So this will be a long post so just a heads up and I appreciate those who take the time to read and comment.
Posted by: pierrot | on October 2, 2014
I’m a big fan of this launcher and I really think it should be used by a wider audience. One thing that I really think could help push this launcher forward would be an easy way to theme or “skin.” The reason I say skin is because it is a bit more on par with what I have in mind. The themes out there right now are amazing but looking at launchers like Go Launcher people also love easy themes that have a set focus such as Beach, Winter, Soccer, Fire, etc.
I’ve been working on a default theme these past couple days that would replace what is currently found in the launcher. It would redo the current look and change default settings for folders, app drawer, etc. The final goal would be to make it more of a template to be easily edited and put up on the Play Store. In theory it would be a bit more strict in what could be edited such as no new items, widgets, folders, scripts, grid changes, etc. Just simply edit the options of what is already out there such as folder background, open animation, wallpaper, font, icon theme, app drawer, etc.
I know some people don’t want to dumb down this launcher and yes this default theme would not show any huge perks of LLX, but currently the default theme does not either. Other competing launchers out there simply work and look good when started. People then go on to explore the options and tinker with it. I believe LLX scares people away before they get a chance to really dive in to it. Also with an easy to theme template we would see LLX get more attention from the common user looking to have their phone reflect themselves without them looking on forums or spending hours editing options.
If given some real thought and worked on I don’t think much would have to be done as far as coding to the launcher. In the short time I’ve had this thought though I wouldn’t mind seeing a few more things put in to the exported templates. The main one being the folder icon which would be something neat to edit in a theme. I also wouldn’t mind seeing a preview.jpg being able to be put in the template to preview before applying within the options somehow. That last one would take more changes to LLX so not a needed feature.
I am also debating maybe using a standard editable folder as a menu since most people use their phone’s menu button out of habit. It would be something to add a bit more theme to the launcher and bring options/links such as Change Wallpaper, Themes, Add+, etc. This menu would not get rid of the current one accessed by long pressing the desktop. It would be in addition to it.
If done I think this would get LLX more attention which would help fund this launcher and future projects that Pierre may have in mind.
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Tags: Jacob Barton
D5 Creation
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I also would like LLX to be used and appreciated by lots of people. I don’t think Pierre would refuse the extra money rolling his way. But I don’t think it’s going to happen. Let me tell you why. I’ve used some other launchers too before landing with LLX. Go, Next, tsf, ADW, spb shell, themer, nova and of course the stock launchers. Quite a list and quite some money spent…
All of those launchers were easily accessible. Instant gratification and nice results with little effort. Cool for a while but boring in the long run. Luckily I found LLX : total control, endless possibilities and extremely lightweight. But also overwhelming, frustrating and very technical. Maybe even illogical. Back and forth between LLX and nova, and in time, LLX became easier to use, fantasy being the only limit.
I think it’s meant to be that way. LLX will always be a launcher for the developers, the tinkerers, those who accept no limits. Yes, it could have an initial setup that eases the first contact. Only leaving a lot of users disappointed about where to go next, being so easy in other launchers and so difficult in LLX. I’m convinced that making LLX easier to use and theme would severely limit it in any possible way. There’s enough easy to use launchers out there. LLX is a niche market product. Always has and always will, unless Pierre decides to turn it into the next nova. Easy interface and easy access won’t go with endless possibilities I guess.
Just my opinion and far from the absolute truth…
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Thanks for the reply Bart. I agree with you on the aspect of not making LLX simpler or limit any function it currently has or will have in the future. What I have in mind would not effect anything like that at all. In theory it would just give LLX a much needed facelift for the default theme. I believe this is needed regardless of anything going beyond that. I just figure while working on a new default theme that we could look beyond just the default theme. Make the overall process of basic editing of themes easier and more inviting to people on the market who make money from themes, which there are a ton.
The default theme would be a template as well as the default look of the launcher. Launchers like Go are easier to make a skin for because everything is more or less defined by Go Launcher and the themers simply change out files for backgrounds, icons, etc.
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What LLX missing is a good default theme which demonstrates almost all features of the launcher and looks fairly good. Another thing missing is lack of readily available 1-click installable eye candy ‘FREE’ themes. There are some awesome themes present but they are not free.
People will start using LLX with these themes and eventually end up customizing them according to their needs and exploring LLX features along the way.
BTW it’s my personal opinion and I don’t want to underestimate the efforts made by devs of LLX and themes.
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Amit Patil I offered templates as FREE and PRO (paid). Free show counts way higher than paid — naturally. But: creating templates for LLx often requires lots of work for us themers, so it’s legit we like to earn from that.
My current WIP I am working on for 4 months now, close to release (thrown back by switch from Nexus 4 to OnePlus One, am optimising for higher/other resolution).
I’m thinking whether to create a stripped down free version of it. Less functionality etc. But that’d require even more work.
I agree LLx is a niche launcher for those willing to learn. Recent updates however made it easier to create ready-to-use templates. It’s still far from simpleness like i.e. Themer — which I don’t like since it is too limited. Hard to satisfy all.
Oh, and BTW: there is no free version of LL anymore ether, so that’s another hurdle…
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I think maybe with a couple tweaks to the export function of a template as well as adding a few more items that can be edited we could see small themes be made quickly. The tweaks to the export function I mean possibly leaving the file types for the files so that they are easier to see which are text and which are images. This would allow for easier editing of the file from a computer to just replace images.
