0.1.0-alpha10

The tenth published build. Pinned apps and search show a count of active notifications.

Changes in this release

• Notification badges. A count appears beside a pinned or searched app when that app has dismissible notifications. It is driven by Android's notification listener, not by polling. Above 99 the badge reads 99+.
• Settings. Notification access is a status line. When it is off, < android settings opens Android's notification-access screen. Badge colors are picked from the 16 DOS colors, and the size is 1, 2, or 3. The color you pick is what Home paints, including a low-contrast choice.

Install

Download the APK below, allow your browser to install unknown applications when Android asks, then open it. To make it your home screen: Settings → Apps → Default apps → Home app → Terminal Launcher, or press Home once and pick it from the chooser.

If Android says the package conflicts with an existing one, uninstall Terminal Launcher first, then install this APK. That happens when the previous build was signed with a different debug key. This build is versionCode 10, so it should install over alpha09 when the signature matches.

Still a debug build, with the same consequences

It is signed with the Android debug key and debuggable, so:

• on a device with USB debugging on, any connected host can attach to the launcher and read what it stored, which is your settings and what you pinned, nothing else;
• a properly signed release will still not be able to update this build. Android refuses an update whose signature does not match, so moving to the signed build will mean uninstalling this one first, which takes your settings and pins with it.

It is also unoptimised, which is why it weighs around 25 MB.

What it does

Two shells, Unix and DOS, chosen in the settings, with the prompt, the command names, the application names, and every message written in that style. Search while you type. Only registered commands run: there is no shell behind the prompt, no Runtime.exec, no arbitrary intent. Pinned applications and shortcuts survive restarts, settings persist, a double tap on Home locks the screen, a swipe down opens the notification shade or quick settings when the list cannot scroll further, and a swipe up opens Overview. Those actions share one accessibility service that reads nothing on screen.

help lists the commands.

0.1.0-alpha09

The ninth published build. Idle Home no longer re-reads the battery on every broadcast.

Changes in this release

• Idle Home stays idle. The status line reads the extras the battery broadcast already carries, instead of hitting BatteryManager on every tick. Clock and battery collectors run only while those parts of the line are shown. The accessibility service used for lock, shade, and Overview asks Android for no events.

Install

Download the APK below, allow your browser to install unknown applications when Android asks, then open it. To make it your home screen: Settings → Apps → Default apps → Home app → Terminal Launcher, or press Home once and pick it from the chooser.

If Android says the package conflicts with an existing one, uninstall Terminal Launcher first, then install this APK. That happens when the previous build was signed with a different debug key.

Still a debug build, with the same consequences

It is signed with the Android debug key and debuggable, so:

• on a device with USB debugging on, any connected host can attach to the launcher and read what it stored, which is your settings and what you pinned, nothing else;
• a properly signed release will still not be able to update this build. Android refuses an update whose signature does not match, so moving to the signed build will mean uninstalling this one first, which takes your settings and pins with it.

It is also unoptimised, which is why it weighs around 25 MB.

What it does

Two shells, Unix and DOS, chosen in the settings, with the prompt, the command names, the application names, and every message written in that style. Search while you type. Only registered commands run: there is no shell behind the prompt, no Runtime.exec, no arbitrary intent. Pinned applications and shortcuts survive restarts, settings persist, a double tap on Home locks the screen, a swipe down opens the notification shade or quick settings when the list cannot scroll further, and a swipe up opens Overview. Those actions share one accessibility service that reads nothing on screen.

help lists the commands.

0.1.0-alpha08

The eighth published build. Home scrolls when the list can still move.

Changes in this release

• A long list scrolls from anywhere. Swipe down no longer opens the shade while there are still rows above. Notifications and quick settings open only at the top of the list (left / right). Swipe up at the bottom still opens Overview.
• Hold choices stay visible. Pin and uninstall under a held application are scrolled into view when they would sit below the list.
• Uninstall asks Android. uninstall declares REQUEST_DELETE_PACKAGES, so Android shows its own confirmation instead of refusing the request.
• DONE clears the prompt. After submit, SwiftKey writing the submitted word back is ignored. The field stays empty for every command.

Install

Download the APK below, allow your browser to install unknown applications when Android asks, then open it. To make it your home screen: Settings → Apps → Default apps → Home app → Terminal Launcher, or press Home once and pick it from the chooser.

If Android says the package conflicts with an existing one, uninstall Terminal Launcher first, then install this APK. That happens when the previous build was signed with a different debug key.

