**Features** - Add multiple folders to the menu bar - Each folder can be individually customized - File preview - View and copy image & video dimensions - Drag & drop files directly from the menu - Global keyboard shortcut to show/hide each folder menu (optionally opens at cursor position) - Open a file or folder in a specific app - Follows aliases and symlinks - Shortcuts support ### Guide {#guide} Folder Peek lets you put one or more folders in the menu bar. Make sure you read the below tips and FAQ. ## Tips - Click a file or folder in the menu to open it. Folders open in Finder. - Click a file while pressing the Option key to show it in Finder. - Click the folder title ([the top menu item](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/assets/170270/79c4e9c7-8abf-49da-b8fb-3a942017442e)) to open the folder. - You can drag files directly from the menu. You can also drag the file thumbnail in the file submenu. Press the Option key while dragging to copy instead of moving. - Press the Option key when viewing the file details to copy the path or image/video dimensions. - You can use the Shortcuts support to show/hide certain folders depending on what project you are working on. - If you have the menu bar item folders next to each other and you have one folder open, you can press Control+Tab or Shift+Control+Tab to switch between them. - In Settings, you can configure the keyboard shortcut to open the menu at the cursor position instead of at the menu bar icon. - Press the Option key while the menu is open to show the `…` menu item at the top if it normally is at the bottom. - Right-click or Option-click the menu bar item to open the folder. - Press the Shift key while viewing a subfolder to reveal more actions. For example, sort order settings. - Search: Just start typing when the menu is open to find a file or folder in the menu. This is just the standard menu behavior where you can type to highlight a certain menu item. It’s not a full-blown search. ### Links You can use Folder Peek to access links too. Drag and drop the URL from the Safari address bar into a folder. You will end up with a file with a `.webloc` extension. When you click that file in Folder Peek, it will open in your browser. ### Desktop folder You could add the “Desktop” folder to Folder Peek and then [hide the desktop icons](https://beebom.com/how-hide-desktop-icons-mac/) for a cleaner look. ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### Why is the app suddenly paid? It used to be free. While I love making free apps that are available to anyone, the high volume of support requests became unsustainable. After providing the app for free for 4 years with more than 50K downloads, I made the decision to make it paid. This isn’t about revenue. It’s about managing my time more effectively by reducing the support burden to a sustainable level. ### Some folders are suddenly missing from the menu bar When the menu bar has no space left, macOS hides overflowing items. Try quitting some menu bar apps. ### The menu bar icon is not perfectly vertically centered This is a macOS bug on non-Retina displays. There is unfortunately not much I can do about this. ### How can I show specific files and folders from various places? {#show-specific-items} You can create a folder that contains aliases to the files and folders you want to be included in the menu. Create a folder to put aliases in and add that folder to the app. Make aliases for the files and folders you want in the menu and move the aliases into the folder you just made. ### What is an alias? An [alias](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/create-and-remove-aliases-on-mac-mchlp1046/mac) is a shortcut to an app, file, or folder that you can keep anywhere on your Mac. Right-click an item in Finder and select “Make Alias” to make one. ### How can I use this as an app launcher? {#app-launcher} Just add the “Applications” folder to the app if you want to show all your apps. If you want to show only certain apps, create a normal folder anywhere, for example on your Desktop. Then open the “Applications” folder in Finder, right-click each app you want, choose “Make Alias”, and move those aliases into the new folder. Finally, add that new folder to Folder Peek. ### How can I show multiple folders at the top level in a single menu? {#show-multiple-folders} See the “Can I show specific files and folders from various places?” answer. ### How can I show certain folders in the menu bar depending on what I’m working on? {#faq-shortcuts} You can create a shortcut in the Shortcuts app using the “Set Folder Visibility” action where you show only certain folders. For example, you could make a shortcut named “Start Work” which hides your personal folders in the menu bar and shows folders for your work projects. Use Shortcuts automations to run this shortcut at a certain time or on any other condition. ### How can I drag & drop a file from the menu? You can drag & drop files directly from the menu. Press the Option key while dragging to copy instead of moving. ### How can I copy the file path? {#copy-file-path} Press the Option key while viewing a file to reveal a “Copy Path” button. ### How can I copy the image/video dimensions? Press the Option key while viewing an image or video to reveal a “Copy Dimensions” button. ### How can I change the sort order for a subfolder? Press the Shift key while viewing a subfolder to reveal more actions, including a sort order setting. ### How can I have a menu bar folder with my most recent screenshots? Make a folder to hold the screenshots and add the folder to the app. Open the Screenshot app, click “Options”, then “Other Location”, and choose the folder you just made. In Folder Peek, open the folder config, change the sort order to “Date Created”, and set “Max Items” to something like 20. You may also want to [disable the screenshot preview](https://osxdaily.com/2019/08/02/disable-screenshot-thumbnail-preview-mac/) so the screenshot shows up in the screenshot folder right away. ### How can I add a Smart Folder? {#smart-folder} A [Smart Folder](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/create-or-change-a-smart-folder-on-mac-mchlp2804/mac) is a special feature in Finder that allows you to create a virtual folder based on specific search criteria. The files within the Smart Folder are not physically stored in one location, but rather are located in different areas of your computer. Unfortunately, it is not possible to add a Smart Folder to Folder Peek as the functionality cannot be replicated. ### How do I remove a folder from Folder Peek? - **Individual menu bar items mode:** Click the menu bar item, go to the first menu item (which is named after your folder), go to its submenu, and then select “Remove Folder”. - **Single menu bar item mode:** In Settings, right-click the folder to reveal the “Remove” option. ### Can I navigate to a folder multiple levels deep and then drop a file into it? No, that is unfortunately not possible. Folder Peek is built as a system menu, and a menu cannot be kept open if it’s not focused. Instead, first, navigate to the nested folder, click to open it in Finder, and then drag & drop the file into the Finder window. ### Can I drag & drop files into a folder listed in the menu? {#drop-into-folder} No. The app supports dragging files *out* of the menu, but not dropping files *into* it. macOS menus do not support receiving drops. To move a file into a folder listed in the app, first click the folder in the menu to open it in Finder, then drag the file into the Finder window. ### Can it auto-mount a network volume when accessing it? {#network-volume} No, this is not possible because of [sandboxing](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#macos-sandbox). To use a network volume in the app, you need to either mount it manually first or use a tool like [AutoMounter](https://pixeleyes.co.nz/automounter/) to keep it always mounted. ### Can it support adding a tag instead of a folder? No. This is not planned. ### The app I want does not show up in the “Open With” menu for a folder {#folder-open-with} Apps define the types they support and Folder Peek just fetches a list of apps that support opening folders. However, many apps forget to declare support for folders even though they can open them. I would encourage reporting this to the developers of the app you want to open ([example report](https://github.com/microsoft/vscode/issues/146977)). In the meantime, I’m happy to manually add the app to the list if you contact me, but you are expected to also have reported the issue to the app’s developers. The app developer will need to add `public.folder` to `LSItemContentTypes` in their app’s Info.plist: ```xml
#### Limitations Rich text copied from a different device will not have its formatting cleared because of a bug in Universal Clipboard. ## Tips - Right-click the menu bar icon to toggle the “Automatically clear formatting” setting. ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### Why not just use the `Paste and Match Style` menu item or `⌥⇧⌘V`? - This app can make it the default behavior. - That menu item is not available in all apps. - The keyboard shortcut is hard to remember and type. - In some apps, like Chrome, the keyboard shortcut is different. - This app can exclude certain apps, preserve links, normalize (quotes, newlines, lists, etc.) and also remove tracking parameters from URLs. - The app has workarounds (9000+ lines of code) for lots of apps to make the experience *just work*. ### Why not just remap the `Paste and Match Style` keyboard shortcut to `⌘V`? Same as the above except the first two list items. ### The app does not show up in the menu bar [Try this](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#app-not-showing-in-menu-bar) You may also have enabled the “Hide menu bar icon” setting, which hides the menu bar icon. Launch the app again to reveal the menu bar item for 5 seconds. ### The app does not work - Ensure automatic clearing is enabled or you have set a keyboard shortcut for clearing. - Ensure you have not excluded (in the settings) the app you want to use it with. - Try copy-pasting to/from a different app to ensure the problem is with Pure Paste. - If you are using a custom keyboard shortcut for clearing, try [resetting privacy permissions](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#mac-reset-permissions). - If you have “Preserve links” enabled, try disabling it. When links are preserved, all styling is cleared but the clipboard remains rich text. Some apps restyle rich text anyway. - Verify that Pure Paste actually cleared formatting by using my [Pasteboard Viewer](https://sindresorhus.com/pasteboard-viewer). If you see the item `com.sindresorhus.Pure-Paste.hasRun` in the sidebar, Pure Paste worked. Any remaining formatting is added by the app you paste into. Some apps do this even for plain text. - [More…](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#app-problem) ### Pure Paste conflicts with my clipboard manager This is a known issue. It’s just a flaw in how the clipboard works. If your clipboard manager reads the clipboard first, it will get it. If Pure Paste then reads the clipboard, it will do its thing, but also tell clipboard managers not to fetch the new contents as otherwise, they might end up with duplicates. This is required as otherwise certain features like “fast-append” don’t work in Alfred and other clipboard managers. I’m working on a way all apps can collaborate, but it will take some time. For now, I suggest setting a keyboard shortcut for “Clear formatting and paste” and then turning off “Automatically clear formatting”. ### The app clears formatting when it shouldn’t or doesn’t clear formatting when it should {#clear-formatting-problem} [Let me know.](https://sindresorhus.com/feedback?product=Pure%20Paste&referrer=Website-FAQ) I will fix it quickly, if possible. There are some cases I cannot fix though: - **The Pages and Keynote apps paste text as a table.** These apps paste any text with multiple lines as a table. This is not a problem with Pure Paste and is also not something I can fix. You can complain to Apple about the behavior [here](https://www.apple.com/feedback/pages.html). - [**Tables in Word are not preserved.**](https://sindresorhus.com/pure-paste#word-tables) - Formatting is not cleared when copying and pasting inside LibreOffice. This is a LibreOffice bug. Pure Paste correctly clears the formatting of the clipboard contents, but LibreOffice does not read the new clipboard contents until you first focus a different window. Try copying some styled text in LibreOffice, focus a different window, focus LibreOffice again, and then paste. It now correctly pastes the text without formatting. - Mail app: Formatting is cleared but does not match the style used for emails. Pure Paste correctly clears the formatting, but the Mail app does not correctly make text without formatting match the existing style. ### The copy/paste custom keyboard shortcut does not work Try [resetting privacy permissions](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#mac-reset-permissions) for the app. macOS can sometimes corrupt these permissions, causing the shortcut to fail. ### What are tracking parameters and why would I want to remove them? Removing tracking parameters improves privacy and also makes URLs more aesthetically pleasing. Tracking parameters are used by many websites to track your browsing activity across websites. [Learn more.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UTM_parameters) Pure Paste supports 200+ common tracking parameters (e.g. Google UTM) and it has special support for removing tracking from links to X (Twitter), Facebook, and TikTok. Before: `https://foo.com?utm_content=buffercf3b2&utm_source=snapchat.com`\ After: `https://foo.com` Did you know that if you click a TikTok link that someone shared with you, they will be able to see that you watched it? Pure Paste anonymizes TikTok links so that you will not be tracked. ### Tracking parameters are not removed {#tracking-parameters-not-removed} First, make sure the setting to remove tracking parameters is enabled. Tracking parameters are not removed if the “Automatically Clear Formatting” preference is disabled or you did not manually trigger format clearing. The app contains a list of tracking parameters to remove, but there may be site-specific tracking parameters it doesn’t know about. If you encounter any tracking parameters not being removed, [let me know](https://sindresorhus.com/feedback?product=Pure%20Paste&referrer=Website-FAQ) and I’ll add support for them. ### Can you add a setting to preserve bold and italic? In short, no. To preserve bold and italic, the app has to preserve the font too, and by preserving the font, it has to set a font name and size. This means the text will not match the destination formatting. Instead, for example, in Word, you can copy with formatting and select “Paste and Match Formatting”, which correctly preserves bold and italic while clearing color and sizes. ### I have “Preserve links” enabled, and when I paste into an app (for example, Mimestream), it ends up with the “Times New Roman” font instead of the system font When “Preserve links” is enabled, Pure Paste removes formatting but keeps the text as rich text instead of plain text. Some apps don’t handle this properly and default to “Times New Roman”. The only workaround is to disable “Preserve links”. ### I have “Preserve links” enabled, and when I paste into Word, it ends up with the “Times New Roman” font instead of the existing font {#word-bug} This is a bug in Word. ~~Please upvote [this report](https://feedbackportal.microsoft.com/feedback/idea/614f1602-cdd8-ec11-a81b-000d3a03dba2).~~ (Update: They removed the bug report and blocked me there 🤷♂️) As a workaround, you can either disable the “Preserve links” setting or use “Paste and Match Formatting” in the “Edit” menu in Word. ### I have “Preserve links” enabled, and when I paste into an app, it ends up with the “Helvetica” font instead of the existing font {#helvetica-bug} This is a bug in macOS. As a workaround, you can either disable the “Preserve links” setting or use “Paste and Match Style” in the “Edit” menu of the app. If you work for Apple or want to help out by duplicating my reports, see: - [FB10023436](https://github.com/feedback-assistant/reports/issues/307) - [FB10023420](https://github.com/feedback-assistant/reports/issues/306) - [FB10023393](https://github.com/feedback-assistant/reports/issues/305) ### Excel, Word, and PowerPoint are missing some actions in “Paste Options” {#office-apps} Pure Paste works by modifying the clipboard. Office hides most of the “Paste Options” actions if the clipboard is modified. The solution is to either: 1. Exclude the Office apps in the Pure Paste settings. 1. Turn off “Automatically Clear Formatting” and instead set a keyboard shortcut in the settings. That way the clipboard stays unmodified until you use the keyboard shortcut to clear & paste. ### Tables are not preserved when I copy-paste in Word {#word-tables} There is no way to preserve tables while clearing formatting of their cell contents. Different apps have different ways to represent tables on the clipboard. When you need to preserve a table, just temporarily disable Pure Paste. See the “Automatic clear formatting” setting on how to skip format clearing once. You can also right-click the menu bar icon to enable/disable automatic format clearing. Or set a global keyboard shortcut. ### Why doesn’t cutting work in Excel when Pure Paste is active? Excel has unique (incorrect) interactions with the clipboard, which is incompatible with Pure Paste. When you cut text in Excel, the app puts metadata on the clipboard that a cut operation is being performed. Pure Paste, designed to remove formatting from copied text, inadvertently clears this info when it cleans the clipboard. The result is that Excel thinks it’s a copy operation instead. You can either add Excel to the exclude list in the Pure Paste settings or turn off automatic format clearing and set a “clear formatting and paste” keyboard shortcut instead. ### The app does not clear formatting when copy-pasting an image inside Google Docs Web apps do not follow the standard clipboard conventions that native desktop apps do. When you copy an image in Google Docs, it just puts a bunch of HTML code on the clipboard. Pure Paste cannot easily know it’s an image you copied. ### The app does not clear formatting when copy-pasting rich text inside Figma {#figma} Web apps do not follow the standard clipboard conventions that native desktop apps do. When you copy some rich text in Figma, it just puts a bunch of HTML code on the clipboard. Pure Paste cannot easily know it’s rich text you copied. ### The app does not preserve links when pasting into Google Docs even with the “Preserve links” setting enabled There is a [problem with Google Docs](https://webapps.stackexchange.com/questions/69248/is-there-a-way-to-paste-rtf-text-into-google-document) where it strips links from rich text content. It happens even without Pure Paste. Web apps are generally bad at following platform conventions. ### Copying a cell with a formula in Numbers or Excel loses the formula {#numbers-formula} Pure Paste clears formatting by replacing the clipboard with a plain text version (this is the only reliable way to clear formatting). However, some apps store metadata on the clipboard, and in this specific case, these apps store the formula as metadata in the clipboard, which is then lost. There is no reliable way to detect this. The solution is to either: 1. Skip clearing formatting for just this copy (see instructions in the app settings). 1. Exclude the app in the Pure Paste settings. ### The exclude setting does not work Copy something from the app you have excluded, press the Option key while clicking the Pure Paste menu bar item, and then make sure the app shown in the menu is the same as the one you excluded. ### How can I exclude certain websites? This will not be supported. A workaround would be to [turn the website into an app in Safari](https://support.apple.com/guide/safari/add-to-dock-ibrw9e991864/mac). You could then exclude that app. The need for such a setting only arises because many web apps do not adhere to platform clipboard standards, unlike native apps. ### Can it support pasting with formatting when pressing Command+Shift+V? The app technically clears formatting when something is copied not pasted, so the formatting is already cleared when that shortcut is pressed. ### Can I quickly toggle “Preserve links” or some other setting? {#toggle-setting} Yes, with the Shortcuts app. Create a shortcut with the “Change Pure Paste Settings” action in Shortcuts. Pin it to the Shortcuts menu bar or assign a global keyboard shortcut in Shortcuts. ### Formatting is not cleared when I copy text from a PDF {#pdf-formatting} This is expected. Text in a PDF is almost always plain text already, so there is no rich text formatting (fonts, colors, bold, links, etc.) for Pure Paste to clear. What you are most likely seeing instead are line breaks in the middle of sentences, words split with hyphens across lines, or uneven spacing. These are not formatting; they are part of the PDF’s page layout and are baked into the text as real characters. Clearing formatting cannot remove them, because there is no formatting involved. If you want to clean up the line breaks, see [removing newlines/linebreaks](https://sindresorhus.com/pure-paste#removing-newlines) below. ### Can you add support for removing newlines/linebreaks? {#removing-newlines} The app is designed to *just work*, but removing newlines is not suitable for all use cases. For instance, you may want to remove newlines when copying text from a PDF, but not from Word. If you still want this feature, add the following to the “JavaScript” setting: ```js return $.text.replace(/(\r?\n)/gm, ' '); ``` And if you want to preserve paragraphs, use: ```js return $.text.replace(/([^\r\n])(?:\r?\n)(?!\r?\n)/g, '$1 '); ``` ### Can I temporarily pause “Automatically clear formatting”? Not built in. You can run [this shortcut](https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/38ed17936c784768a36b6220700260cc) from Spotlight that disables “Automatically clear formatting”, waits 5 minutes, then re-enables it. ### Does it respect nspasteboard.org conventions? Yes, it follows the [nspasteboard.org](http://nspasteboard.org) conventions, so it ignores concealed (passwords), transient, and auto-generated content. ## Older Versions - [1.13.2](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/jn1xiyns80ea9jp4g16zx/Pure-Paste-1.13.2-macOS-15-1771414631.zip?rlkey=ah6wly1apojlb1paes5zi9dh6&raw=1) for macOS 15 - [1.11.4](https://github.com/user-attachments/files/18969765/Pure.Paste.1.11.4.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14 - [1.9.2](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/14350035/Pure.Paste.1.9.2.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13 - [1.6.4](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/10793621/Pure.Paste.1.6.4.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12 These are free for everyone but they will not run on newer macOS versions. --- # One Thing Put a single task or goal in your menu bar. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/one-thing Write the one task or goal that matters most today, and see it in your menu bar all day. A quiet reminder to focus on one thing at a time. Some examples of what you could write: - Eat more healthily - Exercise - Reply to Sara’s email - Be happy - Stop procrastinating - Finish the 🦄 project - Important meeting today However, what you use this space for is really up to you.
