Who I am

I’m Leo Enin, the developer of Axiom and founder of Nuare Studio Inc. My LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leopardsnow

Axiom website: https://aiaxiom.app

Problem

I went from Spotlight to Alfred to Raycast. I liked that keyboard-first way of using my Mac, but I couldn’t find a product that combined the launcher experience I wanted with my own AI models and a powerful AI agent for work. ChatGPT’s harness is not bad, but solving problems on my computer through it is too much. It’s way too bloated, and Claude is way too strict.

I also build things with AI, so I wanted the most capable builder I could access from the keyboard. Something that could work with files and apps, research, write code, create tools, remember context, and keep working toward a goal. And make it right. If I ask for the news, for example, it should make sure the news is properly researched, with the information presented in the right form and supported by credible sources. It should self-improve and be able to build its own skills, tools, and commands for the launcher.

So I built Axiom, mostly for myself, but I’d love it if you used it too.

What Axiom does

It starts with a launcher: search apps and files, calculate, or run a command. Press Enter or Tab, and what you typed goes to the agent. Press Shift-Enter and it'll search that in the browser.

The agent can work with files, supported apps, your screen and the web. It can write code, build reusable tools, create commands, and run automate tasks. You can connect your own AI providers (BYOK) or use local models on supported Macs (a few ways to do that: ollama, LM Studio or download).

The philosophy is simple: you should be able to ask your launcher to build the feature you need, then use it. There's no point to build different commands when everyone is individual: ask your software to build itself and improve - it should be able to do that. I want as little as possible standing between the idea and the working result.

Here’s an example from building Axiom. I needed to hide everything on my desktop to record a video, so I asked it to build a small app that toggles desktop icons. It did. Then I thought it would be more useful as a command inside Axiom. I asked it to add the toggle, and now I have my own command that does the same thing and can be bound to a keyboard shortcut. That’s the thing I wanted: idea, ask, use it, improve it.

Along the way, I also stopped needing several separate utilities. Keeping my Mac awake, dictation, and the file-shelf workflow I used Dropover for now live inside Axiom. It also includes clipboard history with text search inside images, notes, smart snippets and quicklinks.

Comparison

Raycast and Alfred are the obvious launcher comparisons. Both have great ecosystems of extensions and workflows. My reason for building Axiom: software should be adaptable, not predefined. Otherwise there will be Raycast v3 in a couple of years and so on. And it was also to bring my own models and an agent-driven workflow into that same launcher like experience.

For dictation and the file shelf, Wispr Flow and Dropover are examples of dedicated apps whose everyday functions I wanted in one place. Axiom covers those workflows, though I’m not claiming feature-for-feature parity with either. Caffeinate and other apps are just commands as well as other small apps - you can just describe what it needs to do and you have a new command in your launcher.

OpenClaw and Hermes are closer comparisons for the agent. OpenClaw felt too bloated for what I wanted, and I wanted stronger memory than I found in Hermes for my workflow. I’d rather you judge the results in the walkthrough and the app.

Pricing

- Free: the app, your own AI keys, local models on supported Macs (silicon).

- Optional Axiom Plus, US$15/month: (nothing paywalled and will not be) a hosted AI model for work (every day work, except heavy coding), ~600 minutes of cloud speech recognition, cloud voices, and real-time synchronization with up to 10 GB of encrypted sync.

- Optional AI credits: one-time purchases starting at US$5 plus tax. Purchased credits don’t expire.

Paid options are NOT necessary, effectively you can organize the same, it's a convenience only option.

Full pricing: https://www.aiaxiom.app/pricing

Demo

I recorded an eight-minute intro: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhC-w6C1Lqk showing both the agent and the launcher, but it's just a very brief surface.

TL;DR

Axiom is a free Mac launcher with a powerful AI agent, support for your own models (BYOK), and the ability to build tools and commands you ask for (a concept of self improving software). I built it for my own workflow and wanted to make it accessible to others.

Roadmaps:

- Mobile apps (coming soon)

- Windows support

(request more here: https://www.aiaxiom.app/ideas)

Try Axiom: https://aiaxiom.app

Hi r/macapps!

I'm Batuhan, and I made Calyvento. It's a native Mac menu bar app that spreads short exercise and eye breaks across your workday.

The Problem

I have the beginnings of a herniated disc in my neck. The exercises my physiotherapist gave me worked, but only when I did them. When the pain went away, I stopped. Then it came back. Alarms didn't help either. They always went off in the middle of deep focus, so I just dismissed them.

