OmaWrite for Windows
The low-friction native Windows build of
Omawrite, a focused Markdown writing
app built with Qt Quick and C++. This is an unofficial Windows fork. It keeps
the upstream Linux build working and follows the Windows light or dark theme.
Engineering case study
The upstream application was designed for a Linux/Omarchy environment. Its
desktop integration assumed DBus, XDG portals, and Linux theme settings, while
Windows users needed a native executable with predictable installation and no
compatibility layer.
The Windows port keeps the upstream Linux behavior intact and isolates
platform-specific decisions at the operating-system boundary:
- Windows theme detection uses Qt's native color-scheme API instead of a
parallel application theme system.
- The build uses Qt 6.8.3 and MSVC 2022 x64, then runs
windeployqt to collect
the actual Qt runtime and QML dependency tree.
- The same release pipeline produces a portable ZIP and a per-user installer,
with SHA-256 checksums for both artifacts.
- The installer registers OmaWrite as a Markdown application, supports clean
uninstall, and does not require administrator access in the normal case.
- GitHub Actions rebuilds and tests the Windows package from source. The
Windows test suite passes 11 tests and skips one Linux-specific check.
The result is a release a user can evaluate immediately and a build another
engineer can reproduce, inspect, or extend.
Start on Windows
The fastest option is to download and run the x64 Setup EXE from the
latest release.
It contains the complete app and does not download files during installation.
Prefer no installer? Download the x64 portable ZIP, extract it, and run
omawrite.exe. The ZIP contains the compiled app and every required Qt file.
You can also clone this repository or use Code > Download ZIP, then
double-click install-windows.cmd. If Windows Settings opens, select OmaWrite
for .md files.
The repository installer downloads the latest release, verifies its SHA-256
checksum, and installs it for the current user. It does not require
administrator access unless the Microsoft Visual C++ runtime is missing.
To remove the app, double-click uninstall-windows.cmd or use the Windows
Installed apps page.
Releases are built in public GitHub Actions runs and include SHA-256 checksums.
The executable is not currently code-signed, so Windows can show a reputation
warning on first launch. See the code signing policy
for the release boundary.
The editor has no telemetry or network client. It reads and writes local files;
opening a link hands that link to the default browser. The optional repository
installer contacts GitHub only when you run it to download a release. See the
privacy statement for the complete boundary.
The current build targets Intel and AMD x86-64 computers running Windows 11.
Windows 11 does not have a 32-bit x86 edition. ARM64 is not currently a native
build target.
Build on Windows
Install Visual Studio Build Tools 2022 with the C++ workload, then double-click
build-windows.cmd. The build script downloads a verified Qt 6.8.3 toolchain,
runs the test suite, deploys the runtime, and creates a portable ZIP plus a
Setup EXE in dist.
Install on Omarchy
Install the omawrite package from the Omarchy Package Repository. Omawrite is
installed by default in new Omarchy installations from Quattro forward.
Shortcuts
Ctrl+S saves. Unsaved documents use the system file picker.Ctrl+Shift+S saves as.Ctrl+O opens a Markdown file through the system file picker.Ctrl+P opens the system print dialog.Ctrl+N opens a new Omawrite window.Ctrl+Z, Ctrl+Shift+Z, and Ctrl+Y handle undo and redo.F11 or Super+F toggles fullscreen.Ctrl+F searches the document. Use Enter or Ctrl+G for the next match and Shift+Enter for the previous match.Ctrl+H opens find and replace.Ctrl+B, Ctrl+I, and Ctrl+K insert bold, italic, and link Markdown.Ctrl+? shows the keyboard shortcut reference.
Unsaved drafts are recovered after an abnormal exit. Omawrite also watches open files
and warns before an external change can replace local work.
On Linux, text follows omarchy display text size or GNOME's
text-scaling-factor and re-flows without a restart. On Windows, OmaWrite uses
the system color scheme and the app's default text size.
Linux requirements
- Qt 6:
qt6-base, qt6-declarative, qt6-quickcontrols2
xdg-desktop-portal and a portal backend
The iA Writer Mono font is bundled under the SIL Open Font License 1.1; see
fonts/OFL.txt. The font is copyright Information Architects Inc. and based on
IBM Plex, copyright IBM Corp.
The Windows package dynamically links to Qt 6 under the GNU Lesser General
Public License v3. See THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.md for distribution details.
Security reports are handled privately as described in
SECURITY.md.