diff --git a/basis/ui/backend/backend.factor b/basis/ui/backend/backend.factor
index aa84419d64..eaa0953d25 100755
--- a/basis/ui/backend/backend.factor
+++ b/basis/ui/backend/backend.factor
@@ -5,8 +5,6 @@ IN: ui.backend
 
 SYMBOL: ui-backend
 
-HOOK: do-events ui-backend ( -- )
-
 HOOK: set-title ui-backend ( string world -- )
 
 HOOK: set-fullscreen* ui-backend ( ? world -- )
diff --git a/basis/ui/cocoa/cocoa.factor b/basis/ui/cocoa/cocoa.factor
index fecbb52a25..331c0a698c 100755
--- a/basis/ui/cocoa/cocoa.factor
+++ b/basis/ui/cocoa/cocoa.factor
@@ -3,10 +3,11 @@
 USING: accessors math arrays assocs cocoa cocoa.application
 command-line kernel memory namespaces cocoa.messages
 cocoa.runtime cocoa.subclassing cocoa.pasteboard cocoa.types
-cocoa.windows cocoa.classes cocoa.nibs sequences system
-ui ui.backend ui.clipboards ui.gadgets ui.gadgets.worlds
-ui.cocoa.views core-foundation threads math.geometry.rect fry
-libc generalizations alien.c-types cocoa.views combinators ;
+cocoa.windows cocoa.classes cocoa.nibs sequences system ui
+ui.backend ui.clipboards ui.gadgets ui.gadgets.worlds
+ui.cocoa.views core-foundation core-foundation.run-loop threads
+math.geometry.rect fry libc generalizations alien.c-types
+cocoa.views combinators io.thread ;
 IN: ui.cocoa
 
 TUPLE: handle ;
@@ -18,9 +19,6 @@ C: <offscreen-handle> offscreen-handle
 
 SINGLETON: cocoa-ui-backend
 
-M: cocoa-ui-backend do-events ( -- )
-    [ NSApp '[ _ do-event ] loop ui-wait ] with-autorelease-pool ;
-
 TUPLE: pasteboard handle ;
 
 C: <pasteboard> pasteboard
@@ -134,8 +132,8 @@ CLASS: {
     { +name+ "FactorApplicationDelegate" }
 }
 
-{ "applicationDidFinishLaunching:" "void" { "id" "SEL" "id" }
-    [ 3drop event-loop ]
+{  "applicationDidUpdate:" "void" { "id" "SEL" "id" }
+    [ 3drop reset-run-loop ]
 } ;
 
 : install-app-delegate ( -- )
@@ -153,6 +151,9 @@ M: cocoa-ui-backend ui
             init-clipboard
             cocoa-init-hook get call
             start-ui
+            f io-thread-running? set-global
+            init-thread-timer
+            reset-run-loop
             NSApp -> run
         ] ui-running
     ] with-cocoa ;
diff --git a/basis/ui/event-loop/event-loop.factor b/basis/ui/event-loop/event-loop.factor
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..fe6f4d7de5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/basis/ui/event-loop/event-loop.factor
@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+! Copyright (C) 2008 Slava Pestov.
+! See http://factorcode.org/license.txt for BSD license.
+USING: ui.backend kernel namespaces sequences deques calendar
+threads ;
+IN: ui.event-loop
+
+: event-loop? ( -- ? )
+    {
+        { [ stop-after-last-window? get not ] [ t ] }
+        { [ graft-queue deque-empty? not ] [ t ] }
+        { [ windows get-global empty? not ] [ t ] }
+        [ f ]
+    } cond ;
+
+HOOK: do-events ui-backend ( -- )
+
+: event-loop ( quot -- ) [ event-loop? ] [ do-events ] [ ] while ;
+
+: ui-wait ( -- ) 10 milliseconds sleep ;
diff --git a/basis/ui/ui.factor b/basis/ui/ui.factor
index 1ee860c974..b6bc172c21 100644
--- a/basis/ui/ui.factor
+++ b/basis/ui/ui.factor
@@ -12,16 +12,6 @@ SYMBOL: windows
 
 SYMBOL: stop-after-last-window?
 
-: event-loop? ( -- ? )
-    {
-        { [ stop-after-last-window? get not ] [ t ] }
-        { [ graft-queue deque-empty? not ] [ t ] }
-        { [ windows get-global empty? not ] [ t ] }
-        [ f ]
-    } cond ;
-
-: event-loop ( -- ) [ event-loop? ] [ do-events ] [ ] while ;
-
 : window ( handle -- world ) windows get-global at ;
 
 : window-focus ( handle -- gadget ) window world-focus ;
@@ -155,9 +145,6 @@ SYMBOL: ui-hook
         ] assert-depth
     ] [ ui-error ] recover ;
 
-: ui-wait ( -- )
-    10 milliseconds sleep ;
-
 SYMBOL: ui-thread
 
 : ui-running ( quot -- )
diff --git a/basis/ui/windows/windows.factor b/basis/ui/windows/windows.factor
index 35ee9f9a60..7f68bb5736 100755
--- a/basis/ui/windows/windows.factor
+++ b/basis/ui/windows/windows.factor
@@ -3,14 +3,14 @@
 ! See http://factorcode.org/license.txt for BSD license.
 USING: alien alien.c-types alien.strings arrays assocs ui
 ui.gadgets ui.backend ui.clipboards ui.gadgets.worlds
-ui.gestures io kernel math math.vectors namespaces make
-sequences strings vectors words windows.kernel32 windows.gdi32
-windows.user32 windows.opengl32 windows.messages windows.types
-windows.nt windows threads libc combinators fry
+ui.gestures ui.event-loop io kernel math math.vectors namespaces
+make sequences strings vectors words windows.kernel32
+windows.gdi32 windows.user32 windows.opengl32 windows.messages
+windows.types windows.nt windows threads libc combinators fry
 combinators.short-circuit continuations command-line shuffle
 opengl ui.render ascii math.bitwise locals symbols accessors
-math.geometry.rect math.order ascii calendar
-io.encodings.utf16n ;
+math.geometry.rect math.order ascii calendar io.encodings.utf16n
+;
 IN: ui.windows
 
 SINGLETON: windows-ui-backend
diff --git a/basis/ui/x11/x11.factor b/basis/ui/x11/x11.factor
index 817e356712..9be3c2fd10 100755
--- a/basis/ui/x11/x11.factor
+++ b/basis/ui/x11/x11.factor
@@ -2,9 +2,9 @@
 ! See http://factorcode.org/license.txt for BSD license.
 USING: accessors alien alien.c-types arrays ui ui.gadgets
 ui.gestures ui.backend ui.clipboards ui.gadgets.worlds ui.render
-assocs kernel math namespaces opengl sequences strings x11.xlib
-x11.events x11.xim x11.glx x11.clipboard x11.constants
-x11.windows io.encodings.string io.encodings.ascii
+ui.event-loop assocs kernel math namespaces opengl sequences
+strings x11.xlib x11.events x11.xim x11.glx x11.clipboard
+x11.constants x11.windows io.encodings.string io.encodings.ascii
 io.encodings.utf8 combinators command-line qualified
 math.vectors classes.tuple opengl.gl threads math.geometry.rect
 environment ascii ;