Chango

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Chango is a drag-and-drop file converter for your desktop. Drag files, tap Shift, and let go on the format you want. The result appears next to the original, and the original is never changed.

Converting a file is basic computer work, so it shouldn't mean uploading it to someone else's server, waiting in a queue or paying past a limit. Chango does it on your own computer: free forever, no uploads, no limits, no account.

Chango is available for Windows 10 (19041+) and 11, from the Microsoft Store or right here on GitHub. A native macOS version is in development.

How it works

1. Drag a file, then tap Shift. Start dragging one or more files in File Explorer or on the desktop and keep holding. Tap Shift once and the wheel opens around the pointer.
2. Let go on what you want. The result appears next to the original. Let go on the centre or press Esc to cancel.
3. Tap Shift again for more. Each tap switches between Convert, Tools and Actions. Slices marked + (like More or Compress) open into more choices when you rest on them.

No dragging? Select files, press Ctrl + Alt + Space and click an option. Or right-click files or folders in File Explorer and choose Chango. Every result can be undone for a few seconds (it goes to the Recycle Bin).

Make it yours. Settings → Wheel shows every wheel: click a slice to hide it, drag a slice to move it, then Save.

What it converts

From	To	Needs
Images (PNG, JPG, WebP, JFIF, BMP, TIFF, GIF, SVG; HEIC, AVIF, JPEG XL, RAW with Windows codecs)	PNG, JPG, WebP, JFIF, BMP, TIFF, GIF, PDF	—
PDF	Word (DOCX), PowerPoint (PPTX, a slide per page), Excel (XLSX, tables rebuilt from the layout), TXT, Markdown, PNG, JPG	Word only for DOCX
Word (DOC, DOCX, RTF, ODT)	PDF, DOCX, TXT, Markdown, HTML, RTF, ODT	Microsoft Office or LibreOffice
Markdown / TXT	PDF, DOCX, HTML (and Markdown → TXT)	Office or LibreOffice for PDF and DOCX
Spreadsheets (XLS, XLSX, ODS, CSV, TSV)	PDF, XLSX, CSV, TSV, ODS	Office or LibreOffice
Slides (PPT, PPTX, ODP)	PDF, PPTX, PNG, JPG (an image per slide)	Office or LibreOffice
Subtitles (SRT, VTT)	SRT, VTT, TXT transcript	—
Video (MP4, MOV, MKV, WebM, AVI, WMV …)	MP4, WMV, GIF; extract MP3, M4A, WAV, WMA, FLAC · More: MKV, WebM, MOV, AVI, OGG, Opus, AIFF	FFmpeg for More
Audio (MP3, M4A, WAV, WMA, FLAC; OGG, Opus, AIFF …)	MP3, M4A, WAV, WMA, FLAC, OGG, Opus, AIFF	FFmpeg for OGG, Opus, AIFF and their inputs
CorelDRAW (CDR, CMX)	PDF, SVG, PNG, JPG, WebP, TIFF, BMP	—

Tools: image edit (crop, adjust, markup, redact), compress, resize, rotate, grayscale, OCR · PDF merge, split, compress, rotate · video trim, compress, remove audio, snapshot, join · audio trim, compress, normalize, mono/stereo · extract ZIP, 7Z, RAR, TAR, TAR.GZ, TAR.XZ, TAR.BZ2, GZ, CAB, ISO · file info, edit details, remove metadata.

Actions: copy path or name, show in folder, copy/move to, float shelf, share, archive as ZIP, 7Z or TAR.GZ, terminal, set as wallpaper. These work on folders too.

Install

Platform	How to get it	Status
Windows 10 (19041+) and 11, Microsoft Store	Get Chango from the Microsoft Store: a one-click install, signed by Microsoft and kept up to date by the Store	Available
Windows 10 (19041+) and 11, x64	Chango-Setup.exe (installer) or Chango-Portable.zip (no install), from the latest release	Available
Website	chango.rameshtiwari.com: downloads, a guide and the FAQ	Available
macOS	A native Mac app with the same drag, tap and let-go wheel	In development

• Installer: run Chango-Setup.exe. It installs for your account only, so it doesn't need administrator rights, and adds Chango to the Start menu. It keeps itself up to date (see Privacy). Uninstall it from Settings → Apps.
• Portable: unzip Chango-Portable.zip anywhere and run Chango.exe. It tells you when a new version is out.

