Toolrack’s first build is on Google Play as a closed test, and anyone who wants to try it can join. It is an Android home screen launcher built around one idea: the things you reach for should be one swipe apart, and the ones you reach for constantly should not even need that.
What it is
Three surfaces, one swipe apart, over your own wallpaper: a widget Dash, a Home grid with folders and a dock, and a searchable App Drawer.
On top of all of them — literally — are bubbles: floating widgets that ride above whatever app you are in. A bubble can hold a rack of the apps that go together, a clock, or any widget you already have installed. Tap one and it opens without taking you out of what you were doing.
The rest is the usual launcher surface area, done properly: folders, multiple pages, widget resizing, a lock switch, icon packs and icon shapes, apps hidden behind your device lock, and a full backup you can carry to another device.
Joining the test
There are two steps, and the second one is the one people miss. Joining the group alone will not get you the app.
1. Join the tester group. It is open — no approval needed:
https://groups.google.com/g/toolrack-testers/
Google Play checks membership against the Google account you use on your phone, so join with that same account.
2. Opt in as a tester, either way round:
- On Android — open this on the device you will install it on: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ac.onyx.toolrack
- On the web — or start from a browser: https://play.google.com/apps/testing/ac.onyx.toolrack
Once you have accepted, Toolrack installs and updates like any other app from Play.
:::info Give it a few minutes Play can take a little while to notice you have joined the group. If the listing says the app is unavailable, wait a few minutes and open it again before assuming something is broken. :::
What is most useful to report
Everything is worth hearing about, but these are the parts with the least mileage on them so far:
- Bubbles, on anything that is not a stock phone — foldables, tablets, heavy OEM skins
- Third-party widgets inside a bubble, which is the newest thing in the build
- Icon packs, of which there are far more than can be tested by hand
- Restoring a backup onto a second device
A report is most useful with the device and Android version, what you were doing, and a screenshot or recording if you can get one. Reply in the tester group, or write to support@onyx.ac if you would rather send it privately.
Where the documentation lives
Every feature has a guide, including the ones that are easy to miss:
https://onyx.ac/products/toolrack/docs/
Thanks for testing.