I’ve been using kvaesitso. I like it!
Oh, this is great news. I have Nova tweaked to work almost exactly like this. Excellent, thank you.
Yeah, it’s open sauce, has shortcuts, widgets, & works fine.
I also really like the tagging feature.
Oh yeah, I don’t often use it, but it helps me sometimes for apps I rarely use (but have tagged).
Also the button to disable all work (profile) apps is neatly placed.
These companies lack any sort of common sense. Nova is used (and suggested) by Android users that are at least minimally tech-savvy. What on earth would make them believe that news like this one would remain secret, and therefore allow them to keep the userbase to suck on their data?
Am I the only person that uses KISS launcher on this site? Once I got used to how it functions switching to something different will be hard.
I love KISS launcher. I can’t go back to normal launchers. Been using it for years.
It’s that vertical one aye? Used it for oldie backup phone and it was a blessing. But if you use more apps, it’s not worth it imo
Searching is way faster than trying to keep stuff organized in folders and screens. You get at least two clicks anyway and you keyboard is already there.
Dunno, organised my shit once and done, I can now get to my shit faster than I type so yeah.
I just use the Fairphone 2 Launcher and it’s fine 🤷🏻
I used Nova on my last phone and it worked great, I paid for pro. So I know what I’m missing, not worth it to get back in the Google Play Store system though. I like being anon with no Google account, especially considering Nova sold to a company that data mines user data?
if it’s nova launcher I’m gonna be pissed.
edit: it’s nova launcher. fucking fuck.
Seriously, one of the few apps I’ve ever paid for - and this is what I get?!
I’m sorry, brother. My condolences. I actually get my launcher from Fdroid and so I’ll probably also be fucked.
Hey by any chance do you have the last APK file and the SHA256 of that file ?
Oh wait, it this it ?
Name: com.teslacoilsw.launcher_8.1.1-81001_minAPI26(arm64-v8a,armeabi-v7a)(nodpi)_apkmirror.com.apk
Size: 11970405 bytes (11 MiB)
SHA256: 30bccfdd995969089ad364a7a6bb7bbea482a703fbfb30ebccad6418aa977fecIs there an x86_64 version ?
Just making sure we’ve got the last version saved
Oh wait, it’s not open source ? And they’ve been acquired in 2022 ?
date of acquisition 2022-07-19
Ok, last one before the acquisition, just in case
Name: com.teslacoilsw.launcher_8.0.2-80002_minAPI26(arm64-v8a,armeabi-v7a)(nodpi)_apkmirror.com.apk
Size: 12580956 bytes (11 MiB)
SHA256: 61a760413387dde99f2a2ef4b065caf278b575c8028cc5b3092f05192cfee258
I hate being hinted and asked to click on the link, so I save you a click:
It’s the end of an era: the founder and original developer of Nova Launcher — Kevin Barry — has stepped away from the development of the iconic custom launcher. This essentially marks the end of the road for the launcher, as it is unlikely to receive updates or new features. For years now, Nova Launcher has been the go-to launcher for power Android users, standing out for its plethora of customization options and features.
Now that Nova is in literal limbo, if not allegedly in the hands of some data miner, there should be talk about substitutes.
- This app may share these data types with third parties
- This app may collect these data types
I hate clickbait too. Just downvote posts like this
That talk about substitutes happened when it was initially handed over to said data miner, and anybody concerned should have switched back then. I did, moving to Lawnchair, and never looked back. Oodles of other options are doubtlessly available.
Lawnchair was too bare bones for me. However, I was able to recreate 90%+ of my Nova setup with Neo.
Hasn’t had a release since 2023 🫤
Their other projects are in active development, so I wouldn’t consider it to be abandoned.
I haven’t had any issues besides the desktop being occasionally unresponsive. Same thing used to happen to me in Nova.
It’s FOSS and suits my needs. But I can see why others may want to stay away from it.
