In Linux systems, we often need to open multiple applications and hope to start them quickly in the shortest time. However, it's not convenient to find every application in the traditional application menu. At this time, a Linux artifact-ULAUNCHER came into being! This article will introduce you how to use ULAUNCHER to quickly launch applications and improve work efficiency.
The App Launcher lets you quickly access or open an app without wandering over the app menu icon. By default, I find Pop!_OS’s app launcher super convenient. However, not every Linux distribution offers an app launcher out of the box. Fortunately, there is a way you can add an app launcher to most popular distributions.
Ulauncher: Open Source Application Launcher
Ulauncher is a fast application launcher built with Python and GTK. It offers a fair amount of customization and control options for tweaking. Overall, you can tweak its behavior and experience to suit your preferences. Let me tell you some of the features you can expect from it.
Ulauncher Function
The options in Ulauncher are very, very accessible and easy to customize. Some key highlights include:
Fuzzy search algorithm allows you to find applications even if you misspell them
Can remember the last application you searched for in the same session
Show frequently used applications (optional)
Custom color theme
Default color themes, including a dark theme
Summon launcher shortcuts can be easily customized
Browse files and directories
Supports extensions for additional features (emojis, weather, speed test, notes, password manager, etc.)
Shortcuts to browsing sites like Google, Wikipedia, and Stack Overflow
It provides almost all the useful capabilities you would expect in an app launcher, and even better.
How to use Ulauncher in Linux?
By default, after opening the app launcher from the app menu for the first time, you need to press Ctrl Space to open the app launcher. Enter to search for an app. If you are looking for a file or directory, start the input with ~ or /.
There are some default shortcuts like g XYZ where "XYZ" is the search term you want to search in Google.
Similarly, you can search directly in Wikipedia or Stack Overflow through the wiki and so shortcut keys. Without any extensions, you can also calculate the contents directly and copy the results directly to the clipboard.
This should be handy when doing quick calculations without having to launch a separate calculator app. You can head to its extensions page to browse useful extensions, as well as screenshots that guide you on how to use it. To change the way it works, enable showing frequently used apps, and adjust the theme, tap the gear icon to the right of the launcher.
You can set it to start automatically. However, if it doesn't work on your Systemd-enabled distribution, you can refer to its GitHub page and add it to the service manager.
The options are very intuitive and easy to customize, as shown below.
Installing Ulauncher in Linux
Ulauncher provides a deb package for Debian or Ubuntu based distributions. If you are new to Linux, you can learn how to install Deb files.
In both cases, you can also add its PPA and install it by following the command below through the terminal:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:agornostal/ulauncher sudo apt update sudo apt install ulauncher
You can also find it in the AUR, the default repository for Arch and Fedora.
For more information, you can head to its official website or GitHub page.
Ulauncher
Ulauncher should be an impressive addition to any Linux distribution. Especially if you want the functionality of a quick launcher like what Pop!_OS offers, this is a fantastic option to consider.
Have you tried Ulauncher? You're welcome to share your ideas on how to help you get your work done quickly.
Through this article, we learned how to use the Linux artifact ULAUNCHER to quickly launch applications and improve work efficiency. ULAUNCHER supports custom shortcut keys, custom themes and other functions, which can easily meet the personalized needs of users. Unlike other application menus, ULAUNCHER is lighter, faster, and easier to use. It is one of the must-have tools for Linux users.
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