Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Albert VS Hammerspoon

Compare Albert VS Hammerspoon and see what are their differences

Albert logo Albert

Omnilauncher for Linux to help you quickly find and run apps and do other useful things.

Hammerspoon logo Hammerspoon

This is a tool for powerful automation of OS X.
  • Albert Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-08-05
  • Hammerspoon Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-25

Albert features and specs

  • Fast and Lightweight
    Albert is designed to be quick and efficient, consuming minimal system resources while delivering fast search results.
  • Highly Customizable
    Users can personalize their Albert experience through various configuration options and extensions to suit their specific needs.
  • Extensible with Multiple Plugins
    Albert supports numerous plugins, allowing for extended functionality such as calculator, file search, and system commands.
  • Open Source
    Albert is an open-source project, allowing users to inspect, modify, and contribute to the codebase, ensuring transparency and community-driven development.
  • Multi-Platform Support
    Albert is available for multiple operating systems, including Linux distributions, making it accessible to a broad user base.
  • Keyboard-centric Navigation
    Albert promotes efficient workflows by enabling users to perform a wide range of tasks without leaving the keyboard, enhancing productivity.

Possible disadvantages of Albert

  • Learning Curve
    Due to its extensive customization options and plugin systems, new users might find it overwhelming to configure and use Albert effectively.
  • Limited GUI for Configuration
    Albert's configuration mainly relies on text-based settings, which might be less intuitive for users who prefer graphical user interfaces.
  • Dependency on Plugins
    While plugins add functionality, users might experience inconsistent behavior or compatibility issues depending on the plugins they use.
  • Lesser Known
    Compared to more popular launchers, Albert has a smaller user and support community, which may result in limited online resources and troubleshooting help.

Hammerspoon features and specs

  • Highly Customizable
    Hammerspoon allows users to write Lua scripts to automate virtually any task on macOS, providing a high degree of customization to meet individual needs.
  • Extensive API
    With a rich set of APIs, Hammerspoon supports interaction with numerous macOS features and third-party applications, increasing its versatility.
  • Lightweight
    Hammerspoon is relatively lightweight compared to other automation tools, minimizing the impact on system resources.
  • Active Community
    The Hammerspoon community is active and provides a wealth of shared scripts and modules, as well as support for new users.
  • Open Source
    Being open-source, Hammerspoon allows users to inspect, modify, and contribute to its codebase, fostering a collaborative development environment.

Possible disadvantages of Hammerspoon

  • Steep Learning Curve
    The necessity to write Lua scripts can be a barrier for users who are not familiar with programming, making the tool less accessible to non-developers.
  • Limited Documentation
    While there is documentation available, some users find it insufficient for more complex tasks, which may require additional research and experimentation.
  • Minimal Graphical Interface
    Hammerspoon lacks a user-friendly graphical interface, which can make setup and configuration less intuitive for some users.
  • Potential Stability Issues
    Depending on the complexity and efficiency of the user-created scripts, Hammerspoon could potentially cause system instability or performance issues.
  • MacOS Only
    Hammerspoon is exclusive to macOS, which limits its usability to users within the Apple ecosystem.

Analysis of Hammerspoon

Overall verdict

  • Overall, Hammerspoon is considered a good tool for those who are comfortable with scripting and want to leverage its capabilities for custom automation on macOS. It is well-regarded within the community for its robust features and active development.

Why this product is good

  • Hammerspoon is a powerful automation tool for macOS that allows users to script and control their environment with a combination of Lua scripting and Objective-C APIs. Its flexibility and extensibility make it a desirable option for power users who want to automate repetitive tasks, customize their workflow, or create complex scripts to enhance productivity. Users appreciate its ability to integrate with macOS and utilize system events, window management, and hardware control, which provides a high degree of customizability that is not easily achievable through other tools.

Recommended for

    Hammerspoon is recommended for tech-savvy users, developers, and anyone who is familiar with scripting and is looking to automate their macOS environment. It is particularly useful for individuals who enjoy tinkering with their setup and want to have fine-grained control over their system's behavior.

Albert videos

Albert App Review - Legit? Save INSANE Money? Worth it?

More videos:

  • Review - 'Albert' Budgeting App Review

Hammerspoon videos

HammerSpoon Worflow Automation

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Albert and Hammerspoon)
Automation
43 43%
57% 57
Productivity
100 100%
0% 0
Windows Tools
0 0%
100% 100
App Launcher
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Albert should be more popular than Hammerspoon. It has been mentiond 17 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Albert mentions (17)

  • Wayland Application Launchers: Stick with Rofi
    Albert: Powerful, but a bit involved. I am looking for something simpler. - Source: dev.to / 21 days ago
  • Ubuntu for a Mac user (SWE)
    And, albert https://albertlauncher.github.io/ would be the default spotlight alternative, but in my experience it's not that snappy and doesn't behave exactly as you'd expect. Imo the default gnome search function is fine. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Albert launcher update!
    It took quite some time, but after years of overhaul, testing, and patching I'd like to introduce Albert. New features (since 0.18) include an abstract plugin system, custom triggers, an API which got more developer friendly and of course feature rich for both C++ and Python plugins, plugins come with more features, search is even faster, UI is nicer, Qt6, C++20… Give it a try and let me know what you think. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Ask HN: Why is on-device search terrible?
    Https://albertlauncher.github.io/ The demonstrations there confirm searching, and way more than I can do justice here. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
  • Announcing Findex v0.6.0
    Check out albert. They do it prefectly. https://albertlauncher.github.io/. Source: almost 3 years ago
View more

Hammerspoon mentions (4)

  • i3 Linux -> macOS
    Then, I can only suggest http://hammerspoon.org/ and then you can start implementing window movement using it https://www.hammerspoon.org/go/#winmoveintro. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • 49 inch Ultra Wide Monitor going from PC to Mac mini
    MacOS doesn't do this natively, but you have options: - If you just want to move windows around with some degree of keyboard customization, go for Rectangle. - If you want more control, such as sizing a bunch of windows at the same time, use Slate. - If you can code and want really high degrees of customization, you won't go wrong with Hammerspoon. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • Handy utility applications for macOS
    Both of those can be replaced by the open-source Hammerspoon (actually a significant number of the things in this thread can, including BTT). Source: about 3 years ago
  • Keyboard Maestro alternatives?
    Depending on what you want from KM, Hammerspoon may be a good alternative. You can also look up on AlternativeTo for other options. Source: over 3 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Albert and Hammerspoon, you can also consider the following products

Pulover’s Macro Creator - Pulover’s Macro Creator is a Free Automation Tool and Script Generator.

Microsoft Power Automate - Microsoft Power Automate is an automation platform that integrates DPA, RPA, and process mining. It lets you automate your organization at scale using low-code and AI.

AutoHotkey - The ultimate automation scripting language for Windows.

Keyboard Maestro - Keyboard Maestro is the leading software for macOS automation. It will increase business productivity by using macros(or short cuts) with simple keystrokes. Keyboard Maestro WikiThis wiki aims to help new users get started, and then provide .

AutoKey - A Python 3 port of AutoKey, the desktop automation utility for Linux and X11.

AutoIt - Other Articles You May Like AutoIt Script Editor AutoIt Downloads AutoIt Scripting Language