PixyCAD goes lifetime, no more subscriptions
https://redd.it/1u30yoz
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Tight Studio - a Screen Studio alternative, is now free after a year of weekly releases and thousands of users

Hi everyone!

My name is Ethan, and I’m a developer based in the SF Bay Area. 
Here is my Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ethanjyx/ 
Here is my github: https://github.com/ethanjyx 

I launched Tight Studio a year ago as a paid app. Since then it won Product of the Day on ProductHunt and grew to thousands of users. Meanwhile, I've watched a wave of vibe-coded screen recorders pop up with lifetime deals, and it's anyone's guess whether they'll still be maintained a year from now.

Today we decided to take Tight Studio most of capabilities free. No lifetime deal, just free forever. We do offer some unique capabilities to monetize to sustain our development, but we want to keep the free tier as generous as possible.

For whatever you need in Screen Studio, it's all free in our product, except sharable links which has server costs.

# Problem: 

Tight Studio turns rough screen recordings into polished product demos, tutorials, and walkthroughs. You record your screen, and the editor handles the smooth zooms, fluid cursor movement, captions, and even the voiceover.

# Comparison:

Screen Studio: For whatever you need in Screen Studio, it's all free in our product, except sharable links which has server costs.
Open-source newcomers (Recordly, Openscreen): promising, but early-stage. Tight Studio has been shipping for a year, won Product of the Day on ProductHunt, and is battle-tested by thousands of users. If you need something more stable for production use cases, give us a try.

# Pricing: 

Again, for whatever you need in Screen Studio, it's all free in our product, except sharable links which has server costs. The core editing and recording features are free forever. Yes we do want to keep it as generous as possible forever. 

Optional paid tiers to sustain our development, for power users and business teams (unlimited multi-clip recording, unlimited share links, AI voiceover)  start at $19/mo: https://tight.studio/#pricing (Pricing up to adjustment)

Free forever:

Auto zooms based on cursor activity, or add them manually anywhere on screen
Smooth cursor movement with click animations and stylish cursor icons
Automatic professional captions, editable like text
Video annotations with arrows, text and shapes
Dynamic camera layouts and positions
Custom background images
Save your projects and edit them later
Background music
Video clipping tools
Shareable links (up to 5 links, 7-day expiration for free)

Changelog: https://tight.studio/changelog/
AI Disclaimer: Code Completion

Try it now: **https://tight.studio**

https://reddit.com/link/1u30zqc/video/rcnrce3z0o6h1/player

https://redd.it/1u30zqc
@macappsbackup

Review/Critique: Hermes Desktop

# Hermes Desktop

*TL;DR at bottom*

I was scrolling through my GitHub feed a couple days ago and stumbled upon a cool-looking OSS tool called [Hermes](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent). It's marketed as "The agent that grows with you." Furthermore, I remembered seeing it mentioned in other places as well - Twitter, YouTube...

# First Impressions

Anyways, I went ahead and downloaded the Hermes desktop app on my Mac. Initially, I had downloaded the [wrong app](https://github.com/fathah/hermes-desktop). After a bit of tinkering, I realized what I had done and fixed it. Here were my initial impressions:

* UI is great.
* The app itself is **extremely** buggy. A few examples:
* Many models missing on [OpenRouter](https://openrouter.ai/), no way to add.
* All inline "thinking" sections opened up whenever one was active.
* Dictation wouldn't work.
* And a lot more.
* Not many customization options. I don't know why they decided to make their own app completely ground up instead of forking an existing AI agent app ([t3code](https://github.com/pingdotgg/t3code), [OpenChamber](https://github.com/openchamber/openchamber)).

All that being said, the UI and UX weren't the reason I installed this app in the first place. It was the promise of an agent that "grows with me." I couldn't think of any use cases off the top of my head (which is why I've never installed things like [OpenClaw](https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw)).

# Daily Briefs

Crawling the internet, I found one case that appealed to me: daily briefs in [Obsidian](https://obsidian.md/). Recently, I've started using it to manage my notes as well as for journaling, and I saw a couple of cool systems people have set up with "daily briefs". To put it simply, the AI agent makes you a [.md](https://daringfireball.net/projects/markdown/syntax) file every morning about tasks, calendar events, weather, or pretty much anything you can find in your notes or on the web.