The first time Chango starts, a short tour shows you the gesture and lets you try it on a sample file. After that Chango waits quietly in the notification area; the tour is in its menu whenever you want it again.

Each release includes SHA256SUMS.txt, so you can check the download is intact (Get-FileHash Chango-Setup.exe in PowerShell). The GitHub downloads aren't code-signed yet, so Windows SmartScreen may warn the first time you run them. Choose More info → Run anyway, or use the Microsoft Store version, which doesn't show the warning.

Optional helpers (Windows)

• FFmpeg unlocks the extra media formats: winget install Gyan.FFmpeg. Chango finds it automatically, even if you install it while Chango is running.
• LibreOffice is used for documents when Microsoft Office isn't installed: winget install TheDocumentFoundation.LibreOffice.

Privacy

Everything runs locally. There are no uploads, no account and no telemetry. The one network request is the update check: every few hours Chango asks GitHub whether a newer version exists, sending nothing about you or your files. Turn it off in Settings → About. See the full privacy policy.

Roadmap

• Code-signed GitHub downloads, so SmartScreen stops warning.
• Chango for macOS: the same wheel, converters and tools, built for the Mac.

Ideas and requests are welcome: open an issue or email [email protected].

Build from source

Requirements: Windows 10/11 and the .NET 10 SDK (winget install Microsoft.DotNet.SDK.10). For the installer, add Inno Setup 6 (winget install JRSoftware.InnoSetup). More detail is in docs/development/building.md.

dotnet build Chango.slnx -c Release
dotnet test tests/Chango.Tests
dotnet run --project src/Chango.App          # runs from source (lives in the notification area)
./build/package.ps1                         # → artifacts/: setup.exe, portable.zip, SHA256SUMS.txt
dotnet run --project tools/IconGen          # regenerates the icons and launch animation from the logo

Tests that need Word, Excel, PowerPoint or FFmpeg skip themselves when those aren't installed.

Brand

Name	Chango, the drag-and-drop file converter and manager. Tagline: Drag. Tap. Chango.
Logo	A "C" of six notched segments radiating from its centre, in logo teal #0097B2. The source is assets/brand/logo/chango-mark.svg, with wordmark versions beside it
Icon sizes	tools/IconGen builds chango.ico and chango-<size>.png (16 to 1024 px) in src/Chango.UI/Assets, plus the launch animation, so each surface loads the smallest sharp image
Palette	UI accent Chango Teal #0EA5A4 with ink #011F1E (5.7:1); deep blue #115469, teal #20B4A6 and mint #94EAE3 for the wash behind glass
Look	Frosted glass panels over a soft wash of the palette; teal only for small accents
Teal text	#0A7C7B on light surfaces, #2DD4CF on dark
Where it lives	Colours: src/Chango.UI/Themes/Tokens.*.xaml · name, release repo: src/Chango.Infrastructure/Brand.cs · details: docs/design/design-system.md

Repository map

Path	What
src/Chango.App	Composition root, tray lifecycle, interaction controller
src/Chango.UI	Design system, radial wheel, toasts, Settings, onboarding
src/Chango.Windows	Win32/COM: drag detection, OLE drop target, tray, theme, shell
src/Chango.Core	Operation contracts, registry, collision-safe atomic output
src/Chango.Conversion	Converters: images, PDF (Pdf/), documents (Documents/), media (Media/, FFmpeg included), subtitles
src/Chango.Tools	Tools and actions: image tools, archives, metadata, file actions
src/Chango.Jobs / Infrastructure	Background jobs, settings, brand, local logs
assets/brand	Logo sources (not MIT: see assets/brand/README.md)
docs/	Privacy policy, design system, build guide

Credits

Chango is built on OrbitDrop by Mohammed Essam. The radial wheel that opens while you drag a file, and the code behind it, is based on Orbit's work, shared under the MIT License. Chango adds its own converters, tools, design and tour on top.

Chango also stands on open-source libraries including PDFsharp, PdfPig, the Open XML SDK, SkiaSharp, Svg.Skia and Markdig. Every one is listed, with its licence, in THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.md.

License

The code is MIT, © 2026 Ramesh Tiwari and © 2026 Mohammed Essam (OrbitDrop). See LICENSE, THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.md and the full licence texts in licenses/.

The Chango name and logo aren't covered by the MIT licence: a fork needs its own. See assets/brand/README.md.

Made by Ramesh Tiwari · chango.rameshtiwari.com · [email protected]