So Long (Nova Launcher)

Fulcrum29

Fulcrum29

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Hi everyone,

I'm the founder and original developer of Nova Launcher. I've been the only one working on Nova for the past year. I needed to let you know that I have left Branch and am no longer involved with Nova Launcher.

For the past several months I have been preparing the Open Source release of Nova Launcher. This work included cleaning up the codebase, reviewing licenses, removing or replacing proprietary code, and coordinating with legal to ensure a proper release. When Branch acquired Nova in 2022, Branch then-CEO and founder Alex Austin made several public commitments to the community about Nova's future, including statements about open sourcing:

"Thanks for the suggestion! I'll bring it up with Kevin but ultimately [releasing the source code] is his call." (Link)

- Alex Austin

"If Kevin were to ever leave, it's contracted that the code will be open sourced and put in the hands of the community." (Link)

- Alex Austin

However I was ultimately asked to stop working on Nova Launcher and the open sourcing effort.

Nova Launcher has been an incredible project and has an incredible community. I'm grateful for the years of support, feedback, and enthusiasm.

Kevin Barry
Click to expand...

RIP
 
I haven't used Nova Launcher in a long time. The big reason being that it is unstable on newer Android versions. The Google Pixel team has gone to some lengths to make third-party launchers more operable.

The question now is what will happen to the current version that is on the Google Play Store: will it be removed, or will it remain?
 
I was a registered user, and liked it a lot, but there were stability issues in the last couple of years. I only seriously used a couple of features I couldn't find in the standard launcher, so standard launcher is what I stick with now.
 

Nova Launcher’s founder and sole developer has left - The Verge​

Kevin Barry had been working on open sourcing the launcher, but said he was told to stop work on that project.​


1757406587706.png

After nearly everyone working on the Nova Launcher, one of the most recognizable names in Android launchers, was laid off last year, founder Kevin Barry, Nova’s sole remaining developer, said this weekend that he has left Nova’s parent company after being asked to stop working on the launcher and an effort to open-source it.

Nova Launcher’s website currently shows a 404 error, though the launcher is still available on Google Play.

Mobile analytics company Branch Metrics acquired Nova in 2022. The company’s CEO at the time, co-founder Alex Austin, said on Reddit that if Barry were to leave Branch, “it’s contracted that the code will be open-sourced and put in the hands of the community.”

Austin left Branch in 2023, and now with Barry officially gone from the company, too, it’s unclear if the launcher will now actually be open-sourced.

Barry declined to comment to The Verge. We’ve reached out to Branch for comment.
Click to expand...

Read the full article at the link below:

www.theverge.com

Nova Launcher’s founder and sole developer has left

Users want the launcher to be open sourced — which a former CEO said would happen.
www.theverge.com www.theverge.com
 
Smart launcher for me. Been my daily for close to a year now. And I'm a long time nova user.
 
sand_man said:
Smart launcher for me. Been my daily for close to a year now. And I'm a long time nova user.
Click to expand...

Yeah, Smart Launcher is solid. Though I am only using it on older devices.

Launchers I have in my catalogue, all paid, include:

- Nova Launcher (RIP)
- hyperion
- Smart Launcher
- Niagara Launcher*
- Oasis Launcher*
- Before Launcher

*Favourites
 
Niagara is amazing! Rather unconventional layout but incredibly intuitive. Personally I've never felt comfortable using it as my daily for longer than a couple of months at a time...
 
sand_man said:
Niagara is amazing! Rather unconventional layout but incredibly intuitive. Personally I've never felt comfortable using it as my daily for longer than a couple of months at a time...
Click to expand...

I use it on my work phone. For that, it work wonders.
 
Coming from Windows Phone, Square Home (paid version) is my only launcher of choice. :cool:
 
My phone doesn't support double tap screen off..... Which launchers support double tap?
 
Still using Nova. Any of these other launchers have swipe gestures to launch apps?
 
Yeah I mentioned it briefly here my personal experience:


RedViking said:
Nova has new owners and they haven't done any major updates and they haven't done updates since last year and there are issue and crashes, so I can't use it anymore. But it used to be pay once and own for life, original dev anyways
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RedViking said:
Currently I am between the Xiaomi one and Lawnchair, which is the only alternative I know to Nova which doesn't require a subscription. Xiaomi works and love the gestures , just the widgets that are broken.
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RedViking said:
I've used Nova Launcher for many years, could never find something close to the flexibility it gave, but as Android became more aggressive in what access 3rd parties have, Xiaomi even worse, and stricter control many features became unavailable. It's a shame. Google and Xiaomi really hates it when 3rd party apps gives a better experience, hiding under the excuse of privacy and control....
Click to expand...
 
Most inbuilt launchers these days are pretty good. So I look for a third-party launcher which adds features that are important to me, like an agenda widget and weather widget. The best are smart launcher and Niagara launcher. Kvaesitso, which is free, is also excellent.
 
sand_man said:
Smart launcher for me. Been my daily for close to a year now. And I'm a long time nova user.
Click to expand...
What is the screenshot app you use now again to better show off your home screen look? I have completely forgotten the name haha
 
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