diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index d7ed9d9..00001db 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -16,6 +16,31 @@ zig build run
 
 Everything is pinned by `flake.nix`; nothing needs to be installed on the host.
 
+## Installing
+
+```sh
+mise run install     # builds release, installs into ~/.local
+mise run uninstall
+```
+
+That puts the binary in `~/.local/libexec/vtabs`, a launcher on `~/.local/bin`,
+a desktop entry in `~/.local/share/applications`, and the icon in the hicolor
+theme, then refreshes the desktop and icon caches. `mise tasks` lists the rest
+(`build`, `run`, `fmt`, `screenshot`).
+
+Two things the installer has to handle that a normal `install` wouldn't:
+
+- **A launcher, not a symlink.** The binary links against GTK in the Nix store
+  and has an RPATH, so it runs anywhere — but it still needs to be pointed at
+  GTK's GSettings schemas and icon themes, or it aborts on a missing schema.
+  A desktop launcher starts the app with a minimal environment, so those paths
+  are baked into the launcher script. They are read out of the dev shell at
+  install time rather than hardcoded, so they can't drift from the flake.
+- **Nix GC roots.** The installed app depends on store paths that
+  `nix-collect-garbage` would otherwise be free to delete, which would break it
+  later with no obvious connection to the command that did it. Install pins
+  every store path in the binary's RPATH; uninstall releases them.
+
 ## Which "libghostty" this uses, and why
 
 Ghostty ships two different C APIs, and only one of them is usable here:
@@ -116,8 +141,8 @@ This is a proof of concept, and the following are deliberately absent:
 `./b.sh` wraps `nix develop --command zig build` and strips the enormous
 command line Zig prints on failure.
 
-`./shot.sh out.png "text to type"` runs the app inside a throwaway **headless
-Sway** and screenshots it. This keeps UI checks entirely out of your real
+`mise run screenshot out.png "text to type"` (or `./shot.sh` directly) runs the
+app inside a throwaway **headless Sway** and screenshots it. This keeps UI checks entirely out of your real
 Wayland session — nothing appears on screen, and it works while the session is
 locked.
 
diff --git a/dist/dev.greyson.vtabs.desktop.in b/dist/dev.greyson.vtabs.desktop.in
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5b43c4a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/dist/dev.greyson.vtabs.desktop.in
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+[Desktop Entry]
+Type=Application
+Name=vtabs
+GenericName=Terminal
+Comment=Terminal emulator with vertical tabs
+# Substituted with an absolute path by `mise run install`, because desktop
+# launchers do not reliably have ~/.local/bin on PATH.
+Exec=@EXEC@
+Icon=dev.greyson.vtabs
+Terminal=false
+Categories=System;TerminalEmulator;
+Keywords=shell;prompt;command;commandline;cmd;terminal;tabs;
+StartupNotify=true
+# Lets the compositor match the running window to this entry, which is what
+# gives the window its icon. Must equal the GApplication id.
+StartupWMClass=dev.greyson.vtabs
diff --git a/dist/dev.greyson.vtabs.svg b/dist/dev.greyson.vtabs.svg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0c3e30b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/dist/dev.greyson.vtabs.svg
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
+<!--
+  vtabs app icon: a terminal pane with the vertical tab strip down its left
+  edge. Shapes are kept large and high-contrast so the sidebar is still
+  readable when the icon is scaled down to 32px in a launcher.
+-->
+<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 128 128" width="128" height="128">
+  <defs>
+    <linearGradient id="pane" x1="0" y1="0" x2="0" y2="1">
+      <stop offset="0" stop-color="#241f31"/>
+      <stop offset="1" stop-color="#14111b"/>
+    </linearGradient>
+    <linearGradient id="accent" x1="0" y1="0" x2="1" y2="1">
+      <stop offset="0" stop-color="#c7b3ff"/>
+      <stop offset="1" stop-color="#9b7ff0"/>
+    </linearGradient>
+    <!-- Everything is clipped to the rounded body so the sidebar picks up
+         the same corner radius without repeating the path. -->
+    <clipPath id="body">
+      <rect x="8" y="12" width="112" height="104" rx="24"/>
+    </clipPath>
+  </defs>
+
+  <rect x="8" y="12" width="112" height="104" rx="24" fill="url(#pane)"/>
+
+  <g clip-path="url(#body)">
+    <rect x="8" y="12" width="42" height="104" fill="#2f2743"/>
+    <rect x="49" y="12" width="2" height="104" fill="#3d3357"/>
+
+    <!-- Tab rows: the active one carries the accent, the rest are muted. -->
+    <rect x="16" y="30" width="26" height="12" rx="6" fill="url(#accent)"/>
+    <rect x="16" y="50" width="26" height="12" rx="6" fill="#5d5280"/>
+    <rect x="16" y="70" width="26" height="12" rx="6" fill="#493f66"/>
+  </g>
+
+  <!-- Prompt chevron and cursor, the universal shorthand for a terminal. -->
+  <path d="M66 51 L79 64 L66 77"
+        fill="none" stroke="#e8e2f7" stroke-width="9"
+        stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"/>
+  <rect x="86" y="70" width="22" height="8" rx="4" fill="url(#accent)"/>
+
+  <rect x="8" y="12" width="112" height="104" rx="24"
+        fill="none" stroke="#000000" stroke-opacity="0.28" stroke-width="2"/>
+</svg>
diff --git a/flake.nix b/flake.nix
index fc8b531..9f40d1d 100644
--- a/flake.nix
+++ b/flake.nix
@@ -84,10 +84,20 @@
         ];
 
