How to fix empty Properties window for GeekTool on macOS
GeekTool is a macOS customization tool that’s been around for a long time. There are hundreds of different Geeklets available for it which allow users to quickly customize their desktop. GeekTool doesn’t force you to use pre-developed Geeklets. The app lets anyone create their own Geeklets if they know how. If you’re trying to create a Geeklet of your own but keep getting an empty properties window no matter what, there’s a problem with how GeekTool is installed. Here’s how to fix it.
Fix empty Properties window for GeekTool
Make sure that you’re running the correct, and latest version of GeekTool. This is the official download page that you can get the tool from. GeekTool was available on the Mac App store at some point but the official website does not link to it, and the links we found told us the tool wasn’t available in multiple countries. It’s safe to say that this is really the only way to get the tool.
Remove the tool from your system and use this fresh download to install it again. Once installed, GeekTool does not automatically move itself to the Applications folder. It also doesn’t prompt you, the user, to move it to the Applications folder. Basically, it runs from the exact same place that its archive was extracted to and this can cause the empty properties window to show up. Make sure that you’ve moved it to the Applications folder. Once you do, quit the app and run it again.
The empty properties window is caused by a problem with the GeekTool installation. The problem might be a simple and easily traceable one such as the app not being moved to the Applications folder, or it might be something else. Regardless, reinstalling the app will almost always fix the problem.
If you’re running a much older version of macOS, it is possible that the latest, stable version of GeekTool may not run correctly. If that’s the case, look for an older version of the app. It goes without saying that this won’t be easy. The official GeekTool website doesn’t allow users to download older versions so you’re going to have to find it on software repositories. It might just be better to update macOS however, if that isn’t an option and you do have to go with an older version of the app, make sure you download it from a trustworthy software repository.
Some Geeklets might require that you have the latest version of GeekTool on your system in which case, you’re going to have to use the latest version and if necessary, the latest macOS version as well.
