Reads Rhythm, Not Content.

#productivity #security #showdev #software

I built a macOS Focus App That Reads Your Rhythm, Not Your Content.

I have been building a small macOS app called Sync Mode, and the whole idea came from one very simple feeling:

I did not want another productivity app yelling at me.

No strict timers.
No streak guilt.
No fake motivational dashboard telling me I am either “crushing it” or “failing.”

I wanted something quieter than that. Something that could sit in the background, pay attention to the shape of how I work, and gently adjust the atmosphere around me. So I started building Sync Mode, a macOS focus app that responds to your current work rhythm.

The app looks at local rhythm signals like:

typing pace
pauses
mouse movement
click rhythm
app switching
idle time

Then it estimates what kind of state you might be in:

Calm: For slower work, reading, planning, journaling, or easing into a task.
Focused: For that steady “I am locked in but not frantic” kind of work.
Energized: For the fast typing, high momentum, brain-is-sprinting moments.
Scattered: For those moments where you are bouncing around, switching things, clicking everywhere, and your focus is basically holding on by a thread.

The important part is that Sync Mode does not read what you type.

No typed words.
No documents.
No clipboard.
No URLs.
No cloud tracking.

It reads rhythm, not content.

That privacy piece mattered a lot to me. I wanted the app to feel intelligent without being creepy. There is a massive difference between “this app can sense that I am working quickly” and “this app is watching everything I write.”

I wanted the first one. Very much not the second one.

The current version can shift between different modes and adjust things like soundscape, visual atmosphere, dimming, blur, and a small mode orb that reflects your current state.

The part I have been most excited about is the focus dimming feature.

When you are working, Sync Mode can gently dim and blur the space behind your active window so the thing you are doing feels more centered. It makes the Mac feel less chaotic without fully locking you into some dramatic fullscreen mode.

It is subtle, but when it works, it feels really nice. Almost like your workspace is breathing with you a little. I know that sounds dramatic, but I stand by it.

This app is still small, still evolving, and still very much a solo dev project. I am building it because I want my computer to feel more supportive while I work. Not louder. Not more demanding. Just more in sync with me.

That is the whole goal.

A focus app that does not force you into a system.
A focus app that listens to your rhythm.
A focus app that quietly changes the room around your work.
That is Sync Mode.

I am still polishing it, testing it across Apple Silicon and Intel Macs, and tightening the way the modes respond. But it is getting closer to the version I had in my head, and that part feels really good.

If you build apps, write, design, code, or spend way too much time trying to get yourself into the right headspace, I think you will understand why I wanted this to exist.

Sometimes the problem is not that we need another timer. Sometimes we just need our workspace to stop fighting us. Sync Mode is a macOS focus app that adapts to how you work, while keeping your actual work private.

That is the magic I am chasing, at least.

Link: https://quietware.itch.io/sync-mode