Still a debug build, with the same consequences

It is signed with the Android debug key and debuggable, so:

• on a device with USB debugging on, any connected host can attach to the launcher and read what it stored, which is your settings and what you pinned, nothing else;
• a properly signed release will still not be able to update this build. Android refuses an update whose signature does not match, so moving to the signed build will mean uninstalling this one first, which takes your settings and pins with it.

It is also unoptimised, which is why it weighs around 25 MB.

What it does

Two shells, Unix and DOS, chosen in the settings, with the prompt, the command names, the application names, and every message written in that style. Search while you type. Only registered commands run: there is no shell behind the prompt, no Runtime.exec, no arbitrary intent. Pinned applications and shortcuts survive restarts, settings persist, a double tap on Home locks the screen, a swipe down opens the notification shade or quick settings when the list cannot scroll further, and a swipe up opens Overview. Those actions share one accessibility service that reads nothing on screen.

help lists the commands.

0.1.0-alpha07

The seventh published build. Same user-facing changes as alpha06, with a version code Android will install over that APK.

Changes in this release

• Hold choices stay visible. Pin and uninstall under a held application are scrolled into view when they would sit below the list.
• Uninstall asks Android. uninstall declares REQUEST_DELETE_PACKAGES, so Android shows its own confirmation instead of refusing the request.
• DONE clears the prompt. After submit, SwiftKey writing the submitted word back is ignored. The field stays empty for every command.

Install

Download the APK below, allow your browser to install unknown applications when Android asks, then open it. To make it your home screen: Settings → Apps → Default apps → Home app → Terminal Launcher, or press Home once and pick it from the chooser.

If Android says the package conflicts with an existing one, uninstall Terminal Launcher first, then install this APK. That happens when the previous build was signed with a different debug key.

Still a debug build, with the same consequences

It is signed with the Android debug key and debuggable, so:

• on a device with USB debugging on, any connected host can attach to the launcher and read what it stored, which is your settings and what you pinned, nothing else;
• a properly signed release will still not be able to update this build. Android refuses an update whose signature does not match, so moving to the signed build will mean uninstalling this one first, which takes your settings and pins with it.

It is also unoptimised, which is why it weighs around 25 MB.

What it does

Two shells, Unix and DOS, chosen in the settings, with the prompt, the command names, the application names, and every message written in that style. Search while you type. Only registered commands run: there is no shell behind the prompt, no Runtime.exec, no arbitrary intent. Pinned applications and shortcuts survive restarts, settings persist, a double tap on Home locks the screen, a swipe down opens the notification shade or quick settings, and a swipe up opens Overview. Those actions share one accessibility service that reads nothing on screen.

help lists the commands.

0.1.0-alpha06

The sixth published build. Hold choices stay on screen, uninstall opens Android's confirmation, and DONE leaves the prompt empty.

Changes in this release

• Hold choices stay visible. Pin and uninstall under a held application are scrolled into view when they would sit below the list.
• Uninstall asks Android. uninstall declares REQUEST_DELETE_PACKAGES, so Android shows its own confirmation instead of refusing the request.
• DONE clears the prompt. After submit, SwiftKey writing the submitted word back is ignored. The field stays empty for every command.

Install

Download the APK below, allow your browser to install unknown applications when Android asks, then open it. To make it your home screen: Settings → Apps → Default apps → Home app → Terminal Launcher, or press Home once and pick it from the chooser.

If Android says the package conflicts with an existing one, uninstall Terminal Launcher first, then install this APK. That happens when the previous build was signed with a different debug key.

Still a debug build, with the same consequences

It is signed with the Android debug key and debuggable, so:

• on a device with USB debugging on, any connected host can attach to the launcher and read what it stored, which is your settings and what you pinned, nothing else;
• a properly signed release will still not be able to update this build. Android refuses an update whose signature does not match, so moving to the signed build will mean uninstalling this one first, which takes your settings and pins with it.

It is also unoptimised, which is why it weighs around 25 MB.

What it does

Two shells, Unix and DOS, chosen in the settings, with the prompt, the command names, the application names, and every message written in that style. Search while you type. Only registered commands run: there is no shell behind the prompt, no Runtime.exec, no arbitrary intent. Pinned applications and shortcuts survive restarts, settings persist, a double tap on Home locks the screen, a swipe down opens the notification shade or quick settings, and a swipe up opens Overview. Those actions share one accessibility service that reads nothing on screen.

help lists the commands.

0.1.0-alpha05

The fifth published build. Overview from a swipe, shade gestures next to the prompt, and Enter that actually clears the line on SwiftKey.

