LangMate

LangMate is a macOS app that rephrases selected text in place using AI. Select any text, press Cmd+Ctrl+R, and watch it get rephrased instantly.

Features

• Rephrase in Place: Select text in any app, press Cmd+Ctrl+R, and the text is replaced with a rephrased version
• Menu Bar App: Runs quietly in the background with a menu bar indicator
• Multiple Language Models: Supports OpenAI GPT-4 and Ollama (llama3)

Installation

Prerequisites

• macOS 10.13 or higher
• Go 1.16 or higher
• OpenAI API key

Build from Source

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/niuguy/langmate.git
   cd langmate

2. Build the macOS app:

   ./scripts/build_app.sh

3. Install to Applications:

   cp -r LangMate.app /Applications/

4. Configure your API key:

   echo 'OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-your-api-key-here' > ~/.langmate.env

5. Grant Accessibility permission:

   • Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility
   • Click + and add /Applications/LangMate.app
   • Enable the toggle

6. Launch the app from Spotlight or Applications folder

Command Line Usage

You can also run LangMate directly from the terminal:

# Build the binary
go build -o langmate

# Run with default settings (GPT-4, English)
./langmate

# Run with different model or language
./langmate -m llama -l fr

Usage

1. Open LangMate (it appears as "LM" in your menu bar)
2. Select any text in any application
3. Press Cmd+Ctrl+R
4. The menu bar shows "Rephrasing..." while processing
5. Your selected text is replaced with the rephrased version

Options

• -m, --model: Model to use - gpt (OpenAI GPT-4.1) or llama (Ollama llama3). Default: gpt
• -l, --lang: Target language code (e.g., en, fr, es). Default: en

Configuration

Create ~/.langmate.env with your API key:

OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-your-api-key-here

Alternatively, set the environment variable:

export OPENAI_API_KEY="sk-your-api-key-here"

Troubleshooting

Hotkey not working

• Ensure LangMate has Accessibility permission in System Settings
• After rebuilding, remove and re-add the app in Accessibility settings

App not launching from Spotlight

• Make sure ~/.langmate.env contains your API key
• Check Console.app for any error messages

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a pull request or open an issue.

License

Distributed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for more information.