Kelp 2.2.0

Kelp 2.2.0

New Features

• Windows Actions & System Deep Links: Natural-language execution for theme toggles (dark mode, change theme to light mode, negation-aware turn off dark mode), system utilities (lock, empty recycle bin, flush dns, volume), and direct access to 100+ Windows 10/11 settings pages, .msc consoles, and Control Panel applets.
• Calculator & Conversions: Real-time arithmetic evaluation, percentage calculations (20% of 450, 150 + 18%), programmer base conversions (hex, dec, bin), and bidirectional unit conversions across 8 categories (Length, Mass, Temperature, Data Size, Time, Speed, Volume, Area).
• Clipboard History: In-memory ring buffer capturing recent copied text, searchable via clip, clipboard, or cb with instant Enter-to-copy.
• Quick Developer & Productivity Tools: Zero-dependency utilities for UUID v4 generation (uuid), Unix timestamps (now, epoch), Base64/URL encoding and decoding, #HEX/rgb/hsl color conversion, text inspection (count, len), local IPv4 lookup, password generation, and dice/coin randomizers.
• Open Window Switcher: Search and switch directly to open top-level application windows via win or win <query>.

Improvements

• Result Ranking & Prefix Isolation: Calibrated ranking scores so short application and file queries (e, co) preserve top priority without interference from math constants or settings prefixes.
• Dynamic Tool Cache Bypass: Added automated cache bypass for time-sensitive, random, or stateful queries (now, uuid, clip, win, kill).
• Result Badges & Highlighting: Added dedicated result badges (CALC, CONVERT, TOOL, CLIPBOARD, WINDOW, SETTING) and multi-token search highlighting.

Fixes

• Fixed prefix cache subset poisoning when querying file extensions like .pdf.
• Fixed toast timer cancellation on launcher reopening.
• Fixed Unicode byte-boundary slicing in query normalization.

Assets

• KelpSetup-v2.2.0.exe — Windows installer

Kelp 2.1.0

New Features

• Media transport controls: Added zero-query media dashboard displaying active playback, track metadata, album art, and controls (Play/Pause, Next, Previous) via Windows GSMTC with hotkey support (Ctrl+Space, Ctrl+Left, Ctrl+Right).
• Windows settings search: Integrated 100+ Windows 10/11 system settings pages with deep-link navigation and fuzzy search ranking.
• Direct system toggles: Added instant registry-level toggles for Dark/Light mode, audio mute, and emptying the Recycle Bin.

Improvements

• Context actions inspector: Redesigned file action preview into a compact horizontal inspector card (~96px) showing file metadata and iconography without layout overflow.
• Action options styling: Replaced redundant subtitles with descriptive action labels and updated badges to ACTION.
• Navigation parity: Added mouse click execution for context actions and a clickable back button in the breadcrumb bar.
• Typography: Standardized font hierarchy using Inter, Instrument Serif, and JetBrains Mono.

Fixes

• Fixed window clipping and layout jitter caused by asynchronous thumbnail loading.
• Fixed action options list overflow and selection indicator misalignment.
• Removed duplicate DOM elements to improve rendering performance.

Kelp v2.0.0

Kelp v2.0 is a complete overhaul focusing on sub-millisecond search speed, seamless onboarding, and improved desktop control for Windows.

Highlights in v2.0

• Non-Blocking Startup: Launches instantly; filesystem indexing now runs entirely in the background without freezing the window.
• New Onboarding Experience: A calm 4-step setup with audio guidance to select your summon shortcut (Alt + Space or Ctrl + Space), configure search directories, and learn quick tips.
• Process Termination (kill): Type kill to view all running user applications with their icons and close frozen apps directly from search.
• Website Shortcuts: Launch frequently used sites with short aliases (e.g. yt for YouTube, gh for GitHub, gpt for ChatGPT).
• File Mover & Previews: Press the Right Arrow on any search result to inspect details, preview images, or move files with automatic duplicate renaming.
• Smart Directory Exclusions: Heavy build and dependency folders (node_modules, .git, target, .venv) are automatically excluded to keep searches fast and memory light.
• Refined Interface: Native floating scrollbars, clean transitions, and instant search clear behavior.

