geomys
Health Warn
- License — License: ISC
- Description — Repository has a description
- Active repo — Last push 0 days ago
- Low visibility — Only 6 GitHub stars
Code Pass
- Code scan — Scanned 3 files during light audit, no dangerous patterns found
Permissions Pass
- Permissions — No dangerous permissions requested
This tool is a Gopher protocol browser designed specifically for classic Macintosh 68k systems (System 6 and 7). It supports multi-window browsing, file downloads, and various display themes.
Security Assessment
The overall risk is Low. The automated code scan checked 3 files and found no dangerous patterns, malicious code, or hardcoded secrets. It does not request any dangerous permissions. As a network client, it inherently makes outbound connections to fetch data from Gopher servers, but it does not access unauthorized local sensitive data or execute unexpected shell commands.
Quality Assessment
The project is clearly documented and uses the permissive ISC license. It is highly active, with its most recent code push occurring today. However, it has very low community visibility, currently sitting at only 6 GitHub stars. It is also worth noting that the entire codebase was generated agentially using Claude Code, meaning human review of the generated C code is highly recommended if you plan to modify, integrate, or deeply trust the software.
Verdict
Safe to use.
A Gopher browser for classic Macintosh 68k systems
Geomys
Geomys is a Gopher browser for classic 68000 Macintosh computers. It supports monochrome and 256 colors, System 6 and 7, multi-window browsing, themes, favorites, Gopher+ protocol, file downloads, and keyboard navigation.
This project was 100% built agentically using Claude Code.
Download · Features · Keyboard Shortcuts · Themes · Building · Testing · Acknowledgments · License
System 6
 |
 |
| Directory Browsing | Multi-Window & Search |
 |
 |
| Text Page & Clipboard | Dark Mode |
System 7
 |
| Themes and Multiple Windows |
Download
Pre-built binaries are available on the Releases page and Macintosh Garden:
| Edition | Description | Memory | Download |
|---|---|---|---|
| Geomys | All features - 3 windows, 256-color themes, Gopher+ | ~2560KB | .dsk · .hqx |
| Geomys Lite | Core browsing - 2 windows, favorites, monochrome | ~1024KB | .dsk · .hqx |
| Geomys Minimal | Only essentials - 1 window, smallest footprint | ~512KB | .dsk · .hqx |
Each edition is available as .dsk (800K floppy image) and .hqx (BinHex archive). See docs/BUILD.md for custom builds.
Requirements
- Macintosh Plus or later (4MB RAM, 68000 CPU)
- System 6.0.8 or System 7 with MacTCP
- 256-color themes require Mac II or later with Color QuickDraw
Features
Protocol
- RFC 1436 / RFC 4266 - all 19 Gopher item types with Gopher+ support
- Binary file downloads with progress dialog
- HTML rendering, CSO/ph queries, search dialogs, telnet handoff
- Content negotiation, interactive forms, search scoring (Gopher+)
Browsing
- Multi-window browsing (up to 3 windows, configurable with
--max-windows) - Address bar, back/forward/home, refresh, status bar
- Local page cache with 20 persistent favorites
- Find in Page, browsing history, Save Page As, Print
Display
- 14 built-in themes with 256-color support on System 7 (create your own)
- 8 fonts with size selection (9, 10, 12, 14)
- Double-buffered rendering with SICN/cicn icons
- CP437 and Unicode glyph support
System Integration
- MultiFinder and Apple Events (odoc/pdoc) support
- Notification Manager alerts for background loads (System 7)
- Optional AppleScript and Drag Manager via build flags
- Aligned with Apple Human Interface Guidelines
Keyboard Shortcuts
| Action | Keys | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Back | Cmd+[ | Previous page |
| Forward | Cmd+] | Next page |
| Refresh | Cmd+R | Reload current page |
| Stop | Cmd+. | Cancel loading |
| Open | Cmd+L | Focus address bar |
| Find | Cmd+F | Search current page |
| Find Again | Cmd+G | Next match |
| New Window | Cmd+N | Open new browser window |
| Close Window | Cmd+W | Close active window |
| Save Page As | Cmd+S | Save as text file |
| Cmd+P | Print current page | |
| Get Info | Cmd+I | Gopher+ item attributes |
| Add Favorite | Cmd+D | Bookmark current page |
| Manage Favorites | Cmd+B | Open bookmark manager |
| Copy | Cmd+C | Copy selection to clipboard |
| Undo | Cmd+Z | Undo address bar edit |
| Scroll up/down | Arrow keys | One row at a time |
| Scroll page | Page Up/Down | One page at a time |
| Top/Bottom | Home/End | Jump to start or end |
| Select link | Up/Down (content) | Navigate links with keyboard |
| Follow link | Return | Open selected link |
| Cycle focus | Tab | Switch between address bar and content |
| Quit | Cmd+Q | Quit Geomys |
Themes
Geomys ships with 14 built-in themes selectable from Options > Theme. Each window can have its own theme - changing the theme applies only to the active window, and new windows inherit the active window's theme.
