Open-source alternatives to Picom

activate-linux is a Linux desktop customization tool that renders a persistent system notification watermark on the screen. It functions as a visual overlay to emulate the appearance and behavior of a Windows license expiration notification on non-Windows operating systems. The project specializes in simulating system interface aesthetics by rendering simulated activation watermarks. It utilizes a compositor to handle alpha blending for semi-transparent text and backgrounds over the system wallpaper. The tool operates as a background process daemon using an X11-based window overlay to ensure

This project is a Chromium-based mobile browser and rendering engine designed for mobile platforms. It functions as a web extension host, allowing the execution of browser extensions within a mobile environment to provide custom functionality. The project distinguishes itself through custom user interface modifications, such as the implementation of a specialized night mode and the relocation of the address bar for improved ergonomics. It also includes a remote debugging interface and protocol that allow an external developer console to connect to a live browser instance for inspecting and tr

Star-Office-UI is a visual workspace and dashboard designed to map the activity and work states of AI agents to characters and zones within a virtual office. It functions as a multi-agent status monitor that tracks external entities via join keys and a desktop overlay application that renders a persistent, transparent window on the computer desktop. The project distinguishes itself through an integrated AI background generator that uses image generation APIs to create and update the virtual environment. It also includes a markdown activity logger that reads and displays sanitized daily summar

Polybar is a customizable X11 status bar and Linux desktop panel. It serves as a system information dashboard and window manager integration tool, rendering real-time hardware metrics, system status, and window state for Linux desktops. The project features an inter-process communication system that allows separate processes to trigger dynamic updates or execute actions across the environment. It also includes a system for building hierarchical interactive menus that use this messaging to launch applications and system settings. Capabilities cover system monitoring for network connectivity a

Open-Shell-Menu is a Windows shell extension and UI restorer designed to replace modern system interfaces with traditional styles. It functions as a start menu replacement and a customization tool for the Windows file manager and other system applications. The project restores legacy hierarchical navigation to the start menu and reinstates classic visual elements, such as traditional title bars and copy dialogs. It specifically targets the restoration of legacy toolbars and status bars within the file manager and introduces traditional interface elements to web browser windows.

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

This project is a command-line utility and development framework designed to modify, extend, and customize the Spotify desktop client. It functions as a binary patching engine that injects custom scripts, stylesheets, and interface components directly into the host application, enabling users to alter visual themes and add new functionality. The tool distinguishes itself by providing a comprehensive development environment for building modular extensions and custom applications. It includes a hot-reloading pipeline for rapid iteration, a declarative library for constructing interactive UI pan

Eww is a declarative framework for creating custom graphical desktop widgets and status bars on Linux. It functions as a desktop widget toolkit that operates independently of the window manager, allowing users to define interface elements through a dedicated configuration language and style them using a cascading stylesheet system. The project utilizes a client-server daemon architecture to manage the lifecycle of these components, ensuring that state is maintained across the desktop environment. By leveraging a reactive state binding system, the interface updates automatically in response to

i3 is an X11 tiling window manager for Linux that organizes application windows into a non-overlapping grid to maximize screen space. It functions as a configurable window layout engine and a desktop environment component that interfaces with the X Window System to handle window placement and input events. The manager specifically provides the ability to add configurable visual spacing and gaps between windows and screen edges. It determines window borders and spacing by parsing a text configuration file at startup or during runtime. The system covers workspace layout optimization and interf

Thief is a cross-platform desktop application designed to conceal leisure activities within work-like interfaces. It functions as a workplace privacy tool that disguises content such as novels, videos, games, and web pages as professional applications like code editors, spreadsheets, or taskbar panels, allowing users to appear productive while engaging in personal browsing. The application distinguishes itself through camera-aware proximity detection, which uses the device's camera to monitor surroundings and automatically hide the window when someone approaches. A configurable hotkey provide

Rofi is a keyboard-driven application launcher and window switcher for X11 desktops. It functions as a scriptable command palette and a compatible emulator for dmenu, capable of reading options from standard input and returning a user selection to standard output. The project is distinguished by a customizable window interface using a CSS-like theming system and a flexible box-model widget hierarchy. It features a recursive theme inheritance system and responsive styling that adapts based on screen dimensions and monitor identifiers. The tool provides advanced text filtering using fuzzy, reg

This project is a cross-platform graphics wrapper and translation layer that implements the OpenGL ES and EGL specifications. It functions as a graphics API bridge, mapping OpenGL ES calls and WebGL content to platform-specific hardware APIs such as Vulkan and Metal to ensure consistent rendering across different operating systems. The system features a shader translation service that validates shading language code and transpiles it into multiple target languages, including HLSL, SPIR-V, and Metal SL. It employs a pluggable backend architecture to select the appropriate hardware rendering AP

This project is a C++ library and hardware driver designed to control Hub75 RGB LED panels using the GPIO pins of a Raspberry Pi. It functions as both a low-level panel controller and a graphics library for rendering visual content on low-resolution LED grids. The system distinguishes itself through a comprehensive set of hardware configuration tools, including custom pixel mapping, rotation, and mirroring to match physical display geometries. It supports multi-display chaining in both parallel and series configurations and provides a Python binding to expose the core C++ logic for hardware a

