How to Browse and Filter Tools on tinytools.directory

tinytools.directory is a curated roundup of small, free, or experimental tools for building games, websites, and interactive projects. To browse it, you don't scroll a long list — you pick tags. The page starts with 0 tools shown and a prompt to "Click a tag to get started." Each tag you add narrows the results to tools that carry all of the selected tags, and the counter updates to show how many match. If you'd rather not decide, a Randomize Your Search option surfaces tools for you. There's also a JavaScript-free Markdown version of the list if you prefer plain text or need to browse without scripts.

The tag-based filtering model

The core interaction is cumulative tag selection, not a search box or category menu.

• Start empty: On load, the page reports "Currently showing: 0 tools with all of the following tags - None." Nothing appears until you choose a tag.
• Click to add: Selecting a tag adds it to your active set and the tool list refreshes to show only entries matching every selected tag.
• Combine to narrow: Because matching requires all tags, adding more tags produces a smaller, more specific result set. This is an AND filter, not an OR filter — useful when you know two or three qualities you want (for example, a particular kind of tool and a particular output format), less useful when you're casting a wide net.
• Watch the counter: The "Currently showing: N tools" line is your feedback loop. If it hits 0, your combination is too restrictive; remove a tag to widen it.

Reading the results

Each match is a tool entry in the roundup. The list's stated focus is on "artful tools and toys that are as fun to use as they are functional," and its goal is to let you build "entirely outside of closed production ecosystems or walled software gardens." In practice that means the entries skew toward open source, experimental, or otherwise small-scale projects rather than commercial suites.

Randomize Your Search

If you don't have a specific tag combination in mind, Randomize Your Search presents tools without you choosing tags first. This suits exploratory browsing — the "joyful digital creation" angle the site describes — where the point is discovering something you didn't know to look for rather than retrieving a known category.

Use it when:

• You're new to the list and want a feel for what's on it.
• You're stuck and want an unexpected option.
• You have no strong constraints yet.

Use tag filtering instead when you already know a requirement your project imposes.

Browsing without JavaScript

The site offers a Markdown version of the list ("View this list as Markdown (no Javascript)"). This is the fallback when:

• You're on a restricted or script-blocked environment.
• You want to read, copy, or grep the entries as text.
• You prefer a static document over an interactive filter.

The trade-off is clear: the Markdown view gives you the full list as text but not the click-to-filter interaction, so you lose the live counter and tag combination behavior.

Submitting a tool

The page includes a "Submit a tool to the list!" link for adding entries. If you maintain a small or experimental tool that fits the roundup's open, non-walled-garden focus, that's the entry point — though the site doesn't spell out acceptance criteria beyond its stated theme, so expect the maintainer to judge fit.

Practical tips

• Too few results? Remove the most specific tag first.
• Too many? Add a tag describing the output or medium you need.
• Just exploring? Skip tags and randomize.
• No scripts available? Switch to the Markdown view.
• Questions or requests? The page lists a contact address ([email protected]) for questions and requests.

The list is licensed under the MIT License and built with a modified version of Leafy; development is supported by the Frank-Ratchye STUDIO for Creative Inquiry and the Clinic for Open Source Arts.