placeholder shows a live countdown with a shrinking progress bar. Clicking **Load now →** on any placeholder page bypasses the timer immediately.
+
+This staggers network requests so your browser isn't hit by all pages at once, while still loading everything in the background without you having to manually focus each tab.
+
+---
+
+## Options reference
+
+| Option | Default | Description |
+|---|---|---|
+| Wait for focus to load | ✅ On | Opens a placeholder page; navigates only on tab focus |
+| Delayed load | ✅ On | Adds a staggered per-tab countdown (requires Wait for focus) |
+
+The mode badge in the popup header shows the current active mode: **lazy**, **lazy + delay**, or **eager**.
+
+---
+
+## File structure
+
+```
+url-launcher/
+├── manifest.json   # Extension manifest (Manifest V3)
+├── popup.html      # Toolbar popup UI
+├── popup.js        # Popup logic — URL parsing, extraction, tab creation
+├── loader.html     # Lightweight placeholder page shown in lazy mode
+└── loader.js       # Placeholder logic — focus detection and countdown timer
+```
+
+---
+
+## Permissions
+
+| Permission | Why it's needed |
+|---|---|
+| `tabs` | To open new tabs via `chrome.tabs.create` |
+
+No data is collected, sent anywhere, or stored. Everything runs locally.
+
+---
+
+## Browser compatibility
+
+Requires a Chromium-based browser with Manifest V3 support:
+
+- Google Chrome 88+
+- Microsoft Edge 88+
+- Brave, Opera, Vivaldi (recent versions)
+
+Firefox is not supported (uses a different extension API).
+
+---
+
+## Contributing
+
+Bug reports and pull requests are welcome. When reporting an issue, please include:
+
+- Chrome version (`chrome://version`)
+- A description of the URLs or text you were working with
+- What you expected vs. what happened
+
+---
+
+## License
+
+MIT — do whatever you want with it.
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