DrawPen

DrawPen is an open-source screen annotation tool designed to let users draw, highlight, and annotate directly over any application window on their desktop. It provides a transparent overlay that can be toggled on or off, allowing users to visually explain ideas during presentations, calls, lessons, live coding, or technical demonstrations without disrupting their workflow. The application operates as a desktop app running locally on macOS, Windows, and Linux, with installers available through GitHub Releases and package managers such as Homebrew and Scoop.

The tool offers a suite of annotation features, including Pen, Shapes, Text, Highlighter, Laser, and Eraser tools, each accessible through number-key shortcuts. Users can adjust stroke color and thickness using built-in controls, and clear all annotations with a keyboard command. DrawPen also includes a whiteboard mode, providing a blank canvas for free-form drawing. Customization is a core aspect, with settings available for configuring keyboard shortcuts, color schemes, stroke widths, interface elements, toolbar placement, and other preferences, enabling users to tailor the overlay and controls to their workflow.

DrawPen is suitable for a range of use cases, such as presentations, teaching, live coding sessions, tutorials, and technical explanations. Its Pointer Mode keeps the tool accessible without being intrusive, allowing users to switch between annotating and interacting with their primary applications seamlessly. Saving annotations is currently possible only via the operating system's screenshot functionality, with the potential for additional export options in the future.

Distributed free of charge and licensed under the MIT license, DrawPen is fully open source and encourages community contributions through its GitHub repository. Bug reports and feature requests are managed via GitHub Issues, and the application is designed to be extensible and easily integrated into diverse workflows.