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this post was submitted on 20 Jul 2023
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Android
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Why do you need to trust a launcher with your data at all? Why does it ever leave your device? This made me very skeptical about them.
A launcher needs a lot of privileges to do its work. I have to trust it that it does not collect/send anything to anywhere.
My AOSP launcher has zero permissions, except one that I optionally enabled to see notifications so it can do the little notification dots on my app icons.
I was referencing usual launchers with a rich set of features. As fas as I remember, one can also disable most of the permissions for no a as well, but this will kill all cool features.
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Well sure, but that also means it's rather limited in what it does. In theory if it had no permissions, it couldn't even list the installed apps.
So I guess what you want to say is that it has some permissions, but none that leave the direct context of launching apps?
But even then... do you include a search box in that? Should that show recently opened files in apps, too? A rather common feature those contextual per-app run-actions, but they require some way of either the launcher getting this from the app, or in turn the app supplying this action to the launcher. Include a web search in that box? Sync settings? Show notifications? Gestures? All of these require a host of permissions.
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I can understand the flak they're having, but honestly Nova is the first thing I install on all my Android devices. Its so convenient and versatile
I used to too. Now just using the default one because can't be bothered to find an alternative
Didn't believe them then, don't believe them now.
RIP Nova.
Can't blame the dev for selling out. I would for a windfall and retire.
But it's time to move on. Wouldn't touch Nova with a 1000 ft pole.
That's the thing I don't get when people - me included - complain about something like this. As if I wouldn't sell ASAP. Finally some money for all that time spent on this!
Been using lawnchair since forever, I try to avoid closed source apps as much as possible, so Nova was never an option for me.
Just wish it would get more development.
The last Alpha is from August 8 and even then the current iteration is a shell of what Lawnchair was during the V2 Alpha days
Consider using Neo Launcher. It's open source and actively developed and is basically what lawnchair aimed to be.
Will check it out!
Great recommendation, gonna check it out since unfortunately Lawnchair is living on extended lifetime on my phone :')
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I tried the alternatives people were suggesting on reddit at the time:
- Some are clean (no trackers, etc), but change the experience too much and I want a traditional launcher.
- Some work like I expect them to, but Exodus ( https://reports.exodus-privacy.eu.org/en/ ) shows lots of trackers... moving from one that might track in the future to one that already tracks is not a good move.
- Open source alternatives, which I prefer, either move very slow (Neo Launcher) or are dead.
- Not all handle gesture navigation or Android 12/13 well.
So I'm still on Nova. I did upgrade to the beta as after a certain A13 update the stable version started bugging out, but that's it. I use LineageOS and can remove internet access from apps, so that's what I did. My hope is that Neo Launcher becomes more active, but until a few things are improved/fixed, I'll stay on Nova.
I could just use the stock launcher on LineageOS btw... the reason I don't is that it's easier to backup an app and restore it after a reset/moving ROMs.
I was like "Wait, aren't I using nova?"
And sure enough I was.
The fact that I don't care is a good thing. It means it doesn't piss me off and make me want to use something else.
And still no sign of the long-promised version 8 going out of beta yet ffs...
Then again I've weaned myself off Nova Launcher last year by purchasing the Fold 4.
I'm still on Nova because it just works so right for me, many others I tried didn't.
My needs are very basic
- A home screen I can place icons in specific positions (eg not forced auto sort)
- folders (drag multiple icons on top of each other to create a group/folder)
- Message count on icons, e.g my Whatsapp icon should show a little number indicating amount of new messages
- and finally, an app drawer showing all apps in a single list (without any fancy grouping)
Maybe this is normal now but years ago Nova seemed to be the only one that offered all these basic features together
Not updated since Dec 2021.
Yeah, this is what makes the announcement weird.
There are apks of the beta 8.x version on their site
Smart Launcher 6 has matured and is very fast and stable.
I personally use Neo Launcher because it has a unique feature.
I wanted a consistent launcher across different devices over time. I eventually settled on Nova Launcher, paid for it, and really liked it. I have been using it for about a decade. I just abandoned it a few hours ago because I finally determined why my tablet was grinding and halting. Nova Launcher was using over 600 MB of memory as well as leaking memory. My tablet is running like it's brand new again. I am unhappy about not being able to use it, but I'm a lot happier that I'm able to use my tablet again.
I have decided to stick with the stock GrapheneOS launcher.
I am so glad that Nova sold to that data mining owner of a company. If they hadn't I would have still been using Nova and would not have come across KISS launcher.
So fast, so efficient, with a real nice search feature. KISS has brought me great pleasure. Nova I hardly used any of the myriads of features and I was just there for the hype.
Im not even sure what this all means? Ive been using Nova Launcher since my Galaxy Note 2, though... maybe I should stop using it?
This means that around a year ago nova was sold to a data collection company. But nova team declared that this had no impact on the launcher.
this is declared for mostly every company takeover, and very rarely happens in practice.
What to do, is up to you. Many stopped using nova .
I immediately stopped using Nova after 8-plus years following that announcement.
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The version on the Play Store hasn't been updated since Dec 14, 2021 and it still works better than any other alternative imo. However, I am planning to stop using it when they eventually force us to update to the new version (which is the current beta they share through discord).
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