Hermes set up this skill for me. It was buggy but useful. The cron job almost never worked, because it always hit some stupid [OpenAI](https://openai.com/) rate limits on my API key (never hit them before on [OpenCode](https://opencode.ai/) and other wrappers). I constantly have to nudge it "keep going." The daily briefs are great, though.

# Why I'm No Longer Using It

The theory is great, but there are so many better options with much more polish. I could achieve 95% of the functionality with [Cursor](https://cursor.com/) (I have the [free deal for Students](https://cursor.com/students)), [Claude Code](https://claude.com/product/claude-code), [Codex](https://openai.com/codex/), or even [OpenCode](https://opencode.ai/).

To be frank, I don't understand all the hype with this tool, and don't see how it earned the 191,000 stars on [GitHub](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent). Perhaps I'm missing something huge. But from my end, it doesn't seem like something worth using. Thanks for reading!

# TL;DR

Hermes as an app is promising, but in practice it was underwhelming. I really don't see what it has to offer that Cursor, Codex, Claude Code, etc don't already have.

https://redd.it/1u3261c
@macappsbackup

Anyone else tired of re-learning the same words?
https://redd.it/1u36vlj
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NoteLess: a keyboard shortcut notes app where notes expire after 7 days unless you pin them

https://redd.it/1u370ld
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SwingPaint - Swing. Splash. Create.

https://redd.it/1u383h0
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[OS] Clop v3 - image, video, PDF and audio optimiser focused on automation

Clop is a menubar app that makes files smaller. It watches the clipboard and folders you choose, optimises what lands there, and stays out of the way.

Some v3 highlights:

* **Audio optimisation**, bitrate compression and VBR for MP3, AAC, Opus etc.
* **One compression slider** from *best quality* to *smallest file*, for more control than the simple aggressive presets
* **Visually lossless** encoder option for videos
* **Before/after compare**: press `Cmd-D` on a result to check quality in a split view
* **Send big files straight from your Mac**: encrypted peer-to-peer link via [drop.lowtechguys.com](https://drop.lowtechguys.com), no upload, no size limit
* **4x faster PDF optimisation**, large PDFs run in parallel, and they come out smaller thanks to the new Jpegli encoder based on JpegXL
* **Drop zone at cursor**: tap `⌥ Option` while dragging to make the drop zone appear right below the cursor
* **Ignore clipboard** from specific apps
* **JPEG XL and AV1** support, decoding and converting

**Easy automation with pipelines**

Common cases that needed a Shortcut before are now a single step: `convert(to: webp)`, `convert(to: gif)` for videos, `extractPagesAsImages()` for PDFs. Drop zones can carry them as presets, and watched folders can run full pipelines:

on image arriving in ~/Desktop/lowtechguys
-> crop(width: 1600) -> optimise(encoder: lossless)
-> convert(to: webp, location: sameFolder)

**Comparison:**

This space got a lot more crowded since Clop launched in 2023. A few apps that come up often, and what's notably different:

* [ImageOptim](https://imageoptim.com/mac): the classic, free and open source. Images only, manual drag-in workflow, but incredibly good for batch optimisation and pioneered tools that I use in Clop (like `pngquant`).
* [Compresto](https://compresto.app/) *(formerly CompressX)*: very similar, the biggest difference is UI (Compresto is more like a classic windowed app, Clop is more floating or hidden UI) and automation where Clop is more focused on
* [HandBrake](https://handbrake.fr/): free, open source, perfect for videos, full control over every encoder knob. A deliberate per-file workflow where Clop is more set-and-forget.
* TinyPNG and the other web compressors: they work, but you're uploading your files to someone else's server. Clop does everything locally.

**Pricing:** Free for basic features, €15 for Pro features

>App starts with a 14-day trial identical to a Pro licensed version. After 14 days, the app keeps working in Free mode where Pro features are limited.

>v3 is a free update for existing Pro licenses.

>Clop is open source under GPLv3. You can also `brew install clop`.