> You can achieve almost anything in life — as long as you focus on achieving one thing at a time. It’s a time-tested strategy that’s been shared by many successful people. — [https://dariusforoux.com/one-thing/](https://dariusforoux.com/one-thing/)
> [!TIP] > You may also like my [Any Text](https://sindresorhus.com/any-text) and [One Task](https://sindresorhus.com/one-task) apps.
### Mentions - [10 Mac Apps That Will Change How You Use macOS in 2026](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtuUwACZdsQ&t=108s) ## Tips - Press return/esc or click the menu bar item to close the edit window. - Click the menu bar item while pressing shift to clear the text. - Right-click the menu bar item to be able to quit the app quickly. - If the menu bar item text is truncated, hover over it to see the full text in a tooltip. - You can use [Markdown](https://www.markdownguide.org/basic-syntax/#emphasis) to [style the text](https://x.com/sindresorhus/status/1481818533294407680) (supports bold, italic, and strikethrough) and add links. - You can [drag & drop text](https://x.com/sindresorhus/status/1481862243755376642) onto the menu bar item to set it. For example, you could drag a todo item from the Reminders app or Things. - Select some text in any app, right-click, select “Services”, and click “Send to One Thing” to set One Thing to the selected text. You can also use the “Share” menu item if the app supports that. ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### The menu bar item has disappeared! macOS hides menu bar items that do not fit. [Click here](one-thing:?text=) to reset the text. ### I made the text too long and now the menu bar item is hidden [Click here](one-thing:?text=) to reset the text. ### The text looks blurry or is not dimmed on my secondary display [See this answer](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#menu-bar-secondary-display) ### How is this different from your One Task app? {#one-task-difference} See [this answer](https://sindresorhus.com/one-task#one-thing-difference). ### Can I execute an action when I click the text? You can add a [link using Markdown](https://www.markdownguide.org/basic-syntax/#links). ### What if I have two things? The point is to focus on one thing at a time. [Humans work best this way.](https://dariusforoux.com/one-thing/) However, nothing is stopping you from writing two things, for example, with a `·` character in-between. ### Can I have two instances of One Thing running at the same time? {#one-thing2} I have made a special version of One Thing with a different identifier. You can run this together with the App Store version. It also has separate Shortcuts actions and URL scheme: `one-thing2:`. This version will not receive updates. [Download](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/pn3k0r6edea21my7beqz3/One-Thing-2-1.11.0-1684349283-1701610241.zip?rlkey=qgv6rmx9bitjki4xbh05tn2ty&raw=1) ### How can I show the next task in the “Today” list in Things in One Thing? {#things} You can use the Shortcuts app for this. Here is an [example shortcut](https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/7f8a4cc8764348518c5b7774d60191cc) that sets the next todo in “Today” as the text in One Thing. To have the shown todo stay in sync with [Things](https://culturedcode.com/things/), use the [Shortery](https://apps.apple.com/app/id1594183810) app to run the shortcut when Things becomes inactive. Alternatively, place the shortcut in the menu bar and run it manually, or use [Short Run](https://sindresorhus.com/short-run). ### How can I show the upcoming reminder from the Reminders app in One Thing? {#reminders} You can use the Shortcuts app for this. Here is an [example shortcut](https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/4bed5f56a0f94e9a9e9ba05c97c6e64b). To have the shown todo stay in sync with Reminders, use the [Shortery](https://apps.apple.com/app/id1594183810) app to run the shortcut when Reminders becomes inactive. Alternatively, place the shortcut in the menu bar and run it manually, or use [Short Run](https://sindresorhus.com/short-run). ### How can I show a todo from my favorite todo app in One Thing? Do something similar to the above answer. ### How can I show a random quote in the menu bar? {#quote} You can use the Shortcuts app for this. Here is an [example shortcut](https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/35d88a7b56154893bd2e28e3988410f1). Use a Shortcuts automation to run the shortcut at certain times to change the quote. ### How can I put spacing on the sides of the text? You can add some horizontal padding around the text by adding multiple spaces to the “Prefix” and “Suffix” settings. ### How can I show different text for each day of the week? You can use the macOS Shortcuts app for this. Make a shortcut for each piece of text you want to be shown by using the “Set Text” action provided by One Thing. Then use Shortcuts automations to run these shortcuts on the specific days. ### Can you add iOS / watchOS support? I plan to do it if the app takes off. So tell your friends. ### How can I export, import, sync, or back up the settings? [See this guide.](https://github.com/sindresorhus/guides/blob/main/backup-app-settings.md) ### Is the app native? Yes, it’s native and written in Swift and SwiftUI. ## Scripting The app can be automated using the Shortcuts app or with a custom URL scheme. More integrations: - [Command-line tool](https://github.com/sindresorhus/one-thing) - [Node.js API](https://github.com/sindresorhus/one-thing) - [Raycast commands](https://github.com/raycast/script-commands/tree/master/commands#one-thing) - Note: Raycast commands are not the same as plugins. [How to install commands.](https://github.com/raycast/script-commands#install-script-commands-from-this-repository) ### Shortcuts app - [Example shortcut](https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/381619f1c8404770ad020d439a48fd9c) - [Shortcuts usage guide](https://www.xda-developers.com/guide-shortcuts-macos/) - [How to run shortcuts from the command-line](https://support.apple.com/guide/shortcuts-mac/run-shortcuts-from-the-command-line-apd455c82f02/mac) **Examples** - [Reminders app: Show latest due reminder](https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/5d3e63030877471697dd0023fefc4819) - [Things app: Show the first todo in the “Today” list](https://sindresorhus.com/one-thing#things) ### Custom URL scheme The menu bar item text can be set from any tool that can open an URL. This includes a website, Bash, Node.js, Python, Swift, etc. For example, in your terminal: ```sh open --background 'one-thing:?text=Exercise' ``` *Don’t forget to [URL encode](https://www.urlencoder.org) the value for the `text=` search parameter. For example, using [this](https://gist.github.com/cdown/1163649) Bash function.* There is no way to get the text using the URL scheme, but if you are in the terminal, you can run this command: ```sh defaults read com.sindresorhus.One-Thing text ``` ## Older Versions - [1.13.2](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/s092qpp3p5s77gnjsyty3/One-Thing-1.13.2-macOS-15-1770923231.zip?rlkey=big014nrx8xrw4mwfnxwxbmxy&raw=1) for macOS 15+ - [1.12.2](https://github.com/user-attachments/files/19145029/One.Thing.1.12.2.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14+ - [1.11.3](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/14759175/One.Thing.1.11.3.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13+ - [1.9.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/11081660/One.Thing.1.9.0.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12+ ## Non-App Store Version A special version for users that cannot access the App Store. It won’t receive automatic updates. I will update it here once a year. [Download](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/4d3zqtuj4j2erm6ck80ei/One-Thing-2.0.2-1778696587.zip?rlkey=s2h6g802mi674wkg7s5olfb9l&raw=1) *(2.0.2)* *Requires macOS 26 or later* --- # Speediness Check your internet speed. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/speediness Quickly check your internet connection speed, ping, and [RPM](https://sindresorhus.com/speediness#rpm). ## Tips ### Show the current internet speed in the menu bar {#menu-bar-output}
> [!TIP] > You may also like my [Simple Color Palette](https://sindresorhus.com/simple-color-palette) app. ## Tips - Press the Space key while using the color sampler to show the RGB values. The color sampler is a system component and it can unfortunately not show other kinds of color values. - Press the Option key when copying the Hex color to invert whether to include `#`. - Press the Shift key while selecting a color using the color sampler to prevent it from disappearing after your selection. ### Keyboard shortcuts You can use the following keyboard shortcuts in the app: - Pick color: Command p - Copy as Hex: Shift Command h - Copy as HSL: Shift Command s - Copy as RGB: Shift Command r - Copy as Unit RGB: Shift Command u - Copy as OKLCH: Shift Command o - Copy as LCH: Shift Command l - Copy as CMYK: Shift Command k - Paste color: Shift Command v *(In the format Hex, HSL, RGB, Unit RGB, OKLCH, LCH, or CMYK)* - Reset opacity: Control Shift o #### Switch between picker tabs You can quickly switch between different color picker tabs: - Next tab: Control Tab - Previous tab: Shift Control Tab - Wheel: Control 1 - Sliders: Control 2 - Color Palettes: Control 3 - Image Palettes: Control 4 - Pencils: Control 5 - Extensions: Control 6-9 *(if installed)* ### Plugins The built-in color picker supports plugins: - [Skala Color](https://bjango.com/mac/skalacolor/) - [Pro Picker](https://formulae.brew.sh/cask/colorpicker-propicker) - [Material Design](https://github.com/johnyanarella/MaterialDesignColorPicker) - [Color Picker Plus](https://github.com/viktorstrate/color-picker-plus) ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### Can the color sampler show Hex values? No. The color sampler in the app is provided by macOS and only supports showing RGB values when you press the Space key. To show Hex (or other formats) directly in the sampler would require a completely custom sampler, which in turn would need extra system permissions like “Screen Recording”. For now, the fastest workflow is to pick a color with the sampler and then copy it in Hex format from the app. ### What is OKLCH color? [It’s a more human-friendly color format.](https://evilmartians.com/chronicles/oklch-in-css-why-quit-rgb-hsl) Prefer this format. ### How is OKLCH better than LCH? [OKLCH](https://evilmartians.com/chronicles/oklch-in-css-why-quit-rgb-hsl) improves upon [LCH](https://lea.verou.me/2020/04/lch-colors-in-css-what-why-and-how/) by providing more accurate and consistent colors, particularly in very bright or very saturated areas. ### What is Unit RGB? It represents RGB values in the range 0-1 instead of 0-255. This format is commonly used for programming (SwiftUI, AppKit, UIKit, etc.) and other graphics programming contexts. For example, `0.5, 0.5, 0.5` in [Unit RGB](https://rgbcolorpicker.com/0-1) is equivalent to `rgb(128, 128, 128)` in standard RGB. It accepts values in the format `0.1, 0.1, 0.1` and `0.1 0.1 0.1`, including with opacity `0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.5`. ### Can you support HSB? You can copy a color as HSB by clicking the `(…)` button in the window and selecting “Copy as HSB”. You can also see live HSB values in the “Sliders” tab by selecting “HSB Sliders”. HSB is intentionally not one of the main formats. HSB has no CSS syntax, while all the main formats can be pasted directly into CSS. HSL is also easier to reason about: lightness goes from black (0%) through the pure color (50%) to white (100%), so making a tint or shade means changing a single value. In HSB, making a color lighter requires both increasing brightness and decreasing saturation. If you want perceptual control, prefer OKLCH. ### The color changes if I copy and then paste it That is because the default color space in the picker is [Display P3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DCI-P3), which is [part of CSS Color 4](https://drafts.csswg.org/css-color-4/#valdef-color-display-p3), but the color space used for the legacy CSS color formats is [sRGB](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SRGB) (browsers are starting to [handle color spaces](https://css-tricks.com/the-expanding-gamut-of-color-on-the-web/) but they are not all there yet). ### How do I clear the list of recently picked colors? In the main app window, click the clock icon in the middle toolbar. ### How do I use palettes? You can manage palettes by selecting the third tab in the window toolbar. The fastest way to add a color to a palette is to paste a Hex color value into the app and then click the `+` button in the palette. You can also drag and drop a color into the palette from anywhere. Palettes can be accessed both from the app and the menu bar icon (if enabled). You can even access them in other apps that use the system color picker. You can find palettes on [Coolors](https://coolors.co/palettes/trending). Download the ASE palette type, right-click the file, and select “Open In › Color Picker”. ### How can I remove a color in a palette or swatch? Select the color and press the Delete key or drag and drop the color onto the trash icon in the Dock. ### How can I remove all the swatch colors at once? Unfortunately, this is not possible as swatches are managed by macOS. You will need to delete them individually. ### How can I change the color space? Right-click the color wheel. You want to select “Display P3” if you use LCH or “sRGB” if you use Hex, HSL, or RGB. Note that the HSL and RGB formats will always be clamped to [sRGB](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SRGB) color space. ### Can you support `SwiftUI.Color` / `UIColor` / `NSColor` formats? The best practice is to use [Asset Catalog for colors](https://devblog.xero.com/managing-ui-colours-with-ios-11-asset-catalogs-16500ba48205) instead of hard-coding the values in code. If you really want to hard-code colors, the [Skala color picker plugin](https://bjango.com/mac/skalacolor/) supports `UIColor` and `NSColor`. ### Why does the OKLCH chroma value differ from other sources? The app displays the OKLCH chroma value as a percentage instead of an absolute value for better user-friendliness. For example, `oklch(70% 25% 135)` in the app corresponds to `oklch(70% 0.1 135)` on [oklch.com](https://oklch.com). Both are correct: the percentage form (0-100%) and the decimal form (0-0.4) are standard ways to express [OKLCH chroma](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/color_value/oklch#c). ### How can I export color palettes? **[Simple Color Palette](https://simplecolorpalette.com) format** 1. Click the `(…)` button in the window and select “Export Palettes” **CLR format** 1. Open Finder 1. Press Command+Shift+G 1. Enter `~/Library/Colors` 1. Copy the desired palette files ### How can I export swatches? 1. Go to the color palettes folder (see above) 1. Copy `NSColorPanelSwatches.plist` This file is not viewable or editable. It can only be used for backup or transfer between Macs. ## Scripting ### URL scheme The app supports the `system-color-picker:` URL scheme for programmatic control: - `system-color-picker:pick` - Start the color sampler (eyedropper) - `system-color-picker:toggle` - Toggle the color picker window Example: ```sh open --background 'system-color-picker:pick' ``` This can be used to create custom keyboard shortcuts in tools like [Raycast](https://raycast.com) and [Alfred](https://alfredapp.com). ### Shortcuts You can use the “Sample Color from Screen” action for Shortcuts to sample color from the screen and then do something with it. > [!TIP] > You can [run shortcuts from the command-line](https://support.apple.com/guide/shortcuts-mac/run-shortcuts-from-the-command-line-apd455c82f02/mac). ## Older Versions - [2.1.4](https://github.com/sindresorhus/System-Color-Picker/releases/download/older-releases/Color.Picker.2.1.4.-.macOS.15.zip) for macOS 15+ - [2.0.3](https://github.com/sindresorhus/System-Color-Picker/releases/download/older-releases/Color.Picker.2.0.3.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14+ - [1.15.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/System-Color-Picker/releases/download/older-releases/Color.Picker.1.15.0.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13+ - [1.12.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/System-Color-Picker/releases/download/older-releases/Color.Picker.1.12.1.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12+ - [1.9.6](https://github.com/sindresorhus/System-Color-Picker/releases/download/older-releases/Color.Picker.1.9.6.-.macOS.11.zip) for macOS 11+ ## Non-App Store Version A special macOS version for users that cannot access the App Store. It won’t receive automatic updates. I will update it here once a year. [Download](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/kk4c8p47uj791k5t0nj0n/Color-Picker-2.2.0-1767305140.zip?rlkey=jivahp9p4k5f24q76473zrnkd&raw=1) *(2.2.0 · macOS 26+)* --- # UTC Time Show the time in UTC in the menu bar or a widget. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/utc-time See the time in UTC at a glance, in your menu bar or a widget. Useful when you work with servers, logs, or people in many time zones. ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### The time looks blurry or is not dimmed on my secondary display [See this answer](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#menu-bar-secondary-display) ### Can you localize the app into my language? The date & time output adheres to your locale settings. I don’t plan to localize the app itself. ### The app does not show up in the menu bar When the menu bar grows too large, macOS hides overflowing items, so UTC Time might have been hidden. Try to close some of your other menu bar apps. There’s, unfortunately, no way for apps to detect this and warn the user. [More tips](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#app-not-showing-in-menu-bar) ### Can you add an analog clock? I have no plans to add that. ### Can you add support for other time zones? That is outside the scope of this app, but check out my [Second Clock](https://sindresorhus.com/second-clock) or [Dato](https://sindresorhus.com/dato) app, which do support this. ### How can I customize the menu bar date and time format? Same answer as above. ### Can it show seconds in the clock? I don’t plan to add this. Showing seconds wastes a lot of system resources and energy as macOS is very inefficient at rendering updates in the menu bar. Instead, just enable seconds in the system clock. ## Older Versions - [1.10.0](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/oj2tobls8f2dtotzo5u0j/UTC-Time-1.10.0-macOS-15-1769181410.zip?rlkey=3snz635x894dx95ngar8tns6p&raw=1) for macOS 15+ - [1.9.1](https://github.com/user-attachments/files/18215312/UTC.Time.1.9.1.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14+ - [1.7.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/13973570/UTC.Time.1.7.1.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13+ - [1.5.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/10767291/UTC.Time.1.5.1.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12+ - [1.3.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/8007477/UTC.Time.1.3.0.-.macOS.11.zip) for macOS 11+ ## Non-App Store Version A special version for users that cannot access the App Store. It won’t receive automatic updates. I will update it here once a year. [Download](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/t98b3p4kebmb7hrmahms4/UTC-Time-1.11.0-1769179922.zip?rlkey=2i3xk1wm2okqh1237rfkbuj3t&raw=1) *(1.11.0)* *Requires macOS 26 or later* --- # Photo Widget Photos on your Home Screen and desktop. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/photo-widget See your favorite photos every time you look at your Home Screen or desktop. Make a widget with a single photo, a slideshow, or the photos in an album. For macOS, it’s only available for Apple silicon Macs. ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### The widget does not show up in the widget picker, the widget is stuck, or is missing from the Home Screen The iOS widget system is quite buggy and can fail a lot. This is not a problem with the app and out of my control. See [how to fix a widget that does not show up](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#widget-not-showing). ### I’m not seeing the new widget settings for showing date and album title Try adding a new widget. Sometimes existing widgets get stuck and don’t receive new settings. This is an iOS bug and out of my control. ### Some widget settings are missing Same as the above. ### How do I add a widget to the Home Screen? When on the Home Screen, long-press on the background (not on any icons), press the top-left “+” button, and select “Photo Widget”. [Learn more.](https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT207122) ### How do I edit a widget? When on the Home Screen, long-press on the widget, and select “Edit Widget”. [Learn more.](https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT207122) ### Why is there no Lock Screen widget? Lock Screen widgets are monochrome-only and too small to properly display photos. ### Why can I only add 100 photos to the app? This is because of a technical limitation in the iOS widget system. Hopefully, it can be increased in the future. It should be enough for most users though. If you use the “Album” widget, there’s no limit to the number of photos. ### How can I hide the name of the app shown below the widget? This is not possible. App developers have no way to hide it. However, in iOS 18 you can hide the title for all apps and widgets. ### If I select an album in a widget, does it include new photos added to the album after I set it up? Yes. The widget fetches a list of all the photos in the album each time and picks a random one. ### Can I show an animated GIF in a widget? This is not possible. ### Why does my widget update more often than the interval I set or not as often? The interval is a suggestion to iOS, not a strict rule. iOS manages widget updates independently to optimize performance and battery life. It may refresh widgets more or less frequently based on various factors. Apps cannot control this behavior. ### How is this different from the built-in “Photos” widget? The built-in widget only shows photos from “Memories” and “Featured Photos” in your photo library. There is no way to customize it or pick the photos to be shown. ### Can you make the cropping prioritize faces? This is something I want to add, but it’s more complicated than it sounds. Widgets have limited resources, and currently, it’s not enough to do face detection. Apple works around that by having the face data already available, but this data is not available to third-party apps. Other photo widget apps solve this by letting the user pick the album in the app itself and then they do the face detection in the app upfront, however, that would require a rewrite of this app, which is not something I have time to do right now. ### When using the “Run Shortcut” action, why does tapping the widget first open the main app and then the Shortcuts app? This is because of iOS limitations. A widget can only open its own app when a user taps it. And the only way to run a shortcut is to open the Shortcuts app using a special URL. So when you tap the widget, the widget opens the main app, and the main app then opens the Shortcuts app. It’s not a very good user experience, but only Apple can fix this. If you work at Apple, you know what to do: - [FB9745173](https://github.com/feedback-assistant/reports/issues/240) - [FB11516334](https://github.com/feedback-assistant/reports/issues/357) - [FB11516273](https://github.com/feedback-assistant/reports/issues/356) ### Why are the images in the widget not full quality? Widgets get very few system resources so it’s not possible to load a high-resolution image. If you work at Apple, you know what to do: - [FB8832751](https://github.com/feedback-assistant/reports/issues/177) ### How can I select a people album? Apple does not let third-party apps access these albums. --- # Shareful Give the macOS share menu superpowers. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/shareful Shareful makes the system share menu even more useful by providing some commonly needed share services like copy and save. ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### The share services do not show up in System Settings Shareful provides share services (Copy, Open In, etc.) which macOS is supposed to pick up. Shareful has no control over how it works. In some rare cases, macOS can fail to pick up these share services. This is a problem with macOS not Shareful. Here are some things you could try: - Restart your computer - Reinstall the app - [Reset NVRAM](https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204063) - [Reset the share services registry](https://web.archive.org/web/20180711015728/https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT203129) If you are on a work computer, it could also be that your company has blocked third-party share services. ### Can you add a “Move” or “Delete” action? This is unfortunately not possible. [Share extensions](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/use-the-share-menu-on-mac-mh40614/mac) (for example, the “Copy” action), usually only receive a copy of the file. They have no guaranteed access to the original file. ### Can you add a “Copy Path” action for use in Finder? That would be moot. Right-click a file in Finder, press the Option key, and select “Copy as Pathname”. ### Can you add items that run specific Shortcuts in the Share menu? {#shortcuts} No. This is not possible. You could use my [Short Run](https://sindresorhus.com/short-run) app instead. It can show a curated list of shortcuts in the menu bar, automatically showing some based on which app is currently active. Although, it won’t be able to receive what the share items receive. ## Older Versions - [1.11.0](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/a7yel1xtzfi3yhh3eynbp/Shareful-1.11.0-macOS-15-1777049166.zip?rlkey=chl7ohj7zoya7c5ymnpd0dnoc&raw=1) for macOS 15+ - [1.10.4](https://github.com/user-attachments/files/18914470/Shareful.1.10.4.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14+ - [1.9.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/14158056/Shareful.1.9.1.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13+ - [1.8.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/11297902/Shareful.1.8.0.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12+ - [1.6.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/8800088/Shareful.1.6.0.-.macOS.11.zip) for macOS 11+ - [1.4.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/7119520/Shareful.1.4.0.-.macOS.10.15.zip) for macOS 10.15+ ## Non-App Store Version A special version for users that cannot access the App Store. It won’t receive automatic updates. I will update it here once a year. [Download](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/aq893jnt65u57xr70yjoo/Shareful-1.12.0-1777048683.zip?rlkey=ikakp6yyejrgjigc9cd9ki4zd&raw=1) *(1.12.0)* *Requires macOS 26 or later* --- # Recordia Quickly record audio. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/recordia Press a keyboard shortcut or click the menu bar icon, and you are recording. Recordia records the microphone, the audio playing on your Mac, or both at once. ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### How can I preview the recording when done? First, ensure the “Show recording in Finder after saving” setting is enabled. When the recording is shown in Finder, press the Space key to preview it. ### How can I trim the recording when done? Preview the recording as described above and then click the trim button. ### How can I record system audio? {#record-system-audio} In the Recordia menu, under “Audio Source”, choose “System Audio” to capture all audio playing on your Mac, or “Microphone + System Audio” to record both into a single file. Recording system audio requires macOS 26 or later. On older versions, you can [install the BlackHole audio driver](https://github.com/ExistentialAudio/BlackHole#installation-instructions), [set up a multi-output device](https://github.com/ExistentialAudio/BlackHole/wiki/Multi-Output-Device), and then select “BlackHole” as the input device in Recordia. ### How can I transcribe the audio (speech to text)? {#transcribe} Recordia does not support transcription, but check out my [Aiko app](https://sindresorhus.com/aiko). You can easily share a recording to Aiko after you finish recording. ### How can I sync recordings to iCloud? Choose “iCloud Drive” as the output directory. ### Why 48 kHz and not 44.1 kHz? 48 kHz is the standard for audio in today’s video production. It’s also the internal production standard for many audio production companies. 44.1 kHz was popularized by music CDs. ### Why WAV over ALAC/FLAC? WAV is supported everywhere. ### Does it do noise reduction? macOS does some noise reduction by default. For stronger noise reduction, check out [this free app](https://www.utterly.app). ### Can I use my iPhone as a microphone? Yes, follow the guide [here](https://www.switchingtomac.com/tutorials/how-to-use-your-iphone-as-a-microphone-on-a-mac/). ## Older Versions - [2.10.0](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/xnrlepmmosvk4282red8t/Recordia-2.10.0-macOS-15-1769967108.zip?rlkey=l7t9fmf4ixcfy2pfotg6zrjbg&raw=1) for macOS 15+ - [2.9.0](https://github.com/user-attachments/files/18787741/Recordia.2.9.0.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14+ - [2.7.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/13975939/Recordia.2.7.0.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13+ - [2.6.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/11053013/Recordia.2.6.1.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12+ - [2.3.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/8798113/Recordia.2.3.0.-.macOS.11.zip) for macOS 11+ - [1.5.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/6538283/Recordia.1.5.1.-.macOS.10.15.zip) for macOS 10.15+ ## Non-App Store Version A special version for users that cannot access the App Store. It won’t receive automatic updates. I will update it here once a year. [Download](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/4pzfvx3ixiybchnlka327/Recordia-2.11.0-1769966188.zip?rlkey=27gzy58hhao7ih3jrysp3v68w&raw=1) *(2.11.0)* *Requires macOS 26 or later* --- # Pasteboard Viewer Inspect the system pasteboards. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/pasteboard-viewer A developer utility that shows the contents of the system pasteboards live, with previews of text, RTF, images, and anything that has a Quick Look preview. Useful to check that your app puts the correct data on the pasteboard. Note that this is not a clipboard manager. --- # Plash Make any website your desktop wallpaper. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/plash Show your calendar, a dashboard, the Bing photo of the day, or an animated GIF as your desktop wallpaper. Add several websites, switch between them, and turn on Browsing Mode when you want to click around in the page. #### Use-cases - [**Bing Photo of the Day**](https://github.com/sindresorhus/plash-bing-photo-of-the-day) - **Calendar**\ For example, Google Calendar or Outlook 365. - **Personal stats**\ You could even make a custom website for this. - [**Random street view image**](https://randomstreetview.com/#slideshow) - **Animated GIF**\ For example, [an animated GIF from Giphy](https://media3.giphy.com/media/xTiTnLmaxrlBHxsMMg/giphy.gif?cid=790b761121c10e72aca8bcfe50b030502b62a69ac7336782&rid=giphy.gif). - [**Random color**](https://www.color.pizza) - **Build a custom website**\ You could build something quick and host it on [GitHub Pages](https://pages.github.com), [jsfiddle](https://jsfiddle.net), or [CodePen](https://codepen.io). [*Share your use-case*](https://github.com/sindresorhus/Plash/discussions/136) **Features** - Show a remote or local website - Interact with the website (“Browsing Mode”) - Automatically reload the website at a custom interval - Add multiple websites - Show the website on a different display - Invert website colors (fake dark mode) - Add custom CSS and JavaScript to the website - Lower the opacity - [Transparent background](https://github.com/sindresorhus/Plash/issues/1#issuecomment-573513816) - Automatically deactivate while on battery - Audio is muted - Single image will be aspect-filled to your screen - Hide menu bar icon - Shortcuts support - [Scriptable](https://sindresorhus.com/plash#scripting) - [Share extension](https://sindresorhus.com/plash#share-extension) ## Tips ### Browsing mode You can interact with the website by enabling “Browsing Mode”. When in this mode, you can right-click to be able to go back/forward, reload, and zoom in the page contents (the zoom level is saved). You can also pinch to magnify. This is different from zooming the page contents in that it will zoom in to a specific part of the page instead of just enlarging everything. Plash injects a CSS class named `plash-is-browsing-mode` on the `` element while browsing mode is active. You could use this class to customize the website for browsing mode. If clicking a link opens it in a new window, you can hold the Option key while clicking the link to open it in the main Plash window. ### Zoom in website To zoom in the website, activate “Browsing Mode”, right-click the website, and then select “Zoom In”. ### URL placeholders for screen width and height Use `[[screenWidth]]` and `[[screenHeight]]` in any URL and Plash will substitute the right values for you. For example, `https://source.unsplash.com/random/[[screenWidth]]x[[screenHeight]]?puppy`. ### Scroll to position You can scroll a website to a specific position each time it is loaded by putting the following in the website’s “JavaScript” field. Adjust the “500” to how far down it should scroll. ```js window.scrollTo(0, 500); ``` You can also [scroll to a specific element](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/API/Element/scrollIntoView) matching a [CSS selector](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Selectors): ```js document.querySelector('.title')?.scrollIntoView(); ``` ### Make the website occupy only half the screen You can use the “CSS” field in the website settings to adjust the padding of the website: ```css :root { margin-left: 50% !important; } ``` ### Detect Plash Plash injects a CSS class named `is-plash-app` on the `` element. You could use this class to customize your website for Plash. For example, if your website has instructions on how to use it in Plash, you could hide those when it’s running in Plash. ### Share extension Plash comes bundled with a [share extension](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/use-the-share-menu-on-mac-mh40614/mac). You can, for example, use it to quickly add a website you have open in Safari to Plash. ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### Can it automatically switch websites every 10 minutes? Plash can be automated with the built-in Shortcuts app, for example, using the “Switch to Next Website” action. Shortcuts automations cannot run at an interval, so use the [Shortery](https://apps.apple.com/app/id1594183810) app to run the shortcut every 10 minutes. ### Does it support multiple displays? Support for multiple displays is currently limited to the ability to choose which display to show the website on. Support for setting a separate website for each display is [planned](https://github.com/sindresorhus/Plash/issues/2). However, there is a [workaround](https://github.com/sindresorhus/Plash/issues/2#issuecomment-653891524). ### Can Plash display multiple websites at the same time? No. Plash only shows one website at a time. Displaying multiple websites simultaneously is out of scope. ### Why does Plash use so much memory? Plash uses very little memory. Usually around 40 MB. However, the websites you display can take up a lot of memory, and sometimes even have memory leaks. ### The menu bar does not adapt to the Plash wallpaper The menu bar adapts its color from the actual system wallpaper. Plash is not actually a wallpaper, but rather runs right above the wallpaper. So Plash cannot influence the menu bar color. ### Can Plash block ads? Not built-in, but you can block ads system-wide with a [DNS ad-blocker](https://alternate-dns.com). ### How can I switch to a specific website with a keyboard shortcut? Make a shortcut in the Shortcuts app that uses the “Set Current Website” action and then set a keyboard shortcut for the shortcut. ### Can it also show on the Lock Screen? No. This is not possible. ### What does “Plash” mean? “a sound produced by liquid striking something or being struck” ## Scripting You can control Plash using anything that supports opening a URL with a custom scheme. For example, to reload the current website, run this terminal command: ```console open -g plash:reload ``` ### Tools - [plash-cli](https://github.com/sindresorhus/plash-cli): Command-line tool. - [alfred-plash](https://github.com/sindresorhus/alfred-plash): Alfred workflow. - [Raycast commands](https://github.com/raycast/script-commands/tree/master/commands#plash) ### Commands #### `add` Add a website to Plash. You can optionally specify a title. If no title is given, a title will be automatically fetched from the website. ```console open -g 'plash:add?url=https://sindresorhus.com/plash&title=Plash%20website' ``` *Don’t forget to correctly encode query parameters.* > [!NOTE] > Local file URLs are not supported. #### `reload` Reload the current website. ```console open -g plash:reload ``` #### `next` Switch to the next website in the list. ```console open -g plash:next ``` #### `previous` Switch to the previous website in the list. ```console open -g plash:previous ``` #### `random` Switch to a random website in the list. It will never show the same website twice in a row, unless you only have a single website. ```console open -g plash:random ``` #### `toggle-browsing-mode` Toggle browsing mode. ```console open -g plash:toggle-browsing-mode ``` ### Examples #### Node.js ```js import {execFileSync} from 'node:child_process'; execFileSync('open', ['--background', 'plash:reload']); ``` #### Swift ```swift import Cocoa let command = "plash:reload" let configuration = NSWorkspace.OpenConfiguration() configuration.activates = false NSWorkspace.shared.open(URL(string: command)!, configuration: configuration) ``` #### AppleScript ```applescript do shell script "open --background 'plash:reload'" ``` #### Python ```python import subprocess subprocess.run(['open', '--background', 'plash:reload']) ``` ## Older Versions - [2.16.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/Plash/releases/download/older-releases/Plash.2.16.0.-.macOS.15.zip) for macOS 15+ - [2.15.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/Plash/releases/download/older-releases/Plash.2.15.0.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14+ - [2.14.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/Plash/releases/download/older-releases/Plash.2.14.1.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13+ - [2.12.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/Plash/releases/download/older-releases/Plash.2.12.1.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12+ - [2.10.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/Plash/releases/download/older-releases/Plash.2.10.1.-.macOS.11.zip) for macOS 11+ - [2.1.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/Plash/releases/download/older-releases/Plash.2.1.1.-.macOS.10.15.zip) for macOS 10.15+ ## Non-App Store Version A special version for users that cannot access the App Store. It won’t receive automatic updates. I will update it here once a year. [Download](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/fye9v3csnxpgk7o81vacq/Plash-2.17.2-1777967935.zip?rlkey=14wtfv7vew49om93lcss5qtac&raw=1) *(2.17.2)* *Requires macOS 26 or later* --- # Dato Menu bar calendar and world clocks, plus fullscreen meeting notifications. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/dato See the date, the time, and your world clocks in the menu bar. Click Dato to see a calendar, your upcoming events, and the time in other time zones. When a meeting starts, Dato can show a fullscreen notification, so it’s hard to miss. Dato is a one-time purchase on the App Store with a lifetime of updates. [MacStories review of Dato.](https://www.macstories.net/reviews/dato-review-calendar-events-and-time-zones-from-your-macs-menu-bar/) @Feature(title: "Your week in the menu bar") { Click Dato to see a calendar and your events for the next week. It uses the calendars you already have in the Calendar app, like iCloud, Google, and Outlook, and it can show your reminders too. Create an event from anywhere with a global keyboard shortcut. } @Feature(title: "Know the time everywhere") { Add a time zone by searching for a city. 15K cities are included, so it works offline. See the time zones in the Dato menu, or as clocks in the menu bar. Drag the time travel slider to see what time it will be in each place, for example before you plan a call. } @Feature(title: "Notice when a meeting starts") { A small notification is easy to miss. When a meeting starts, Dato can show a fullscreen notification instead, for the calendars you choose. Join the next video call with a global keyboard shortcut. Dato knows the links from Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, and [50+ other services](https://sindresorhus.com/dato#supported-video-call-services). } **Features** - Calendar, optionally with week numbers and event & reminder indicators. - Your upcoming events for the next week (customizable) at a glance. - Reminders support. - Time zones in the Dato menu, optionally with custom names. - Show the upcoming event in the menu bar (like Fantastical, Meeter, and MeetingBar) - Deduplicates identical events from different calendars - Create events (even with a global keyboard shortcut) - Join the next video call meeting with a customizable global keyboard shortcut - Custom format for the date & time in the menu bar. - Highlight certain days of the week in the calendar. - Fully customizable. - Lots of in-app keyboard shortcuts for power users. - Global keyboard shortcut to open/close the app. - Supports calendar events with HTML formatted notes. - Show seconds in the menu bar clock or in the menu. (Optional) - Integration with Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, and 50+ other services. - And the ability to add support for any other video call service yourself. - Open calendar events from Google Calendar directly in Google Calendar on the web. - Comes with multiple menu bar icons to choose from: date in calendar, date with border (like Itsycal), static clock, none. - Large text mode. - Date calculator. - Hourly chime. ### Supported video call services {#supported-video-call-services} - 8x8 - Amazon Chime - Around - BlueJeans - Cal.com - Chorus - CoScreen - Demio - Demodesk - Dialpad - Doxy.me - FaceTime - Gather - Gong - Google Meet - GoToMeeting - GoToWebinar - Huddle01 - Jam - Jitsi Meet - Lark - LiveKit Meet - Livestorm - Luma - Meetecho - Microsoft Teams - oVice - Pop - Preply - Pumble - Reclaim - Relayed - RingCentral - Session - Signal - Slack - StreamYard - TeamViewer - Teemyco - Tuple - UserZoom - Venue - Vimeo - Vonage - VooV - Vowel - Webex - Whereby - Zhumu - Zoho Cliq - Zoom *And you can add support for any other video call service yourself in the app.* --- If all you need is another clock in the menu bar, check out [Second Clock](https://sindresorhus.com/second-clock). --- ## Trial @Trial(url: "https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/3x6zkdw520rornu7j1zmh/Dato-5.8.3-trial-1789044413.zip?rlkey=vwxob5o3k9eg8gl8bxyshrl1c&raw=1") { The trial is fully functional. The only limitation is a reminder to buy the app every 12 hours, and no automatic updates. All data and settings carry over if you buy it on the App Store. } *Requires macOS 26 and later* *Download it to the Downloads folder, double-click to unzip, and then move it to the `/Applications` folder.* You can also [try it on Setapp](https://go.setapp.com/stp181?refAppID=571&utm_medium=vendor_program&utm_content=button) for 7 days for free. ## Tips
| Double-click an event in the event list to open it in the default calendar app, if possible. |
| Click the month & year label in the calendar (for example, “April 2020”) to change the selected day to “today”. Right-click it to quickly go to a specific date. |
| Long-press a day in the calendar to open that day in the default calendar app. (Supports: Calendar, Fantastical 2, BusyCal, Outlook) |
| Hold option while clicking the calendar arrows to jump a year instead of a month. |
| Hold option while dragging the time travel slider to skip by 15 minutes instead of an hour. |
| If you open the “new event” window while the time travel slider is active, the event will default to the time of the slider. |
| Double-click a time zone to collapse all time zones into a compact summary row. Click the row to expand. You can scroll sideways if there are many time zones. You can also collapse from the right-click menu on a time zone. |
| ◀/▶ | Previous/next day in the calendar |
| ▲/▼ | Same day in the previous/next week in the calendar |
|
option+◀
option+▶ |
Previous/next month in the calendar |
|
shift+option+◀
shift+option+▶ |
Previous/next year in the calendar |
| space | Select today in the calendar |
| n | Create a new event |
| p | Toggle window pinning |
| c | Show the date & time calculator |
| j | Join the current/upcoming Zoom/Meet/Teams meeting (works in the Dato menu and the “upcoming event in menu bar” menu) |
| o | Open the default calendar app |
| shift+command+r | Toggle showing reminders in the event list |
| command+q | Quit the app |
| esc | Dismiss notification |
| return | Run the default action (highlighted button) |
|
command+◀
command+▶ |
Activate time travel and offset it by one step backwards or forwards |
| esc / space | Deactivate time travel |
| control+tab | Switch between new event and new reminder |
| command+1 … command+9 | Select calendar/list by position |
|
command+▲
command+▼ |
Cycle through calendars/lists |
| command+d | Toggle “Date” reminder mode |
| command+t | Toggle “Time” reminder mode |
| Double-click an event in the event list | Open the event in the default calendar app, if possible |
| Swipe left/right on the calendar | Next/previous month in the calendar |
| option + Swipe left/right on the calendar | Next/previous year in the calendar |
| shift + Swipe left/right on the calendar | Next/previous day in the calendar |
| Double-click a time zone | Collapse time zones into a compact view |
This has the added benefit that while the system clock [shows as disabled](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/170270/105506021-2c51bb80-5cfc-11eb-84a6-79b62d69d4bc.png) when you enable “Do Not Disturb” (which makes it pretty unreadable), Dato always shows it the same way. 2. Use Dato for showing the date and the built-in clock for the time. 3. Only show an icon for Dato. I would appreciate it if you could take a moment to [complain to Apple](https://www.apple.com/feedback/macos.html) that they should bring back the ability to disable the built-in menu bar clock. For reference, on macOS 10.15, there’s a checkbox called “Show date and time in the menu bar” in “System Preferences › Date & Time › Clock”. This checkbox no longer exists on macOS 11 and later. I have already [reported it to Apple](https://github.com/feedback-assistant/reports/issues/131), but I have yet to get a reply. ### What does the “Hide” button on an event do? {#hide-event} It makes Dato pretend the event does not exist. The event will not be shown in Dato and it will not cause any notifications from Dato. You can unhide events from the `…` menu (at the top-right). ### What does the “Mute” button on an event do? {#mute-event} It makes Dato not notify you about the event. This practically means the event will be ignored for: - Fullscreen notifications - Upcoming event in the menu bar - System notifications for video call events ### How can I customize the menu bar date and time format? If you just want to toggle a certain component, like date or time, see the “Menu Bar” pane in the Dato settings. If you want something more custom, go to the “Date & Time Format” text field. You can specify a [datetime pattern](https://nsdateformatter.com). For example, you could display the full month name, the year, or the day of the year. ### How can I show the menu bar date and time in ISO 8601 format? Either change [this system setting](https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/191445/standard-iso-8601-week-number-in-calendar-app/209340#209340) or go to the “Menu Bar” pane in the Dato settings, and in the “Date & Time Format” text field, write `YYYY-MM-dd HH:mm:ss`, which is the [ISO 8601](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_8601) format. ### Why does it not show week 53? You are probably expecting [ISO week-numbering](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_week_date) while having your system set to [Gregorian week numbering](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_week_date#Relation_with_the_Gregorian_calendar). You can change it with [this system setting](https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/191445/standard-iso-8601-week-number-in-calendar-app/209340#209340). ### Why does it show the last days of December as week 1? That is called [ISO week-numbering](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_week_date). ### It shows the incorrect week number {#incorrect-week-number} You are probably expecting [ISO week-numbering](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_week_date) while having your system set to [Gregorian week numbering](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_week_date#Relation_with_the_Gregorian_calendar), or the inverse. You can change it with [this system setting](https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/191445/standard-iso-8601-week-number-in-calendar-app/209340#209340). ### How can I change the week number to ISO 8601 format? Change [this system setting](https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/191445/standard-iso-8601-week-number-in-calendar-app/209340#209340) to use [ISO 8601](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_week_date) week numbers. ### How can I open a calendar event in my favorite calendar app (Fantastical, BusyCal, etc.) instead of the built-in Calendar app? ~~Dato uses the system default calendar app. To change the default calendar app, open the Calendar app’s settings, and in the “Default calendar app” setting, select the app you want.~~ **Because of a [macOS bug](https://github.com/feedback-assistant/reports/issues/290), this does not work. Instead, drag an event from the Calendar app into Finder, right-click on it, select “Get Info”, select your calendar in the “Open with” field, and click “Change All”. Then relaunch Dato.