Tidy is a macOS application designed to automate common file management chores, making your digital workspace cleaner and more organized. It resides discreetly in your menu bar, working in the background to handle tasks that users often find tedious or time-consuming. The primary goal of Tidy is to provide a seamless and intelligent way to manage new screenshots, installed applications, and downloaded files without requiring constant user intervention.
The problem Tidy addresses is the accumulation of clutter on a Mac's desktop and in its downloads folder. Users frequently end up with numerous unorganized screenshots, leftover installer files after application installations, and a chaotic Downloads folder. These issues not only make it difficult to find specific files but also contribute to a disorganized digital environment. Tidy aims to solve this by automating the cleanup and organization process, saving users time and reducing digital friction.
One of Tidy's key features is its intelligent archiving and renaming of new Desktop screenshots. Using on-device Optical Character Recognition (OCR), Tidy can analyze the content of a screenshot and rename it accordingly. For example, a generic file name like "Screenshot 14.22.10.png" can be automatically transformed into a more descriptive name such as "invoice-march.png", making it easier to identify and locate later. This feature leverages Apple Intelligence, ensuring that all processing happens locally on the user's Mac, thus maintaining privacy.
Another significant function of Tidy is its handling of application installers. When a user mounts a disk image (.dmg) for an application installation, Tidy automatically ejects the disk image after the installation is complete and then trashes the installer file. This eliminates the common clutter of leftover .dmg files and installers that often accumulate after software setup, further streamlining the user's system.
Tidy also excels at sorting new files within the Downloads folder. Users can define custom rules in plain English to dictate how their downloads should be organized. These rules can be based on file types, extensions, or other criteria, allowing for highly personalized organization. Tidy then automatically moves files into designated folders based on these user-defined rules, ensuring that downloads are sorted efficiently and logically.
The overall approach of Tidy is built around user trust and privacy. It operates with two core principles: it only touches new files, meaning it does not interfere with existing files or the user's backlog, and it never deletes files permanently. Instead, it archives or moves files to the Trash, ensuring that everything is reversible. The use of on-device Apple Intelligence for features like OCR and rule interpretation means that no user data ever leaves the Mac, providing a high level of security and privacy.
The benefits for users are manifold. Tidy significantly reduces the time and effort spent on manual file management, leading to a cleaner desktop and Downloads folder. By automatically renaming screenshots and sorting downloads, it improves file discoverability and organization. The privacy-focused, on-device processing ensures peace of mind, and the one-time purchase model offers excellent value without ongoing subscription costs.
Concrete use cases for Tidy include automatically organizing downloaded PDFs into a "Documents" folder, moving all new image files to an "Images" folder, and archiving screenshots with descriptive names related to their content. For developers, it can sort code files into specific project folders. For general users, it ensures that installer files are cleaned up after software installation, and screenshots are readily identifiable.
Tidy is designed for Mac users who value a clean and organized digital environment but prefer not to spend time on manual file management. It is a one-time purchase application, with no subscription required. The product is available for macOS.
In essence, Tidy acts as an automated digital assistant for your Mac, intelligently managing your files in the background to keep your system tidy and your data private, all with minimal user effort.