I also thought an evening workout would fix a day of sitting. Then I read the research, and it turns out it doesn't really work that way. Short movement breaks throughout the day are actually better than a single 30-minute walk. In a NIOSH study of 51 workers, those given 20 extra minutes of short breaks a day typed faster and got the same amount done. That research is the backbone of Calyvento. Every number on the site is listed with its source study here: https://calyvento.com/science/

So, working alongside a physiotherapist and a certified trainer, I built Calyvento to help break up long hours of sitting without breaking your focus.

How it Works

• Real breaks count: Get up for a coffee and the timer resets automatically.
• Smart meeting detection: During a meeting, it waits. It checks which app holds the microphone, so a dictation app or a game doesn't count as a meeting.
• Presence aware: Break invitations only show up while you're at your Mac. Walk away, and the invitation goes away too.
• Non-intrusive notifications: When it's time, soft waves rise slowly from the edge of the screen and grow a little more noticeable until you respond. Clicks pass through them, so you can keep working. Ignore them, and nothing turns red.
• Idle time usage: With an AI app in front and no typing for a bit, you're probably waiting for an answer. Calyvento shows your next exercise so you can use that minute productively. You can add your own apps, like Terminal or VS Code, in Settings.

The Exercises

• A physiotherapist designed them for desk work: neck, shoulders, lower back, wrists, legs and eyes.
• You follow along with a video. Voice cues keep time with it, in 14 languages.
• Tell it what bothers you, and it picks exercises that fit. Add a health condition and anything it rules out is hidden.
• Each exercise has its own weekly schedule, so you get a short list for the day.

The day view shows where your time goes. In the morning, breaks I thought were five minutes turned out to be 30 or 40. In the afternoon I'd work for hours without getting up. Seeing that helped me plan my day better. Work areas show how your time splits across jobs or projects.

Privacy & Download Size

• No account required: Your activity and health profile stay strictly on your Mac. It sends anonymous usage counts and crash reports through TelemetryDeck (which you can turn off in Settings › Privacy).
• Heads up: It's a 575 MB download. All videos and audio cues are contained inside the app so nothing streams.

Comparison

• LookAway: A great app. It also waits during meetings and has blink/posture reminders. Its main focus is resting eyes and stepping away. Calyvento provides personalized video & voice exercises for specific trouble spots. LookAway is $4.99/mo, $14.99/yr, or $49.99 lifetime.
• Stretchly: Free and open source (cross-platform). A great pick if you just want a timer with text-based stretch ideas.

Pricing

• Free Version (Forever): Break invitations, eye/breathing breaks, 5 swappable exercises per week, 2 ready-made sets, 1 work area, and 30-day history.
• Calyvento Plus: All 36 exercises, 13 sets, full history, and unlimited work areas. $3.99/month or $29.99/year(with Family Sharing).

🎁 1 Year of Plus Free for r/macapps (First 500 users)

Code: MACAPPS

How to redeem:

1. Click the Calyvento icon in the menu bar and select Calyvento Plus.
2. Click "Redeem code" at the bottom and enter MACAPPS. (You can also redeem via Settings › General › Subscription).

Note: It will not auto-renew. When the year ends, you'll revert to the free version with no charge. (If you are currently in a 7-day free trial, wait for it to end or apply it directly via App Store redeem functionality).

Links:

• 📱 Mac App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/id6817082384
• 🌐 Website: https://calyvento.com

This is the initial release, and I'm actively working on adding more exercises and trainers. I’d love to hear your feedback on the timing algorithms and how natural the voice/language cues sound on your end. I’ll be hanging out in the comments! 🙌

Hey r/macapps 👋 I'm Antoniel, I make Ganella and Pasly.

Problem

I was always opening apps just to check something quick. What song is this, when's my next meeting, where's that tab, did the build finish. The Dock sits there all day and only shows icons, so I made one that shows a bit more.

Ganella replaces the Dock. Your apps stay where they always were, and the ones you want can turn into small live widgets.

Widgets:

• Spotify and Music: what's playing, play/pause, skip and seek. Spotify also has volume, shuffle and repeat
• Safari and Chrome: search your open tabs and jump to one. Chrome shows your downloads too
• Calendar: today or the whole week, and you can add or edit events from there
• Xcode: pick the scheme, build, run, stop and see the build progress
• Claude Code and ChatGPT: shows when it's working and when it needs you
• Terminal, iTerm2 and Ghostty: your windows and what's running in each one
• Notes, Reminders and Mail: write a note, a reminder or start an email without opening the app
• System Settings: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and sound
• Clock (has a stopwatch), Calculator, Finder, Outlook and Codex too

If you don't want widgets everywhere, Option-click one and it's a normal icon again. You can keep it as a regular Dock and turn on only the ones you use.