Free forever:

* automatic clipboard image optimisation
* downscale and crop hotkeys
* file optimisation (drop zone, watched folders, Shortcuts, CLI) for up to 5 files per session

Pro:

* unlimited file optimisation for images, videos, PDFs and audio

**Link:** [https://lowtechguys.com/clop](https://lowtechguys.com/clop)

**Note:** *v3 rewrote how every optimisation runs internally (the pipeline engine), so if anything behaves oddly I want to hear about it. Performance on large batches is what I'm focusing on next.*

https://redd.it/1u3akfg
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Sportsbar - Track World Cup 2026 scores in your macOS menu bar

https://redd.it/1u3but4
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Mojave Paint 1.2 is released (now with Adjustment Layers)

https://preview.redd.it/rn75urrvop6h1.png?width=2870&format=png&auto=webp&s=ce772df599d05b2fbab742ed93138591801b0010

Lots to share from the last month!

Mojave Paint is my Mac-first professional image editing software with the credo that "90's software was the best software" and also that "AI can shove it."

The app itself now has Adjustment Layers, just the basic six so far (solid fill, gradient fill, curves, levels, brightness/contrast, hue/saturation) for non-destructive adjustments to the layer stack below. See all the release notes on https://mojavepaint.app/release-notes

Those release note are on the new website, very much under construction, but it does have the start of a video gallery (thanks to u/MaxGaav for suggesting I keep them on the site instead of linking out to YouTube). https://mojavepaint.app/

That site features an "Interactive roadmap" with easy one-click upvoting on which features you'd like to see next, haven't gotten much traction with that yet so I'd be grateful if anyone goes there and submits a vote.

And, 1.2 switches to an In App Purchase model, $9.99 tier to unlock file exporting. The free version has all features except for exporting. I'm a bit opposed to IAP since you don't know up front how much it'll cost, but this does seem like the only way to offer free trials through the App Store, so be it.

Next for me: ad compaigns, making marketing materials like lots more videos (I want to reconstruct the WWDC 26 logo in Mojave Paint, in tutorial form, for example).

To satisfy the template:

Problem: Adobe sucks as a company, GIMP is hideous to look at, I think there's room in the market for another option for image editing.

Comparison: Similar products would include Photoshop, Affinity Photo, Acorn, GIMP, Krita. I did a little comparison spreadsheet of the various apps and their shortcuts here, gives you an idea of how similar these product all are. https://mojavepaint.app/shortcuts

Pricing: Free to download, includes all features except export. You can save in native .mojavepaint file format, but to export as JPEG, PNG, etc, it's a one time purchase of $9.99.

https://redd.it/1u3aof5
@macappsbackup

Keep - 3D ambient clock displays for macOS (just launched)

https://redd.it/1u3nymy
@macappsbackup

How do you choose your modifier keys for keybindings?

Is there any contexts/rules do you use to assign your hotkeys? Like option+cmd over control+cmd?

I mostly forget my shortcuts and revisit the settings (or summon [KeyClu](https://sergii.tatarenkov.name/keyclu/)) to remember it



*To Mods: I post it here as it is \*somehow\* related to mac apps/software, but if you think it's irrelevant to our community, feel free to remove it 😉*

***originally*** [posted](https://www.reddit.com/r/MacOS/s/OFdxkqT0iD) ***on*** r/MacOS

https://redd.it/1u3ozx7
@macappsbackup

ExtraBar - A mac menu bar manager that does things differently

https://redd.it/1u3v74t
@macappsbackup

Launching alone. Marketing it alone.

The hard part was the building they said. No one ever mentioned how much of the truth that was.

I am a solo founder. I built keylight.dev, a licensing layer for desktop apps focused on macOS. I built it because I was suffering from my own problem: shipping Mac apps, having my licensing across different services-license keys, and all payments in one dashboard.

It took months to go from 1 user (me) to 10 users.

It's never been easier to build, and with AI tooling I can do in a week what would take a month. This also means anyone else can do in a week what would take them a month. The product is no longer the big thing; the product is no longer the bottleneck. Marketing is.

The grim reality of solo marketing:

\\- No one is waiting for your product. Launch day was just a normal day.

\\- "Build it and they will come" is dead, and "push it everywhere" is also dead. I've had things with over 20k views and zero signups, and then a single halfway-decent comparison page quietly keeps churning customers.

\\- SEO is compounding but agonizingly slow. I ship content since 3 months until this day, and it's only starting to pick up.

\\- Things that work feel agonizingly slow while doing them. Things that feel fast (launch platforms, viral splashes) generally don't work.

\\- As a developer, writing blog posts feels like procrastination, while fixing a bug feels like progress. The bug only affects ten users, the post can affect ten thousand.

