Install on macOS | Tiny Pad

1

Download Tiny Pad

This link always points at the newest release. It is a universal build, for both Apple silicon and Intel Macs:

2

Drag it to Applications

Open the downloaded .dmg. Drag Tiny Pad onto the Applications folder beside it, then eject the disk image.

The Tiny Pad disk image window, with the app icon beside a shortcut to the Applications folder

Put it in Applications, not somewhere else. macOS ties the permissions you grant next to the app in the place you grant them from. An app left in Downloads loses them when you move it.

3

Open Tiny Pad

Open Tiny Pad from your Applications folder. The first time it runs, it explains what it needs. Click Grant Access.

Tiny Pad window titled Permission Required, explaining it needs the Accessibility permission, with a Grant Access button

Tiny Pad needs Accessibility because it moves your pointer and types for you. That is the permission macOS uses for anything that controls the mouse and keyboard.

4

Let macOS take you to the setting

macOS asks to confirm. Click Open System Settings, which opens the right page for you.

macOS dialog: Tiny Pad would like to control this computer using accessibility features, with Open System Settings and Deny buttons

If you miss this dialog, you can get to the same place by hand: System Settings › Privacy & Security › Accessibility.

5

Turn Tiny Pad on

Find Tiny Pad in the list. The switch starts off:

The Tiny Pad row in the Accessibility list, with its switch turned off

Click the switch. macOS asks for your Mac password, because this changes a system setting. Type it and click Modify Settings.

macOS password dialog: Privacy and Security is trying to modify your system settings

The switch is now on. That is the whole permission:

The Tiny Pad row in the Accessibility list, with its switch turned on

6

Start Tiny Pad again

Quit Tiny Pad and open it again, so it picks up the permission you just gave. It does not open a window: it lives in the menu bar, at the top right of your screen.

The Tiny Pad icon in the macOS menu bar, with the tooltip Tiny Pad Server

7

Pair your iPad or iPhone

Click the menu bar icon to open Tiny Pad, then click + to show a pairing code. Scan it with the Tiny Pad app on your iPad or iPhone. Both have to be on the same network.

The Tiny Pad panel, showing the server name and the plus button that adds a device

8

One more permission, only for pencil mode

Pencil mode shows your Mac screen on the iPad, so it needs Screen Recording as well. Tiny Pad asks for it the first time you use pencil mode, and not before. Grant it the same way: System Settings › Privacy & Security › Screen Recording, switch Tiny Pad on, then start Tiny Pad again.

Trackpad, pointer and keyboard all work without it. If you never use pencil mode, Tiny Pad never reads your screen.