About
Why a mountain range makes software
Cederberg Software is named after a wilderness area in South Africa's Western Cape. It isn't the country's highest range, and its shapes are simple: flat-topped ridges, weathered red sandstone, wide-open sky. That simplicity is what makes it beautiful. It has been protected since 1973, so it stays that way.
That's how we build software: simple, useful, and you're never the product.
The place behind the name
1973
Protected as a wilderness area, and kept that way ever since.
2004
Part of the Cape Floral Region, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Cape leopard
The Cederberg's own big cat. Rarely seen, perfectly calm, fierce the moment it acts.
Red rock
Orange-red sandstone under a pale-blue sky. Our colors start here.
Simple tools from a company that isn't shy
Everything we make sits on one contrast. The mountain is how our apps feel. The leopard is how we act.
The Cederberg · the product
Simple, clear, uncluttered
- No ads, no clutter, no nagging notifications, no tricks to keep you hooked
- Opens, does the job, gets out of the way
- Built around how people actually do things
Where they meet
Power at rest.
The Cape leopard is the soul of the Cederberg: rarely seen, perfectly calm, fierce the moment it acts.
The leopard · the company
Mighty, fierce, unapologetic
- Loud about bloated, overpriced software
- Says plainly what others won't
- Never hides what something costs
How we decide
Two questions settle most arguments here.
The product test
Does this make the app better to use, or just busier?
Asked before adding any feature, screen or notification. If it only adds noise, it doesn't ship.
The company test
Is it bold enough?
Asked before setting a price or taking a public stance. If it sounds like every other app company, we rewrite it.
Red rock, blue sky
Our colors are the Cederberg's colors. Blue keeps things clear. Ember is rare on purpose: it marks the one bold action on a screen.
Sky
The pale Cederberg sky. Our background.
Glacier
Snow on Sneeuberg, the highest peak. Clear and cool.
Deep glacier
Links and everyday controls.
Ember
Red sandstone in the sun. The one bold action.
Rooibos
The "red bush" the Cederberg is famous for.
Leopard gold
The leopard's coat. Warmth, in small doses.
Night sky
The clear skies stargazers come for. Our dark mode.
A small piece of history
The Cape gave the sky its toolbox
In the early 1750s, the French astronomer Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille mapped the southern sky from the Cape and named 14 new constellations, mostly after tools: a furnace, a chisel, a compass, a painter's easel. A sky full of practical tools, named from the Cape. Practical tools are what we make, too.
Who we are
Cederberg Software is an independent software company in Tennessee, started by a patriotic American who was born in South Africa. The name is a tribute to where he comes from, and to one of his favorite places in the world, the Western Cape.