Voidrice is a collection of Linux and Unix dotfiles and a shell-scripted provisioning suite designed to establish a standardized, minimalist desktop environment. It provides a set of configuration files for shells, text editors, and system utilities to ensure a consistent workspace across different machines. The project employs a symlink-based configuration manager to map system files to a central repository for easier versioning. It also includes a text-based directory bookmark system that uses flat text files to index and jump to favorite system paths. The suite covers broad capability are

Walk is a comprehensive framework for building native Windows desktop applications. It functions as a GUI library and Windows API wrapper, providing a toolkit of native widgets and a declarative layout system for developing high-performance user interfaces. The project is distinguished by its data-binding framework, which uses reflection and string-based property paths to synchronize data sources with interface widgets. It also provides specialized support for high-DPI interface scaling and an optimized native message loop to reduce runtime overhead. The toolkit covers a wide range of capabi

ShaderGlass is a GPU-accelerated shader pipeline designed to render real-time visual effects as an overlay on the desktop or specific application windows. It processes visual input through programmable fragment shaders to modify screen output or live video feeds. The project supports the import of custom shader definitions and the hot-loading of external files to test and tune visual effects without restarting. It includes a library management system for browsing presets and adjusting specific parameters to refine the final output. The application routes input from various sources, including

RmlUi is a cross-platform UI renderer and middleware library that enables the creation of user interfaces using a subset of HTML and CSS. It functions as a rendering-agnostic layer designed to integrate web-standard layout and styling into custom game engines and embedded applications. The framework is distinguished by its integration of Lua for dynamic logic and control, as well as a specialized toolkit for rendering SVG images and Lottie animations. It utilizes a pluggable rendering backend that decouples geometry generation from the final display, allowing it to generate textured geometry

TIC-80 is a fantasy console platform and multi-language game engine that provides a virtual retro game development environment. It operates via a bytecode virtual machine that executes game logic within fixed memory and resolution constraints. The project distinguishes itself by offering integrated asset editors for pixel art, tile maps, and a pattern-based chiptune audio workstation all within a single environment. It supports multi-language scripting, allowing developers to write logic in Lua, JavaScript, or Ruby, and provides a standalone game exporter to package projects into native execu

VulkanTutorial is a comprehensive educational guide and instructional resource for implementing low-level rendering and compute pipelines using the Vulkan API. It serves as a GPU programming course and a step-by-step guide for building high-performance graphics applications from scratch. The project provides detailed instruction on the full graphics pipeline, including the compilation of shaders to SPIR-V bytecode, the configuration of rasterization states, and the implementation of 3D graphics pipelines. It also covers general-purpose GPU compute programming, focusing on the execution of par

boring.notch is a macOS notch interface extension that provides a customizable software overlay for the hardware notch area. It functions as a productivity widget hub and a custom system HUD overlay, allowing users to replace standard system heads-up displays for volume and brightness with custom visual indicators. The project includes an interface gesture controller to map touch and mouse interactions to specific system actions and application controls. It also features a temporary file shelf that serves as a workspace for staging files intended for quick transfer via wireless sharing protoc

Wayfire is a modular Wayland compositor for Linux that functions as a graphical session controller and window manager. It provides the core infrastructure for a desktop environment by managing window placement, input device handling, and display output configurations. The compositor utilizes hardware-accelerated rendering to manage the desktop state and coordinate the interaction between client applications and the display server. The project is distinguished by its plugin-based architecture, which allows for the dynamic extension of core functionality through modular components. It offers ex

Waybar is a modular status bar for Wayland compositors that provides a configuration-driven interface for system monitoring and desktop management. It functions as a shell component that integrates directly with Wayland protocols to track window manager states, manage system tray icons, and display real-time hardware, network, and power metrics. The project distinguishes itself through a highly flexible architecture that allows for independent or synchronized interface bars across multiple monitors, each with unique layout and styling rules. Users can extend the bar's functionality by creatin

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

Seelen-UI is a graphical shell and window management utility for Windows that provides a modular, keyboard-driven desktop environment. It enables users to organize application windows through automated tiling, stacking, and floating layouts, while offering a framework for creating interactive desktop widgets using web technologies. The project distinguishes itself by integrating a web-based rendering engine that bridges system-state data to HTML and CSS interfaces, allowing for highly customizable widgets and dynamic visual themes. It features real-time wallpaper analysis to automatically syn

Lively is a desktop wallpaper engine for Windows that renders videos, web pages, and interactive shaders as dynamic, animated backgrounds. It functions by creating a transparent window layer behind desktop icons, utilizing native system handles to integrate content directly into the workspace. The application provides tools for system personalization, including the ability to adjust taskbar transparency and application themes to modify the visual style of the operating system. It also includes a command-line interface that allows for the automation of background playback and system configurat

Bazzite is an immutable, atomic-image-based operating system designed for gaming performance and handheld hardware. It utilizes a read-only root filesystem and versioned images to provide atomic updates and instant system rollbacks, ensuring a stable core environment. The system is distinguished by its deep optimization for portable gaming devices, featuring dedicated handheld hardware management for CPU undervolting, fan control, and display refresh rate overclocking. It includes a specialized gaming mode that boots directly into a console-like interface with integrated input mapping and a t