Just write.
Lumina is a WYSIWYG Markdown editor for macOS and Windows. Format what you mean — the Markdown is written for you, behind the glass.
Open any .md file and it just works. The cursor sits where you see it. Headings look like headings.
The best tool is the one you forget you're using.
Download
macOS Installation
- Download the
.dmg file
- Open it and drag Lumina into your
/Applications folder
- On first launch, if macOS shows an "unverified developer" warning, right-click the app and choose Open
Lumina is not currently notarized with Apple. This only affects the first launch.
Windows Installation
- Download and run
Lumina.Setup.1.1.0.exe
- Follow the installer — Lumina will be added to your Start Menu and Desktop
What's New
v1.1.0
UI & Design
- Redesigned toolbar with logical clusters, Undo/Redo buttons, and a Format dropdown (Paragraph, H1–H4) that reflects whatever your cursor is on
- Toolbar formatting buttons (Bold, Italic, lists, blocks) now stay in sync with cursor position in real time
- Refined typography: Inter Tight font, wider content column, indigo accent color throughout, improved heading scale
- Code blocks are now theme-aware — light gray background in light mode, dark in dark mode
- Status bar shows live line/column position, file encoding, and a color-coded saved/unsaved indicator
Code Blocks
- Language picker pill in the top-right corner of every code block — click to choose from 25 languages
- Full syntax highlighting powered by lowlight/highlight.js (GitHub-style light theme, GitHub Dark in dark mode)
- Plain Text mode correctly disables all highlighting (no more auto-detection coloring)
Sidebar
- Search now searches document content, not just filenames — shows a text excerpt around the match
- Recent files list no longer reorders while the app is open; order only updates on next launch
- New File button, relative timestamps ("2 hours ago"), active file indicator, and current folder footer
File Handling
- On launch, Lumina automatically reopens your most recently edited file
- If no previous files exist, the welcome guide opens instead
- Opening a file from Finder/Explorer always takes priority
Bug Fixes
- Word count now reflects the correct count immediately on file open (was showing 0 until first edit)
- Fixed Windows title bar showing full file path instead of filename
- Sidebar search index is populated on first open, so files are searchable immediately
Features
Editor
- WYSIWYG editing — formatted text as you type, no Markdown syntax cluttering your view
- Auto Markdown input rules — type
# for Heading 1, ** for bold, - for bullet lists, > for blockquotes, ``` for code blocks, and more
- Floating selection toolbar — appears above any selected text with quick-access formatting buttons
- Right-click context menu — context-sensitive actions depending on what you click: selected text, links, tables, or blank space
Formatting
| Element | Keyboard Shortcut | Toolbar |
|---|
| Bold | ⌘B / Ctrl+B | ✓ |
| Italic | ⌘I / Ctrl+I | ✓ |
| Strikethrough | — | ✓ |
| Inline Code | — | ✓ |
| Link | ⌘K / Ctrl+K | ✓ |
| Heading 1–4 | # + Space | ✓ Dropdown |
| Bullet List | - + Space | ✓ |
| Numbered List | 1. + Space | ✓ |
| Task List | - [ ] + Space | ✓ |
| Blockquote | > + Space | ✓ |
| Code Block | ``` + Enter | ✓ |
Tables
- Table Wizard — hover over a grid in the toolbar to choose any size table, click to insert
- Resizable columns — drag column borders to resize
- Right-click table actions — add row above/below, add column before/after, delete row, delete column, delete table
Images
- Drag and drop — drag any image from Finder or Explorer directly into the editor
- Auto-organized — images are automatically copied into an
images/ folder next to your document
- Portable paths — Markdown uses relative paths, so the document stays self-contained and moveable
- Toolbar insert — click the Image button to pick a file via the system dialog
Links
- Insert / edit — press
⌘K / Ctrl+K with text selected, or use the toolbar button