I’m quite satisfied with lawn chair too
I would be so happy if Kevin got accidentally ‘hacked’ and the source leaked, by now im so ingrained in nova that it just feels wrong switching.
if not allegedly in the hands of some data miner,
it’s android. what do you expect? It’s one giant data miner.
i use oxshell
Are you alright?
For those coming looking for alternatives, this mega comparison chart is what I used to select an alternative launcher when I switched.
I would strongly recommend checking this site for the trackers in an app if you’re at all concerned about privacy. Links to each app’s exodus privacy report is also at the end of the table linked above.
Help a brother out, which one is closest to Nova? I don’t mind paying for good work, I just want home screens and being able to place my icons where I want, also widgets!
There’s no direct replacement. The features I use are in Pear launcher so I use that. You have to look through launcher comparisons to find the features you need.
I’ve made a post about this and some people are giving recommendations. Check out comments here: https://europe.pub/post/4256799
Nice list. I recently started using Fossify Launcher and have been pretty happy with it. It’s simple but does what I need. Thought I’d mention it as it’s absent from that list.
Fossify is a tad too basic for me. I use the dialler and calculator. Both have slight issues. The calculator always starts with zero so tapping 1416 will give you 14016.
Dialler doesnt seem to wake or respond as quick as others.
I take it as it is given I know it is private and open but still there are gaps in UI and UX with foss that I wish were a bigger priority.
Speaking of calculators on android, I recently found an old silver link cable on ebay, which connects TI calculators to a computer, allowing me to dump the ROM of my old TI89. Loading up that rom in the ‘graph89’ emulator app is an amazing addition to a phone. Blows the socks off any calculator app.
But yes, fossify apps are simple. They do seem to be under active development, so hopefully they shape up nicely in the future.
Use Qalculate!, the only calculator app everyone needs.
So if Neo started updating again I think it is the closest open source match?
100%
I stuck with Neo for ages waiting for updates to fix the last few issues…and they never came. Neo would be perfect if someone forked it and continued development.
Mine for the last 3 years
KISS is so good. It’s 100% the fastest way to get to where you wanna be when you pull up your phone.
I’m very thankful to Kevin for this amazing launcher that I’m still using to this day.
Also a bit disapointed he trusted Branch and gave them the opportunity to ruin it.
It’s always capitalism
You make it sound as if human greed as part of the human condtion will suddenly and magically disappeared under any other form of trade or political system. That is not what literal history has us shown to be the case, over, and over again.
What fucked it up was he selling to the wrong company. But we do not know why he did it. For all we know, he was tired to taking lead in the project and wanted to cash out. He was entitled to do that, or what is the option, force him to work on it just for your needs or to sell to only the company that you or I approved of? What gives us the right to force their hand?
It sucks but that is what he wanted. We both agree that it us unfortunate though. It is too bad.
You make it sound as if every system is perfectly equal, and that all humans are the same, and that nothing we choose or decide matters at all and that the only form of existence is the one we are seeing right now.
Jesus christ if this was a film you’d happily be hooked up to a bunch of tubes in a goo pod pretending you’re free.
That human nature will disappear when provided an egalitarian society is the biggest lie I see parroted over and over again by folks who also demand I read theory.
Our nature isn’t a result of our systems, our systems are a result of our nature
The human condition is dictated by the hegemonic system that is governing.
Monopoly™ the game is structually engineered so that players kill the competition and secure the entire board. Would playing by the game’s rules make me inherently a capitalist jerk? No, because they dictate my behaviour and not following them would put me outside the realm of the game (i.e. the system) resulting in my loss (decay).
If the capitalist system incentivizes me to outcompete others and hoard my wealth and, conversely, punishes me for my altruism; then, I am forced to play by the rules of such a system.
“Human nature” is much more complex to be reduced to just greed. This is what’s so cool about being humans, we are so malleable and can be many many things either at once or separately.
