FAQ

Is Gisti free?

Yes. No subscription, no license, no locked features. If it helps you, support it.

Where is my data?

In a local SwiftData database inside Gisti’s sandboxed container, under ~/Library/Containers/com.gisti.app/Data/Library/Application Support/com.gisti.app/. Settings → Storage → Location opens it directly in Finder. It never leaves your Mac – see Privacy.

Does Gisti need the internet?

No – the app works offline. Three things reach the network, and each is yours to decide: an AI request, if you point AI at a server that isn’t this Mac; the one-time download of the embedding model (~350 MB) when you first turn on semantic search; and a remote image referenced by a note you open, which markdown.loadRemoteImages: false in advanced.yaml turns off. Gisti itself never checks for updates or phones home; the App Store handles updates. See Privacy.

Can AI run fully locally?

Yes – Ollama, LM Studio, or any MLX/OpenAI-compatible server. Topics and semantic search are always local (MLX embeddings), regardless of the chat provider. See Semantic search.

How do I turn on search by meaning?

Press the icon on the left of the search field, or ⇧⌘S in Stream and Topics. The magnifying glass turns into a brain, the embedding model downloads once (~350 MB), and the library is indexed in the background. The same switch lives in Settings → Semantic Search. Semantic search.

Can I use a model server I already have?

Yes. Settings → AI → Custom takes the address of any server that speaks the OpenAI /chat/completions API and the name of a model it serves, plus a token if that server requires one. The local presets (Ollama, LM Studio, MLX) are the same mechanism with the address filled in. See AI providers.

Which Macs are supported?

macOS 15 (Sequoia) and newer, Apple Silicon only.

Is there an iPhone / iPad / Windows version?

No. Gisti is a Mac app by design.

What permissions does Gisti need?

None to start – the global hotkey (⌥+Space) works out of the box. The only permission in System Settings is Screen Recording, asked once, the first time you take a screenshot (⇧⌘X). Separately, recent macOS versions may ask whether Gisti can read what other apps copied – answer Always Allow and clipboard history works without being asked again. Details.

The browser extension shows an error / “Specified native messaging host not found”

The extension in Chrome-family browsers talks to Gisti through a native messaging host that must be registered once – in Gisti, open Settings → Browser Extensions → Chromium browsers → Connect and grant access when macOS asks. Then restart the browser – it reads the registration at launch. Details: Browser extensions.

How do I paste something from Gisti?

Select the record and press ⌘ C, then ⌘ V in the app you want it in. Out of the box ⏎ opens a record rather than pasting it – a note opens for editing, a clip in its detail view.

If you are used to a clipboard manager, two settings under Settings → Clipboard make it behave like one:

• Enter / double-click on a record → Copies it: ⏎ or a double-click does what ⌘ C does. ⌘ O still opens.
• Hide panel after copy: a copy closes the panel and hands focus back to the app you came from, so ⌘ V is the next key.

With both on: pick a record, panel gone, paste.

Gisti does not paste for you, the way some clipboard managers do. That takes the Accessibility permission (the app has to press ⌘ V on your behalf), and Gisti deliberately asks for no permission beyond Screen Recording for screenshots.

Can I exclude my password manager from clipboard history?

Yes – Settings → Clipboard → Clipboard apps. Copies from those apps are never stored, and the same list can be turned inside out into “record only these”. Copies can also be ignored by what they contain (a regular expression) or by the pasteboard type a password manager marks them with – a match is never written at all, so it reaches neither the history nor the search index. Clipboard.

Can I change the ⌥+Space hotkey?

Yes, in Settings → General. The screenshot hotkey (⇧⌘X) is configurable in Settings → Screenshots, and can be switched off entirely if another tool owns that combination.

How do I back up my data?

Settings → Storage → Export All, or copy the folder that Settings → Storage → Location opens in Finder. Restoring is copying it back.

Does my library survive a new Mac?

Yes. Everything lives in one folder inside your home Library, so Migration Assistant and a Time Machine restore bring it along with the rest of your home folder, and Gisti itself comes back from the App Store. AI keys travel with your login keychain. The one thing to redo is the connection for Chrome-family browsers – Settings → Browser Extensions → Connect – if your user name on the new Mac is different. Moving by hand works too: Export All on the old Mac, Import… on the new one.

Is Gisti open source?

No. Privacy is enforced by architecture (local database, no telemetry code, keys in Keychain) rather than by audit. See Privacy.

How do I uninstall?

Quit Gisti, then delete it like any App Store app (Launchpad → press and hold → Remove App, or delete it from Applications). Its data lives inside Gisti’s sandboxed container, so it’s removed along with the app.