Carlos Valderrama

A lightweight desktop application that automatically captures your progress, plans, and thoughts the moment you step away from your work—so you never lose your flow again.

The Problem

You're deep in the zone. Three hours into a Stardew Valley farming session, and you've just mapped out an entire seasonal strategy. New farm layout, crop rotation, building plans. You close the game with confidence.

Two days later, you boot it up again. Your brain is blank.

Where exactly were you going with the farm? What was that one thing you needed to build first? You spend 20 minutes just remembering where you left off—and half that time, you're clicking around hoping muscle memory kicks in.

This isn't just a gaming problem.

You're halfway through a Photoshop design. Client mockups scattered across your workspace. You've made specific adjustments that took hours to dial in—color grading, layer masks, font adjustments. It's 11 PM. You close Photoshop.

A week later, you open the file again. Did I use this font? What was the exact hex color I landed on? What was my next design iteration supposed to be? You're not working—you're remembering.

Or you're deep in a coding session. You've fixed three bugs, refactored a module, and identified the next optimization opportunity. You close your IDE. A few days pass. When you come back, you've lost the thread. The context is gone. Now you're context-switching instead of code-switching.

The Solution: Owlnest

Owlnest is a "save state" for your brain.

The moment you close any application you're tracking—a game, design software, IDE, creative tool—a sleek modal pops up with two simple questions:

›"Where did you leave off?"
›"What's your next step?"

Type a quick note. Hit Enter. The modal disappears.

The next time you open that application, your notes appear instantly, restoring your mental context so you can pick up exactly where you left off.

No friction. No extra steps. Just a tiny moment of capture that saves you from hours of context-switching later.

How It Works

1. The Setup

Add the applications you want to track (Stardew Valley, Photoshop, VS Code, etc.) to Owlnest.

2. The Capture

Close any tracked app. A modal pops up asking where you left off and what's next.

3. The Recall

Open that app again. Your notes appear automatically, restoring your mental context in seconds.

4. The Dashboard

Browse all your notes, see patterns in your work, and never lose context again.

Perfect For

🎮 Gamers - Remember farm layouts, quest lines, building strategies, and long-term goals between sessions.

🎨 Designers - Capture design decisions, color schemes, client feedback, and next iteration plans in Photoshop, Figma, etc.

💻 Developers - Save your debugging progress, refactoring notes, and next optimization targets before closing the IDE.

✍️ Writers - Preserve story arcs, character notes, and plot development ideas between writing sessions.

🔧 Makers - Document your progress on projects, tooling decisions, and next steps for any creative work.

Installation

Requirements

›Windows 10+ or macOS 10.13+
›10MB disk space

Download

Get the latest release for your platform:

›Windows
›macOS

First Time Setup

Windows

›Download the .msi installer from the releases page
›Run the installer and follow the setup wizard
›Launch Owlnest from your Start Menu or desktop shortcut
›Add your applications to track
›You're ready to go

macOS

›Download the .dmg file from the releases page
›Open the .dmg file (double-click)
›Drag the Owlnest app into the Applications folder
›Open Applications folder and double-click Owlnest

⚠️ macOS Security Warning

On first launch, you may see a security warning: "Owlnest cannot be opened because the developer cannot be verified."

This is normal for beta apps. Here's how to bypass it:

Option 1: Right-Click Method (Easiest)

›In Finder, navigate to Applications
›Right-click on Owlnest
›Select "Open" from the menu
›Click "Open" in the security dialog
›The app will now run

Option 2: System Preferences Method

›Try to open Owlnest normally (you'll get the security warning)
›Go to System Preferences → Security & Privacy
›Click the General tab
›Look for "Owlnest was blocked..." message
›Click "Open Anyway"
›Owlnest will now launch

Option 3: Terminal Method (Advanced)

xattr -d com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Owlnest.app

Then launch Owlnest normally.

After the first launch, you won't see this warning again. We're working on getting a proper code signature for future releases.

Quick Start

›Open Owlnest and look at the Dashboard
›Add an application you want to track (e.g., StardewValley.exe, Photoshop.exe, Code.exe)
›Open and close the app once with Owlnest running
›When the modal appears, jot down where you left off and what's next
›Next time you open it, your context appears instantly

Philosophy

Owlnest is built on a simple principle: friction kills context.

Every extra step you have to take to capture or retrieve context is a step away from actual work. Owlnest eliminates that friction by:

›✨ Intercepting you at the exact moment you're leaving
›✨ Asking just two simple questions
›✨ Storing everything locally for instant access
›✨ Showing your context the moment you return

No logging in. No organizing. No searching. Just smart, automatic context preservation.

Privacy

Your data is yours. All notes are stored locally on your machine in a SQLite database. Owlnest never phones home, never tracks you, and never sends your data anywhere.

Feedback & Support

We love hearing from our users! If you run into issues or have ideas for new features:

›In-App Feedback: Use the "Send Feedback" button inside the Owlnest sidebar.
›Direct Support: If the app is not launching, please feel free to open a GitHub Issue here.
›Discussions: Join the community

License

Made with 🦉 by kaluroos/ascxiao

Your context is sacred. Owlnest preserves it.

Owlnest Overlay Progress Tracker