PerchShelf – a temporary shelf that appears while you drag files (dev here)

[u/Effective_Goat7084]

Hi r/windowsapps, I'm the developer of PerchShelf, a small utility for Windows 10 and 11.

The problem: dragging a file to a window that is hidden, on another monitor, or not open yet means holding the mouse button while you juggle windows. On the Mac, Yoink and Dropover solve this with a "shelf". PerchShelf does the same on Windows:

- Shake the mouse while dragging (or move to a screen edge) and a shelf appears next to the cursor

- Drop files there, let go, open the target at your own pace, drag them out (one or all at once)

- Files are held by reference, nothing is copied; plain drag moves, Ctrl+drag copies

- Also catches links, images and text dragged from Chrome or Edge

- Several shelves as tabs, a hotkey (Ctrl+Shift+F), stays out of fullscreen games

- Offline, no telemetry, UI in English, German, French, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Chinese

It is on the Microsoft Store with a 30-day trial, then a one-time purchase:

https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9N86NC2DKFH5?cid=reddit

Feedback is very welcome, especially on what would make it fit your workflow. The first buyer reported a bug and it was fixed in the next update, so reports really do get acted on.

[u/alkidnn]

The utility is great, but it costs $6. It’s not really that big of a deal to just press a few buttons.
Ctrl + Click, Click = Ctrl + C = Ctrl + V
Sorry, I’m just nitpicking.

[u/Independent_Shower79 → u/alkidnn]

Nah you are spot on, it's great but not great enough to pay for it

[u/Effective_Goat7084 → u/alkidnn]

No, that’s a fair point. Within Explorer, copy and paste does the job. Where it breaks down for me: the clipboard holds one set of files, so collecting from several folders means starting over each time, and a lot of targets (browser upload boxes, chat apps, some mail clients) only take a drag, not a paste. It also takes things that aren’t files: drag an image, a link or a bit of text out of the browser onto the shelf and it’s kept there as a file until you drag it into a doc, a mail or a chat. That’s the gap it fills. Also, after the trial it doesn’t stop working, it just keeps one shelf with up to three items, so you can keep using it for free if that’s enough.

[u/alkidnn → u/Effective_Goat7084]

Fair enough, you got me there. You're absolutely right about the browser upload boxes and collecting files from multiple folders — that's a genuine gap that Ctrl+C/V doesn't fully cover. And the fact that it stays free with a 1-shelf/3-item limit is a really cool, user-friendly approach. I have to admit, I actually contribute to an open-source alternative (Wedge) as a Russian localizer, so I'm a bit biased. But honestly, your response is exactly why indie devs are awesome. Best of luck with the app!

P.S. Wedge is also free on the Microsoft Store, just saying 😉

[u/Effective_Goat7084 → u/alkidnn]

Ha, thanks, that’s really kind of you. I had a look at Wedge, and honestly the design is great, it’s exactly the kind of look I like. Nice work on the Russian localization too. Good to know we’re both chipping away at the same Windows annoyance. Thanks for the good wishes!

[u/Sellulose → u/Effective_Goat7084]

Jesus Christ man what is the point of talking on a forum if all you animals do is copy and paste shit from ChatPeePeePee?

[u/Effective_Goat7084 → u/Sellulose]

Sorry if that sounded weird, I'm not used to English so I'm using AI to translate.

[u/HimaSphere]

https://reddit.com/link/phq8n1b/video/bprcdz4kfgwh1/player

It is a nice idea and I invite you to try https://betterstickies.com it has the same feature but not as a single purpose app for it

[u/enderoller]

another one no please

[u/elhouso]

You can't just click the attach files button and select those files? That's a few clicks... probably faster than this...

This is a cool idea, just not sure it's worth paying money for. Especially since it's not that hard to just split-screen File Explorer and drag/drop it in, or like I said above, just attach the files with the already built-in attach files button...

Or for people like me who have two monitors...

[u/Effective_Goat7084 → u/elhouso]

Fair points, and if split-screen or two monitors already works for you, you probably don’t need it. The attach button is fine when the files are in one folder you can get to quickly. Where I kept losing time was the in-between cases: files spread across three folders (the picker takes one folder at a time), an image on a web page I’d have to save somewhere first, or a maximized window I didn’t want to rearrange. The shelf is for those moments. That’s also why there’s a 30-day trial, so people can see whether it actually saves them anything before paying.

[u/snYk07]

Ctrl + C -> Ctrl + V

[u/Effective_Goat7084 → u/snYk07]

Works great until the files are in three different folders, or the target only accepts a drag. That’s the gap it’s for.

[u/Ok-Stay-1861]

its similar like kando and wedge its free and open source

[u/Effective_Goat7084 → u/Ok-Stay-1861]

Fair point, Wedge is nicely made. PerchShelf goes a different way: no fixed spot on the screen edge, the shelf pops up next to the cursor when you shake mid-drag, you get several shelves as tabs, and it keeps images, links and text from the browser too. If a free one fits your workflow, that’s great.

[u/Far-Bluebird2784]

I can’t use the Microsoft store since I’m in a corporate environment. Is there another way to pay for the app?

[u/Effective_Goat7084 → u/Far-Bluebird2784]

Not yet, sorry, it’s Microsoft Store only for now. A direct download with a license key is something I’m considering. Would that actually work where you are, e.g. can you install an app yourself, or does everything go through IT? That would help me decide whether to do it.

[u/Effective_Goat7084]

small update if anyone's still around: 1.1 is out. you can send photos from your phone to the shelf now.

click the phone icon, scan the qr code, check the 4 digit number matches and that's it. stays on your

own wifi, no app on the phone, no account. also added a short animated intro on first launch because

the shake thing isn't obvious until someone shows you. tried it with my iphone, haven't had an android

to test yet so if you try it lmk

https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9N86NC2DKFH5?cid=reddit

[u/trmdi]

Looks cool. Btw, how did you do the video? What app?

[u/thegravity98ms2]

You are removing one friction from the flow ctrl tab

[u/Effective_Goat7084 → u/thegravity98ms2]

Yes, that's exactly the friction it's for: no more holding the mouse button while you Alt+Tab around looking for the target. Out of curiosity, where does that hit you most, browser uploads, email attachments, or moving files between folders? I'm deciding what to polish next.

[u/thegravity98ms2 → u/Effective_Goat7084]

All edge cases tbh Go in phase based development but ultimately we need it across any app

[u/Independent_Shower79]

oh this look handy

[u/Effective_Goat7084 → u/Independent_Shower79]

Thank you!