01
Press the hotkey
A non-activating panel opens above whatever is already on screen. No app switching, no hunting for the right note.
Native macOS capture
Capture the note. Sort it later.
Spillway is a system-wide capture tool for macOS. Press the hotkey, type the note, dismiss the panel, and let the app file it into the Obsidian daily note. Links, tags, and follow-up structure can be reviewed when the interruption has passed.
macOS 14+
Notarized direct download
Works with Obsidian daily notes
Offline by default
How it works
Built for the moment a thought would otherwise get dropped.
The flow is short on purpose: summon the panel, capture without switching tools, then process suggestions when there is room to think again.
02
Capture without context switching
Type the note, accept a suggestion if it is useful, and save. Meeting context and vault matches can stay quiet until needed.
03
Review suggestions later
Spillway writes the capture to the daily note immediately, then offers links, tags, and action-item follow-up in the review panel.
Features
A small surface area, tuned for daily-note workflows.
The feature set stays close to the job: capture fast, file locally, and reduce the cleanup work that usually accumulates afterward.
Overlay first, editing later
The capture surface stays narrow, readable, and dismissible. Suggestions appear without blocking the typing flow.
Open the panel from anywhere on macOS and return to work just as quickly.
A single composed surface for the note, context badges, and save hints.
Entity matches and tag suggestions come from the connected vault, not a detached search index in the cloud.
Captures append directly to the configured Obsidian daily note using local file access and atomic writes.
Accept or dismiss links, tags, and follow-up actions from the review panel between meetings or at the end of the day.
Read-only meeting context informs the capture. Action items can route into Apple Reminders when that path makes sense.
Product proof
The page shows the workflow, not just a promise.
The strongest proof for this product is concrete behavior: what appears during capture, what gets suggested later, and what lands in the vault.
Review panel
Suggestions stay grouped by capture. Accept what is useful, dismiss what is not, and move on without reopening the note in Obsidian.
Local vault integration
The setup is explicit: connect the vault, allow the permissions, then let the app write captures into the daily-note path.
What is in the repo today
The screenshots here are composed fallback visuals based on the native UI and product copy. They can be replaced with exported app captures once the preview-export path is in place.
Trust and requirements
Direct download, local file access, and clear boundaries.
Spillway is a native macOS app distributed outside the App Store because the product depends on a system-wide hotkey and friction-light local vault access. The site should make those tradeoffs legible instead of hiding them.
- Native macOS app Built in Swift and SwiftUI for macOS 14 and later.
-
Direct-download notarized DMG
The current public build downloads from
downloads.spillway.app. Sparkle metadata stays onupdates.spillway.app. - Offline by default Phase 1 keeps automatic update checks off unless a user explicitly enables them in Settings.
- Obsidian workflow Designed for daily notes, wiki links, tags, and local vault indexing.
FAQ
Straight answers for install, trust, and fit.
How do I install it?
Download the DMG, open it, move Spillway into Applications, and launch it. On first run the app guides the vault connection and any permissions required for the hotkey, calendar context, or reminders integration.
Why direct download instead of the App Store?
The product depends on a system-wide hotkey and local vault access. Direct download keeps that path practical without App Sandbox restrictions that would add more friction to the core workflow.
Does it send my notes to the cloud?
No network calls are part of the Phase 1 note-processing path. Captures, indexing, and daily-note writes happen locally. Update checks stay user-controlled.
What permissions does it ask for?
Accessibility is needed for the global hotkey. File access is needed for the vault. Calendar and Reminders permissions are optional and only used for those integrations.
Do I need Obsidian?
Today, yes. Spillway is designed around an Obsidian vault and daily-note workflow. Other providers are future expansion work, not part of the current release path.
How do updates work?
The app uses Sparkle feeds hosted on this site. Stable and beta appcasts stay on Cloudflare Pages, while DMG assets are delivered from the configured downloads host.
Download
Ready to try the current beta build?
The site stays simple on purpose: one page to understand the workflow, one direct download, and the release metadata nearby when you need it.