Open-source alternatives to Spectacle

Loop is a desktop window manager and layout automator designed to control application window positioning and resizing. It utilizes custom keyboard shortcuts and scripted sequences to organize workspace layouts and automate window movements. The tool features a radial window arranger that moves and scales windows using a directional cursor interface and radial coordinate inputs triggered by modifier keys. It also includes an edge window stashing utility that hides windows beyond display boundaries and restores them via hover events to optimize screen real estate. Additional capabilities inclu

Hammerspoon is a programmable automation engine for macOS that enables deep system-level control through a Lua scripting environment. By bridging high-level scripts with native Objective-C APIs, it allows users to interact with the operating system's accessibility tree, intercept hardware input streams, and manage the lifecycle of running applications. The project distinguishes itself through an event-driven architecture that registers asynchronous hooks for system notifications and hardware events. This allows for real-time automation, such as remapping keyboard and mouse inputs, managing wi

Material Shell is a tiling window manager and Linux desktop environment that replaces traditional window management with a grid-based organizer. It functions as a spatial layout engine that automatically arranges application windows into non-overlapping grids to maximize screen space. The system acts as a desktop session manager, recording and restoring window positions and workspace assignments to preserve the exact state of a previous session after a restart. It employs a coordinate-based layout engine to map applications to specific rows and cells for consistent placement. The project cov

Tilingshell is a window management extension for the GNOME desktop environment that organizes application windows into structured grid layouts. It functions as a desktop utility that automates window placement and provides tools for customizing the graphical interface of Linux systems. The project distinguishes itself through a constraint-based geometry engine that maintains alignment during resizing and a declarative rendering system that maps grid definitions to screen space. It supports workspace-scoped state management, allowing for independent tiling configurations across different virtu

Amethyst is a tiling window manager for macOS designed to automate the arrangement of application windows. It functions as a productivity utility that organizes windows into non-overlapping layouts, allowing users to manage their desktop environment through keyboard-driven controls rather than manual mouse interaction. The application distinguishes itself by providing a state-machine engine that calculates window geometry based on user-defined tiling patterns. It maintains an accurate representation of the desktop by monitoring system-level notifications for window events, enabling it to auto

Awesome is a programmable tiling window manager for the X11 Window System. It functions as a dynamic window manager that automatically arranges application windows into non-overlapping tiles based on predefined layout rules to maximize screen space. The project provides a scriptable desktop environment where system behaviors and layouts are defined through an embedded Lua interpreter. This allows for the creation of a personalized interface and a keyboard-driven workflow for managing application windows. The system covers dynamic window layout management and the configuration of system behav

This project is a comprehensive guide for configuring macOS for software engineering. It provides instructions for setting up a development environment, optimizing system settings, and enhancing the terminal experience to increase productivity. The guide focuses on several core areas of system customization, including the automation of software installation via Homebrew and the configuration of the Zsh shell with plugins, themes, and productivity aliases. It details a strategy for managing dotfiles using symbolic links to synchronize configuration files across multiple machines. Additional c

Dozer is a macOS desktop utility and menu bar manager designed to reduce visual clutter by controlling the visibility of status icons in the macOS menu bar. It functions as an icon toggle that allows users to hide unnecessary system icons from view. The application uses trigger icons to manage the visibility state of the menu bar, enabling users to selectively show or hide status indicators to customize the macOS interface and organize their desktop workspace. The tool implements these capabilities by interacting with native macOS accessibility frameworks and system hooks to query and modify

This application is a cross-platform desktop utility designed for automated translation, optical character recognition, and speech synthesis. It functions as a modular client that integrates various local and remote language services, allowing users to process text through hotkeys, clipboard monitoring, or direct input. The software distinguishes itself through a plugin-based architecture and a built-in automation framework. By exposing a local network interface, it enables external applications and scripts to programmatically trigger its translation and recognition workflows. Users can furth

Ice is a macOS menu bar manager designed to provide granular control over the visibility, arrangement, and spacing of system status icons. It functions as a workspace organization utility that allows users to hide unnecessary icons and rearrange active elements through a drag-and-drop interface, helping to maintain a clean and focused desktop environment. The application distinguishes itself by prioritizing keyboard-driven navigation and workflow optimization. Users can assign custom global hotkeys to trigger specific menu bar actions or toggle visibility settings, enabling interaction with b

AeroSpace is a tiling window manager for macOS that automatically arranges application windows into grid-based layouts. It functions as a keyboard-driven controller, allowing users to manage window positioning, workspace navigation, and display assignments entirely through customizable keyboard commands. The project distinguishes itself by operating as a background daemon that utilizes system-level accessibility frameworks and low-level window server hooks to enforce tiling behavior. It employs a declarative configuration system to define layout rules and maintains workspace consistency throu

Vis is a terminal-based modal text editor that utilizes vi keybindings and a system of structural regular expressions. It functions as a scriptable environment where Lua is used for configuration, custom key mappings, and plugin development. The editor distinguishes itself through a syntax highlighting system based on Parsing Expression Grammars and a pattern matching engine that treats text as a structure for complex search and replace operations. It also integrates directly with the system shell, allowing users to pipe text ranges to external commands and capture the resulting output. The

Hidden is a desktop productivity tool designed to manage and organize the macOS menu bar. It functions as a system interface customizer that allows users to consolidate secondary status icons into a single toggleable area, reducing visual clutter and streamlining the desktop workspace. The utility provides granular control over menu bar elements by enabling users to hide specific icons and rearrange them through a drag-and-drop interface. By utilizing system-level hooks and event monitoring, it maintains a persistent configuration of hidden items that can be toggled on or off to suit the user

