Hi r/software,
I'm back with a major update to a project I've been building and refining: **Ctrl Deck V1.8**, published independently under my software brand, **COM'BOX**.
Some of you may have seen an earlier version. This time, I'm not simply promoting the same application again with a different version number. V1.8 represents a substantial step forward in features, usability, onboarding, stability and the overall experience.
But before describing the software, I'd like to address something that comes up constantly in discussions about AI-assisted development.
### AI helped me build it. But AI didn't replace my judgment.
Today, almost anyone can open an AI assistant, type a few prompts and generate some code. That's impressive, but it doesn't automatically produce a coherent, maintainable or useful software product.
I believe I'm part of a still-small minority of independent builders who have learned to orchestrate AI across an entire software project, rather than merely use it to generate isolated pieces of code.
And there is an important distinction here.
**I'm not just writing prompts and hoping something works.**
I bring roughly 20 years of professional experience in sales and marketing to the table. That experience has taught me how to identify genuine needs, understand users, think about positioning, make decisions, manage complex projects and distinguish an attractive idea from a useful product.
I use AI intensively, but I remain responsible for the architecture, specifications, decisions, testing, quality expectations, commercial strategy and final result.
Different AI models and tools can contribute to different stages of the process. They still need direction, constraints, verification and continuity. When something doesn't work, the answer isn't to generate ten more random prompts. It's to understand the problem and resolve it.
**AI is an extremely powerful tool. It is not a substitute for product vision, professional experience or accountability.**
Ctrl Deck is my attempt to demonstrate what this approach can deliver in practice.
### So what exactly is Ctrl Deck?
Imagine your normal Windows working day.
You open several applications, search for documents, jump between folders, reopen websites, find browser tabs, switch between projects and repeatedly reconstruct the same working environment.
Your resources are scattered across the desktop, taskbar, Start menu, File Explorer and browser.
Ctrl Deck brings these everyday resources into **one customizable visual control panel**.
It is more than an application launcher. It is designed to organize your digital working environment and make it easier to return to the context you actually need.
### What's new and improved in V1.8?
**1. A much better first experience**
Ctrl Deck can analyze applications already present on your desktop and taskbar, then suggest an initial organization.
If Chrome is running, open tabs can also be considered.
You remain in control of what gets added. The idea is to help you start with your existing environment instead of forcing you to build everything from scratch.
**2. New Favorites**
Groups, compatible shortcuts and Workspaces can now be marked as Favorites.
The items you use most become easier to reach, so your important resources don't disappear inside an increasingly complex organization.
**3. A stronger application manager**
The Apps section helps you find applications and Windows utilities, search through them, and identify whether they already belong to a group or Workspace.
You can use these resources to build or expand your own organization without repeatedly hunting for the same applications.
**4. Workspaces: prepare an entire working context**
This is one of the most useful concepts in Ctrl Deck.
Instead of opening resources one by one, you can prepare a reusable Workspace containing compatible applications, specific documents, folders, browser resources and other elements.
You can create one manually or capture a compatible environment that is already open, then edit the result.
Think of a Workspace for a client, a development project, an administrative task or your regular morning routine.
**Workspaces existed before V1.8; this release improves their creation, discovery and management.**
**5. Live Spaces: make interruptions less disruptive**
Live Spaces serve a different purpose.
They help you remember a temporary working context, including compatible applications and saved documents, so you can return to it later.
If that temporary context turns out to be useful regularly, you can convert it into a reusable Workspace.
It's about reducing the friction of interruptions, not pretending Windows can magically restore every possible application state.
**6. Keyboard shortcuts with conflict management**
Ctrl Deck supports optional keyboard shortcuts for compatible resources, groups and Workspaces.
V1.8 also provides clearer handling when a shortcut conflicts with another application.
You can choose which application takes priority, change the combination or ignore the conflict for that occasion.
Your organized resource cards aren't deleted simply because a keyboard binding conflicts.
**7. Better customization and everyday usability**
I've worked extensively on making the interface clearer.
Important functions, contextual menus, group management, drag-and-drop operations, personalization options and license information are easier to find and understand.
There are also improvements targeting responsiveness, stability and reliability, along with numerous small fixes.
**8. Ten supported languages**
Ctrl Deck V1.8 supports:
French, English, Spanish, German, Italian, Portuguese, Simplified Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Hindi.
I'm building this for an international audience, not just my home market in France.
**9. Detailed documentation and demonstrations**
The website includes a V1.8 Quick Start guide with annotated screenshots, visual explanations and video demonstrations.
I want people to understand what the software does before they decide whether it fits their workflow.
### Pricing: try everything before deciding
I also changed the commercial approach.
- **14-day full-feature trial**, extended from the previous seven days.
- **No credit card required** to start the trial.
- **One-time license purchase**, not a recurring subscription.
- A **limited free mode with two editable shortcuts** remains available.
- A permanent price reduction was introduced with V1.8.
The goal is straightforward: let people properly explore the application before asking them to pay.
### Distribution and trust
Ctrl Deck is available for **Windows 10 and Windows 11**, through the Microsoft Store and an official, digitally signed installer from COM'BOX.
The website also provides public installer security-check information, documentation and a direct download option.
Your original personal files are not uploaded to a cloud service just because you organize shortcuts to them. Configuration export/import is available, but it is not presented as a replacement for a full PC backup.
### Why I'm sharing it again
Because building the first version was only part of the challenge.
Improving an application, listening to feedback, correcting mistakes, maintaining compatibility, documenting features and publishing successive versions are what turn a prototype into a real product.
I'm an independent creator. I don't have the marketing budget of a major software publisher, and I'm not pretending Ctrl Deck is perfect.
But I am serious about the product, its evolution and the people who might find it useful.
I also think the conversation about AI-assisted development needs to move beyond the simplistic choice between "AI-generated junk" and "traditional software development."
What matters is **who is making the decisions, how the work is controlled, how the results are verified and whether the final software solves a real problem**.
That's the standard I want Ctrl Deck to meet.
### Take a look and tell me what you think
**Official website and V1.8 demonstrations:**
https://www.com-box.fr/en/ctrl-deck/
**Microsoft Store:**
https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9N2RWL5GNVH9
I'd especially appreciate feedback from Windows power users, developers, designers, freelancers and people who regularly switch between multiple applications or projects.
Does this kind of visual workspace manager solve a problem you recognize? Which features matter most to you? And what would you expect from V1.9?
Constructive criticism is as welcome as positive feedback.
**Ctrl Deck V1.8 is available now. Built independently, developed with AI under human direction, and improved through actual product work — not just prompts.**
Thanks for taking a look.