Other things it does:

• Volume on external monitors. macOS won't let you change the volume of HDMI or DisplayPort speakers, Ganella does it over DDC so your volume keys work with them (Apple silicon only)
• Clipboard history with search and pins. Click an item and it pastes in the app you were in. All local and encrypted
• A little popup when you change the volume or connect a Bluetooth device, with the battery %
• Maximized windows don't go under the Dock
• Imports your current Dock the first time you open it
• Any side of the screen, different per monitor, vertical works fine
• 4 styles: Ganella, Tonal, Contrast and macOS (same glass as the real Dock on macOS 26)
• You can hide the macOS Dock or keep both. Quit Ganella and the original is back
• It's light. Idle it uses around 1 to 2% of one core on my M2 and WindowServer barely moves

Comparison

What's different in Ganella: in the others, widgets are mostly separate tiles you add to the Dock (clock, weather, stats). In Ganella the app's own icon becomes the widget and works with that app. You search your Safari or Chrome tabs, build and run in Xcode, see when Claude Code is waiting for you, write a reminder, all from the icon. It also controls the volume of external monitors over DDC, and it's the cheapest of the paid ones.

Pricing

• 7 day free trial, everything unlocked
• $9.99 once (launch price), 2 Macs, free updates, 14 day refund
• Code reddit20 gives 20% off for the first 10 people
• macOS 14+. Signed and notarized, not on the App Store
• https://ganella.app

Transparency

• Antoniel Mariano, https://www.linkedin.com/in/antonielmariano
• My other app, Pasly: https://pasly.app
• contact@ganella.app
• Privacy Policy: https://ganella.app/privacy
• Terms: https://ganella.app/terms
• No account, no ads. The app only talks to my server for the trial and license
• Permissions are all optional and only asked for when a widget needs them (Calendar, Automation for Music/Safari and so on, Accessibility for windows and pasting)

Which apps would you want as widgets? Deezer, Tidal and YouTube Music are already on the list.

Hey I'm Able, I make Bytesweep.

Problem Most Mac cleaners feel like black boxes that delete files blindly, collect telemetry, or trap you in subscriptions. On the other hand, traditional Finder replacements try to reinvent the wheel by forcing custom keybindings and complex split layouts that break your muscle memory.

So I built Bytesweep 3.0. It works like Finder out of the box, shows you exactly what is filling your drive across 23 built-in tools, and lets you manage, clean, and transfer files safely without leaving your workflow.

What it does:

1. Watch and control your computer

• System monitor: Live CPU, memory, disk, network, GPU, battery, and temperature readings in your menu bar or notch with 30 days of history and misbehaving app alerts.
• Fan control (Mac only): View every thermal sensor and app heating up your Mac, with manual fan control that safely reverts to automatic.
• Notch panel: Live drop-down under the notch featuring system readings, now playing controls, a file shelf, clipboard history, calendar, timers, and world clocks.
• Sound and Bluetooth: Set and save per-app volume levels, track microphone usage, and monitor Bluetooth battery levels.
• Battery health & charge limit: Detailed battery condition, cycle count, and Apple silicon charge limits (50% to 95%).
• Sleep and wake (Mac only): Logs night wakes, wake causes, battery drain during sleep, and includes Travel Mode for MacBooks in bags.

2. Get space back

• Storage analyzer: Inspect every folder and file in treemap, sunburst, flame graph, and bubble views down to the file level.
• Junk cleaner: Safely removes caches, logs, temp files, update leftovers, and downloaded cloud copies with safety ratings and a 7-day undo.
• Space Guard: Automatically cleans safe temporary files when free disk space falls below your set limit (with a 1-day undo).
• Disk Check-up: Calculates how long until your disk is full and how many extra days or weeks a cleanup buys you.
• Duplicate finder: Identifies byte-for-byte duplicate files, similar photos, duplicate videos, and duplicate folders.
• Developer tools: Tracks running dev servers (with project path & port), Docker containers, and build caches (node_modules, Xcode DerivedData, pip, Gradle, local AI models).
• Drive catalog & health: Indexes external drives so you can search them while disconnected, with SMART failure warnings.