| Theme | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Light | Mono | White on black, default. Works on all systems. |
| Dark | Mono | Black on white. Works on all systems. |
| Solarized Light / Dark | Color | Ethan Schoonover's Solarized palette. |
| TokyoNight Day / TokyoNight | Color | Based on the Tokyo Night color scheme. |
| Amber CRT | Color | Amber phosphor CRT aesthetic. |
| System 7 | Color | Macintosh System 7 with CLUT accent colors. |
| Dracula | Color | Dark purple-accented palette. |
| Nord | Color | Arctic blue-tinted palette. |
| Green Screen | Color | Phosphor green on black CRT aesthetic. |
| Classic | Color | 1990s web browser colors. |
| Monokai | Color | Dark warm palette with vivid accents. |
| Gruvbox | Color | Retro earthy palette with warm accents. |
To create custom themes or learn how the theme engine works, see the full Theme Guide.
Building
Requires the Retro68 cross-compilation toolchain. Build it from source (68k only):
git clone https://github.com/autc04/Retro68.git
cd Retro68 && git submodule update --init && cd ..
mkdir Retro68-build && cd Retro68-build
bash ../Retro68/build-toolchain.bash --no-ppc --no-carbon --prefix=$(pwd)/toolchain
Then build Geomys:
./scripts/build.sh
Build Presets
Geomys supports fully customizable builds. Three presets cover common configurations:
| Preset | Windows | Features | Memory |
|---|---|---|---|
full |
3 | all features | ~2560KB |
lite |
2 | core browsing | ~1024KB |
minimal |
1 | only essentials | ~512KB |
The default build uses the full preset. Select a preset with --preset:
./scripts/build.sh --preset minimal # stripped, for 1MB Macs
./scripts/build.sh --preset full # everything, 3 windows
Individual features can be toggled with --feature / --no-feature flags. Presets are applied first, then individual flags override:
./scripts/build.sh --preset lite --gopher-plus --styles
./scripts/build.sh --max-windows 2 --color --no-cache
See docs/BUILD.md for the complete list of build flags, feature details, memory costs, and examples.
Memory and Multi-Window
On System 7 with MultiFinder, Geomys requests a memory partition via the SIZE resource. Default allocations:
| Preset | Preferred | Minimum |
|---|---|---|
| Full | 2560KB | 1536KB |
| Lite | 1024KB | 768KB |
| Minimal | 512KB | 256KB |
Large Gopher directories (1000+ items) use significant memory (~300KB per directory). With multiple windows open, the second and third windows may show fewer items if heap space runs low. This is normal on a 4MB Mac.
To increase memory on machines with more RAM: select the Geomys application in Finder, choose File > Get Info, and increase the "Application Memory Size" field. No rebuild required.
Testing
- System 6 (monochrome): Snow emulator (v1.3.1) with Mac Plus ROM and System 6.0.8 SCSI hard drive image. DaynaPORT SCSI/Link Ethernet emulation for MacTCP networking.
- System 7 (color): Basilisk II emulator with Macintosh IIci ROM and System 7.6.1. Color QuickDraw support for 256-color themes and multi-window testing.
Acknowledgments
- Claude Code by Anthropic
- Retro68 by Wolfgang Thaller
- Snow emulator
- wallops by joshua stein - MacTCP wrapper (
tcp.c/tcp.h), DNS resolution (dns.c/dns.h), and utility functions. ISC license. - subtext by joshua stein - Additional utility and networking code. ISC license.
- Flynn - Sibling Telnet client project and architectural reference. ISC license.
- University of Illinois Board of Trustees - TCP networking code (
tcp.c, 1990-1992)
License
ISC License. See LICENSE for full details.
Note: The GitHub repository is a read-only mirror. Please open issues and pull requests on Codeberg.
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