The scene: Last week in a café, with client chat, a quote sheet, and a payment page open
At 2 p.m. Tuesday, I was revising a quote in a café in Shanghai’s Jing’an district. Client WeChat was on the left of my screen, a document on the right, and the payment page buried at the bottom. I clicked “Back” three times and still read an amount from the previous version. That was when it became obvious: the problem wasn’t a lack of tools. Once several windows were open, my brain started pretending it could tell them apart. I’ve found this especially easy to do when running a side business, because client communication, delivery, and payments all compete for space on the same computer.
What it is, and who’s already using it
Window Sweaters is a small open-source tool. Once installed, it puts a bright colored border around each app window and labels it in the corner—rather like giving every window on your screen its own colorful sweater. Software developer Sara Gordic released it publicly on GitHub, and other people have shared their setups through Hacker News. My colleague Lin Yue, who does brand consulting in Hangzhou, started assigning different colors to client files, mood boards, and meeting software in March 2025 while running three client projects. Since then, she has had far fewer wrong-window moments. This isn’t a “install it and double your productivity” claim. It simply makes the state of your computer easier to read at a glance.
My replication cost today: $0, about 10 minutes, with one basic hurdle
My replication cost was $0. It took about 10 minutes, plus another half hour to get comfortable. The technical barrier is low: no coding, API configuration, or complicated setup. The main thing is knowing how to download and install it. The first step is to open the GitHub project’s Releases page and download the package for your operating system, then restart the app after installation. Next, click “Settings” in the upper-right corner of a window and choose the apps I use most, assigning each a distinct color and name. I also got this wrong the first time. I initially colored only one window, which made it even more obvious while leaving the others looking invisible. It felt much better after I started with the three windows I switch between most often. There’s no pressure to try it now either; remember the scenario, and install it the next time five or six windows are open.
Advice by stage: Match it to your window count rather than copying my setup
If I’m just starting out and handling one project a day, I’d probably skip it for now and simply organize my desktop icons. If I already have one or two clients and regularly move between chat, documents, and billing, I’d give it a 10-minute trial and color only the three most chaotic windows. If I’m scaling and multiple people share a workflow, or I record my screen, I’d assign fixed colors and names to each app, then add them to a new colleague’s setup guide so nobody has to guess based on personal habits. Whatever the stage, I’d test it through one real working day. If I haven’t made two fewer misclicks by the next day, it may not be worth keeping on my computer. I might also recommend it to other indie operators and compare whose workspace has the most windows fighting for attention.