         shellHook = ''
-          # GTK needs to find icon themes and schemas at runtime when the app
-          # is launched straight out of the dev shell rather than installed.
-          export XDG_DATA_DIRS="${pkgs.gtk4}/share/gsettings-schemas/${pkgs.gtk4.name}:${pkgs.adwaita-icon-theme}/share:${pkgs.hicolor-icon-theme}/share:$XDG_DATA_DIRS"
-          export GSETTINGS_SCHEMA_DIR="${pkgs.gtk4}/share/gsettings-schemas/${pkgs.gtk4.name}/glib-2.0/schemas"
+          # The runtime data GTK needs to find at startup: its own GSettings
+          # schemas and the icon themes our widgets pull symbolic icons from.
+          #
+          # These are exported under their own names, rather than only folded
+          # into XDG_DATA_DIRS, because `mise run install` reads them back out
+          # to bake into the installed launcher. The built binary already has
+          # an RPATH into the Nix store and runs fine outside this shell, but
+          # it still has to be pointed at this data or GTK aborts on a missing
+          # schema and falls back to broken-image icons.
+          export VTABS_GSETTINGS_SCHEMA_DIR="${pkgs.gtk4}/share/gsettings-schemas/${pkgs.gtk4.name}/glib-2.0/schemas"
+          export VTABS_RUNTIME_DATA_DIRS="${pkgs.gtk4}/share/gsettings-schemas/${pkgs.gtk4.name}:${pkgs.adwaita-icon-theme}/share:${pkgs.hicolor-icon-theme}/share"
+
+          export GSETTINGS_SCHEMA_DIR="$VTABS_GSETTINGS_SCHEMA_DIR"
+          export XDG_DATA_DIRS="$VTABS_RUNTIME_DATA_DIRS:$XDG_DATA_DIRS"
         '';
       };
     });
diff --git a/mise.toml b/mise.toml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..79f8b04
--- /dev/null
+++ b/mise.toml
@@ -0,0 +1,117 @@
+# Nix supplies the whole toolchain (Zig, GTK, libadwaita), so there is
+# nothing for mise to install; these tasks just drive it.
+
+[tasks.build]
+description = "Build a release binary into zig-out/bin"
+run = "nix develop --command zig build -Doptimize=ReleaseFast"
+
+[tasks.build-debug]
+description = "Build a debug binary (leak checking, safety checks)"
+run = "nix develop --command zig build"
+
+[tasks.run]
+description = "Build and run vtabs"
+run = "nix develop --command zig build run"
+
+[tasks.fmt]
+description = "Format all Zig source"
+run = "nix develop --command zig fmt build.zig src"
+
+[tasks.screenshot]
+description = "Screenshot vtabs in a throwaway headless compositor"
+depends = ["build-debug"]
+run = "nix develop --command ./shot.sh"
+
+[tasks.install]
+description = "Install vtabs into ~/.local with a desktop entry and icon"
+depends = ["build"]
+run = '''
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -euo pipefail
+
+data="${XDG_DATA_HOME:-$HOME/.local/share}"
+bindir="$HOME/.local/bin"
+libexec="$HOME/.local/libexec/vtabs"
+apps="$data/applications"
+icons="$data/icons/hicolor/scalable/apps"
+gcroots="$data/vtabs/gcroots"
+
+# The binary carries an RPATH into the Nix store, so it runs anywhere, but it
+# still has to be told where GTK's GSettings schemas and icon themes live or
+# it aborts on a missing schema. Read those paths back out of the dev shell
+# that built it rather than hardcoding store hashes.