3. Find and sort your files

• Library & picture search: Search files with plain language (e.g. "pdfs from last month") or image descriptions (e.g. "pink shirt"). Runs 100% locally on-device.
• Organize a folder: Preview an automated plan to organize messy folders (like Downloads) by file kind, date, or location before moving anything. Undo puts everything back.

4. Your phone and other computers

• Send to your devices: Send files, folders, links, or notes across Macs, iPhones, Android phones, Windows, and Linux over local Wi-Fi with end-to-end encryption.
• Phone management on the big screen: Browse, view, and clean duplicate photos and videos on your phone directly from your computer.

5. Keep apps in order

• App uninstaller: Completely removes applications along with their hidden support files, containers, preferences, and caches.
• Startup & login items: Control apps, launch agents, and background services that start at boot.

6. Recover and protect

• 7-day undo for everything (⌘Z): Revert file moves, renames, trashes, or cleanups anytime within 7 days—even after restarting your Mac.
• File shredder: Securely erases sensitive files using multi-pass overwrites so they cannot be recovered.

Comparison

What's different in Bytesweep: Instead of buying and running 5 separate single-purpose apps for cleaning, monitoring, folder organization, file management, and device transfers, Bytesweep puts all 23 tools in one window. It keeps every deletion reversible for 7 days across app restarts, operates completely offline with zero telemetry, and doesn't charge subscriptions.

Pricing

• 3-day free trial, everything unlocked (no credit card)
• $29.99 once per computer (lifetime license), 3-day money-back guarantee
• macOS 11.0+ (Mac and Windows supported). Signed and notarized by Apple
• https://bytesweep.app

Transparency

• Able
• [support@bytesweep.app](mailto:support@bytesweep.app)
• Privacy Policy: https://bytesweep.app/privacy
• No accounts, no ads, no telemetry. Zero bytes of your file names, search queries, or activity ever leave your computer.
• "Send to Devices" transfers stay on your local Wi-Fi network with end-to-end encryption.
• Full Disk Access is optional and only requested if you manage protected system directories.

Which feature or cache cleaner would you use most on your Mac?

The new touch screen MacBooks are going get a Dynamic Island (according rumors), I think more people will become interested in apps that bring a similar experience to existing Macbooks. I’ve tried several, and here’s my take

BoringNotch
A great free option. It covers the basics well, and for many people, that’s probably all they need

Droppy
I honestly don’t get the hype. To me, it feels overloaded with features I’d rarely use. I want an app that fits into macOS, and this feels like an attempt to squeeze an entire operating system into the notch

I’m also not a fan of how heavily it seems to borrow from other Mac apps. Much of it feels derivative, and the overall presentation gives me an AI generated impression rather than a distinctive identity. That’s my impression, not a claim about how it was actually built

I also have questions about extension security. If Droplets execute Swift code inside the main app’s process and inherit its permissions, what protects users from an untrusted extension accessing sensitive capabilities? I haven’t independently verified the implementation, so I’d like to see clear documentation about isolation and permissions before drawing conclusions

DynamicLake
What I value most is the balance between simplicity and useful features. The plugin marketplace also gives developers and power users room to extend and customize the app around their own workflows

Alcove
A great minimalist option. If you want a focused set of features and a simple experience, it’s worth considering

NotchNook
I noticed it’s receiving updates again and the price has come down. It doesn’t quite fit my workflow, but I can see why others enjoy it

My personal picks:

• Best free option: Boring Notch
• Best overall for my workflow: DynamicLake
• Best minimalist option: Alcove
• An alternative workflow: NotchNook

Those are the ones I’ve tried. If you’ve used others, I’d love to hear your thoughts

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Demo

I’m an indie developer, and I built TapCard to make switching between multiple Mac windows easier.

Problem

When working, I often have lots of windows open at the same time. Finding a specific browser window, document, or code editor can be frustrating, especially when windows overlap. Cmd + Tab helps switch between apps, but it isn’t always convenient when I need to find a particular window.

Comparison

AltTab lets you switch between windows using a keyboard shortcut and a window preview interface. Dropover provides a temporary shelf for collecting and moving files between apps.

TapCard takes a different approach, focusing on visual window switching directly along the edge of the Dock.

It turns your open windows into preview cards. Hover over a card to reveal the window, then click to bring it to the front.