I’ll try to make a small mockup on my phone later today once I get sleep and maybe make some quick and dirty themes based on that default template. Won’t be anything special but it’ll show that even with a small amount of time you can change LLX greatly.
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Jacob Barton I agree with you, but it is on us to make that happen.
But I mean on us together. For example: I shared some full-templates on the wiki but someone else will have to make them into apk.
[one other thing: the “menu-key-menu” is already scriptable, so that is on us too.]
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You are right it is mainly on us and that is who this post is mainly for. If Pierre is interested though I was hoping to get some input on what he would and wouldn’t want to see in something like this. From previous posts I believe he doesn’t want any widgets in a default theme and I would be curious to know if he would want any scripts within a default theme as they could cause issue if not done correctly and watched over during LLX updates.
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Was trying to do some quick themes based on a basic default theme and I would have another item on the list to tweak so we can have better themeable options.
The default folder window can be set as far as background, where and how to open, etc. but you can not define icon packs or how items should look within the default folder. This would be something that if added would tie the skin together nicely.
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Thank you Jacob Barton .
Sorry for being late to comment. I read the discussion yesterday but I am running out of time.
That’s a lot of food for though, in your post and also in subsequent comments.
I think I see what you mean. I will try to sum up with my technical words, please correct me if I missed something or if my understanding is not correct. (this gather ideas found in various posts and comments).
The core concept is something like a template but without items: an APK that provides a wallpaper, a style (basically what can be found under the “Current desktop” settings category), some icon/application mapping (same as what can be found in icon packs) and possibly some scripts (either executed at time of theme loading for global setup, and scripts linked with events – yes, scripting is IMHO a core part of the launcher). This theme would not replace the user’s setup, but would instead change the look and feel of it’s existing layout.
In order to create such a theme, the LLX user would have some option to export the theme based on the current setup. It would dump the style, the wallpaper, maybe it could create an initial icon/application mapping based on installed applications in the app drawer. For better ease of use the file would contain a preview and images in the archive would be suffixed with “.png”. Once the theme has been exported, its creator could further improve it by replacing images, adding more icon mapping, or add a startup script for instance.
On the launcher side, although the current way of browsing themes is technically sufficient, it would be better to browse them with a preview.
The menu is something else. After looking at your videos in the other post, I really like it. Although I perfectly see how it works and its usefulness, I don’t know yet what would be the best way to achieve this. On one hand it must be “stylable”, on the other hand it must be part of the launcher and stay roughly the same in order to avoid confusion. It means this has to be part of the launcher somehow. And maybe it could replace the current menu (why not?): there is not always a key available to show this menu, and I believe this menu should be prominent, not just optional.
A standard folder is a good idea, I need to check a few technical details though.
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Pierre that is pretty much spot on. I was really thinking in terms of current limitations but looking forward yes that would be the best possible scenario. Being able to completely change the feel of your current setup with just a simple theme yet leaving everything you’ve set up alone.
After responding to another post I’m also not sure how to get a standard menu like that in the launcher as some phones don’t have one and Android as a whole seems to be moving away from it. I can think of multiple ways to have it pop up but they would all be something that is editable by the consumer such as swipe up, etc.
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So I just had an idea on the whole menu thing. How would you feel about having the consumer determine the action that launches the menu. So when the launcher starts they are prompted about the menu and which action they would like to assign it to. Maybe have the menu pop up when they are asked so that they are aware of what it is they are assigning. Also letting them know this can be edited at any time within the options. Maybe also have this always been assigned to the menu button if the launcher detects that the phone has a menu button.
Then just force the launcher to always have this action defined by one of the events that way the customer doesn’t get rid of the menu all together without an easy to way to get it back, at least from a lower level understanding of the browser. Or maybe just a warning that removing it without assigning it to another event will get rid of access to this function but that it can be assigned again with the events menu for that current desktop.
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The more I think at this menu, the more I like it.
I would prefer not to ask anything at startup, many users don’t read startup messages or don’t pay attention to the choice they made. In fact the current menu is pretty much in the same situation: it is configured on long tap, but it is possible to completely get rid of it without even a warning. This is partly due to my laziness, partly due to history and partly from design.
After all, it is not a so big problem if the user can disable this menu if it can be re-enabled later. I would even say that it must be possible to get rid of it.
At the moment the way I am thinking at implementing the thing this way:
– introduce a special folder with a unique and well known name
– define a few items in it, with well known names too.
– this folder and items cannot be removed (but other items can be added in the folder)
– the folder is created on first launch (or recreated at startup if not found in the current setup)
– by default the menu key open this folder, but a long tap still open the classic launcher menu
– in addition, a pinned icon somewhere in the default setup would also open the menu, useful on devices without menu key.
I believe that the current menu need to be kept somewhere (lots of useful features). It is in itself quite frightening and boring to use (long tap is slow). but I think that if a new and simplified menu can be accessed through a key or an on screen icon, then new users will naturally use it a lot more than the long tap menu, which remains here for more advanced users.
Regarding the content of the menu itself, the entries you suggested seem fine to me. One thing is bugging me though. “Add” is a feature that is best used with a position. When launched from a menu, Lightning will attempt to automatically find a hole somewhere, and it is usually not good at this. Improving this would need a major redesign of the “add item” sequence, such as drag&drop from a list of apps and so on. Or some sort of “tap on the screen to select the position for the new object”.
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Pierre Hébert An MS-XL solution/alternative come in mind : add left of existing , add right, top, bottom of existing.
This options are shown in text or with arrows/icons.
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