---

Installation

1. Download KelpSetup-v2.0.0.exe from the Assets section below.
2. Run the installer and launch Kelp.
3. Press Alt + Space anytime to start searching.

Requirements: Windows 10 / 11 (64-bit)

v1.0.0

Kelp v1.0.0

A focused release with improvements to usability, safety, and overall stability.

• Added a dedicated Settings page.
• Resolved multiple UI issues and improved interface consistency.
• Introduced safeguards for shutdown and other power actions.
• Improved overall stability, performance, and polish.

Kelp Pre-Alpha v0.1.1

Kelp Pre-Alpha v2.2

This release focuses on improving stability, polishing the overall user experience, and introducing more powerful system action workflows.

New Features

Context Actions

Pressing the Right Arrow on any application, file, folder, or shortcut now opens a contextual actions menu with quick operations:

• Open
• Run as Administrator
• Open File Location
• Copy Path to Clipboard

This provides faster access to common actions without leaving Kelp.

Intelligent Power Scheduling

System power commands now support natural language scheduling directly from the search bar.

Examples:

• shutdown in 15 mins
• shutdown at 11:30pm
• restart in 1 hour
• restart at 10pm

Kelp automatically parses the requested time, schedules the operation, and displays a live countdown until execution.

Scheduled Restart Support

Restart commands now include the same scheduling capabilities previously available only for shutdown operations.

Launch at Windows Startup

Kelp can now be configured during installation to automatically start with Windows, ensuring it is always ready when your system boots.

---

Improvements & Fixes

PowerShell Window Flash

Resolved an issue where temporary PowerShell/Command Prompt windows briefly appeared while indexing UWP applications.

UI Layout Stability

Fixed window height synchronization issues that occasionally caused cropped results when switching between different search views.

Cleaner Search Results

Shortcut entries now automatically remove the .lnk suffix, resulting in a cleaner and more native search experience.

Context Menu Polish

Removed unnecessary chevron indicators from context action items and prevented nested context menu triggers for more predictable navigation.

---

Performance

This release includes several internal refinements to improve responsiveness and overall stability throughout the launcher experience.

As always, feedback and bug reports are greatly appreciated as Kelp continues to evolve.

v0.1.0-alpha-rc1

Kelp Search - Pre-Alpha Release 2

This release introduces background tray execution and optimizations to the search and navigation experience.

Key Updates:

• Background Integration: Closing the window now minimizes Kelp to the system tray. The process can be cleanly exited using the tray context menu.
• Extension Filtering: Resolves a cache matching bug where searching for specific extensions (e.g. .pdf, .lnk) would return no results.
• Clamped Keyboard Navigation: Results list navigation stops at the top and bottom items instead of wrapping around.
• UI Snapping: The search selection indicator snaps instantly to the first item when a new query is typed, removing transition delays.

v0.1.0-alpha - Pre-Alpha Release

Kelp v0.1.0-alpha

The first public alpha release of Kelp — a fast, keyboard-first launcher for Windows built with Rust.

** Alpha Release**
This is an early preview. Expect bugs and missing features while Kelp is under active development.

Highlights

• Fast local search for apps, files, folders, and shortcuts
• Intelligent fuzzy search with adaptive ranking
• Global Alt + Space hotkey
• Lightweight native Windows application
• Modern UI with automatic light/dark mode
• Installer with Start Menu integration

Installation

1. Download KelpSetup-v0.1.0-alpha.exe from the release assets.
2. Install and launch Kelp.
3. Press Alt + Space to start searching.

Known Issues

• Search ranking is still being refined.
• Some file search edge cases may exist.
• Settings and customization are planned for a future release.

Feedback

Found a bug or have a suggestion? Please open an Issue on GitHub.

Thanks for trying Kelp!