Beacon 1.0.0

Beacon 1.0.0 - a fast, native macOS search launcher.

Install

1. Download Beacon-1.0.0.dmg below and open it.
2. Double-click Beacon. That's it - it installs itself into Applications,
   relaunches from there, and opens the search bar with a quick hotkey tip.
   (Dragging to the Applications folder still works too, if you prefer.)
3. Press Option + S anywhere to open the search bar. Press Esc to dismiss.
   Beacon lives in the menu bar (its beacon icon) - no Dock icon or main window.

This build is signed with a Developer ID and notarized by Apple, so it opens
without security warnings.

Search your text messages (optional)

Beacon can search your iMessage & SMS history. macOS protects the Messages
database, so this needs Full Disk Access (a one-time, manual toggle that
Apple requires for any app reading Messages):

1. In Beacon, press Option + S and click the Messages filter.
2. Click Open Settings - this jumps straight to
   System Settings -> Privacy & Security -> Full Disk Access.
3. Find Beacon in the list and turn its switch on.
   (Beacon adds itself to this list automatically - no need for the "+" button.)
4. Choose Quit & Reopen when prompted.

Now select the Messages filter and search by word, phrase, or contact.
Return opens the conversation in Messages; Cmd + C copies the text.

The same Full Disk Access toggle also unlocks Notes and Safari
history. (Chrome, Brave, Edge, and Arc history work without it.)

File search needs no permissions and works the moment you launch Beacon.
Full Disk Access only unlocks Messages, Notes, Safari history, and a few
protected folders.

Highlights

• Unified "All" search - the All tab blends files & apps, messages, and
  notes into one grouped, ranked list. Chips included in All show a small dot;
  Clipboard and History are opt-in via their own chips.
• Recents that actually works - the Recents filter shows files you've
  opened, saved, or added recently, including fresh images/videos/downloads,
  while filtering out app internals, caches, folders, and other Finder noise.
  Type to narrow within the recent-files timeline.
• Clipboard history - everything you copy is captured locally and
  searchable under the Clipboard filter. Return copies it back, ready
  to paste. Private/transient copies (password managers) are skipped.
• Browser history - the History filter searches every page you've
  visited across Safari, Chrome, Brave, Edge, and Arc (all profiles).
  Return opens it; Cmd + C copies the link.
• Notes search - search across all your Apple Notes; Return opens the
  exact note.

What's new in 1.0.0

• Search no longer wedges on stale results. Messages, Notes, and History
  now cancel superseded scans mid-loop, so typing a rare word like "contract"
  cannot leave the list stuck on results from the first keystroke.
• Faster Messages filtering. Message text/handle matches use the
  precomputed search haystack first and only fall back to contact-name lookup
  when needed, making full-history scans much cheaper.
• Recents catches fresh saves and downloads. Recents is scoped to real user
  folders at the Spotlight-query level and reads deeper, so a newly saved image
  from Safari or downloaded PDF is not buried under ~/Library cache churn.
• Panel reopen self-heals. Summoning Beacon re-runs the active query, so
  the list reflects fresh files/messages and does not require relaunching.

Upgrading from an earlier version? Just replace the app in Applications -
your Full Disk Access setting carries over. Clipboard history starts recording
as soon as you launch this build.