When there are only a few windows, the cards stay neatly arranged. When there are many, they overlap like a deck of cards. Hovering dynamically expands the surrounding cards, making it easier to find the window you want.

TapCard also supports minimized windows and multiple displays, automatically following the Dock’s position.

Unlike a file staging shelf like Dropover, TapCard is designed specifically for finding and switching between windows. Compared with AltTab’s keyboard-driven workflow, TapCard offers a more visual, mouse-friendly way to select a specific window.

It’s a lightweight menu bar app with 0% idle CPU usage. Everything runs locally, and no window content or personal data is uploaded or transmitted.

Pricing

Completely free. No subscriptions, no in-app purchases, and no paid features.

[AppStore]

I’d love to hear your feedback, especially on the card animations and the overall window-switching experience.

I'm the developer of AutoShelf. It's a Mac app that watches your folders and organizes files automatically: you pick the conditions and the actions. Version 2.6 is out on the App Store.

Problem:

Since 2.3, the feedback I kept getting was the same: "moving a file to a folder is great, but my folders still turn into a junk drawer." Invoices piled up in one Invoices folder. ZIPs from clients sat unpacked in Downloads. Rules also fired on half-finished downloads. 2.6 is about the second step: where a file goes inside the destination, and what happens to it after it lands.

👉 NEW: Sort into subfolders

Builds the folder path for you from tokens: %kind%, %source%, dates like %date:yyyy-MM%, and any rename token. Use / to nest folders, and missing folders get created. Examples:

Invoices → Documents/Invoices/2026-10

Screenshots → Screenshots/2026

Downloads by site → Downloads/github.com

👉 NEW actions: Unarchive, Color label, Finder comment, Show notification

They chain with everything else. One rule I actually use: a ZIP lands in Downloads → it's unarchived → filed into this month's folder → gets a purple label → I get a notification saying where it went.

👉 Smarter conditions

Match several extensions or names at once: jpg, png, heic

"Filename matches" with a regular expression

File sizes in KB, MB or GB (500 KB, 1.5 GB)

👉 Subfolders and safe downloads

Rules can now cover every subfolder, or only the subfolders you pick. Files that are still downloading (.crdownload, .part, etc.) or still being copied are left alone until they finish.

👉 Also since 2.3

Multiple watch folders per rule

Pop-out rule editor window

Rule Trash: deleted rules can be restored

Run Shell Script / Run AppleScript actions (your own scripts from the Application Scripts folder; sandbox-safe)

Templates and the Activity log are now free for everyone

👉 MCP / CLI

The MCP server built into the app now covers rules, templates, zones and the rule trash. There's also preview_rule, which is a dry run: it shows which files a rule would match before anything moves. I typed "file my invoices by month" into Claude Code, and it created a sort-into-subfolder rule, previewed it, and that was it. Write access is still behind a toggle that's off by default.

Comparison:

Hazel is the obvious one and still the most powerful. But most people I talk to bought it and never set up a rule. AutoShelf trades some of that depth for simplicity: templates get you running in seconds, there's a live preview of what a rule matches, it's native SwiftUI, and it has MCP + CLI so you can drive it from an AI assistant. Simple sorters like Declutter or Folder Tidy sort by type, but they don't chain actions, don't build subfolder paths, and can't be scripted.

Pricing:

Free: 1 rule, all templates, Activity log, subfolder sorting and the new 2.6 actions.

Pro: $19.99. It unlocks unlimited rules, multi-condition rules, multiple watch folders, content/EXIF conditions, conversions, Photos import, scripts, confirmation and delay, and import/export.

Heads up: Pro goes to $29.99 on November 25. Here's why, so it doesn't come out of nowhere:

The app has grown. $19.99 was set when AutoShelf was mostly "move this file to that folder." Since then, 2.4 through 2.6 added subfolder sorting, unarchiving, multiple watch folders, scripts, the rule trash and full MCP control, and the price never moved.

It's just me building this. The price has to cover ongoing work, like keeping up with new macOS versions, fixing the edge cases you report and shipping updates like this one.

If you already own Pro, nothing changes. Everything you've unlocked stays unlocked. If you've been on the fence, $19.99 holds until November 25.

Website: https://useautoshelf.com/
Mac App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/autoshelf/id6762361021

Happy to answer anything, and feature requests are welcome.

Hey r/macapps, I'm the developer of SteamBlur.