** Dato supports opening calendar events directly in Calendar, Fantastical, BusyCal, Outlook, and Google Calendar (web). For other apps, Dato will just open the app. ### How can I send calendar invites when creating an event? In the new event window, click the “More Settings” button, and send the invites from the Calendar app. Built-in support for sending calendar invites directly from Dato is not possible, as Apple does not currently provide this capability for third-party apps. ### How can I make my calendar refresh more often? {#refresh-interval} Open the Calendar app’s settings, go to the “Accounts” pane, choose the relevant calendar service in the left sidebar, and then change the “Refresh Calendars” setting. Ideally, it should be set to “Push”, but not all services support that, like Google Calendar. ### How can I accept/decline invites? Unfortunately, Apple does not allow third-party apps to manage invites. As a workaround, double-click the event in the list to open it in the Calendar app, where you can accept or decline the invite. ### How can I get system notifications for upcoming events? {#notifications} Dato does not support this as you can just set it up in the built-in Calendar app. Open the Calendar app’s settings, select the “Alerts” pane, and there you can choose when to be notified. What Dato does support is showing a notification right when an event for a video call starts. The notification includes a button to join the video call directly. You can enable this notification in the Dato settings. You can also enable fullscreen notifications. ### Can I use the time travel slider to check times on future dates? Select any date in the calendar and then use the time travel slider to adjust the time for that day. ### How can I enable fullscreen notifications only at certain times or for certain conditions? You can use the [Focus Filter](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/mchl613dc43f/mac) that comes with Dato to pause fullscreen notifications when in certain focus modes. Focus Filters are [broken on macOS 26.5 and later](https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/826766) because of a macOS bug. Alternatively, use the built-in Shortcuts app. You can use the `Set Fullscreen Notifications State` action provided by Dato to enable or disable fullscreen notifications. For example, to only enable fullscreen notifications during work hours, you will need to create two shortcuts. One to enable fullscreen notifications and one to disable it. Then use Shortcuts automations to run them at the correct times. ### How can I enable fullscreen notification only when a certain Focus mode is active? Same as the above but trigger the shortcuts when the [Focus mode](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/mchl613dc43f/mac) changes. ### How can I quickly switch between different sets of calendars? {#calendar-sets} You can use the Shortcuts app to create “calendar sets” that quickly enable or disable specific calendars for different situations (for example, “Work” vs “Personal”). Use the `Set Calendar Enabled State` action provided by Dato. When no specific calendar is provided, the action applies to all calendars. When no feature is specified, it applies to all features. You can also use `Set Reminder List Enabled State` for reminder lists. For example, create a “Work Mode” shortcut that disables your personal calendars and enables your work calendars, and a “Personal Mode” shortcut that does the inverse. Use Shortcuts automations to run them automatically based on time of day or Focus mode. ### Can you add support for showing an analog clock like the system clock? I have no plans to add that, but you can make it work by unchecking the “Time” setting in Dato and keeping the system clock in analog mode. ### Can you add support for flashing the time separator like the system clock? I have no plans to add that, but you can make it work by unchecking the “Time” setting in Dato and keeping the system clock. ### How can I show smart lists from the Reminders app in Dato? Dato can only show normal lists. macOS does not let third-party apps access smart lists. ### Can I add links, images, flags, or tags to reminders in the “New Reminder” window? No, Apple does not expose these features to third-party apps. ### How can I make the text in Dato be more easily readable? Try turning off the “Vibrancy” setting. You can also try increasing the text size with the “Larger text” setting. ### What does the `ⓘ` symbol in the “upcoming event in menu bar” item mean? It indicates that there are multiple ongoing events, but only one is shown. ### My Google Calendar does not update in the app {#google-calendar-sync-issue} The events may not have been [fetched yet by macOS](https://sindresorhus.com/dato#refresh-interval). Or you may have to re-authenticate your Google account. Open the Calendar app’s settings, go to the “Accounts” pane, and try to remove and re-add the Google account. ### Can I show UTC time in the menu bar? Yes. 1. Open the Dato settings 1. Go to the “Time Zones” pane 1. Click the plus button 1. Write “utc” 1. Select the “UTC” item 1. Click “Add” 1. Enable “Show in menu bar” 1. Click “Save” ### How can I hide the Dato clock when doing a specific task or at a certain time of the day? This is a perfect use case for the built-in Shortcuts app. You can use the `Quit App` and `Open App` actions to quit and relaunch Dato whenever needed. For example, you could create a focus shortcut that quits Dato, plays some music, turns off notifications, etc. To hide the Dato clock at a certain time of the day, use Shortcuts automations. ### How can I show day of year in the menu bar? In the “Custom date & time format” setting, write `D` to show the [day of year](https://nsidc.org/data/user-resources/help-center/day-year-doy-calendar). [Learn more](https://www.unicode.org/reports/tr35/tr35-dates.html#dfst-day) ### Can I change the background color of Dato? No, but you can make it white/black by turning off the “Vibrancy” setting. ### Can you add more menu bar icons? I’m happy to consider requests. You can find icons [here](https://developer.apple.com/sf-symbols/) and [here](https://thenounproject.com). ### The widgets provided by Dato do not show up in the widget picker This is a known macOS bug. Restarting your computer usually fixes it. ### The widgets provided by Dato are white or black with no content Same answer as above. ### The time zone widget resets each time Dato updates This is a macOS bug and unfortunately out of my control. Dato simply defines the parameters for the widget, but macOS is the one that shows the configuration screen and saves your choices from there. ### Can it show the list of events in a separate menu item from the calendar and time zones? No, but you could use Dato in combination with my [Today](https://sindresorhus.com/today) app. ### How can I show todos from Things in Dato? {#things} Dato integrates with the Reminders app only. However, you can use the Shortcuts app to sync todos from [Things](https://culturedcode.com/things/) to the Reminders app, which will make Dato show your todos. [Here is a shortcut](https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/2b856dd9607f412fb660d009a03d60a8) that does this. Run it and then enable the “Things” reminders list in the Dato settings. To keep the todos in sync, use the [Shortery](https://apps.apple.com/app/id1594183810) app to run the shortcut when Things becomes inactive, as Shortcuts automations can only run when an app opens or quits. Alternatively, place the shortcut in the menu bar and run it manually. ### How can I show seconds in the menu bar only when connected to power? Use Shortcuts automations to run a shortcut when connected and disconnected from power. - [Show seconds shortcut](https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/41adf21d1bea44499d5034864687d01d) - [Hide seconds shortcut](https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/dcb7b8c4d66740a8a8ba8abae063e661) ### Can Dato support Focus Filters? {#focus-filters} Dato has a Focus Filter for pausing fullscreen notifications. Ideas for other filters welcome. Focus Filters are [broken on macOS 26.5 and later](https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/826766) because of a macOS bug. ### Can I change the chime frequency for the “Hourly Chime” feature? I don’t plan to add more settings to this feature. However, you can achieve this by using the Shortcuts app. Make a shortcut using the “Get Sound” action provided by Dato. Use the [Shortery](https://apps.apple.com/app/id1594183810) app to run it at the interval you prefer, as Shortcuts automations cannot run at an interval. [Example shortcut.](https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/72e44ca37e024b8ab016bd827557f00f) ### How can I transfer my settings from the App Store version to the Setapp version? Run this command in the Terminal app: ```sh defaults export com.sindresorhus.Dato - | defaults import com.sindresorhus.Dato-setapp - ``` And to transfer the other way: ```sh defaults export com.sindresorhus.Dato-setapp - | defaults import com.sindresorhus.Dato - ``` ### How is this different from Fantastical? Fantastical is a full-blown calendar app, while Dato is a read-only view of your events. Fantastical is a replacement for the built-in Calendar app. You can use both Fantastical and Dato at the same time. Dato even has integration with Fantastical, so you can open events in Dato directly in Fantastical. Fantastical also has a menu bar item, but many people prefer the UI of Dato. Dato also shows time zones and has more customizability for what’s shown in the menu bar. Dato can replace the system date/time, for example. ### How is this different from iStat Menus? iStat Menus lets you show different kinds of info in the menu bar, like system stats, network speed, etc. Dato is focused on date and time only. Dato also looks better. ### How is it different from Itsycal? Dato is not just a calendar app, but also includes menu bar clock replacement, time zones, upcoming event in menu bar, fullscreen notifications, and a lot more. Try both (see the [Dato trial](https://sindresorhus.com/dato#trial)) and see for yourself. ### Why the name “Dato”? It means “date” in Norwegian. I just wanted a short, unique, and relevant name. ## Scripting ### Shortcuts The app comes with support for the Shortcuts app. Look up the app in the Shortcuts app to see what it provides. ### Events The [distributed notification](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#distributed-notifications) `com.sindresorhus.Dato.joinedVideoCall` is emitted when you join a video call from Dato. ## Older Versions - [5.7.2](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/3q3c3v0umpp0z43lvnbdd/Dato-5.7.2-macOS-15-1777489241.zip?rlkey=vqy6ggjz2b3g3qejlyz12k74p&raw=1) for macOS 15 - [5.4.4](https://github.com/sindresorhus/sindresorhus.github.com/releases/download/v1.0.0/Dato.5.4.4.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14 - [5.1.3](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/14097627/Dato.5.1.3.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13 - [4.3.3](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/10516478/Dato.4.3.3.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12 - [3.3.8](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/8935698/Dato.3.3.8.-.macOS.11.zip) for macOS 11 - [2.6.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/6758848/Dato.2.6.1.-.macOS.10.15.zip) for macOS 10.15 - [1.4.9](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/5360452/Dato.1.14.9.-.Special.last.Mojave.compatible.release.zip) for macOS 10.14 These are free for everyone but they will not run on newer macOS versions. --- # Gifski Convert videos to high-quality GIFs. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/gifski Turn a video into a GIF that still looks like the video. Gifski uses thousands of colors per frame, so gradients stay smooth instead of turning into bands. It’s a macOS app for the [gifski encoder](https://gif.ski), which uses [pngquant’s](https://pngquant.org) fancy features for efficient cross-frame palettes and temporal dithering. If you don’t have a video, you can try the app out with [this one](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/assets/170270/6606c1d2-c0ce-4b7e-9eb8-a3916e601e48). --- *Help test the next major version of Gifski on [TestFlight](https://testflight.apple.com/join/iCyHNNIA).* --- # Black Out Hide sensitive parts of an image. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/black-out Put black boxes over the private parts of a screenshot or photo before you share it. The app also removes the metadata, like when and where it was captured. For example, hide the names in a Slack conversation you want to post on X (Twitter). ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### Can you support blurring and pixelation? Blurring and pixelation are intentionally not supported as they can sometimes [be reversed](https://dheera.net/projects/blur). The only reliable way to redact something is to put a black box over it. ### I can already do this in the Preview app! You can do this in any graphics app. The point of this app is to make the task super easy to do. Most graphics apps, like Preview, Pixelmator, and Photoshop, preserve metadata, which means you could accidentally leak information like the capture location. Black Out strips out all metadata. It can also be run directly from Finder as a [Quick Action](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/mchl97ff9142/mac). ### Does it support PDF? You can open a PDF document, but you have to export it as a PNG image. It’s almost impossible to reliably export redacted PDFs. ### What is the text in the icon? It’s from Apple’s inspirational [“Here’s to the Crazy Ones” TV commercial](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-z4NS2zdrZc). ## Older Versions - [2.6.0](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/t1hteypc07ewyoqdk1ph9/Black-Out-2.6.0-macOS-15-1777576268.zip?rlkey=rgxtljtxrft0ygt7q60v512i3&raw=1) for macOS 15 - [2.4.0](https://github.com/user-attachments/files/18210600/Black.Out.2.4.0.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14 - [2.3.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/13923936/Black.Out.2.3.1.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13 - [2.2.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/10773680/Black.Out.2.2.0.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12 - [2.0.4](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/8759655/Black.Out.2.0.4.-.macOS.11.zip) for macOS 11 - [1.8.2](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/7454156/Black.Out.1.8.2.-.macOS.10.15.zip) for macOS 10.15 These are free for everyone but they will not run on newer macOS versions. --- # HEIC Converter Convert HEIC images to JPEG or PNG. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/heic-converter Convert [HEIC](https://www.macworld.co.uk/feature/iphone/what-is-heic-3660408/) photos from your iPhone to JPEG or PNG, so you can upload them anywhere and share them with people who don’t use Apple devices. HEIC is Apple’s default image format since iOS 11, replacing JPEG. HEIC uses more advanced and modern compression methods to achieve much smaller file sizes with the same visual quality. Unfortunately, many websites, apps, and devices outside of Apple’s platforms still do not support HEIC. If you don’t have any HEIC images, you can try the app out with [this one](https://sindresorhus.com/heic-converter/heic-example.heic). ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### Does it preserve 10-bit depth? No. JPEG only supports 8-bit. PNG supports 8-bit and 16-bit, but macOS doesn’t have a way to convert 10-bit HEIC to 16-bit PNG, so it ends up as 8-bit too. ### Does it support other HEIF variants like `.heif` or `.hif`? No. Only `.heic` is supported at the moment because macOS support for other variants is buggy. ### Can you support converting JPEG to HEIC? I don’t have plans to support JPEG to HEIC conversion. While HEIC offers some benefits over JPEG, I believe [JPEG XL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JPEG_XL) is a more promising next-generation image format: - Lossless conversion from JPEG to JPEG XL - Superior compression compared to JPEG and HEIC - Support for HDR, wide color gamuts, and animation - Royalty-free, open standard I expect JPEG XL to gain more widespread support and become the preferred format in the coming years. At that point, I plan to add JPEG XL conversion capabilities here. ### What’s the benefit of this app over the built-in Quick Actions converter? The built-in converter (right-click › Quick Actions › Convert Image) works well for basic conversions. This app offers adjustable JPEG quality and granular metadata control (separately toggle location data and modification dates instead of all-or-nothing). ## Older Versions - [3.5.0](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/3pp92ufejv6rixixkkzcl/HEIC-Converter-3.5.0-macOS-15-1777070030.zip?rlkey=g248y3inhtf5ld3buatxxh9ex&raw=1) for macOS 15+ - [3.3.0](https://github.com/user-attachments/files/18555573/HEIC.Converter.3.3.0.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14+ - [3.2.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/13981994/HEIC.Converter.3.2.0.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13+ - [3.0.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/11401710/HEIC.Converter.3.0.1.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12+ - [2.1.5](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/9218007/HEIC.Converter.2.1.5.