When desktop is the right surface

The browser is enough to understand the engine. Desktop is what you reach for when the runtime needs to leave the tab — into a stage rig, projection chain, installation surface, studio setup, or long-form live session. Same engine, more of the surrounding workflow exposed.

What the desktop path adds

• Stage output — dedicated output for display, capture, and projection.
• Multi-surface operation — separate operator and audience surfaces.
• Session persistence — recallable, reproducible setups.
• Performance profile — frame control and quality behavior tuned to the host hardware.
• Host-routing path — bridge support belongs here and should be described bridge by bridge as each desktop release proves it.

Why this is separate from the web app

The web app stays easy to open so first contact is one click. The desktop app carries the heavier workflow responsibilities — packaging, output control, stable performance under stage conditions, and host fit — without making the browser path harder for someone meeting the engine for the first time.

Where it sits in a stack

The desktop app is the path for making Baryon usable as a source inside larger systems. The runtime renders the cymatic geometry; existing host environments handle the show. That separation is the point: a focused primitive that can enter the rest of a pipeline through verified output paths.

License path

The desktop product is the paid path. Personal, non-commercial study of the engine remains under the public source license; the desktop app, distributed binaries, and any commercial deployment sit on the commercial license path.