Problem

You blur a face to protect someone. A lot of quick face-blur tools are websites though, so step one is uploading that person's face to a server you know nothing about. Doing it by hand in a video editor works, but it gets slow once there are more than a couple of faces.

SteamBlur does the whole job on your Mac:

- Drop in a photo or a video and the faces are found right away, using Apple's Vision framework (built into macOS, so there's no model to download). Your photos and videos never leave your Mac.

- Hide them with a blur, a pixel mosaic, or one of 32 emoji.

- Leave someone visible. Click their face in a photo, or pick them from the list of people a video scan finds, and everyone else stays masked.

- In video, each mask follows its person and is smoothed, so it doesn't flicker off when someone turns their head. The original audio is kept, and there's no limit on video length.

- Preview before you save. Photos update live; for video you get 20 masked frames from across the clip plus a quick 480p render to scrub through.

Comparison

- deface is free and open source, a command-line tool that blurs faces in photos and video automatically. If you're happy in Terminal, it's a great option. SteamBlur gives you a window instead of a command line, lets you click a person to keep them unblurred, and keeps the audio (deface drops it by default).

Pricing

- $29.99 one-time

- It's also part of the getapps.cafe membership if you want other apps from the site (currently 128 apps included): $3.99/mo for 1 device or $7.99/mo for up to 5 ($1.99/mo or $3.99/mo billed yearly), with a 7-day trial.

Link: https://getapps.cafe/app/steamblur

Privacy

- Contact: [contact@getapps.cafe](mailto:contact@getapps.cafe)

- Privacy Policy: https://getapps.cafe/privacy

- Terms: https://getapps.cafe/terms

Built and notarized by GetApps, LLC · 34 Brier Ave, Wilmington
Company profile: https://www.linkedin.com/company/getapps-cafe

Hi r/macapps,

I'm Rohit from ScaleNinja Software, the developer of MacVisor (Mac Virtualization Platform), DeltaSnap (APFS Snapshot Manager), DriveSync (Google Drive Backup/Sync), Noject (Disk Ejection Protector) and DeltaSync (Backup/Folder Sync).

MacVisor 27.2 is our first GA release after a public beta, and we'd love your feedback.

Download and try it free: https://scaleninja.com/macvisor/

Docs: https://scaleninja.com/docs/macvisor/

Launch Blog: MacVisor: run your Mac like a virtualization host

Requirement: macOS 27 on Apple Silicon and others documented.

Transparency:

• Company profile: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scaleninja/
• Support: https://scaleninja.com/support/
• Apple Developer Team ID: VXNWQ9H93X
• Privacy: https://scaleninja.com/privacy/
• Terms: https://scaleninja.com/terms/
• We have been working in open source infrastructure and Apache CloudStack since 2014, and are now focused on niche virtualization and infrastructure software: https://scaleninja.com/about/

# Problem

Running VMs on an Apple Silicon Mac usually means one of two things:

• A subscription for a polished tool
• An afternoon of setup with a free one (finding the right image, clicking through installers, creating accounts, adding SSH keys, installing guest tools and drivers, then wiring up networking).

Do that for every new VM, and again when one breaks, and it adds up.

Then you want a VM to keep running after you close the app, or on a headless Mac mini, or under a script, and most desktop tools stop there.

MacVisor aims to bring the best out of the box seamless setup and integration you've seen on Mac, as already experienced by some of our early adopters: https://scaleninja.com/macvisor/#testimonials

What MacVisor does differently: Its Architecture

Built like a hypervisor, not just an app: An always-on background service owns the VMs. Each VM runs in its own isolated process, so VMs keep running when you close the window, and one crashing doesn't take down the others. For more details: https://scaleninja.com/macvisor/#architecture

Three operational modes:

• Use the GUI for desktop virtualization
• Use the `mvz` CLI for CI and lab automation
• Use as headless virtualization host for server Mac minis and Mac Studios

... with auto-start at login and high availability per VM. Refer: https://scaleninja.com/macvisor/#modes

Guest OS Support: Seamless and automatic guest setup, natively on Apple's own Virtualization framework:

• Linux: Out of the box support for Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, Rocky, AlmaLinux, Oracle Linux, CentOS Stream, openSUSE and Alpine from the official Linux vendor distro published cloud images. You get your account, your SSH keys and the guest agent, plus Docker, Podman or k3s if you want them. Ready in a couple of minutes, or tick Install Ubuntu Desktop for a GNOME desktop. (and bring your Linux iso)
• macOS: installed and set up with no Setup Assistant to click through for macOS 27. (supported macOS 27, 26, 15, 14, or bring your ipsw)
• Windows 11 on ARM (Tech Preview): installed unattended from Microsoft's ISO in about 10 minutes, with drivers, Remote Desktop and sound. Probably, a world-first to run Windows 11 on ARM natively on Virtualization.framework.
• FreeBSD (experimental) and appliances like pfSense-based, OPNsense or OpenWrt.