Changes in this release

• Overview. A swipe up that starts in the lower half of Home opens Android Recents, the same screen the system overview control opens. It uses the accessibility service the double tap already holds, and does nothing while that service is off.
• Shade lives there too. Swipe down in the lower half opens notifications on the left and quick settings on the right. The upper half only scrolls. Pins and search above the prompt are in the gesture zone.
• Enter clears the prompt. SwiftKey on Honor does not send IME Done: it inserts a newline and then writes the submitted word back. The line is submitted, the field is cleared at once, and that stale IME edit is dropped.

Install

Download the APK below, allow your browser to install unknown applications when Android asks, then open it. To make it your home screen: Settings → Apps → Default apps → Home app → Terminal Launcher, or press Home once and pick it from the chooser.

If Android says the package conflicts with an existing one, uninstall Terminal Launcher first, then install this APK. That happens when the previous build was signed with a different debug key.

Still a debug build, with the same consequences

It is signed with the Android debug key and debuggable, so:

• on a device with USB debugging on, any connected host can attach to the launcher and read what it stored, which is your settings and what you pinned, nothing else;
• a properly signed release will still not be able to update this build. Android refuses an update whose signature does not match, so moving to the signed build will mean uninstalling this one first, which takes your settings and pins with it.

It is also unoptimised, which is why it weighs around 25 MB.

What it does

Two shells, Unix and DOS, chosen in the settings, with the prompt, the command names, the application names, and every message written in that style. Search while you type. Only registered commands run: there is no shell behind the prompt, no Runtime.exec, no arbitrary intent. Pinned applications and shortcuts survive restarts, settings persist, a double tap on Home locks the screen, a swipe down opens the notification shade or quick settings, and a swipe up opens Overview. Those actions share one accessibility service that reads nothing on screen.

help lists the commands.

0.1.0-alpha04

The fourth published build. One change since alpha03, and it is the swipe that opens the shade without the status bar.

Changes in this release

• Swipe down for notifications and quick settings (#93). A swipe down that starts in the upper half of Home opens the notification shade from the left half and quick settings from the right, the two panels the status bar would open. It uses the same accessibility service the double tap already holds, and does nothing while that service is off. A swipe that starts in the lower half still scrolls.

Install

Download the APK below, allow your browser to install unknown applications when Android asks, then open it. To make it your home screen: Settings → Apps → Default apps → Home app → Terminal Launcher, or press Home once and pick it from the chooser.

This one updates alpha03 in place. Both are signed with the same debug key, verified certificate against certificate, so Android accepts the update and your settings and pins survive it.

Still a debug build, with the same consequences

It is what CI builds and verifies on every commit, signed with the Android debug key and debuggable, so:

• on a device with USB debugging on, any connected host can attach to the launcher and read what it stored, which is your settings and what you pinned, nothing else;
• a properly signed release will still not be able to update this build. Android refuses an update whose signature does not match, so moving to the signed build will mean uninstalling this one first, which takes your settings and pins with it.

It is also unoptimised, which is why it weighs around 25 MB.

What it does

Two shells, Unix and DOS, chosen in the settings, with the prompt, the command names, the application names, and every message written in that style. Search while you type. Only registered commands run: there is no shell behind the prompt, no Runtime.exec, no arbitrary intent. Pinned applications and shortcuts survive restarts, settings persist, a double tap on Home locks the screen, and a swipe down opens the notification shade or quick settings. Those three actions share one accessibility service that reads nothing on screen.

help lists the commands.

0.1.0-alpha03

The third published build. One change since alpha02, and it is the one that lets a long press uninstall as well as pin.

Changes in this release

• A held application offers pin and uninstall (#89). A long press used to write pin or unpin into the prompt and nothing else, so uninstalling meant typing the command. Holding an application now offers the two choices under that row, written in the arrested colour of output so they read as options rather than as applications. Choosing one writes the command, keyboard open, ready for Enter. Nothing runs until the line is submitted. Shortcuts still write their command on a long press.

Install

Download the APK below, allow your browser to install unknown applications when Android asks, then open it. To make it your home screen: Settings → Apps → Default apps → Home app → Terminal Launcher, or press Home once and pick it from the chooser.

This one updates alpha02 in place. Both are signed with the same debug key, verified certificate against certificate, so Android accepts the update and your settings and pins survive it.

Still a debug build, with the same consequences

It is what CI builds and verifies on every commit, signed with the Android debug key and debuggable, so:

• on a device with USB debugging on, any connected host can attach to the launcher and read what it stored, which is your settings and what you pinned, nothing else;
• a properly signed release will still not be able to update this build. Android refuses an update whose signature does not match, so moving to the signed build will mean uninstalling this one first, which takes your settings and pins with it.

It is also unoptimised, which is why it weighs around 25 MB.

