Built a keyboard-driven file manager for Mac - would love your feedback

Software
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Hey everyone,

Long-time listener of MPU here. I’ve been working on a file manager called Captain’s Deck and thought this community might appreciate it (or tear it
apart - either works).

The problem I was solving: I spend most of my day in the terminal and text editors, hands on the keyboard. Every time I had to use Finder, it felt
like hitting a wall - grab the mouse, click around, lose my flow. I wanted file management that worked like Vim.

What I built:

  • Dual-pane layout - see source and destination side by side
  • Vim-style navigation - hjkl to move, / to filter, gg to jump to top
  • Arrow keys too - not everyone wants Vim bindings, so both work simultaneously
  • Built-in terminal - backtick toggles it, and it syncs with your current directory (both ways via OSC 7)
  • Keyboard shortcuts for everything - F5 copy, F6 move, F7 new folder, F8 delete (Norton Commander style for those who remember)

For the power users:

  • Git integration with status badges and staging
  • SFTP, S3, WebDAV connections
  • Browse inside ZIP/RAR archives like folders
  • Batch rename with patterns
  • Quick Look with spacebar

There’s a 14-day free trial if anyone wants to kick the tires: https://www.captains-deck.com

I’m an indie dev, so I actually read every piece of feedback. Would love to know:

  1. What keyboard workflows do you use for file management currently?
  2. Anything obvious I’m missing?

Thanks for reading!

1 Like
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You’re apparently also the (sole?) developer of Taphouse and a few other apps?

How can you develop and maintain so many apps (with so much functionality) and still deliver quality?

(I hope the answer is not “vibe coding”)

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Hi. I’m actually not alone, i have my brother who’s also coding but i’ve been making these apps for a looong time. It wasn’t hard but now the maintainance part feels like is 24/7. The truth is i enjoy it, that’s why i manage to stay engaged. And these 2 apps i use daily myself. Especiall Captain’s Deck, i begun developing it just for myself.

2 Likes
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Reminds me of Marta.

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i actually never seen that before. It has a lot of similarities it seems judging just from the website. Captain’s Deck has a lot more features though unless Marta doesn’t mention them.
I do use mine though like this because i grew up with Norton Commander :slight_smile:
(I know it’s not for everyone)

Screenshot 2026-01-13 at 11.26.15 PM
Screenshot 2026-01-13 at 11.26.15 PM3206×1876 1.63 MB

1 Like
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Why would I use it over yazi (my current file manager)?

I use the gruvbox theme for everything. Absolutely love it.

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they are quite different from what i see, even they share similar features.
You should use what better fits your workflow.

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Wow I just tried it. On one level, truly amazing. On another level, holy cow a file manager that lives in my terminal. Do you still use Pine for email?

You’re hardcore. I think I’ll stick to a GUI file manager.

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I will give Captain’s Deck a try. One caveat: On your sales page, you compare pricing to PathFinder and Forklift. However, many here use SetApp, which has them both as part of your subscription.

1 Like