“Save for Web” – not everyone’s favorite thing to do as a designer, but it’s part of the job. It’s monotonous but not a difficult task to do, it simply takes time. MacRabbit, who created Espresso, has released a new Mac app called Slicy. Its sole purpose is to turn PSD files into images for the web and applications. Slicy examines your .psd files for Layer Groups that are named like a file (.png, .jpg, .tif, .icns) and auto-exports them, no “Save for Web” dialog boxes necessary. “Name layer groups like the files you want to create, and Slicy will extract them individually. Enjoy complete freedom to move, obscure and even hide these named layer groups without affecting the extracted images.”

I can admit that my layers and layer groups are not always properly named; I think all designers can attest to this, so Slicy will also help you do a better job with naming objects within your PSD files. Once your naming is done and file is saved, drag the .psd into the apps’s window and Slicy will do the work for you. If you make changes to the .psd after you run Slicy, the app has an option to auto-export the images when they are re-saved. Delicious! If you want to repeat a job you already did, Slicy saves your previous exports under the “clockwise” icon in the upper right. Slicy, however, cannot guarantee a perfect replica for every .psd – the CMYK color space and some advanced filters are not supported.

I tested Slicy on several of my.psd files (after doing some layer renaming, oops), and it didn’t have any major issues; the app really makes saving files for web and apps a “piece of cake.” MacRabbit is already hard at work fixing bugs and making improvements for its next update. Please note that Photoshop CS6 Beta is not yet fully supported, and version 1.0.1 will bring the following fixes:

• Improved the automatic sizing of export items and fixed some sizing issues with CS6 PSDs
• Added the ability to save into subfolders, like this: subfolder/Export.png
• Fixed an issue where some vector layers would be completely opaque
• Fixed an issue where extracting would never finish for PSDs with many export items
• Fixed an issue where Quick Look animates from the wrong place
• Fixed an issue where the window title could become cut off
• Fixed a crash when launching on Mountain Lion
• Fixed a crash that could occur for layer styles with 0% opacity

Slicy is available for $19.99 for a limited time via the Mac App Store. The app is normally $29.99, so if you’re the least bit hungry for some Slicy, now is the time to get your slice.