- Auto-protocol —
https:// is prepended automatically if you omit it
- Open in browser —
Cmd+Click or right-click → Open in browser
- Anchor links — links to
#headings scroll to the correct section within the document
File Management
- Open —
⌘O / Ctrl+O, File menu, or drag a .md file onto the app
- Save —
⌘S / Ctrl+S
- Save As —
⌘⇧S / Ctrl+Shift+S
- Recent Files sidebar — quick-access panel showing your last 20 documents
- Open With — set Lumina as your default
.md editor; double-clicking any Markdown file opens it directly
- Unsaved changes guard — closing with unsaved work prompts Save / Don't Save / Cancel
Appearance
- Dark mode — full dark theme support
- Light mode — clean, minimal light theme
- System mode — automatically follows your OS appearance setting
- Persistent preference — your choice is saved across sessions
Keyboard Shortcuts
| Action | macOS | Windows |
|---|
| New file | ⌘N | Ctrl+N |
| Open file | ⌘O | Ctrl+O |
| Save | ⌘S | Ctrl+S |
| Save As | ⌘⇧S | Ctrl+Shift+S |
| Bold | ⌘B | Ctrl+B |
| Italic | ⌘I | Ctrl+I |
| Insert / edit link | ⌘K | Ctrl+K |
| Undo | ⌘Z | Ctrl+Z |
| Redo | ⌘⇧Z | Ctrl+Y |
| Toggle sidebar | Click sidebar icon | Click sidebar icon |
Tech Stack
Project Structure
lumina/
├── build/ # App icons (icns, ico, png, svg)
├── src/
│ ├── main/ # Electron main process
│ │ ├── index.ts # BrowserWindow, open-with, close guard
│ │ ├── menu.ts # Native app menu
│ │ ├── store.ts # electron-store (settings, recent files)
│ │ ├── welcome.ts # First-launch welcome document content
│ │ ├── windowState.ts # Persist/restore window size & position
│ │ └── ipc/
│ │ ├── fileHandlers.ts # File open/save/recent IPC handlers
│ │ ├── imageHandlers.ts # Image copy + media:// protocol
│ │ └── index.ts # Registers all handlers
│ ├── preload/
│ │ └── index.ts # contextBridge → window.api surface
│ └── renderer/
│ └── src/
│ ├── App.tsx
│ ├── components/
│ │ ├── editor/
│ │ │ ├── Toolbar.tsx # Formatting toolbar
│ │ │ ├── EditorCore.tsx # Editor wrapper + drop handling
│ │ │ ├── EditorPane.tsx # Toolbar + Editor + StatusBar
│ │ │ ├── BubbleToolbar.tsx # Floating selection toolbar
│ │ │ ├── EditorContextMenu.tsx # Right-click context menu
│ │ │ ├── LinkDialog.tsx # Link insert/edit modal
│ │ │ └── StatusBar.tsx # Word count + file path
│ │ ├── layout/
│ │ │ ├── AppShell.tsx # Root layout
│ │ │ ├── Sidebar.tsx # Recent files panel
│ │ │ └── TitleBar.tsx # Custom macOS title bar
│ │ ├── table/
│ │ │ └── TableWizard.tsx # Hover-grid table inserter
│ │ └── settings/
│ │ └── SettingsModal.tsx # Theme toggle
│ ├── hooks/
│ │ ├── useEditor.ts # TipTap instance + extensions
│ │ ├── useFile.ts # File open/save/dirty state
│ │ ├── useRecentFiles.ts # Recent files IPC bridge
│ │ └── useTheme.ts # OS theme detection
│ ├── store/
│ │ └── appStore.ts # Zustand global store
│ └── styles/
│ └── globals.css # Tailwind + TipTap prose overrides
├── package.json
├── electron.vite.config.ts
├── tailwind.config.ts
└── tsconfig.json
Development
Prerequisites
Getting Started
# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/micahman33/lumina.git
cd lumina
# Install dependencies
npm install
# Start in development mode (with HMR)
npm run dev
Building
# Compile TypeScript + Vite (output to out/)
npm run build
# Package for macOS (produces DMG in dist/)
npm run build:mac
# Package for Windows (produces NSIS installer in dist/)
npm run build:win
Note: macOS builds must be run on macOS. Windows builds must be run on Windows (or a Windows CI runner).
How Images Work
When you drop an image (or use the toolbar to insert one), Lumina:
- Copies the image file into an
images/ subfolder next to your document
- Deduplicates filenames automatically (
photo.png, photo_1.png, photo_2.png, …)
- Inserts a relative Markdown image reference:
- Serves local images via a
media:// custom protocol so they render correctly in the editor
This means your document folder is fully self-contained — move it anywhere and all images come with it.
License
MIT © Micah Smith
