Install the Polimake desktop app and first launch

The Polimake desktop app reads your folders, indexes them and lets you search your photos and videos by what's in them, without uploading them anywhere. This guide covers the download, the installation and what you'll see the first time you open it.

Before you start

• System: Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit; Windows-only for now, with no Mac or Linux version.
• Price: the app is free for local use: search in your folders, video editor, image editor, Whisper transcription and MCP/CLI.
• Connection: you need one to install it, to sign in to your account and to download the components of the first launch.
• Polimake account: the app asks you to sign in during the welcome steps. You can create the account right there.

Download and install

1. Go to the desktop app page and click the download button for Windows. It always downloads the latest published version.
2. Open the installer you downloaded.
3. Follow the steps. The installer is in English and Spanish, and it installs for your Windows user only, so you don't need administrator rights.
4. When it's done, open Polimake from the Start menu.

If Polimake was already open, the installer closes it before copying the new files.

The welcome steps

The first time, Polimake doesn't show you an empty screen: it walks you through a few steps and, meanwhile, downloads in the background what it needs to read videos and look at your photos (about 100 MB).

1. Find your ideas. The introduction. Click Next.
2. Let's create your memory. Click Choose folders and pick a folder with photos or videos. You can add others with Add more folders. Your files aren't moved or uploaded: Polimake only reads them.
3. You're missing content. This is where you sign in. Pick at least three of the recommended libraries (they're free, commercial use included); the button tells you how many are missing, with Select 1 more. Then click Sign up or log in: your browser opens, you sign in or sign up, and the app continues on its own when you come back.
4. Forming a memory. Your photos go into a ball and get grouped by theme as Polimake looks at them. You don't have to wait for it to finish: click Start using it and the work continues while you use the app.

If you're offline or the browser doesn't open, a Later button appears so you can sign in another time.

Updates

Polimake checks for new versions every time it starts. When there's one, the Settings gear at the bottom of the sidebar shows a dot.

1. Click Settings and go to About.
2. You'll see New version with the number. Click Download and install.
3. The new version downloads and installs over the one you have. You'll see the progress in the same box.

To check by hand, go to About and click Check. If there's nothing new, you'll see You're up to date.

Uninstall

Uninstall Polimake like any other program, from Windows Settings › Apps. Your folders and files aren't touched: Polimake never moved them.

Frequently asked questions

Does the desktop app work on Mac?

No, it's Windows-only for now: Windows 10 and 11, 64-bit.

Do I need an account to use the app?

Yes. The app asks you to sign in to your Polimake account during the welcome steps, and you can create one for free in that same step. Your photos and videos stay on your computer: signing in doesn't upload them.

Why does it download things the first time I open it?

Because the heaviest parts don't ship in the installer: the components that read video and the model that looks at your photos download in the background during the welcome steps. You can use the app in the meantime.

How do I know I have the latest version?

Open Settings › About and click Check. If you see You're up to date, there's nothing to install.