Rectangle is a desktop window manager that organizes open application windows into predefined layouts and grid positions. It functions as a background utility, allowing users to manipulate window frames through keyboard shortcuts or mouse gestures to improve multitasking and workspace efficiency. The application acts as a native interface extension, providing window snapping and tiling functionality that integrates directly with the operating system. It supports multi-monitor setups, enabling the distribution and alignment of windows across various displays. By utilizing the system accessibil

Yabai is a system-level utility for macOS that provides automated window management and workspace organization. It functions as a tiling window manager that uses binary space partitioning to arrange application windows into grid layouts, bypassing standard desktop constraints through direct interaction with the system window server. The project distinguishes itself by offering granular control over the graphical user interface via a socket-based command interface and event-driven system hooks. This allows for the programmatic manipulation of window states, display configurations, and virtual

i3 is a configurable tiling window manager for the X11 window system. It organizes application windows into non-overlapping tiles to maximize screen real estate, utilizing a dynamic layout engine that removes the need for manual positioning or resizing. The system is designed for keyboard-driven desktop workflows, where window organization and behavior are defined through a plain text configuration file. It enables X11 desktop customization by allowing users to programmatically define layouts and keybindings. The manager provides inter-process communication via a Unix domain socket, allowing

escrcpy is an Android device mirroring tool and ADB device manager that enables the display and control of Android screens on a computer via USB or network connections. It functions as a multi-device screen orchestrator, providing a visual interface to arrange and control several mirrored device windows in parallel layouts. The project distinguishes itself as an automation controller that utilizes large language models to translate natural language instructions into actionable device commands. It further differentiates its capabilities by acting as a reverse tethering client, allowing a compu

Hydra is a scriptable productivity platform for macOS that functions as a global hotkey manager, window manager, and automation tool. It allows users to extend system functionality by executing scripts and custom functions to automate repetitive operating system tasks. The system enables the binding of specific keyboard shortcuts to trigger scripts from any active application. It provides capabilities to inspect and modify the state of running application windows to organize the desktop workspace. The platform supports a module-based extension model, allowing for the installation of third-pa

Alt-tab-macos is a productivity utility designed to replace the default application switcher on macOS. It functions as a background application that aggregates active windows across all monitors and virtual desktops into a single, keyboard-driven interface, allowing users to navigate between applications, minimized windows, and hidden processes. The tool distinguishes itself by providing granular control over window states and visibility, enabling users to close, minimize, or toggle fullscreen modes directly from the switcher. It supports advanced navigation through customizable keyboard shor

This project is a collection of Unix dotfiles and a custom desktop environment configuration for Linux. It provides a standardized set of configuration files to ensure consistent shell and application behavior, centering on a tiling window manager setup and a personalized user interface. The environment features a desktop dashboard with modular widgets and sidebars that display system performance, weather, and media controls. It includes a comprehensive keyboard shortcut map using global and mode-specific keybindings to launch applications and control system actions. The configuration covers

DockDoor is a macOS application switcher and window manager that functions as a dock enhancement tool. It provides a system-wide interface for navigating, previewing, and managing open application windows using keyboard and mouse inputs. The utility adds live window previews to the system dock, allowing for application window peeking when hovering over dock icons. It also includes a feature to lock the system dock to a specific display in multi-monitor setups to prevent it from automatically jumping between screens. The project covers a broad range of window management capabilities, includin

Mjolnir is a macOS automation framework and extensible scripting engine. It provides a system for creating custom productivity workflows, managing application states, and controlling the macOS desktop interface programmatically. The project functions as a global hotkey manager that binds keyboard shortcuts to trigger automated scripts across the operating system. It includes a macOS application controller to inspect active windows and manage system-wide user interface interactions. The environment supports extensibility through a pluggable package management system, allowing for the installa

ImTip is a desktop utility that provides input method visualization and large language model integration. It renders real-time indicators at the system text cursor to track language, layout, and punctuation settings. The project connects large language model APIs to a desktop interface to render rich content, including mathematical formulas and syntax-highlighted code. It uses a scriptable logic engine and global hooks to map programmable hotkeys to complex task sequences and external API calls. The software includes tools for desktop UI customization, allowing users to adjust the style, col

This is a native macOS utility that serves as a menu bar client for Apple Reminders. It synchronizes with the system task database to allow users to view, create, and manage reminders directly from the system tray. The application is distinguished by a natural language task processor that extracts due dates, lists, and tags from unstructured text to automate reminder creation. It also features a global hotkey system, enabling the task interface to be triggered instantly via a keyboard shortcut from any active window. The tool provides broader productivity capabilities including task search a

Glass is an AI desktop assistant and screen-to-LLM interface that processes visual and auditory context from a computer to automate tasks. It functions as a tool for screen analysis, bridging real-time desktop captures with large language models to extract semantic meaning and data insights. The system enables AI-assisted desktop interaction by recording live screen and audio data to provide a persistent digital memory for processing. This allows the application to analyze visible screen information and trigger automation workflows through global keyboard shortcuts.

AutoHotkey is a Windows automation scripting language and task automator. It serves as a keyboard macro engine and custom hotkey manager designed to map specific key combinations to scripted actions. The project provides a domain-specific language for automating repetitive tasks and operating system functions. It enables the creation of keyboard shortcuts and macros to replace manual input and streamline digital workflows on Windows. The system covers window and process management, virtual input simulation, and the interception of keyboard and mouse input via operating system hooks. It furth