I tried Threads, which works for some type of apps, not for this one, I experimented cold emails they were opened at by 25-30% of people, but reply rate of 10-12% and close to 1% of conversion over 2 months and about 600 emails sent.

I changed my strategy now: I'm treating content like infrastructure, like something I schedule like code. I'm doing two blog posts per week, non-negotiably. Product updates goes in the changelog, and the narrative goes public. And I'm banking on people finding me where they actually search now – and that seems to be primarily within AI responses that people ask to their LLM, rather than on the first page of Google. The goal is that all licensing questions, leads to AI agents suggesting my web app.

No huge revenue screenshots or "0 to $10k in 30 days" proclamations here. Just a good product, and the hard, unsexy part nobody talks about.

If you are a solo marketer too: what's the one channel that has genuinely moved the needle? Not the one you like using. The one that worked. And what kind of content worked for you?

https://redd.it/1u3u1rm
@macappsbackup

DockGroups — group your Dock apps by what you use them for, then launch (and quit) them together and more

Hey r/macapps. I'm the dev of DockGroups, a small native app that adds app groups to your Dock.

dockgroups.com | Demo

Problem:

This started as a weekend project with a dumb goal: group my Dock apps by what I use them for. Work stuff in one group, personal stuff in another, and more. That first version did nothing else.

But once the groups existed I kept running into the same thought: my apps are grouped now, so why am I still launching them one at a time every morning? And why am I quitting them one at a time when I switch to something else? So that's where it went. Today a group in DockGroups is less like a folder and more like a setup you start and stop:

Open All launches everything in a group with one click (slightly staggered, because macOS gets weird when you fire 6 launches at once).
Close All does the opposite. A normal click hides everything in the group, ⌥-click quits, ⌘-click force quits. As far as I know nothing else in this category can do this, which still surprises me.
The panel shows which apps are currently running, and clicking a running app brings its windows back, minimized ones included.
There's a Most Used group that maintains itself from your actual launches. No permissions needed for that, macOS hands the info out for free.
⌥⇧1–9 opens a group from anywhere, including full-screen apps, and it doesn't need Accessibility or Input Monitoring. ⌘1–9 switches groups inside the panel.
With Pro, a group can become its own Dock icon you pin permanently. It's a tiny self-contained app that stays in sync with the main one, so there's no companion/helper download.

It's SwiftUI + AppKit, doesn't touch the system Dock, and everything lives in local files. Update checks can report your app/macOS version anonymously so I know which builds to keep supporting; there's a toggle if you'd rather not.

Comparison:

vs Stacks: not tied to real folders on disk, and you can launch or close a whole group at once.

vs DockPops / FolderDock: those are file-first. They let you put documents and folders in groups, browse them, Quick Look them. DockGroups doesn't do files at all, on purpose. What you get instead is the session stuff: Close All, running indicators, Most Used, the usage-based suggestions, global hotkeys. Pick based on which problem you actually have. (One nice difference: Open All and Close All are in my free tier.)

vs uBar / ActiveDock: those replace the Dock. DockGroups doesn't, so there's nothing to break or carefully uninstall.

vs Raycast / Alfred: different mental model. Those are search-first, this is for people who launch from the Dock. I use Raycast alongside it daily.

Pricing:

Free: 2 groups, unlimited apps per group, Most Used, Open/Close All, all the shortcuts. Pro is $9.99 one-time for unlimited groups and the standalone Dock icons. No subscription, and no caps that come back after you've paid.

macOS 14–26, Apple Silicon and Intel, direct download with signed Sparkle updates.

Privacy policy | Terms & Conditions

Promo code with 10 free seats: QTWZE501

Feedback from this and other subs shaped most of the last three releases, so fire away.

You can get more details about me, or get in touch, via LinkedIn.

https://redd.it/1u3x19i
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Does anyone else keep looking up the same words over and over when reading in another language?
https://redd.it/1u4051m
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I built Synapse PDF: A study workspace that replaces your PDF reader, annotator, and 19+ utilities.
https://redd.it/1u41v2j
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I built Synapse PDF: An all-in-one study workspace that replaces your PDF reader, annotator, and 19+ utilities.
https://redd.it/1u421ri
@macappsbackup

Life archive? People journal? Definitely not a personal CRM. Looking for beta testers.

https://redd.it/1u45en3
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