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Lemon - Windows 0.5.0

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@Kataruna Kataruna released this 27 Oct 14:44
· 11 commits to main since this release
windows-v0.5.0
d26335d

Lemon for Windows 10 (2004 or later) and 11, 64-bit. Same version as Lemon for Mac 0.5.0.

What's new in 0.5.0

  • AI upscale. The Resize ring can now enlarge pictures 2× or 4× with Real-ESRGAN: AI upscale (fast, 5 MB model) or Best quality (67 MB). It runs on your graphics card when it can, otherwise on the processor. Download the models in Settings › AI models (was Background remover), or tick them in Setup.
  • The wheel for files you've selected. Select files or folders in File Explorer or on the desktop and hold Alt for a moment: the wheel opens under the pointer for them, no dragging needed. It stays up once you let go:
    • Point at a format, or light one with A / D (or W / S, or the arrow keys).
    • Tap Alt, press Enter or click to run it. On the hub that opens the lit ring.
    • Hold Alt again or click outside the wheel to close it. Esc goes back to the hub.
  • Alt is the wheel key (was Space; if you were on Space, you're moved to Alt once). Shift works too. Letting go of Alt doesn't open Explorer's menu, and Tab with the wheel up turns the ring instead of switching windows.
  • Your own resize sizes. In Presets, pick Keep the original format (resize pictures) and a max width and/or height. The built-in 4K / Full HD / HD / SD sizes can be duplicated as a start.
  • Setup has an Optional downloads page. Converters (FFmpeg, Pandoc, LibreOffice through winget) and all four AI models, with the ones you already have greyed out.
  • Lighter and faster.
    • Big batches keep the window responsive: with 2,000 files the window's own work dropped by more than half.
    • Upscaling uses about 85% less memory per picture.
    • Lemon hands memory back to Windows after a batch.
  • Fixes:
    • A phone photo stored on its side is now resized by its real (upright) size.
    • Dropping a waiting file on the wheel no longer changes the default for new files.
    • A locked settings file no longer stops Lemon from starting.
    • CMYK pictures upscale correctly.
    • A LibreOffice cleanup hiccup can't turn a finished document into an error.

Which file?

Lemon-0.5.0-Setup.exe (recommended) Lemon-0.5.0-Portable.exe
What it is Installs Lemon for your user One file you run from anywhere, nothing to install
Admin rights Not needed Not needed
Start menu entry and uninstaller Yes No
Right-click Convert with Lemon, start with Windows Ticked in setup (or later in Settings) In Settings
AI models (Remove background, Upscale) Setup can download them Downloaded in Settings

Both keep settings in %LOCALAPPDATA%\Lemon, so you can switch between them.

Install guide

Installer

  1. Download Lemon-0.5.0-Setup.exe and run it. Or use winget: winget install Kataruna.Lemon (once 0.5.0 is listed there).
  2. If Windows says "Windows protected your PC", click More info › Run anyway (Lemon isn't code-signed yet; Windows only asks once).
  3. Pick your options: the right-click menu, starting when you sign in, and on the Optional downloads page any converters and AI models you want.
  4. Finish, and Lemon starts. It installs to %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\Lemon. Setup quits a running Lemon for you (it asks first).

Portable

  1. Download Lemon-0.5.0-Portable.exe and put it where you like (e.g. Documents\Apps).
  2. Double-click it (same SmartScreen note as above). The first launch takes about 2 s while it unpacks to %TEMP%\.net\Lemon; later launches are instant.
  3. Optional, in Settings (gear, top right): the right-click menu, start with Windows, and AI models. These point at the file where it is now: if you move or rename it, switch them off and on again.

Check the download (optional)

Get-FileHash .\Lemon-0.5.0-Setup.exe -Algorithm SHA256
File SHA-256
Lemon-0.5.0-Setup.exe 253fcba345df990c9503f598301d739638d3a78166c59231a7bf6298c9472a28
Lemon-0.5.0-Portable.exe b65118a3f18cc0ff71cbc533168fcc095e8e9a59a6e818eab06f7fa853dec9d6

First steps

  • Batch: drop files or folders on the window (or Add files), pick a preset per file or Set all to, click Convert. Results are saved next to the originals (or a folder you choose in Settings › Output).
  • Conversion wheel: while Lemon runs (minimized or in the tray is fine), drag files anywhere and shake the mouse or press Alt. Drop on a format to convert right away, or on the lemon to queue. Or select files in File Explorer and hold Alt (see above). Switch rings with the chips under the wheel, Tab, the number keys or the scroll wheel.
  • Wheel tab: look (themes, blur, opacity, center emoji), your own rings and commands, the Convert ring per file kind, and where the wheel opens, with a live preview.
  • Closing the window keeps Lemon in the notification area so the wheel keeps working; right-click the lemon by the clock to quit.

Optional tools

Images (PNG, JPEG, WebP, AVIF, GIF, TIFF, BMP, ICO, HEIC input, PDF output) work out of the box. For more, install these free tools (Setup's Optional downloads page can do the first three); Lemon names the missing one when you add a file it can't convert, and finds tools without a restart.

For Install (PowerShell)
Audio and video, Optimize for videos winget install Gyan.FFmpeg
Documents (DOCX, ODT, RTF, HTML, Markdown, EPUB) winget install JohnMacFarlane.Pandoc
Office files to PDF winget install TheDocumentFoundation.LibreOffice
Optimize for PDFs Ghostscript, from ghostscript.com

Updating and uninstalling

  • Update: run a newer Setup over this one (it quits Lemon for you), or replace the portable file. Settings, presets and models are kept.
  • Uninstall: Settings › Apps › Installed apps › Lemon › Uninstall (also removes the right-click menu and start with Windows). Portable: switch those two off in Lemon's Settings, quit, delete the file.
  • Settings, presets and models stay in %LOCALAPPDATA%\Lemon; delete that folder to remove them too.

If something's off

  • No wheel: make sure Lemon is running (lemon by the clock) and that shaking or a key is on in Wheel › Opening the wheel. Drag actual files (or, with a command for links, a link).
  • No Cut out ring, or no Upscale on the Resize ring: download a model in Settings › AI models.
  • A conversion failed: the error is on the file's row; details are in %LOCALAPPDATA%\Lemon\errors.log. Please attach it to an issue.
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