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Shorty manages macOS menu keyboard shortcuts, the ones in System Settings → Keyboard → Keyboard Shortcuts → App Shortcuts, from one YAML file. It is made by RoundRect, and it is not yet released: there is no download and no install command yet.

What it is#

Shorty comes in two parts that do the same job:

• Shorty.app, a menu bar app with an editor for the file. It syncs again whenever the file changes.
• shorty, a command line tool that does everything the app does.

It requires macOS 15 (Sequoia) or later.

How it works#

A shortcut names a menu item and a key combination:

version: 1

apps:
  com.google.Chrome:
    "Pin Tab": cmd+p

Menu titles are picked from the app's real menus rather than typed, and existing titles are checked against them. A New Tab where Chrome says New tab, a missing …, or an item the developer renamed is caught and can be fixed in one click.

You can put shortcuts into groups and switch a group on and off, import the shortcuts you already have at any time, and write shortcuts for apps that are not installed yet. Shorty holds those until the app shows up.

Shorty only touches shortcuts it created, or that you declared in the file. Shortcuts you made by hand stay as they are.

Hearing about the release#

There is no mailing list. When Shorty is released, the news will be on this blog, and the Atom feed will carry it. The Shorty page has the details in the meantime.