Customizing icons

Figuroz

unwat There isn't. @mythodical is right. Some launchers support custom icons. GrapheneOS's launcher (AOSP's launcher) doesn't.

I didn't say he's solution is not workable.
Easiest way doesn't mean the right way, even if it's the only(possible?) way.

Crystal

Figuroz But in this case, it is the right way. Whether its acceptable is completely up to you. But it is[and since this would be the only viable solution] the correct way currently. I don't really agree with the assumption of 'expose yourself to new threats'. You are not adding something like with other apps, you are replacing something. Included AOSP launcher has its own threats and 3rd party launcher would have different ones. You wouldnt be expanding the number of threats, only changing them.

matchboxbananasynergy

Also important to note that GrapheneOS natively supports themed icons for apps that support that.

Figuroz

My opinion is based on this:
https://discuss.grapheneos.org/d/467-lock-screen-wo-using-power-button
Perhaps you (@Crystal ) mean that I would be able to change icons without granting accessibility permission? That would make sense.

@matchboxbananasynergy
Is there any manual(editing some file etc) way to change icons for native / 3rd party apps? What's your opinion on this in terms of security?

Crystal

Figuroz My opinion is based on this:
https://discuss.grapheneos.org/d/467-lock-screen-wo-using-power-button
Perhaps you (@Crystal ) mean that I would be able to change icons without granting accessibility permission? That would make sense.

I see what you mean now. I wasn't refferring to accessibility permission specifically. What I meant is that apps like Launcher, SMS, Dialer, etc. can't have multiples active[at least not properly]. So let's HYPOTHETICALLY that the included AOSP launcher has 1 vulnerability. You decide to use a different 3rd party launcher that has a different 1 vulnerability. Your case didn't really jump to 2 vulnerabilities, as you can only use 1 Launcher. You'd be trading the previous vulnerability of AOSP for a vulnerability in the 3rd party launcher you chose.

Also, yes. You can change icons in launchers without granting accessibility permission. I personally did not encounter any launcher that would need that permission to change icons. Of course, this will only change it within the launcher, so in recents or in settings you would still see the original unchanged icon.

mythodical

Figuroz FWIW, I use Lawnchair v2 as my launcher (yes, the really old version on the Play store), due to it being FOSS and supporting swipe actions on icons, doubling their functionality. I was a huge fan of Nova back in the day and have become accustomed to that workflow.

It has no permissions granted, including accessibility, and it runs great. I mostly use native icons for the app drawer, but I do customize my home row.

The age of the app isn't ideal from a security perspective, as it hasn't received updates for years, and I do plan to move to v12 once it support swipe actions too.

Figuroz

Crystal Your case didn't really jump to 2 vulnerabilities, as you can only use 1 Launcher

Yeah, except that 3rd party apps can have backdoors and what not. But taking everything into account now, I can install it without granting accessibility permissions and restrict network access of it and it should work without compromising security/privacy, right?

Even so, I probably won't install it just to change icons. I might be wrong here, but I think it won't be too hard to implement a native solution to customize icons for apps.

mythodical swipe actions on icons

What does it mean exactly, can you please give an example?

mythodical It has no permissions granted, including accessibility, and it runs great. I mostly use native icons for the app drawer, but I do customize my home row.

You're talking about Lawnchair v2, correct?
And thanks for sharing

mythodical

Figuroz correct, I'm talking about Lawnchair v2. Unfortunately, the more recent Lawnchair v12 alpha does not yet support the feature. Icon swiping, or whatever its official term, allows you to assign a secondary app to an icon, which can then be executed by swiping instead of tapping the icon.

Some launchers even allow you to separately swipe up and down, effectively providing three shortcuts per icon.

I like to maintain a pretty minimal home screen, with just 5 icons along the bottom. Each has a dual-action, from left to right: Dialer (swipe to speed dial my SO), Signal (Messaging), App folder (Vanadium), Etar Calendar (Clock), and K-9 Mail (Infinity for Reddit). I find it's an efficient way to access core tasks without any clutter.

6gsxdr3U

unwat Do you know if there are plans to implement custom icon support in the grapheneos launcher in the future?

matchboxbananasynergy

6gsxdr3U Very unlikely, especially since there's themed icon support that can be used when apps support it.

[deleted]

matchboxbananasynergy Does anyone know which particular icon set is used for themed icons on homescreen and whether it would be feasible to implement it in app drawer to keep icon display uniform. Thanks in advance

cascaderainfall

[deleted] Themed icons are added by app developers, they're not an icon set.