-.macOS.11.zip) for macOS 11+ - [2.1.5](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/8817868/HEIC.Converter.2.1.5.-.macOS.10.15.zip) for macOS 10.15+ - [1.9.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/6715716/HEIC.Converter.1.9.0.-.macOS.10.14.zip) for macOS 10.14+ - [1.5.3](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/13539124/HEIC-Converter-for-macOS-10.13.zip) for macOS 10.13+ ## Non-App Store Version A special version for users that cannot access the App Store. It won’t receive automatic updates. I will update it here once a year. [Download](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ftfkqamu1yd2pjk4r8jyb/HEIC-Converter-3.6.0-1777069218.zip?rlkey=8ljysol8pl6syee2t5ubk46e3&raw=1) *(3.6.0)* *Requires macOS 26 or later* --- # Lungo Prevent your Mac from going to sleep. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/lungo Keep your Mac awake and the screen on, for a set time or until you turn it off. Useful for presentations, downloads, and reading without touching the keyboard. ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### Lungo did not keep my computer awake - If you have the “Allow display to sleep while keeping computer awake” setting enabled, the computer is still awake even if it looks like it’s sleeping because the screen is off. - If you close the lid (clamshell mode), Lungo is only able to keep your Mac awake if it’s connected to a charger and an external display. This is a macOS limitation. - If you have the “Pause while screen is locked” setting enabled, you may have locked the screen before leaving it, which would cause Lungo to not keep your computer awake. - If you have the “Deactivate when switching to battery” setting enabled and you disconnect the power adapter, Lungo would not keep your computer awake. You might have accidentally unplugged it or there might have been a power failure. - If you have set a sleep schedule in “System Settings › Battery › Schedule”, it will take priority over Lungo. This is out of Lungo’s control. - If you have set the computer to log out after a certain amount of time in “System Settings › Privacy & Security › Advanced”, it will take priority over Lungo. This is out of Lungo’s control. - If you see apps open again when you wake up your computer, it means your computer was restarted for some reason. Lungo cannot keep your computer from restarting. Some common reasons it may have restarted are a power outage, macOS crash, or scheduled shutdown/restart (in Battery system settings). + You can [check how long your computer has been awake and when it was last rebooted](https://www.macobserver.com/tips/quick-tip/mac-system-uptime-terminal/) to narrow down the problem. You can also check when the computer was last logged in by typing the command `last` in the Terminal app. Some things you could try: - Make sure you are on the latest macOS and Lungo versions. - [Reset NVRAM](https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204063) - [Reset SMC](https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201295) ### Does it work when the lid is closed? {#lid-closed} No, that’s not allowed for apps on the App Store, for good reasons. Imagine you activate it while your computer is doing a heavy task and then put the laptop in your bag. Your laptop could easily overheat. The exception to this is if it’s connected to a charger and an external display. However, if you want this, there are some solutions [here](https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/2389/is-there-any-way-to-set-a-macbook-pro-to-not-sleep-when-you-close-the-lid?rq=1). ### Does Lungo keep my Mac awake even if there is a scheduled sleep? If you have set a sleep schedule in “System Settings › Battery › Schedule”, it will take priority over Lungo. This is out of Lungo’s control. ### Can I left-click the icon to toggle it like with Caffeine? Yes, choose “Activate on Left-click” in the settings. ### Can Lungo automatically activate when I open a certain app? I don’t plan to support this. It’s a lot of work to implement and only a few people have requested it. However, you can achieve it using the Shortcuts app. Create a new shortcut with the “Set Enabled State” action provided by Lungo. Use Shortcuts automations to run the shortcut when a certain app opens. You could also use BetterTouchTool or Keyboard Maestro. ### Can Lungo automatically activate on a set schedule? I don’t plan to do this built-in, but you can achieve it with Shortcuts automations. ### Can Lungo automatically activate when I switch to a specific focus mode? I don’t plan to do this built-in, but you can achieve it with Shortcuts automations. ### How can I make Lungo be activated until a specific time? This is not supported built-in, but you can use the Shortcuts app to achieve it. Get [this shortcut](https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/9aa69e6db4ba48289e59214d10a405b2) and either pin it to the menu bar or add a global keyboard shortcut to trigger it. You could also use Raycast, BetterTouchTool, or Keyboard Maestro to trigger it. ### Can I use a custom duration? {#custom-duration} Lungo comes with a set of commonly used durations, which should be enough for most users. People love Lungo for its simplicity. Not having custom times also helps prevent decision fatigue. Lungo has tens of thousands of users and only a few people have requested support for custom durations. However, power users can take advantage of the Shortcuts app to use custom durations. Drag the “Set Enabled State” Lungo action into the shortcut editor in the Shortcuts app. Click “Show more” and then choose a custom duration. You can pin the shortcut workflow to the menu bar for easy access or set a global keyboard shortcut for it. ### Can it keep my status on Slack, Microsoft Teams, etc, show as active? No, that’s not the purpose of this app. Different apps use different techniques for detecting active status, which could change at any time. ### How can I transfer my settings from the App Store version to the Setapp version? Run this command in the Terminal app: ```sh defaults export com.sindresorhus.Lungo - | defaults import com.sindresorhus.Lungo-setapp - ``` And to transfer the other way: ```sh defaults export com.sindresorhus.Lungo-setapp - | defaults import com.sindresorhus.Lungo - ``` ### How is it different from Amphetamine? Amphetamine has lots of features. Most of which I would never use. It ships with a myriad of menu bar icons to choose from, but none that looks good. With Lungo, I wanted a focused and simple app with great defaults. ## Scripting You can control Lungo using anything that supports opening a URL with a custom scheme. *Lungo also comes with support for Shortcuts.* > [!TIP] > You can [run shortcuts from the command-line](https://support.apple.com/guide/shortcuts-mac/run-shortcuts-from-the-command-line-apd455c82f02/mac). ### Integrations - [lungo-cli](https://github.com/sindresorhus/lungo-cli): Command-line tool. - [Raycast commands](https://github.com/raycast/script-commands/tree/master/commands#lungo) - Note: Raycast commands are not the same as plugins. [How to install commands.](https://github.com/raycast/script-commands#install-script-commands-from-this-repository) ### Custom URL scheme For example, to activate Lungo for 10 minutes, run this terminal command: ```sh open --background 'lungo:activate?minutes=10' ``` #### Commands - `activate` - `deactivate` - `toggle` The `activate` and `toggle` commands support the parameters `hours` and `minutes`, which can be used together or individually. If you don’t specify a duration, it will use the default duration you have set in Lungo. *(Use [`lungo-cli`](https://github.com/sindresorhus/lungo-cli) if you need to get the active state)* #### Examples ##### Shell ```sh # Deactivate Lungo open --background 'lungo:deactivate' # Activate Lungo for 1 hour and 30 minutes open --background 'lungo:activate?hours=1&minutes=30' # Activate Lungo for 1 hour and 30 minutes (Alternative) open --background 'lungo:activate?hours=1.5' # Toggle Lungo with the default duration open --background 'lungo:toggle' # Toggle Lungo for 10 minutes open --background 'lungo:toggle?minutes=10' ``` ##### Node.js ```js import {execFileSync} from 'node:child_process'; execFileSync('open', ['--background', 'lungo:toggle']); ``` ##### Swift ```swift import Cocoa let command = "lungo:toggle" let configuration = NSWorkspace.OpenConfiguration() configuration.activates = false NSWorkspace.shared.open(URL(string: command)!, configuration: configuration) ``` ##### AppleScript ```applescript do shell script "open --background 'lungo:toggle'" ``` ##### Python ```python import subprocess subprocess.run(['open', '--background', 'lungo:toggle']) ``` ## Older Versions - [2.7.2](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/khm2quv6q3c5wq9gzvlvc/Lungo-2.7.2-macOS-15-1777060779.zip?rlkey=94p4xjljg9c5caxgnhcw21ya0&raw=1) for macOS 15 - [2.6.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/sindresorhus.github.com/releases/download/v1.0.0/Lungo.2.6.0.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14 - [2.4.2](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/14276605/Lungo.2.4.2.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13 - [2.2.2](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/11292407/Lungo.2.2.2.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12 - [2.0.4](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/8870132/Lungo.2.0.4.-.macOS.11.zip) for macOS 11 - [1.9.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/7404362/Lungo.1.9.0.-.macOS.10.15.zip) for macOS 10.15 - [1.7.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/5507155/Lungo-1-7-0.zip) for macOS 10.14 - [1.6.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/4556911/Lungo-1.6.0-High-Sierra.zip) for macOS 10.13 These are free for everyone but they will not run on newer macOS versions. --- # Battery Indicator Remaining battery time in your menu bar. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/battery-indicator See how long your battery will last, right in your menu bar, without clicking anything. You can show the percentage instead. ## Frequently Asked Questions {#faq} ### The app does not show up in the menu bar [Try this](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#app-not-showing-in-menu-bar) You may also have enabled the “Hide while on power” preference, which hides the menu bar icon while the power adapter is connected. Launch the app again to reveal the menu bar item for 5 seconds or disconnect the power adapter. ### The estimated time left is incorrect The number comes from macOS and the app has no control over it. ### The menu bar icon is vertically stretched when shown on a secondary display This is a macOS 11 bug. I have tried to work around this issue, but it’s out of my control. ### Why does the menu bar icon show `…` when I unplug the power adapter? The system needs some time to accurately calculate the time remaining estimate. ### How do I remove the system battery menu bar item? Drag it out of the menu bar while pressing Command. ### Can it show “apps using significant energy” like the built-in battery indicator? It can unfortunately not show this because of restrictions ([sandboxing](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#macos-sandbox)) imposed on apps on the App Store. However, you could change the menu bar item type to text instead of the icon and use this app in combination with the system battery indicator. ### Can it have a “charge to full now” button? This is not possible for the same reason as mentioned above. ### Can it play a sound when the battery is charged a certain percentage? {#notification-sound} The app has a built-in sound when showing notifications. However, if you want a different sound, you can disable the default notification sound in the “Notification Settings” and then follow the below steps. This is a perfect use case for the built-in Shortcuts app. You can use the `Play Sound` action to play the sound you want. To run the shortcut when the battery is at a certain percentage, use Shortcuts automations. You can find sound effects [here](https://pixabay.com/sound-effects/search/interface/). ### Can the battery icon hide when the battery is charged a certain percentage? This is a perfect use case for the built-in Shortcuts app. Create a shortcut that quits the app and one that launches it. To run the shortcut when the battery is at a certain percentage, use Shortcuts automations. ## Older Versions - [2.19.0](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/14amy0g1r6sjyhg48cjns/Battery-Indicator-2.19.0-macOS-15-1772299240.zip?rlkey=e647a9azxyif2mnyuqot8jya7&raw=1) for macOS 15 - [2.18.0](https://github.com/user-attachments/files/19015442/Battery.Indicator.2.18.0.-.macOS.14.zip) for macOS 14 - [2.16.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/13942534/Battery.Indicator.2.16.1.-.macOS.13.zip) for macOS 13 - [2.14.2](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/10759031/Battery.Indicator.2.14.2.-.macOS.12.zip) for macOS 12 - [2.12.3](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/8759816/Battery.Indicator.2.12.3.-.macOS.11.zip) for macOS 11 - [2.7.1](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/6565005/Battery.Indicator.2.7.1.-.macOS.10.15.zip) for macOS 10.15 - [2.1.0](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/4127047/Battery-Indicator-2.1.0-Mojave.zip) for macOS 10.14 These are free for everyone but they will not run on newer macOS versions. --- # Blear Transform photos into blurry wallpapers. URL: https://sindresorhus.com/blear Turn a photo into a soft, blurry wallpaper, so your Home Screen icons and Lock Screen clock stay easy to read. Use your own photos or the included ones. --- # About URL: https://sindresorhus.com/about Hi, I’m Sindre ([hear how to say it](https://sindresorhus.com/assets/sindre-sorhus-pronunciation.m4a)). I make apps and open-source software, full time and on my own. In 2014, I quit my office job to backpack around Southeast Asia and work on open source. The backpacking ended, but the open source never did. My time goes to [apps](https://sindresorhus.com/apps) for Apple devices and to open source. The apps are small, focused tools that each solve one problem well, and many of them are free. You can [read what people say about them](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/reviews), or [see what I’m working on now](https://sindresorhus.com/now). In open source, I maintain [many npm packages](https://www.npmjs.com/~sindresorhus) and [popular projects](https://github.com/search?q=user:sindresorhus+user:chalk+user:avajs+user:xojs+user:soml-lang+archived:false&type=Repositories), from Node.js libraries to CLI tools and Swift packages, and I started [Awesome](https://github.com/sindresorhus/awesome), the lists about all kinds of interesting topics. @SocialLinks ## Some Things About Me @Cards { - Grew up in Norway - Started with [LEGO](https://sindresorhus.com/about/lego.jpg), then made [simple websites](https://sindresorhus.com/1999) at nine - My LEGO city took up almost the whole bedroom - Didn’t learn programming properly until my twenties - Before that, I copied PHP and JavaScript without quite understanding them - Got into open source by contributing to [TodoMVC](https://todomvc.com), and later became one of its maintainers - Speak Swift, JavaScript, English, and Norwegian, in that order - Not a company, just me - Coined the term “[ponyfill](https://github.com/sindresorhus/ponyfill)” - Started [Awesome](https://github.com/sindresorhus/awesome), one of the most-starred repos on GitHub - Love [Cà phê muối](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnamese_iced_coffee#Variations), [Es yen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Es_yen), and [Kaeng khiao wan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_curry) - Vietnamese salt coffee, Thai iced espresso, and Thai green curry - Once coded for 43 hours straight. Would not recommend - Unicorns everywhere. Open source is hard work, so it should also be fun - On [tabs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indentation_style#Tab_vs._space) since the ’90s - Permanent dark mode } ## How I Learned to Make Things At school, we watched Flash movies and played Flash games in every break. I wanted to know how they were made, but unlike websites, they had no “View Source”. So I decompiled them. Nobody obfuscated their files back then, so everything was there to see. Then I started to change them. I redrew the characters, added new enemies, and put in high scores. I didn’t really understand the code. I changed things, broke them, and changed them back until the game did what I wanted. The first time other people played a game I had glued together, I was very proud. That is still how I learn. I take something apart to see how it works, and then I make my own. Today, it’s macOS internals instead of Flash games. ## The Apps That Made Me Want to Make Apps {#why-mac-apps} In 2007, I left Windows for my first Mac, a 17-inch MacBook Pro, right in the middle of what people called the “Delicious Generation”. The name came from [Delicious Library](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delicious_Library), an app that put your books and movies on a realistic