Edit: I want to give some concrete examples to what I’m saying. Initially, the Google leadership was skeptical about AI funding, because of privacy and environmental concerns. Yet, as rival competition grew they backpedaled because this would mean their spot as the strongest teck company would be usurped. The late hop into AI funding and development heavily impacted their prospects and they remain falling behind in this respect (source). Here, we have an exemplary case of how the system automatically punishes hood deeds and reinforces predatory and greedy acts.
Did you know that Monopoly was originally invented by a woman whose point was how horrible monopolies are? It originally had a co-op mode that could topple monopolies through unions and co-ops.
Her game was bought by a jerk who removed the co-op mode and then claimed Monopoly as his own game. She died penniless.
If the capitalist system incentivizes me to outcompete others and hoard my wealth and, conversely, punishes me for my altruism; then, I am forced to play by the rules of such a system.
So change it… or be a pebble in the mountain of change.
Only through the proletarian revolution can we overthrow the capitalist mode of production, and so we should be diffusing social consciousness to the working class, and contribute to the mobilization of unions.
Yes of course, humanity didn’t start until we figured out capitalism.
How could I have been so naive
Man probably needed to eat. What a system we’ve got.
I asked many years ago to add an option to send donations. They said it wasn’t needed. I wonder if additional revenue may have helped.
In a Reddit AMA, the then-Branch CEO Alex Austin also revealed that if Kevin ever left Branch, they would open-source Nova Launcher’s code and release it to the community.
We still have hope if they keep their promise!
Read a bit further:
Two years later, Kevin Barry left Branch and is no longer involved in Nova’s development. In his announcement, Barry revealed that he had been the sole developer for the past year, spending recent months preparing to open source Nova Launcher and clean up its codebase. However, Branch ultimately asked him to stop both development and his open-sourcing efforts.
Yeah, I read it. But they still promised open source, nothing about Barry working on it or not.
That’s why I said “keeping their promise”
Perhaps I’m cynical, but I’m a little amazed you found Lemmy yet remain this optimistic about corporations.
The fact that the company forced him to stop getting ready to open source it strongly suggests they aren’t interested in it being open sourced.
Also, don’t ever trust companies to do anything they promised with the clear intent to garner good will, especially if the promise is years away
Big unlucky.
Are you being sarcastic?
No, that wasnt intended.
Austin is the CEO of a spyware company, while these days it’s not seen this way, it’s not too far from being a leader of a criminal organization (in my humble opinion).
I might be misremembering but wasn’t it bought out by one of those data harvesting companies a while ago?
Yes
God DAMMIT.
I don’t know why, but this is some proverbial straw for me today. Motherfuck.
Same. I loudly exclaimed “FUUUUUUCK” as I read the article, much to the confusion of my partner.
I don’t even know how to use Android without Nova…
Why does nothing good ever last?
I switched to Niagara a few years back because Nova didn’t have good support for foldables and tbh I haven’t looked back. It’s very different but once you get used to it it’s much faster than a traditional launcher.
I’ve been using Niagara for about 6 months now and love it. Having the alphabet down the side of the home screen for immediate 2 tap access to any app is so slick.
I switched to Niagara a few years ago when Nova was sold. True game changer once you get used to it (which doesn’t take too long). It works great on phone or tablet. And there is still something SO satisfying about watching the alphabet and apps move with your thumb. It’s so smooth and the haptic feedback is perfect (running on Pixel 7, GrapheneOS, and a cheap old Samsung tablet A8).
Random video showing the UI within the first minute:
Yep, have been using and currently using Nova for the last 8 years I think. Suuucks to see it go as I couldn’t find a viable search based launcher like Nova when it was sold.
I like Olauncher a lot but I can’t do like a feature comparison with Nova, I never used it. Hope you find something good to replace it with though!
Its Lawnchair or nothing for me.
I used to use lawnchair but there was some lag with it. Now I use whatever default launcher there is that graphene has
I dislike that I can’t group up things in folders in graphene in the drawer. I switched to Smart Launcher. It’s not exactly folders, but it’s good.
