Redcast The palette
Redcast's one window, how to move around it, and how to adjust it.
Almost everything in Redcast happens in one floating panel. The launcher is the root screen, and every other feature is a screen you open from it. esc takes you back one screen at a time.
Moving around
| Key | Does |
|---|---|
| return | The main action for the selection |
| ⌘return | The second action, usually Show in Finder or Copy |
| ⌘K | Open the Actions menu for the selection |
| ↑ ↓ | Move the selection |
| tab | Move between the launcher, Quick AI and the clipboard |
| esc | Clear the search, then go back a screen, then close |
| ⌘esc | Go back to the root search from any screen |
| delete | In an empty search field, go back one screen |
| ⌘, | Open Settings |
| ⌘W | Close the window |
⌘K is the best way to learn the app. Every screen lists all of its actions there, each with its shortcut. The full list is in Keyboard shortcuts.
Every screen except the launcher has a back arrow in the top-left corner. Hover over it to see whether clicking goes back a step or closes the window.
⌘esc needs the Accessibility permission, because macOS uses that shortcut itself unless Redcast intercepts it first.
Emacs chords
These work anywhere in the palette:
| Chord | Same as |
|---|---|
| ⌃N | ↓ |
| ⌃P | ↑ |
| ⌃F | → |
| ⌃B | ← |
On the emoji grid, all four move the selection. Everywhere else, ⌃F and ⌃B move the text cursor, which is what you usually want in a search field. Chords with an extra modifier, like ⌃⇧Q, are ignored.
Shortcuts follow key positions, not the characters your input source types. If you use Japanese, Russian or another non-Latin layout, ⌘K is still ⌘K.
Tab moves between three screens
tab cycles through three screens: launcher → Quick AI → clipboard → launcher.
- From the launcher, tab sends whatever you typed to a new AI chat as a question. When this will happen, the header shows an Quick AI hint next to a tab key.
- From the clipboard, your search text carries over to the launcher.
- esc goes back through the screens in reverse.
Quick AI is skipped while AI is off, and the clipboard is skipped while clipboard history is off.
Other screens, like Calculator History or Search Quicklinks, aren't part of the cycle. You only reach them by opening them yourself.
There's one exception: when the selected row takes arguments, like a quicklink or an extension command, tab moves through its fields first.
How screens stack
If you open a screen by typing its name in the launcher, it opens on top of the launcher, and esc takes you back to your search.
If you open a screen with its own global shortcut, it opens by itself with nothing behind it. Press the shortcut again to close it.
Settings → General → Escape Key Behavior sets what esc does when the search is empty:
- Navigate back or close window (default): go back a screen, and close only at the root.
- Close window and pop to root: close right away, and start at the launcher next time.
In both cases, the first press clears any text you typed.
Where it opens
Both placement settings are in Settings → General → Appearance.
Follow the cursor across displays (on by default) opens the palette on the display your pointer is on. Turn it off to always use the display with the menu bar.
Drag to reposition (off by default) lets you move the panel. Drag the thin strip above the search field, the empty space in the header, or the search field itself while it's empty.
While you drag, dotted guides show the default position and light up when you're close enough to snap to it. Release there and the palette snaps back. Release anywhere else and Redcast remembers that position, even after a restart.
Redcast forgets a saved position only when no display can show it anymore, for example after you unplug a monitor. Positions aren't included in backups, since they don't carry over between Macs.
Appearance
Settings → General → Appearance has these settings:
| Setting | Options | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Theme | System · Light · Dark | System |
| Interface size | Default · Large · Larger | Default |
| Background transparency | A slider from Less to More, with Reset | Middle |
| Compact mode | On · Off | Off |
| Show favorites in compact mode | On · Off | On |
Theme. System follows macOS whenever it changes. Light uses the same design with inverted colors, and the layout, type and animations stay the same.
Interface size makes the palette and its floating windows 10% or 20% larger. The Settings window stays the same size.
Background transparency sets how much of the desktop shows through the glass. Reset restores the original look.
Compact mode opens the launcher as a slim search bar that expands into the full list as you type. ↓ expands it and selects the first row. With Show favorites in compact mode on, your favorite apps appear at the right of the bar. See Favorites.
The Toggle System Appearance action changes the appearance of macOS itself. Redcast follows it only while its own theme is set to System.
Input source
Settings → General → Auto-switch input source picks a keyboard layout to use while the palette is open.
This helps if you type Japanese or Chinese most of the day but your app names use Latin letters. Redcast switches layouts when the palette opens and switches back when it closes. If you changed the layout yourself while the palette was open, Redcast keeps your choice.
Pop to root
Settings → General → Pop to Root Search sets how long after the window closes Redcast returns to the launcher: Immediately (default), or after 5, 15, 30, 60 or 90 seconds.
Use a longer delay if you often close the palette and then come back to the same screen.
Quick AI has its own setting for reopening a conversation. See Quick AI.
The menu bar
The Redcast menu bar icon has Open Redcast, Clipboard History, Settings…, Check for Updates…, Support Redcast… and Quit Redcast.
Settings → General → Show in menu bar hides the icon. Your shortcuts still work without it.