wooden shelf. Independent developers were making Mac apps that felt more like crafted objects than software, and [Coda](https://web.archive.org/web/20080526024010/http://www.panic.com/coda/) and [Things](https://web.archive.org/web/20090302220524/http://www.culturedcode.com/things/) were my favorites. Coda put a whole web workflow (editor, preview, file transfer, and terminal) into one beautiful window. Things made a to-do list feel calm. Small teams made them, and every detail felt cared for. I remember thinking: “One day, I’m going to make an app on that level.” Then, for a long time, nothing happened. My biggest blocker was Objective-C. It never clicked with me: the square brackets, the manual memory management, the header files. So I made websites, and then open source, and then much more open source. In 2014, Apple released Swift, and that changed everything. I started learning it the same day. The first app still took three more years. In January 2017, I got an idea for a small Mac app and had some free time, so I jumped right in and learned what I needed as I went. A month later, I released [my first Mac app](https://sindresorhus.com/battery-indicator). It was a battery indicator. Not exactly Coda. But after ten years of dreaming, it took one month to make. That era is mostly gone. Even [Delicious Library shut down](https://daringfireball.net/linked/2024/11/26/delicious-library-eol) in 2024. But the goal is still the same: make [apps](https://sindresorhus.com/apps) that would wow the younger me who opened Coda for the first time. Apple has featured some of them, but none of them are on that level yet. I’m slowly getting there. ## Changelog @Changelog { - 2026 - Added: [Awesome](https://github.com/sindresorhus/awesome) hit 500K stars on GitHub - Changed: [Rewrote this website in Swift](https://sindresorhus.com/blog/swift-website) - 2025 - Added: Released my [60th app](https://sindresorhus.com/menu-drop) - 2024 - Added: 5 million users of my apps - Added: Love for [Vietnam](https://www.instagram.com/p/DCM9t4RzYY7/) - Added: [Supercharge](https://sindresorhus.com/supercharge) app - 2023 - Added: Love for [Japan](https://www.instagram.com/p/CqaXPqvvsau/) - Added: Released my [40th app](https://sindresorhus.com/menu-bar-calendar) - 2022 - Added: [Velja](https://sindresorhus.com/velja), [One Thing](https://sindresorhus.com/one-thing), and [Pure Paste](https://sindresorhus.com/pure-paste) apps - 2021 - Removed: [CommonJS](https://gist.github.com/sindresorhus/a39789f98801d908bbc7ff3ecc99d99c) from my packages - Added: [Actions](https://sindresorhus.com/actions) app - 2020 - Added: Released my [10th app](https://sindresorhus.com/plash) - 2019 - Added: [My 1000th repo](https://github.com/sindresorhus/capture-website) - Added: [Dato](https://sindresorhus.com/dato) app - Added: [type-fest](https://github.com/sindresorhus/type-fest) - 2018 - Changed: Relationship status, to [married](https://www.instagram.com/p/Bq7mwUCgl9S/) - Added: [Gifski](https://sindresorhus.com/gifski) app - Added: [Ky](https://github.com/sindresorhus/ky) - 2017 - Added: Released my [first Mac app](https://sindresorhus.com/battery-indicator) - Added: My first app on [Setapp](https://sindresorhus.com/lungo) - 2016 - Removed: Being broke - Added: More unicorns, with [eslint-plugin-unicorn](https://github.com/sindresorhus/eslint-plugin-unicorn) - 2015 - Added: Love for Thailand - Added: [XO](https://github.com/xojs/xo), [np](https://github.com/sindresorhus/np), and [execa](https://github.com/sindresorhus/execa) - 2014 - Removed: Office job - Changed: Salary, to savings - Added: One-way ticket to Thailand - Changed: Time zone, from UTC+1 to UTC+7 - Removed: Cold winters - Added: [Awesome](https://github.com/sindresorhus/awesome), [Got](https://github.com/sindresorhus/got), and [AVA](https://github.com/avajs/ava) - Added: Swift - Removed: Objective-C - Added: First sweet internet dollars - 2013 - Changed: Laptop, to a 15-inch [MacBook Pro](https://support.apple.com/en-us/111971) - Added: Released my [first iPhone app](https://sindresorhus.com/front-flash) - Added: Released my first popular project, [Chalk](https://github.com/chalk/chalk) - 2012 - Added: 2 months as a contractor for Google, on [Yeoman](https://yeoman.io) - Added: [My first contribution to jQuery](https://github.com/jquery/jquery/commit/92cd9990971a097b6639607b0d1172e9fe6d0dca) - Added: My first npm package, [grunt-recess](https://github.com/sindresorhus/grunt-recess) - 2011 - Added: [My first open-source repo](https://github.com/sindresorhus/sindresorhus.github.com), for this website - Added: My first contribution to [TodoMVC](https://todomvc.com), because I liked its logo - Added: Python and Django, where real coding started - Removed: PHP - 2010 - Added: [Twitter account](https://x.com/sindresorhus) - 2009 - Added: GitHub account - Added: My first iPhone, a [3GS](https://support.apple.com/en-us/112307) - 2008 - Removed: School - 2007 - Added: My first Mac, a 17-inch [MacBook Pro](https://support.apple.com/en-us/docs/mac/pp215) - Added: A dream of making apps like [Coda and Things](https://sindresorhus.com/about#why-mac-apps) - Removed: Windows - 2005 - Added: My first laptop, a 17-inch [Dell Inspiron 9300](https://www.ifixit.com/Device/Dell_Inspiron_9300) - 2000 - Added: My [second website](https://sindresorhus.com/about/second-website.jpg), made in PowerPoint - 1999 - Removed: My first website. I crashed Dad’s computer with thousands of nested folders, and he had to reformat it - 1998 - Added: My first website, made in Notepad and uploaded with FTP - 1997 - Added: Internet access, which changed everything - 1996 - Added: A [family computer](https://sindresorhus.com/about/family-ibm-computer.jpg) with Windows 95, at seven - 1989 - Added: [Initial release](https://www.instagram.com/p/x1G0TboUAq/), in Norway } ## Some Things I Believe @Cards { - I’m all in on AI - It’s the biggest shift in how software gets made in my lifetime, and I use it every day - The bottleneck is no longer writing code. It’s taste, judgment, and knowing what to build - With AI, I can make, verify, and ship a fix faster than I can review a pull request for it - I still own the result. The design, the decisions, and the quality bar are mine - I make things for fun, and to solve my own problems - The easiest way to build a great app is to be your own customer - Enthusiasm is an input. It’s easier to do great work on things that excite you - Optimize for Monthly Happiness Percentage, not monthly recurring revenue. If some apps earn money, that’s a bonus - Focus is a feature - An app should do one thing well. Every “yes” makes the next “no” harder - Bloat doesn’t arrive in one release. It arrives one reasonable feature at a time - Focus lets me go deeper than the screenshot. A surface idea gets cloned in weeks, but taste, trust, and depth are hard to copy - [Small, focused modules](https://sindresorhus.com/blog/small-focused-modules) are LEGO bricks. Build big things out of small, finished pieces - One person can still make things that matter - From Apple’s [“Think Different”](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Think_different) ad: “The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.” It’s at the bottom of every page on this site - The real cost of software is supporting it - Every feature is a promise to maintain it - Hacks break with the next OS update, and then they turn into support email - Free APIs go away, so I don’t depend on them - A platform feature that makes my package obsolete is a win. Node.js made seven of them obsolete - Native apps are better - Faster, smaller, and at home on the platform. Most of my apps are below 4 MB - Fit in, don’t stand out. The best app feels like it came with the system - I support only the latest macOS and iOS, and spend the time on making the apps better instead - Redesign only when it helps. Change for the sake of change creates work for everyone and value for no one - The people who use my apps deserve respect - No ads, no tracking, and no personal data - Pay once, own forever - Prices in whole dollars, not $4.99. I have no wish to manipulate my users. Small ethical choices compound - Behind every issue and support email is a real person. [Empathy and kindness](https://sindresorhus.com/blog/empathy-in-open-source) matter as much as code - Readability beats cleverness - Code is read far more often than it’s written - Silent on success, loud on failure } ## How I Make an App @Steps { 1. Write down every idea. Most of them are boring or bad, and that’s fine. It takes a lot of bad ideas to get to the good ones 1. Start with the idea, and learn what I need to make it 1. Design the app myself, and build it with AI as my tireless pair programmer 1. Ship it, and let reality decide. Some of my most popular apps are weekend projects, and some I spent months on went nowhere 1. Read every support email and reply myself 1. After every WWDC, go through all my apps to see how they can use the new features - But wait a year before trusting a brand-new API } ## What I Use {#uses} The things I use every day. @Cards { - 16-inch MacBook Pro - M4 Pro, with 48 GB of memory - iPhone 17 Pro, Apple Watch 7, and AirPods Pro 2 - Desk: my lap. External displays: none - I travel light: the laptop, the phone, some T-shirts, shorts, and boxers. That’s it - The apps in my Dock, for code - [Sublime Text](https://www.sublimetext.com), Xcode, [iTerm2](https://iterm2.com), [Tower](https://www.git-tower.com), [Hopper](https://www.hopperapp.com), and [VirtualBuddy](https://github.com/insidegui/VirtualBuddy). Sublime Text because it’s instant. Tower because Git history is easier to see than to remember - The apps in my Dock, for everything else - Safari, Notes, Reminders, and [ChatGPT](https://chatgpt.com) - [Claude Code](https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code) and [Codex](https://github.com/openai/codex) in the terminal - My own apps, every day - [Lungo](https://sindresorhus.com/lungo), [Dato](https://sindresorhus.com/dato), and [Supercharge](https://sindresorhus.com/supercharge) in the menu bar - [Dracula](https://draculatheme.com) and [JetBrains Mono](https://www.jetbrains.com/lp/mono/) in Sublime Text - Dark, of course, and tabs. Default dark theme in Xcode - Synthwave and chillstep while I code - Apple’s Passwords app, Gmail in Safari, and Google for search } ## Where My Code Ended Up Open source travels. I write a small package to solve my own problem, and years later, it turns up in places I never imagined. @Cards { - Three of the big AI coding agents started on [Ink](https://github.com/vadimdemedes/ink), which I maintain - [Claude Code](https://github.com/vadimdemedes/ink/blob/91eb50a53875623da26191f73f35658d3d9b91a5/readme.md?plain=1#L79) and [Gemini CLI](https://github.com/google-gemini/gemini-cli/blob/9656cff4aca74ebd158506c94927c70e9f8e46fb/packages/cli/package.json#L40-L66) draw their terminal UI with it, and [Codex](https://github.com/openai/codex/blob/73fe1381aa56f249b7c511fb033e7548c14d9100/codex-cli/package.json#L31-L49) did too, before the Rust rewrite - Apple ships my code - [The Books app](https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/iu88c6g9lxyh43n9hagte/IMG_3061-1792170168.PNG?rlkey=fpzxuemvzvbhafhzu4f483jvz&raw=1) on iOS includes `object-assign`, and [the Report a Problem website](https://reportaproblem.apple.com/static/en-us/acknowledgements.html) uses `query-string`. Both list me in their acknowledgements - The native ChatGPT app for Mac used my [KeyboardShortcuts](https://github.com/sindresorhus/KeyboardShortcuts) package - Until OpenAI rewrote the app in Electron - [Google’s Gemini dictation demo for Mac](https://github.com/google-gemini/jot-gemini-transcribe-macOS/blob/9976926959a6043eac01ffff4d914a7c7762ecfa/JotCore/Package.swift#L27) uses KeyboardShortcuts for push-to-talk - Hold a key, speak, and it types - [Got](https://github.com/sindresorhus/got/blob/eac0aa1294395a1bbe2a9825141fd320346aa6c1/readme.md?plain=1#L436) once powered Segment’s main backend API - And the RPC client for all their microservices. That’s a long journey for a package with a three-letter name - [Chalk](https://github.com/chalk/chalk) prints NASA’s green checkmarks - [Terra UI](https://github.com/nasa/terra-ui-components/blob/656f320a3245be325ce79f10f1826cf0710bbe3a/packages/create-terra-ui-app/bin/create-terra-ui-app.js#L29) uses it for its build messages, and Google’s [zx](https://github.com/google/zx/blob/d24bef75cc3ad7cabc51ae4db993978cbe3d2202/src/log.ts#L96-L105) colors its output with it - NASA, Wikipedia, and the BBC have unicorns in their code - My code-quality plugin, `eslint-plugin-unicorn`, is in NASA’s [Cumulus](https://github.com/nasa/cumulus/blob/a6d4bfcf7512d6bf4226198c54af7c7a30da05b3/package.json#L139) and [Open MCT](https://github.com/nasa/openmct/blob/8782f884ed3b31d853fe655ee07ed89fd27f7eef/package.json#L45), [Wikimedia’s ESLint config](https://github.com/wikimedia/eslint-config-wikimedia/blob/d6ff6d803c0adc240b57d275496e373037fc3f82/package.json#L75), and the BBC’s [TV player](https://github.com/bbc/bigscreen-player/blob/41a0be6d21316b0f95bc2fe83e6f975f29d5a497/package.json#L66). Somewhere between space science and encyclopedic seriousness sits a mythical horse } ## Some Fun Facts @Cards { - My name means “to sparkle” - [Sindre](https://snl.no/Sindre_-_mannsnamn) comes from Old Norse [Sindri](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sindri_(mythology)), a dwarf who forged a flying golden boar and a ring that made eight more every ninth night - My namesake made Thor’s hammer, so I was destined to make tools - It shipped with a bug: Loki, as a fly, bit the smith at the bellows, and the handle came out too short - The web and I were born the same year - Tim Berners-Lee [proposed it at CERN](https://home.cern/science/computing/birth-web) in 1989. My release notes were shorter - GIF is older than me - CompuServe made it in 1987, and my [Gifski](https://sindresorhus.com/gifski) app still helps it look good - [Velja](https://sindresorhus.com/velja) means “to choose” in [Nynorsk](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nynorsk) - A fitting name for an app that chooses your browser - [Imago](https://sindresorhus.com/imago) is Latin for “image” - In biology, it’s also the adult stage of an insect, like a butterfly - My package that does nothing gets thousands of downloads a week - [noop3](https://www.npmjs.com/package/noop3) is “Supreme nothingness”, now at version 1000.0.0 } ## Support My Work If my apps or my open-source work are useful to you, you can [sponsor me or donate](https://sindresorhus.com/donate), [buy one of my paid apps](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/paid), or leave a nice review on the App Store. [These people and companies](https://sindresorhus.com/supporters) already support me. Thank you! ## More - [Interview with Indie Dev Monday](https://indiedevmonday.com/issue-53) (2021) - [Interview with Between the Wires](https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/sindre-sorhus-8426c0ed785d) (2017) - [Answering Anything & Everything](https://github.com/sindresorhus/meta/files/10987101/Sindre.Sorhus.-.Answering.Anything.Everything.pdf), my old Q&A about anything people asked (PDF, 22 MB) --- # Affiliates URL: https://sindresorhus.com/apps/affiliates # Affiliates for my apps Earn money promoting some of my apps. Currently, only one: - [QuickGPT](https://sindresorhus.com/quickgpt): [Sign up as affiliate and earn 50% of each sale](https://sindresorhus.gumroad.com/affiliates) --- # Discounts URL: https://sindresorhus.com/apps/discounts # Discounts ## Power user bundle Get [Default Browser](https://sindresorhus.com/default-browser), [Shortcutie](https://sindresorhus.com/shortcutie), and [Supercharge](https://sindresorhus.com/supercharge) together for 28% off with the [Power User Bundle](https://sindresorhus.gumroad.com/l/power-user). ## Students and open source maintainers *Update: I’m pausing this for now. I get 20–30 emails daily about promo codes and need time to focus on work. I’ll resume sharing promo codes in the future. Thanks for understanding.* ~~If you’re a student or an open source maintainer, you can get any of my [paid apps](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/paid) for free. **Max one app per person.**~~ ~~[Reach out to me](mailto:sindresorhus@gmail.com?subject=Free%20promo%20code%20for%20%5Bapp%5D&body=Mention%20which%20paid%20apps%20you%20want) to request a free promo code.~~ ## Student App Centre Students can get [Supercharge](https://sindresorhus.com/supercharge) 50% off at [Student App Centre](https://www.studentappcentre.com/App/Supercharge). ## Educational institutions For my [apps on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/developer/id328077650), educational institutions get a 50% discount when they purchase 20 or more copies of one of my macOS or iOS apps through [Apple School Manager](https://support.apple.com/guide/apple-school-manager/welcome/web). For my [apps on Gumroad](https://sindresorhus.gumroad.com), educational institutions get a 50% discount when they purchase 10 or more copies. Promo code: `LD13WY0` ## Reviewers and writers If you’re writing a review or article about one of my apps, I’m happy to provide a free license. [Contact me.](mailto:sindresorhus@gmail.com?subject=Review%20request%20-%20free%20license&body=%5BInclude%20a%20link%20to%20the%20website%20where%20the%20article%20will%20be%20published%5D) --- # Frequently Asked Questions URL: https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq # Frequently Asked Questions *See the page of each app for app-specific FAQs.