Kepo: GitHub, RSS, and Developer Tools in One Mac Widget Panel

A pull request waiting for review, a library release, and a JSON payload to inspect are small tasks. They do not each need a permanent browser tab. Kepo brings those checks and utilities into a Mac widget panel that you can open with a keyboard shortcut.

We build Kepo, and this is a practical introduction to the product: what you can put in the panel today, how to start with a useful setup, and where the limits are.

Start with three widgets you will actually use

A useful panel should answer a few recurring questions. For a developer, a reasonable starting point is: Does anything need my review? Has a dependency released an update? Can I inspect this data without opening another utility site?

Here are three existing plugins that cover those jobs.

1. GitHub: review requests and repository updates

The Kepo GitHub widgets include a notifications inbox, review requests, release tracking, tag tracking, a commit timeline, and trending repositories.

For a focused setup, add Review Requests and Release Watch. The first surfaces pull requests requesting your review; the second follows releases for a particular repository. You can open GitHub when something needs attention instead of repeatedly navigating there to check.

Configuration matters:

• Notifications and review requests need a signed-in GitHub session.
• Repository widgets need the exact owner/repo identifier.
• The commit timeline also needs the repository's actual branch name. Do not assume every project uses main.

For example, to follow a dependency, copy its repository identifier from GitHub and use that in Release Watch. Check the initial result against the repository's release page before relying on it.

These views depend on GitHub's pages. If GitHub changes its page structure, a plugin update may be needed.

2. Developer Tools: keep small conversions close to your editor

The Developer Tools widgets provide ten utilities, including JSON formatting, JWT inspection, regular-expression testing, text comparison, timestamp conversion, and cron parsing.

A simple first choice is JSON Formatter. Add a wide widget if you prefer input and output side by side, then try a small sample:

{"service":"demo","healthy":true,"checks":["http","database"]}

Formatting makes the structure easier to inspect; validation helps distinguish malformed input from a display problem. The formatter processes the text locally rather than sending the payload to a formatting website.

Choose the widget size for the task. JSON Formatter supports wide and large layouts. Text Diff, Regex Tester, and JWT Inspector use the large layout because they need more room for their inputs and results.

Local utilities are useful for quick inspection, but the plugin is not a secret vault. Start with sample data when evaluating a tool, and follow your team's rules for handling credentials and production data.

3. RSS: follow a specific source

The Kepo RSS Reader widget displays recent items from a public RSS or Atom feed and links to the original articles.

One widget reads one feed. To follow a project blog and a separate engineering newsletter, create two widgets with their respective feed URLs. A normal website homepage is not necessarily a feed URL; use the RSS or Atom address provided by the publisher.

That makes the setup deliberately specific: choose the sources you want to check, then open an original article when its title is relevant. Feed freshness and completeness depend on the publisher. An empty or broken source can produce an empty result or an error.

Put the panel together

Here is a small configuration to try before filling the screen with widgets:

Recurring task	Component	What to configure
Find work awaiting review	GitHub Review Requests	Your signed-in GitHub session
Track a dependency	GitHub Release Watch	The exact repository identifier
Inspect structured data	JSON Formatter	Sample JSON; wide or large layout
Follow a project blog	RSS Reader	A valid public RSS or Atom URL

Download the Mac app, choose the relevant plugins from the Kepo widget store, and add the components you need. Configure each data source and compare its first result with the original source.

Kepo's shortcut-accessible panel lets you bring these widgets into view with Option + Space. Keep only the components that help you make a decision or complete a small task. A crowded panel can become another place to get distracted.

What if the widget you need does not exist?

Kepo also supports creating and editing widgets with AI. Describe the source, the information you want to see, and the layout you need. Our Mac desktop widgets overview explains that approach alongside the ready-made options.

A useful request is specific: “Show the latest five entries from this public RSS feed, with the title and publication date. Open the original article when I click an entry.” Include the actual feed URL when you try it.

Treat the generated result as something to verify: is it reading the intended source, showing the expected items, and handling a failed request clearly? Website access, login requirements, and changes to page structure still matter. An AI-generated widget does not remove those dependencies.

Try one recurring check first

Kepo is currently available for Mac, with a Windows waitlist on the homepage. The free plan includes one panel and the ability to install and use store plugins; AI features and limits vary by plan.

Start with one check you already repeat during the day. If it belongs in a widget, add it, verify the result, and see whether you keep using it.

For developers here: which small task would you put in a shortcut-accessible panel first—review requests, release tracking, a local utility, or something else?