nowfound

Life & fun · alternatives · 2026

24 alternatives to Apple OS 1 inspired personal website

Ben Richardson - Indie hacker, aerospace engineer, full-stack founder based in Canberra/Melbourne, Australia

Ben Richardson's personal website recreates the Apple OS 1 aesthetic with a nostalgic interface design. Built for anyone interested in retro computing or unique portfolio presentations, the site offers a functional… Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes.

  1. 1

    https://lisagui.com/info.html This is a web OS I wrote in vanilla JS that looks like the Apple Lisa Office System (1983-85), with other contemporaneous influences and additional improvements and features. It's currently in alpha and isn't remotely bug free. I had been holding off on posting this here until it was somewhat presentable and useful. Please note; the Lisa conforms more literally to the desktop metaphor than most modern GUIs - some of the important differences are mentioned in the readme. This is a complete recreation of the UI in JS; it all renders to a single…

    2025 · alpha.lisagui.com · its alternatives →

  2. 2AP
  3. 3

    i stan apple notes, so i built a new personal website to look, feel, & work just like it. it's fast, fully interactive, & can be navigated entirely via keyboard shortcuts. it was a lot of fun to build. i wrote more about the implementation in the linked page. check it out!

    2024 · alanagoyal.com · its alternatives →

  4. 4
    Reframe▲268

    Turn your Mac into a time machine.

    Jun 2026 · myretromac.app · its alternatives →

  5. 5

    Hello HN! So early this year I decided to build an iOS browser offering a large range of customization options, to accommodate anyone’s usage and visual preferences. Been using it as my default browser for 6 months and not looking back. On first launch it looks and behaves a bit like Safari, but to give you an idea, here are the various ways I customized it on my phone. - More screen real estate for the webpage, less for the toolbar. - A compact toolbar containing only the buttons for actions I use the most: new tab, close tab, open tab list. Since I use them hundred times a day, I need them…

    2023 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →

  6. 6

    An illustrated history of Mac OS X

    2015 · git-tower.com · its alternatives →

  7. 7

    Bring your iPhone back to the good old days

    2020 · system1-icons.com · its alternatives →

  8. 8

    Hey HN! I built a native macOS desktop client for Hacker News and I'm open-sourcing it under the MIT license. GitHub: https://github.com/IronsideXXVI/Hacker-News Download (signed & notarized DMG, macOS 14.0+): https://github.com/IronsideXXVI/Hacker-News/releases Screenshots: https://github.com/IronsideXXVI/Hacker-News#screenshots I spend a lot of time reading HN — I wanted something that felt like a proper Mac app: a sidebar for browsing stories, an integrated reader for articles, and comment threading — all in one window.…

    Feb 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →

  9. 9

    A fully interactive, Mac-like experience directly in browser

    Nov 2025 · hargunpreet.vercel.app · its alternatives →

  10. 10IM

    I've wanted to make my own OS since I started programming. Now, 5 years later, I did it (kind of). Sure, it is really basic, has very little functionality, but I made it and I'm proud of that. Oh, and I'm just 16 btw.

    2025 · jotalea.com.ar · its alternatives →

  11. 11

    Not sure if I would post this for the last day of #marchintosh OR wait for tomorrow the 1st of April. Both apply equally. Anyway, here's a pet project of mine, I made it as a glued on for another pet project of mine, but it developed a life of it's own now and can soar skyward toward success, fame, and glory.

    2024 · github.com · its alternatives →

  12. 12
    One▲414

    Read Product Hunt, HN, DN, Reddit, Medium from Mac menu bar

    2014 · one.hackplan.com · its alternatives →

  13. 13

    The prototyping tool designers have been waiting for

    2015 · flinto.com · its alternatives →

  14. 14
  15. 15
    Lightwell▲262

    A simple tool for creating native iOS apps on Mac 💻 📲

    2018 · stuartkerrs.com · its alternatives →

  16. 16

    A 1991 Macintosh in an app - for Windows, Linux, and macOS

    2020 · github.com · its alternatives →

  17. 17

    Dynamic Island experience for Mac with apps & notifications

    Mar 2026 · dynamiclake.com · its alternatives →

  18. 18

    A magical new website builder made for Mac

    2020 · onuniverse.com · its alternatives →

  19. 19

    Turn you computer into a retro Mac

    2022 · ben-vessey.com · its alternatives →

  20. 20

    Oren Lindsey - Fullstack Web Developer

    2023 · lindsey.studio · its alternatives →

  21. 21

    Denis Khoshaba @ TheDen

    2017 · theden.sh · its alternatives →

  22. 22

    Dynamic island for macOS

    May 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →

  23. 23

    Retro Macintosh style calculator & pixel art stickers

    2024 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →

  24. 24

    Curated list of useful searches for the Mac's best launcher

    2020 · alfred.pory.app · its alternatives →

Also compare

Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →