# nate-parrott/Flashlight

The missing Spotlight plugin system

Repository: https://github.com/nate-parrott/Flashlight
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/nate-parrott-flashlight
Homepage: http://flashlight.nateparrott.com
Language: Python
License: NOASSERTION
License Family: other
Last push: 2017-03-25T20:04:49+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 23/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 8, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4321, "days_push": 3448, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_license
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 5344, forks 398 (observed 2026-08-28T04:09:15.884352+00:00)

## What it is
Flashlight is an unofficial plugin system for macOS Spotlight that lets users extend Spotlight search with new commands and lets developers write plugins in Python. It works by injecting into the Spotlight process and processing queries to add custom results.

## Use cases
- search the web from Spotlight
- send iMessages or emails by typing in Spotlight
- add calendar events and reminders with a keystroke
- check the weather from the Spotlight search box
- write custom Spotlight plugins in Python
- shut down or lock the Mac from Spotlight

## When to choose
- you are on OS X Yosemite and want to extend Spotlight with custom commands
- you want to write Python-based plugins for Spotlight
- you want a launcher-style power tool built into Spotlight

## When to avoid
- you are on a modern macOS version - the project is unmaintained and requires Yosemite
- you need a supported, secure launcher - the code injection approach is a hack
- you want an actively maintained alternative - use the w0lfschild fork or Alfred/Raycast instead

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: abandoned
- function: plugin-system, search-engine, developer-tools
- domain: operating-systems, developer-tools
- platform: -
- tags: spotlight, launcher, mac-hacks, code-injection, plugins, automation, macos

## Member repositories
- nate-parrott/Flashlight (main) score 23

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:15.884352+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T17:58:49.153051+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/nate-parrott/Flashlight (fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:15.884352+00:00, sha 2aac32d692e8)
  - homepage: http://flashlight.nateparrott.com (fetched 2026-08-29T08:53:11.937013+00:00, sha f9397876e2a4)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.