What it does

Two shells, Unix and DOS, chosen in the settings, with the prompt, the command names, the application names, and every message written in that style. Search while you type. Only registered commands run: there is no shell behind the prompt, no Runtime.exec, no arbitrary intent. Pinned applications and shortcuts survive restarts, settings persist, and a double tap on Home locks the screen through an accessibility service that does nothing else.

help lists the commands.

0.1.0-alpha02

The second published build. One change since alpha01, and it is one that shows up every time you start something.

Changes in this release

• The keyboard leaves with Home (#85). Starting an application left the prompt focused, so Android handed the keyboard straight back when the launcher returned, over a line that had already been cleared. Home now releases the prompt wherever it hands the screen over, a tapped row or a submitted line, and wherever something else takes the screen, the recents switcher, the lock, or an application started from somewhere else. A command that only prints its answer leaves the keyboard where it is, since the terminal has not gone anywhere.

Install

Download the APK below, allow your browser to install unknown applications when Android asks, then open it. To make it your home screen: Settings → Apps → Default apps → Home app → Terminal Launcher, or press Home once and pick it from the chooser.

This one updates alpha01 in place. Both are signed with the same debug key, verified certificate against certificate, so Android accepts the update and your settings and pins survive it.

Still a debug build, with the same consequences

It is what CI builds and verifies on every commit, signed with the Android debug key and debuggable, so:

• on a device with USB debugging on, any connected host can attach to the launcher and read what it stored, which is your settings and what you pinned, nothing else;
• a properly signed release will still not be able to update this build. Android refuses an update whose signature does not match, so moving to the signed build will mean uninstalling this one first, which takes your settings and pins with it.

It is also unoptimised, which is why it weighs around 25 MB.

What it does

Two shells, Unix and DOS, chosen in the settings, with the prompt, the command names, the application names, and every message written in that style. Search while you type. Only registered commands run: there is no shell behind the prompt, no Runtime.exec, no arbitrary intent. Pinned applications and shortcuts survive restarts, settings persist, and a double tap on Home locks the screen through an accessibility service that does nothing else.

help lists the commands.

0.1.0-alpha01

The first published build of Terminal Launcher: an Android home screen that works like a terminal. Type a name, press Enter, the application starts.

Install

Download the APK below, allow your browser to install unknown applications when Android asks, then open it. To make it your home screen: Settings → Apps → Default apps → Home app → Terminal Launcher, or press Home once and pick it from the chooser.

This is a debug build, and that has consequences

The APK is what the CI builds and verifies on every commit, signed with the Android debug key that every machine shares, and it is debuggable. Two things follow, and the second one matters later:

• On a device with USB debugging on, any connected host can attach to the launcher and read what it stored. It stores your settings and what you pinned, nothing else, but it is worth knowing.
• A properly signed release will not be able to update this build. Android refuses an update whose signature does not match, so moving to the signed build will mean uninstalling this one first, which takes your settings and pins with it.

It is also unoptimised, which is why it weighs around 25 MB where a shrunk release build would be a fraction of that.

Changes in this release

Everything here is new, since nothing was published before it. What follows is what landed most recently.

• Home answers Back itself (#77). Home is the root of the launcher task, so a Back that nothing else consumed used to finish the activity and leave the system to start Home again, which read as the launcher reopening and took the terminal history with it. Back on Home now does nothing, the way a home screen behaves, while the settings and a focused prompt keep answering it first.
• The pinned block says what it is (#79). The applications and shortcuts pinned to Home were bare rows, indistinguishable from a search result or a listing. The active shell now frames them the way its own listing command announces a directory: ~/pinned: on Unix, Directory of C:\HOME\PINNED with a file count on DOS.
• The search results announce themselves (#80). What the typed line matches is now introduced with its count, 1 match: or 3 matches: on Unix, closed with 2 File(s) found on DOS, and a search that matches nothing says so instead of showing an empty screen that reads like a search that never ran.
• help is grouped (#81). Twenty-three consecutive lines became four named groups, apps, home, device, and launcher, separated by blank lines, with the invocation forms indented by two spaces instead of ten.
• Two more themes (#64). C64 reproduces the light blue on blue of the machine it is named after, and Solarized brings the dark palette of that name, joining Green, Amber, Monochrome, and System.
• The README reads as a project page (#75), with pictures generated by the test suite itself, so what it shows is what the launcher renders.

What it does

Two shells, Unix and DOS, chosen in the settings, with the prompt, the command names, the application names, and every message written in that style. Search while you type. Only registered commands run: there is no shell behind the prompt, no Runtime.exec, no arbitrary intent. Pinned applications and shortcuts survive restarts, settings persist, and a double tap on Home locks the screen through an accessibility service that does nothing else.

help lists the commands.