Ulauncher: A Powerful Linux App Launcher to Improve Your Productivity

Ulauncher is a must-have app launcher if you want to get things done on your Linux desktop. Here's how to install and use it on Linux.

App launchers enable you to launch apps and find files on your computer's local storage with ease. Apart from searching local storage, some app launchers even let you look up things on the web, perform calculations, run shell commands, and translate text, among other things.

If you're on Linux, there are several app launchers you can use to streamline your system operations. Ulauncher is one of these. It's touted to be the fastest app launcher on Linux with an extensive extensions library.

Let's dive right in and explore Ulauncher in more detail.

What Is Ulauncher?

Ulauncher is a free, lightweight, and easy-to-use app launcher for Linux. It lets you perform various operations on your computer, ranging from searching files and launching apps to running scripts, looking up things on the internet, and much more, right from the desktop.

Plus, similar to a few other app launchers, Ulauncher also offers extensions, which you can use to extend its functionality even further. What's more, you can even create your own extensions and add them to Ulauncher.

How to Install Ulauncher on Linux?

Ulauncher is easy to install. It's available on pretty much all Linux distros, and you can install it on your machine using the following instructions:

On Ubuntu/Debian-based distros, open the terminal and run:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:agornostal/ulauncher
sudo apt update
sudo apt install ulauncher

To install Ulauncher on Fedora, CentOS, and RHEL:

sudo dnf install ulauncher

Arch Linux users can install Ulauncher from the AUR using:

yay -S ulauncher

Ulauncher First Run

First, start by launching the Ulauncher app. Open the Applications menu and search for Ulauncher or run the following command in the terminal:

ulauncher

Upon launching Ulauncher, you'll see its icon in the system tray at the bottom of your desktop. Right-click on it and select Preferences to open Ulauncher Preferences. Alternatively, press the Ctrl + Space hotkey to invoke the Ulauncher search and click on the gear icon in the search box to go to Preferences.

While you're here, you can change various settings, such as the hotkey, color theme, and more.

Change Hotkey

Hotkey is the keyboard shortcut you use to invoke Ulauncher. To change it, tap on the text field next to Hotkey, press your desired keyboard shortcut, and hit Enter.

Enable Launch at Login

Over time, if you decide to use Ulauncher as the default launcher on your system, you may want it to launch automatically when you log in to eliminate the need to run the app manually.

For this, go to Ulauncher Preferences and tick the checkbox next to Launch at Login.

Exclude a Directory From Being Indexed

If there's any directory on your file system that you don't want Ulauncher to search into (in response to your query), you can blacklist it to prevent it from being indexed in the first place.

To do this, go to the directory you want to blacklist and copy its absolute path. Head back to Ulauncher Preferences and scroll down to the Advanced section. Tap on the empty text field under Blacklisted App Dirs and paste the absolute path of the directory you want to blacklist.

Hit Enter to save the changes.

How to Use Ulauncher

With Ulauncher configured, you can now use it for all kinds of searches and system operations. Below is a list of all the operations you can carry out with Ulauncher in its default state (without extensions).

1. Find a File or Directory in Local Storage

Ulauncher comes with a built-in local storage explorer. This lets you find files and directories on your system right from your desktop.

To use it, invoke the Ulauncher search (by hitting the hotkey) and append it with your query. You can also use wildcards with Ulauncher (using tilde (~) for the home directory, for example).

If you aren't familiar with the contents of a directory, type its name in the Ulauncher search and hit Enter to reveal its files and directories.

Do this until you get to your desired directory/file in a folder. When you need to open a file in the list, click on it or press the dedicated keyboard shortcut (usually Alt + x, where x is a number).

2. Launch an App

Along with finding files and directories, Ulauncher can also help you find and launch apps present on your system.

To do this, bring up the Ulauncher search and start typing the name of the app you want to open. When it shows up in the results, hit Enter or click on it to launch it.

3. Search an Item Online

Finding items on the web is another useful Ulauncher feature. In its default state, Ulauncher lets you search things on Google, Wikipedia, and Stack Overflow.

For a Google search, fire up the Ulauncher search, enter "g," and append it with your search term. If you'd like to search Wikipedia, replace "g" with "wiki", and for looking up on Stack Overflow, use "so."

4. Perform Calculations

Similar to searches, Ulauncher also allows you to make calculations directly from your desktop. For this, enter your query in the Ulauncher search, and Ulauncher will return the result in real-time. To copy the result, hit Enter.

How to Install Extensions on Ulauncher

In its default state, Ulauncher can only perform a few basic operations. But if you'd like to use it for more than just offline and online searches, you'll have to install extensions.

Follow these steps to install extensions on Ulauncher:

1. Go to Ulauncher Preferences.
2. Tap on the Extensions tab at the top and select Discover extensions to visit the Extensions website.
3. If you find an extension interesting, tap on it to learn more and reveal its URL. You can also use Ctrl + F to find an extension by name.

4. Click on the copy icon next to the text field with the extension's URL to copy it.

   
5. Go back to the Extensions tab in the Ulauncher Preferences.

6. Hit the Add extension button and paste the copied URL.

   
7. Click on Add to add the extension.

Wait a few seconds for the installation to complete. When it's done, the extension will appear in the Extensions list. If it doesn't, hit the Reload button to update the list.

Best Ulauncher Extensions You Must Use

Ulauncher offers an extensive selection of extensions on its website. Below is a list of all the best Ulauncher extensions you can use to simplify a lot of your system operations:

1. Run commands: Execute terminal commands
2. Calculate Anything: Calculate anything from units and currencies to timezones and complex calculations
3. Speedtest: Do a quick speed test on your network
4. Custom Scripts: Execute custom scripts
5. IpCopy: Quickly find and copy your public and private IP address to your clipboard
6. DuckDuckGo Bangs: Use DuckDuckGo Bangs to search the web efficiently
7. Lock Screen: Lock screen instantly from the Ulauncher search
8. Clipboard: View your clipboard history
9. Process Murderer: Kill a system process by its name
10. Spotify API: Control Spotify playback on any device from Ulauncher
11. Better file browser: Browse file system with better visuals
12. YouTube Search: Search videos on YouTube
13. English dictionary extension: Look up definitions of words
14. ShortIT: Quickly shorten a URL using any of the popular URL shorteners
15. Open URL on default browser: Open a URL in your default browser

Almost all Ulauncher extensions have a trigger keyword. It's what triggers these extensions in the Ulauncher search and lets you use it to find answers to your queries. To find the trigger keyword for an extension, go into the Extensions tab and select the extension. Find the Executer Keyword field on the right, and there you'll see its trigger keyword.

If you'd like to change it, tap on the existing initials, add your desired keyword, and hit the Save button.

Streamline Your Computer Operations With Ulauncher

Ulauncher makes it extremely easy to perform various day-to-day operations on your Linux computer. With it, you can invoke the Ulauncher search and get answers to your search queries instantly, right from the desktop, without needing to use any additional apps.

If you'd like to explore more options before settling with Ulauncher, then there are a few other Linux app launchers that you should check out.

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