Sol Free and Open Source Desktop App CookApps CookApps Marketplace

Overview

Sol is an open-source, ultra-responsive macOS application launcher and command palette focused on speed, simplicity, and keyboard ergonomics. Written natively in Swift and React Native macOS, Sol integrates global app launching, searchable clipboard history, window tiling, inline calculations, scratchpad notes, and upcoming calendar triggers cleanly without bloated plugin layers.

How It Works

Sol operates through structured, deterministic execution stages:

Instant Hotkey Command Palette: Invokes an ultra-fast native macOS overlay via keyboard shortcuts to search applications, preferences, and files in milliseconds.

Unified Clipboard History & Scratchpad: Indexes copied text, colors, and snippets locally in encrypted disk storage alongside a quick floating scratchpad.

Built-In Tiling & Calendar Triggers: Snaps active windows into halves/quarters, computes inline math, and joins upcoming calendar meetings with zero cloud lag.

Native AppKit + React Native Core: Renders responsive UI frames at native display refresh rates with near-zero idle RAM consumption.

Key Technical Features & Capabilities

Sub-Millisecond Global Launcher: Indexes applications, system settings, files, and browser bookmarks in native memory for instant fuzzy invocation.

Unified Clipboard & Scratchpad: Retains searchable clipboard text history and provides a persistent quick-access scratchpad window on demand.

Window Management & Shortcuts: Snaps windows across display halves, quarters, and monitors without requiring a separate third-party window manager.

Inline Utilities & Calendar Bar: Evaluates arithmetic, currency/time conversions, and shows upcoming Google/Apple calendar calls right inside the HUD.

Architecture & Technology Stack

Primary Languages: Swift, TypeScript, Objective-C

Frameworks & UI Runtime: React Native macOS, Cocoa / AppKit, CoreSpotlight

Bundler & Tooling: Yarn / Bun, CocoaPods, Xcode

Supported Platforms: macOS 12 Monterey or later (Apple Silicon & Intel)

System Requirements

Specification	Minimum Requirement	Recommended Specification
Operating System	macOS 12.0+ (Apple Silicon & Intel)	Latest stable release build
Processor Architecture	4-Core x86_64 or Apple Silicon M1	8-Core Apple Silicon / Core i7+
Memory (RAM)	4 GB Unified Memory	16 GB+ High-Speed RAM
Disk Space	1 GB free SSD storage	5 GB+ free SSD storage

Installation & Setup Guide

macOS Installation

Download the verified archive from CookApps or install directly via Homebrew:

bash

brew install --cask sol

Move Sol.app into /Applications and bind your preferred activation hotkey (e.g. ⌘ + Space or ⌥ + Space).

Building from Source

bash

git clone https://github.com/ospfranco/sol.git
cd sol
yarn install
cd macos && pod install && cd ..
yarn dev

How to Use & Workflow

Invoke Command Bar: Press your configured hotkey to summon Sol cleanly over any full-screen space or active window.

Search & Launch: Type partial app names, URLs, or Apple System Settings panes to launch instantly.

Access Clipboard & Notes: Trigger clipboard history search or scratchpad capture for rapid cross-app copy/pasting.

Configure Workspaces: Customize custom search engines, emoji skin tones, and window-tiling shortcuts inside Settings.

Troubleshooting & Common Issues

**Issue: Global ⌘+Space conflict with native macOS Spotlight.**

*Cause*: Default macOS keyboard shortcuts bind ⌘+Space to Apple Spotlight.

*Resolution*: Disable Spotlight shortcut under System Settings › Keyboard › Keyboard Shortcuts › Spotlight or assign ⌥+Space to Sol.

Issue: Window tiling actions fail to resize third-party applications.

*Cause*: macOS Accessibility access hasn't been granted to Sol.

*Resolution*: Allow Sol.app inside System Settings › Privacy & Security › Accessibility.

Sol

Overview

How It Works

Key Technical Features & Capabilities

Architecture & Technology Stack

System Requirements

Installation & Setup Guide

macOS Installation

Building from Source

How to Use & Workflow

Troubleshooting & Common Issues

How to Use & Getting Started

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