The Image Optimizer map: from a folder drop to local MCP
If you treat Image Optimizer as “another TinyPNG,” you miss half of it. It is a local output pipeline on macOS and Windows: drop files or folders, then compress, convert, emit sizes, watermark, shrink PDFs, upscale 2×/4×, or remove a background. Work happens on this computer. Images and PDFs are not uploaded.
Five writing spines: local loop, formats, plans, PDF/vision, automation and agents. Icons, not CDN shots.
The signature loop
- Drop a folder, or let a watch folder keep running.
- Select a plan instead of twisting sliders every time.
- The queue runs here. Larger results revert. Check the compare view on hero images.
- Automation and agents reuse the same plan. No second cloud.
Step-by-step: Getting started. Facts: free 300 images per calendar month; Pro buyout is unlimited on at most 3 devices.
What a blog series must not omit
Loop. Several folders, overwrite or save-as, whitelist filtering, inline progress, revert-if-larger, upright portraits, convert can turn off.
Formats. Nine targets, or keep the original. HEIC, SVG, BMP, and PDF can come in. No RAW, PSD, or “save image as PDF.”
Plans. Six factory presets (compress, WebP, target size, multiple sizes, upscale, cutout). Watermarks land on the main file and every size.
Vision and PDF. A compressed PDF is still a PDF. Upscale and cutout are plan switches; engines install in Settings. The Microsoft Store build cannot download the upscale engine from the network.
Automation and agents. Watch folders, launch at login, local MCP. Image bytes never enter the chat.
Do not write tutorials for work that is not shipped: in-image languages, clipboard auto-compress, in-app natural-language plans, cloud cutout.
The 15 notes (reading order)
| Date | Note |
|---|---|
| 2026-09-13 | This map |
| 2024-04-19 | Compress without uploading |
| 2025-09-29 | Drop every scattered folder |
| 2026-08-26 | Revert when the result is larger |
| 2026-08-27 | A plan is a preset |
| 2026-08-26 | Website images want WebP |
| 2026-08-26 | HEIC from the camera roll |
| 2026-08-26 | Target size is not guessing quality |
| 2026-08-26 | One master, many sizes |
| 2026-08-26 | Watermark every output |
| 2026-08-27 | A PDF stays a PDF |
| 2026-08-27 | Upscale and cutout stay local |
| 2026-08-26 | The export folder runs itself |
| 2026-08-26 | Three hundred a month, no feature wall |
| 2026-09-13 | Agents call plans on this computer |
Dates follow the changelog entry in version.json. Later notes (compare view, inline progress, AVIF/JXL, animated bounds, engines, Store vs direct) stay on the map so they are not forgotten.
Why the pictures are icon windows
CDN screenshots break in local preview. This series embeds React icon demos, same pattern as the CodeExpander blog. WeChat drafts use mermaid instead of dead remote images.
Next: Compress without uploading.