* ## Purchases {#purchases} ### How can I get a refund? {#refund} For apps purchased on the Apple App Store, you can [request a refund](https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204084) from Apple. App developers have no control over the purchase and refund process. Please don’t contact me about it. For apps purchased on Gumroad (NOT on the App Store), refunds are generally not offered. You can [request a refund](mailto:sindresorhus@gmail.com?subject=Gumroad%20refund&body=Mention%20which%20app%20you%20want%20a%20refund%20for%20and%20your%20Gumroad%20account%20email) if you have a good reason (like duplicate purchase). But most purchases are final. However, I would appreciate it if you [reached out](https://sindresorhus.com/feedback) first. I may be able to resolve any problems you are having. ### Is there a free trial? {#free-trial} Some of my paid apps have a free trial. See the “Trial” section on the page of the app, like for [Dato](https://sindresorhus.com/dato#trial), [Supercharge](https://sindresorhus.com/supercharge#trial), [Velja](https://sindresorhus.com/velja#trial), [Scratchpad](https://sindresorhus.com/scratchpad#trial), and [Aiko](https://sindresorhus.com/aiko#trial). If the page of the app has no “Trial” section, the app does not have a trial of its own. Most trials are the full app, with a reminder to buy it every 12 hours and no automatic updates. All data and settings carry over if you buy the app. Apps that are on Setapp can also be tried for free for 7 days on Setapp. ### How many devices can I install an app on? {#device-limit} Apps purchased on the Apple App Store can be installed on up to 10 devices, with a maximum of 5 computers. [Learn more.](https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204074) Apps purchased on Gumroad can be used by one user on unlimited computers. ### Can I use your paid apps with Family Sharing? {#family-sharing} Yes, all paid apps on the App Store support [Family Sharing](https://support.apple.com/en-us/108380) by default. Once one family member purchases the app, everyone in the family group can download it at no additional cost. Make sure Purchase Sharing is enabled in your family group settings. ### I previously bought the app on the App Store but it still says I need to pay {#restore-purchase} App Store purchases are tied to your Apple Account. Make sure you are signed in with the same Apple Account you used for the original purchase. You can verify this in App Store › tap your profile › Purchased. If the app does not appear there, you may be signed into a different account. Also check for any outstanding billing issues in your Apple Account settings, as unresolved payment problems can prevent access to previous purchases. ### How can I download an app I bought on Gumroad again? {#gumroad-download} You can download the app again from the Gumroad receipt email or from your Gumroad account. See [how to access a Gumroad purchase](https://gumroad.com/help/article/199-how-do-i-access-my-purchase). ### App Store won’t download or redownload an app of yours {#app-store-download-problem} Apple alone controls purchases, licensing, downloads, account state, and delivery on the App Store. Developers have zero access or influence. Some things you could try: - Restart device. - Sign out and in again to the App Store. Apple troubleshooting guide: - [macOS](https://support.apple.com/en-us/102331) - [iOS](https://support.apple.com/en-us/102632) ### How can I transfer an app bought on the Apple App Store to a different account? {#transfer-purchase} This is unfortunately [not possible](https://apple.stackexchange.com/a/444878). App developers have no control over the purchase process on the Apple App Store. ### Can I move between the App Store, Gumroad, and Setapp? {#transfer-between-stores} No. The App Store, Gumroad, and Setapp are completely separate platforms with no shared licensing. A purchase on one does not carry over to the others. ### How do I activate the Setapp version of an app? {#setapp-version} Install the app from the Setapp app, and open it from there. Your Setapp membership activates the app, so there is nothing to buy or restore in the app. The Setapp version is a separate app from the App Store or Gumroad version and the trial, and the settings do not carry over between them. If the app asks you to buy it, make sure you opened the Setapp version. For problems with your Setapp account or membership, [contact Setapp](https://support.setapp.com/hc/en-us/articles/4950254561052-How-to-contact-Setapp-team). ### Can your app be available on Setapp? {#setapp} Setapp curates apps based on demand, so if you’d like to see an app of mine on Setapp, [email them](https://support.setapp.com/hc/en-us/articles/4950254561052-How-to-contact-Setapp-team#:~:text=to%20your%20issue.-,Send%20an%20email,%3A%20support%40setapp.com.) and request its inclusion. ### Can I get an invoice? {#invoice} Apps purchased on: - [Apple App Store](https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/425441/invoice-for-purchases-made-on-app-store) - [Gumroad](https://gumroad.com/help/article/194-i-need-an-invoice.html#How-to-generate-your-invoice-from-the-receipt-wpmBD) ### Do you provide any discounts? {#discounts} Yes. See the [discounts](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/discounts) page. ### What is Universal Purchase on the App Store? {#universal-purchase} An App Store feature that lets you buy an app once and get access to all its available versions across Apple platforms (iOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS, and visionOS) using the same Apple Account. For example, if you buy a Universal Purchase app on your iPhone, you can download it on your Mac at no extra cost if a Mac version exists. All my apps on the App Store are Universal Purchase. ## Troubleshooting {#troubleshooting} ### I’m having a problem with your app {#app-problem} Here are some things you could try: - Restart your device. - Ensure you are on the latest version of the app. - Ensure you are on the latest operating system version. - Check the FAQ on the app’s page in case it’s already answered there. - If the app requires an internet connection, make sure you are online. Try disabling any VPN. - macOS: Close all other apps (including menu bar items) to make sure the problem is not caused by another app. - macOS: [Reset permissions.](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#mac-reset-permissions) - [Reset the app.](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#reset-app) For sync issues, [see below](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#icloud-sync). If you have tried all of this, [contact me](https://sindresorhus.com/feedback). ### The app stopped working after a macOS update {#macos-update-broke-app} Ensure you are running the latest version of the app. I typically release updates around major macOS releases to ensure compatibility. You may also need to [re-grant permissions](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#mac-reset-permissions) (Calendar, Full Disk Access, etc.) in System Settings, as macOS updates can reset/corrupt these. If the problem persists, try [resetting the app](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#reset-app). Still not working? [Contact me](https://sindresorhus.com/feedback) with details. ### macOS says the app uses Rosetta and will stop working in a future version {#rosetta} All my maintained Mac apps run natively on Apple silicon. They do not need Rosetta, and they will continue to work when Apple removes Rosetta. If macOS shows the “Support Ending for Intel-based Apps” notification for one of my apps, or shows it in the “Intel-based Apps” list in System Settings, it is a macOS bug. You can ignore it. To check, select the app in Finder and press Command+I. “Kind” shows “Universal” or “Apple silicon”. If “Open using Rosetta” is checked there, uncheck it. ### I’m getting a “The application can’t be opened” error when trying to launch your app {#app-cant-be-opened} Make sure the app is in the “/Applications” folder, and then open it. If macOS blocks it, open “System Settings › Privacy & Security”, go to the “Security” section, click “Open Anyway”, and enter your login password. The button is only there for about an hour after you try to open the app. On macOS 15 and later, right-clicking the app and selecting “Open” no longer works for this. See [Apple’s guide to opening a blocked app](https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/open-a-mac-app-from-an-unknown-developer-mh40616/mac). If it still doesn’t work, the app may be quarantined, and the system is not showing the proper dialog. To fix this, open Terminal and run: ```sh xattr -d com.apple.quarantine -r /Applications/AppName.app ``` Replace `AppName` with the name of the app. [Learn more.](https://superuser.com/a/28400/6877) ### The app does not show up in the macOS menu bar {#app-not-showing-in-menu-bar} macOS hides menu bar apps when there is no space left in the menu bar. This is a common problem on MacBooks with a notch. Try quitting some other menu bar apps to free up space. If this does not solve it, try quitting Bartender/Ice if you have it installed. If you are on macOS 26 or later, make sure it’s not disabled in “System Settings › Menu Bar › Allow in the Menu Bar”. **This can happen even if you didn’t disable it due to a macOS bug.** Also try restarting your computer. ### The menu bar item looks blurry or is not dimmed on a secondary display {#menu-bar-secondary-display} macOS handles the replication of menu bar items onto secondary displays, so what you see there is drawn by the system, not by the app. Two things can look off, both outside the control of apps: - Text can look less sharp. This is simply the resolution of that display: a non-Retina display has far fewer pixels to draw the text with. Everything else on that screen is drawn at the same low resolution, but small text is where it shows the most. - macOS dims menu bar items on the display that is not active, making them semi-transparent so they blend into the menu bar. It incorrectly fails to do this for items that use rich text, so those stay fully opaque and stand out from everything around them. ### I have enabled “launch at login” but the app does not launch when I start my computer {#launch-at-login-not-working} When you enable that setting, the app simply tells macOS to launch it at login, so if it’s not working, it’s a problem with macOS or your system. Try disabling launch at login in the app, restart your computer, and then enable it again. As a workaround, you can manually add it: Open System Settings, go to “General › Login Items”, and click the “+” button, and choose the app. ### The macOS app randomly quits {#randomly-quits} If the app vanishes and there is no [crash report](https://sindresorhus.com/apps/faq#crash-report), it’s likely macOS terminated it to free disk space during a cache purge, or free up memory. It’s more noticeable with menu bar apps that run constantly. Keep 10–20 GB free and avoid “free purgeable space” tools (for example, CleanMyMac); they trigger the same system mechanism as a full disk. Also try restarting your computer. This is a [common problem](https://bitsplitting.org/2022/06/18/purgeable-mac-apps/) for macOS apps. ### Your app is using a lot of CPU {#high-cpu} If you notice high CPU usage for one of my apps in Activity Monitor, don’t be alarmed. [CPU usage numbers can be misleading](https://eclecticlight.co/2022/02/24/cpu-percentage-is-misleading-on-m1-macs/), especially on modern Apple silicon Macs. Here’s why: - The percentage shown is the total across all CPU cores. For example, on an 8-core Mac, 10% usage of a single core only represents about 1.5% of total capacity - Activity Monitor doesn’t distinguish between efficiency (E) and performance (P) cores - Many background tasks run on efficient low-power cores, minimizing battery impact - The CPU percentage updates every 5 seconds by default, so even brief spikes appear longer For a more accurate assessment, look at the “CPU Time” column in Activity Monitor instead of the CPU percentage. This shows the actual processor time used by the app. If you notice unusual battery drain, please [contact me](https://sindresorhus.com/feedback) as there might be an actual issue to investigate. ### iCloud syncing is not working {#icloud-sync} - Ensure iCloud sync is enabled in the app settings on all devices you wish to sync. - Ensure all devices are signed into the same iCloud account. - Ensure all devices are online. - Ensure your iCloud storage is not full. - Try restarting all devices. - Force a manual sync by making a small edit to the synced data on one device. - The initial sync may take a while. - Resolve any Apple Account or iCloud errors on your devices (e.g., sign-in prompts). - Ensure Low Power Mode is not enabled on the devices. It can cause iCloud to delay syncing. - Ensure you are on the latest operating system version and app version. - On iOS, ensure the app is not disabled in “Settings › Apple Account › iCloud › Apps Using iCloud”. - On macOS, ensure the app is not disabled in “System Settings › Apple Account › iCloud › Saved to iCloud” and “System Settings › Apple Account › iCloud › iCloud Drive › Apps syncing to iCloud Drive”. - If using a VPN, try disconnecting it, as some VPNs can interfere with iCloud syncing. - If it’s a work device, make sure there are no restrictions in place that prevent iCloud or iCloud Drive. - Check the [iCloud system status](https://www.apple.com/support/systemstatus/) to ensure the service is not experiencing issues. ### Keyboard shortcuts or text expansion suddenly stopped working {#secure-input-problem} If keyboard shortcuts or text expansion suddenly stops working, it’s likely because an app is using Secure Input, a macOS security feature that blocks other apps from reading keystrokes. While this is intended for sensitive contexts like password fields, apps sometimes fail to properly disable it. Common culprits are password managers like Bitwarden and 1Password, even when running in the background. Safari can also sometimes cause this. You can try: 1. Quit password managers and browsers. 1. Quit all apps. 1. Put the computer to sleep, then wake it up and log in again. 1. If nothing else works, restart your computer. 1. Use the “Get Apps Using Secure Input” action from [Shortcutie](https://sindresorhus.com/shortcutie) to identify the problematic app and quit it. If a diagnostic reports `loginwindow` as using Secure Input, this is a known macOS bug. Lock your screen with Control+Command+Q, then unlock it. Do not try to quit `loginwindow`. The issue often occurs when an app requests Secure Input while in the background, causing it to get “stuck” in secure mode. [Learn more ›](https://espanso.org/docs/troubleshooting/secure-input/) ### The widget does not show up, is stuck, or is missing {#widget-not-showing} The widget system in iOS and macOS is quite buggy and can fail a lot. This is not a problem with the app and out of my control. Try this: - Open the app once, and then try to add the widget again. - Restart your device. - Remove the widget and add it again. - Change the language of the device to something else and then back. - iOS: Offload the app and reinstall it. Open the Settings app, go to “General › iPhone/iPad Storage”, tap the app, tap “Offload App”, and then tap “Reinstall App”. This keeps the data of the app. ### How can I install one of your iOS apps on an older version of iOS? {#older-ios-version} If the current version of the app requires a newer iOS version than your device supports, the App Store can offer the last compatible version. When you tap “Get” or the download button, you should see a prompt asking if you want to download an older version of the app. Tap “Download” to install it. This only works if the app has been previously downloaded with your Apple Account (even for free apps). If you have not previously downloaded the app, first download it on a device running a supported iOS version, which adds it to your purchase history. Then, on your older device, go to App Store › tap your profile › Purchased, find the app, and download it from there. [Learn more ›](https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/195074/how-do-i-install-an-older-version-of-an-app-on-an-iphone) ### How can I reset all permissions for your Mac app? {#mac-reset-permissions} *(This is only necessary if the app asked for any permissions the first time you launched it)* **The simple way** Select the app in [App Buddy](https://sindresorhus.com/app-buddy) and click “Reset Permissions”. *If this is for Supercharge, you can instead click its menu bar item, and in the menu, click “… › Debug › Reset Permissions”.* **The manual way** First, quit the app. Copy the following, open the Terminal app, paste it into the Terminal window, replace `