Easy Write setup and troubleshooting

Easy Write needs three things before it can translate a selection: a supported Mac, a ready Apple Intelligence model, and permission to access the selected text. Start by checking which of these is unavailable. Repeatedly changing shortcuts will not solve a model that is still downloading, and reinstalling the app will not make an unsupported text field expose its selection.

Release status, 23 October 2026: the current release is Easy Write 2.0, build 24, distributed as a signed, notarized and stapled DMG. Download it directly below or check the official releases listing. Homebrew installation is not live. The public repository remains available for source and project documentation.

1. Check your Mac and installation route

Easy Write requires Apple Silicon and macOS 26 or later, with Apple Intelligence enabled. Check your chip and macOS version in Apple menu → About This Mac. An Intel Mac does not meet this app's requirements.

Install the release directly:

1. Quit any older Easy Write copy before installing.
2. Download the Easy Write 2.0 DMG.
3. Open the DMG and drag Easy Write to Applications. Confirm replacement if you are deliberately upgrading an older copy there.
4. Eject the mounted disk image and launch Easy Write from Applications, not from the DMG.
5. Follow the Apple Intelligence and Accessibility checks below before testing a disposable selection.

This is the signed release installation route, not a source-build or terminal security-bypass procedure. Notarization does not establish compatibility with every app or the accuracy of model output. If macOS reports a security warning, check that you downloaded the official release rather than bypassing the warning blindly.

2. If Apple Intelligence is unavailable

Open System Settings → Apple Intelligence & Siri. Check the condition reported by macOS and Easy Write rather than treating every unavailable-model message as the same problem:

An enabled switch does not prove the on-device model is ready. The first download can take time. There is no reliable universal waiting period to promise. Follow the status shown by macOS and the app, then retry a short sentence.

Once the model is ready, Easy Write's translation processing runs locally. Initial Apple model downloads and any permitted app updates are separate from processing your selected text. Avoid testing offline operation before setup has finished.

3. Grant Accessibility to the app you actually opened

Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility and check the Easy Write entry. Accessibility lets the app access selected text and send replacement keystrokes; it is a powerful permission that should be granted to a build you trust. Apple explains how to allow Accessibility apps.

After changing the permission, reopen the app if macOS requests it, then test a disposable sentence. If you have multiple builds, make sure you are launching the intended copy. A changed identity or different installed app may need its own grant.

Upgrading from 1.x requires a new Accessibility grant because the signed 2.0 app has a different signing identity. Do not assume an old Easy Write entry authorizes the new copy. Use the Accessibility pane to add or enable the copy in Applications; remove a stale older entry if needed, then quit and reopen Easy Write and test again. Keep your settings and version information available when investigating an upgrade problem.

4. Test selection before an important document

Type “Please send the draft tomorrow” in a disposable editable note. This is synthetic practice text, not a benchmark or a promised translation result. Select the sentence, set your target language, and use the appropriate command.

For Easy Write 2.0, defaults are:

• Option–Command–K: open the Easy Write Bar to choose a language, tone, or action and inspect its result.
• Option–Command–T: two-way Translate with your current settings.
• Option–Command–E: Read mode in a popup.
• Option–Command–G: the built-in grammar action.

If a shortcut opens another tool, change its binding in Settings → Shortcuts. Test the new combination in the same simple document before returning to a browser editor or another complex app.

In 2.0, Option–Command–E normally reads into your home language; if the selection already reliably matches home, it switches to your target writing language, with English as a fallback when both settings match. Two-way Translate can reverse direction when selected text confidently matches the target language. Short or ambiguous text may not trigger reversal.

Legacy 1.x defaults: Option–Command–T meant formal translation, Option–Command–I informal translation, Option–Command–P plain translation preserving natural tone, and Option–Command–E read into English. The changed meaning of T matters when upgrading: choose formal or informal tone explicitly in the 2.0 Bar rather than assuming T still means formal.

5. If text cannot be captured or replaced

Easy Write 2.0 requires selected text exposed through macOS Accessibility. A visible highlight is not enough in every app. Unsupported selection capture fails safely; it does not use unrelated clipboard content. Try a plain-text field you control to distinguish an app-specific limitation from a general setup problem.

In 2.0, automatic replacement also checks the source process, window, field, selection range, and original text. Moving focus or editing the passage while generation runs can make replacement unverifiable. A review card is then expected behavior. Keep the source selection stable and inspect the result.

The “Paste sent” status means a keystroke was sent. Verify the actual destination before continuing. Screenshots, scanned PDFs, and video subtitles are outside this selected-text workflow; OCR screen translation is not available yet.

6. Choose review and retention settings deliberately

In 2.0, preview-before-replace is off by default. Turn it on if you want to review a draft before replacement. History is also off by default and needs explicit consent. Enabling history stores originals and results as unencrypted local JSON, up to 100 entries with configurable 1–30-day retention.

Disabling history deletes its file. Backups or snapshots may retain earlier copies, and timed cleanup cannot run while the app is closed. Optional update checks send no selected text, but ordinary network metadata is visible to the destination. These privacy details describe 2.0, not legacy 1.x behavior.

The direct DMG route is also the upgrade path for older source builds that do not include Sparkle. An available release or update check is not proof of a successful installed update through Sparkle. Confirm the version in the app you actually opened; this guide does not claim that an installed Sparkle update has been completed or verified.

If a problem persists, report the app version, macOS version, source-app name, command used, and exact error. Reproduce it with harmless sample text instead of sending private document contents. Use the repository's private security reporting route for vulnerabilities.