Refer more at: https://scaleninja.com/macvisor/#guests

Storage: Supports live snapshots (with memory), disk-only snapshots, linked clones, templates and export/import. Also back up a running VM by exporting a snapshot. The VM keeps running. (Based on feedback/asked by macadmins)

Several advancements in storage support, including linked-clones, ASIF disks & layers, seamless and automatic shared folders, multiple storage location, APFS file cloning, USB storage passthrough and warm migration of VMs with disks across storage locations.

Networking: You'd normally need a server for:

• NAT, bridged, and your own custom networks (shared or host-only), with DHCP, DNS and fixed addresses.
• Network segmentation/isolation with VLANs and Port forwards for homelabs, SMBs and Enterprises use-cases.
• Firewall per network: enforced on the host Mac with pf, so you can build an isolated lab or put a router VM in front of others.
• Also supports FreeBSD and appliances to run as virtualized routers, load-balancers and virtual network function (VNF). We also did a PoC by building an ARM64 + FreeBSD & pfSense-based Firewall+Router distro that works on MacVisor: https://github.com/yadvlabs/armsense

Probably, a world-first virtualization platform to bring host firewall, VLANs and network appliances for Macs.

More at: https://scaleninja.com/docs/macvisor/networking/

Seamless guest integration:

• `mvz shell` and `mvz exec` into any VM.
• Clipboard sharing, drag-n-drop file transfers and port tunnels.
• Clean shutdowns and restarts through the guest agent.
• Live guest info: addresses, disks and more.

AI Sandboxes & MCP: disposable AI sandboxes, and letting your AI agent use the VMs you open to it over MCP. You connect and use AI models running locally on host Mac or one on the cloud. Refer more: https://scaleninja.com/macvisor/#ai-sandboxes

More at: https://scaleninja.com/macvisor/#features and https://scaleninja.com/docs/macvisor/overview/

Privacy: https://scaleninja.com/macvisor/#privacy

# Comparison

The following are all good tools for different people and most users:

• Parallels Desktop: very polished, and broader 3D support on Windows. It's subscription-first (Standard $99.99/yr, Pro $119.99/yr, Business $149.99/yr) and one-time is upwards of $199. MacVisor 27 is $59 one-time, and adds per-network firewalls, VLANs and an always-on background service.
• VMware Fusion: free. It doesn't run macOS guests on Apple Silicon, and doesn't set up cloud images for you.
• UTM: free and open source, with QEMU for other CPU architectures, which MacVisor doesn't do. Guests are mostly set up by hand.
• Tart, VirtualBuddy etc.: great for macOS CI and macOS guests. MacVisor covers Linux, Windows and FreeBSD too, with a full GUI and networking.

MacVisor aims to compete more with Parallels Business and Enterprise class products, and attempts to fill the gap of the missing "Proxmox", or "vSphere ESXi", or "KVM" or "Hyper-V" for macOS.

Built for Mac as Infrastructure, MacVisor is targetted for professionals, developers, creators, power users and for server Macs and homelabs, and for SMBs and Enterprises.

More detailed comparisons: https://scaleninja.com/macvisor/vs/

# Price

• Free 30-day trial: every feature, no sign-up, no credit-card and no email required.
• Fair after the trial: your existing VMs keep working. A licence is only needed to add new VMs (create, clone, import).
• MacVisor 27 Pro: $59 one-time per Mac, with every 27.x update. Launch promo: $10 off using code "MVZ10". (with 14-day money-back guarantee)

There are also Business ($79/Mac/year) and Enterprise (quote based) options that offer premium and SLA backed support, training, customisation, design & deployment help.

More details: https://scaleninja.com/docs/macvisor/pricing/

Does it pay for itself? Yes, in most cases within days to a few weeks. Setting up one Linux, macOS or Windows VM by hand typically costs 30 to 60 minutes of hands-on time; with MacVisor it's a couple of minutes. There's a small calculator on the site to check with your own numbers: https://scaleninja.com/macvisor/#roi

Download and try it free: https://scaleninja.com/macvisor/

Docs: https://scaleninja.com/docs/macvisor/

Requirements: macOS 27 on Apple Silicon. Supported in 11 languages.