+schemas="$(nix develop --command printenv VTABS_GSETTINGS_SCHEMA_DIR)"
+datadirs="$(nix develop --command printenv VTABS_RUNTIME_DATA_DIRS)"
+
+mkdir -p "$bindir" "$libexec" "$apps" "$icons" "$gcroots"
+
+install -m755 zig-out/bin/vtabs "$libexec/vtabs"
+
+# A launcher script rather than a symlink: a desktop launcher starts the app
+# with a minimal environment, so the GTK runtime paths must be set here.
+# Existing values are preserved so this composes with the rest of the session.
+cat > "$bindir/vtabs" <<EOF
+#!/bin/sh
+# Generated by \`mise run install\` — re-run that instead of editing.
+export GSETTINGS_SCHEMA_DIR="$schemas\${GSETTINGS_SCHEMA_DIR:+:\$GSETTINGS_SCHEMA_DIR}"
+export XDG_DATA_DIRS="$datadirs:\${XDG_DATA_DIRS:-/usr/local/share:/usr/share}"
+exec "$libexec/vtabs" "\$@"
+EOF
+chmod 755 "$bindir/vtabs"
+
+sed "s|@EXEC@|$bindir/vtabs|" dist/dev.greyson.vtabs.desktop.in \
+  > "$apps/dev.greyson.vtabs.desktop"
+install -m644 dist/dev.greyson.vtabs.svg "$icons/dev.greyson.vtabs.svg"
+
+# Pin the store paths the installed binary links against. Without this a
+# later `nix-collect-garbage` deletes GTK and the installed app stops
+# starting, with no obvious connection to the command that broke it.
+# Nix roots are transitive, so rooting each RPATH entry covers its closure.
+rm -f "$gcroots"/*
+if command -v readelf >/dev/null; then
+  readelf -d "$libexec/vtabs" \
+    | sed -n 's/.*R\(UN\)\?PATH.*\[\(.*\)\]/\2/p' \
+    | tr ':' '\n' \
+    | sed -n 's|^\(/nix/store/[^/]*\).*|\1|p' \
+    | sort -u \
+    | while read -r path; do
+        nix-store --realise --add-root "$gcroots/$(basename "$path")" \
+          --indirect "$path" >/dev/null 2>&1 || true
+      done
+  echo "pinned $(find "$gcroots" -maxdepth 1 -type l | wc -l) store paths against garbage collection"
+else
+  echo "warning: readelf not found; store paths left unpinned (nix-collect-garbage may break the install)" >&2
+fi
+
+# Let the desktop notice the new entry and icon right away.
+command -v update-desktop-database >/dev/null && update-desktop-database -q "$apps" || true
+command -v gtk-update-icon-cache   >/dev/null && gtk-update-icon-cache -qtf "$data/icons/hicolor" 2>/dev/null || true
+
+echo "installed $bindir/vtabs"
+case ":$PATH:" in
+  *":$bindir:"*) ;;
+  *) echo "note: $bindir is not on your PATH; the desktop entry still works" >&2 ;;
+esac
+'''
+
+[tasks.uninstall]
+description = "Remove everything `install` put into ~/.local"
+run = '''
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -euo pipefail
+
+data="${XDG_DATA_HOME:-$HOME/.local/share}"
+apps="$data/applications"
+
+rm -f "$HOME/.local/bin/vtabs"
+rm -rf "$HOME/.local/libexec/vtabs"
+rm -f "$apps/dev.greyson.vtabs.desktop"
+rm -f "$data/icons/hicolor/scalable/apps/dev.greyson.vtabs.svg"
+# Dropping the roots lets Nix reclaim the runtime closure on its next GC.
+rm -rf "$data/vtabs"
+
+command -v update-desktop-database >/dev/null && update-desktop-database -q "$apps" || true
+command -v gtk-update-icon-cache   >/dev/null && gtk-update-icon-cache -qtf "$data/icons/hicolor" 2>/dev/null || true
+
+echo "uninstalled vtabs"
+'''