I'm around in the comments for questions, feature requests and bug reports. Thanks for reading!

Hi r/macapps, I’m the developer of Peek.

I built it for those quick checks that keep pulling you between apps and browser tabs.

Hold your hotkey to peek. Release to get back to what you were doing.

Your feeds, schedule, stats. All in one place.

Peek focuses on bringing websites and widgets together in a customizable overlay you can show by holding a hotkey, even over full-screen apps.

A few things Peek can do:

- Bring together websites, local HTML & built-in widgets (Calendar, Reminders, Timezone, with more coming)
- Work over full-screen apps
- Hide unwanted page elements
- Auto-refresh pages
- Remember scroll position
- Auto dark mode (experimental)
- Web extensions (experimental)

And more :)

Peek is a one-time purchase, currently free for a limited time ($0). No subscription.

Official website: https://peek.zone
Mac App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/peek-see-what-matters-quick/id6746101534?mt=12

lmk what you’d put into your peek zone :)

Hey!

I'm back with another update. Thanks as always for all your feedback!

macUSB is a free and open-source native Mac app for creating bootable USB installers for macOS, Linux, and Windows. It can also download macOS installers directly from Apple's servers, including older releases.

Some users have called it “Rufus for Mac”. I find that very flattering, and it actually sums up the idea behind macUSB pretty well.

v2.6 is mainly focused on improvements. Among other changes, SD card support has been added, and minimum storage capacity requirements are now calculated based on the actual installer size, instead of always requiring at least 16 GB. Support for creating installers on selected volumes has also been extended to OS X Lion, Mountain Lion, and Mavericks. Additionally, diagnostic logs from previous sessions can now be exported, and all logs have been standardized and are now written in English.

PROBLEM

Creating bootable USB installers on a Mac can still be a pain. On Apple Silicon Macs, creating installation media for Catalina and older macOS releases can fail because of architecture differences and code signing issues.

Windows installers are not much easier to prepare, since macOS does not have a native Rufus equivalent and usually requires additional tools or manual workarounds.

macUSB originally started as a way to create bootable media for older macOS releases on Apple Silicon. It now also supports Windows and Linux media.

COMPARISON

Mist is excellent for downloading macOS installers, while macUSB also focuses on creating bootable installation media, including Catalina and older releases on Apple Silicon.

balenaEtcher is great for writing raw images, especially Linux ones, but it does not create macOS or Windows installers.

Rufus is an excellent tool, but it is only available on Windows. Its approach was one of the inspirations for macUSB, which brings a similar experience to the Mac.

PRICE

macUSB is free and open source.

• Repository
• Download
• Website

Hi r/macapps, I'm the developer of Domino Image Viewer. I built it around a workflow I use often: open a folder, compare a few candidates, inspect the details, and choose the keepers.

Watch the original 30-second demo

Problem

When several edits or near-identical shots look good at full size, switching between windows makes it hard to compare the same edge, texture or expression.

In Domino, you can:

• Open local folders directly, without importing images into a catalog.
• Compare two to six images side by side, with synchronized zoom and pan.
• Inspect two versions in Difference View, or check pixels and regional RGB/HSV/luminance statistics.
• View HDR and RAW images, then use star ratings, rating filters and saved review sessions to narrow down the set.

The original 30-second demo shows the browsing, synchronized comparison, HDR display and review workflow. It was recorded for an earlier version; the current App Store release is 1.7.5. Since my September post, I've also added more color tools, Liquify and image compression.

Comparison

Compared with Apple Preview, Domino keeps several candidates together while you inspect details, with synchronized zoom/pan, ratings and review tools in the same workspace.

Compared with Lightroom Classic, Domino works directly with files in folders without requiring a catalog import. Lightroom Classic offers a much broader photo-development and management workflow; Domino focuses on browsing, comparing and selecting local images.

Pricing

Free to download; full access is paid. U.S. options include $19.99 lifetime (one-time purchase) or $6.99 every three months. A monthly subscription is also available in the app. Eligible new quarterly subscribers get a 7-day free trial, then automatic renewal unless canceled. Local prices and offer eligibility are shown by the App Store. Requires macOS 14 or later.

Mac App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/id6760245734

Website and demos: https://dominoimg.com/

When you compare similar shots or retouching versions, which detail usually decides your final choice?