Table of Contents

Total Launcher Layout Objects: Master Android Homescreen Design

Custom layouts serve as foundational building blocks for developing any advanced homescreen layout within the Total Launcher ecosystem. By grouping interactive graphic objects, app shortcuts, and widgets into defined containers, these specialized structures automatically impose consistent alignment and spacing rules across the entire custom setup. Mastering these shared design fundamentals ensures a cohesive, professional aesthetic before diving into specific linear, radial, or matrix configurations. The workflow begins by adding a new layout structure to the workspace and configuring the global properties.

Layout Selection Dialog

Add A Layout To The Page

A list layout (linear) is added to a page and modified with the following steps:

  1. Enter Edit Mode. Tap the ''Edit Off'' icon in the lower right to change it to an ''Edit On'' icon
    1. Tap-hold the list object to select it.
    2. In the Object Design Menu (top) select the Option icon .
  2. Review the menu panels indicated at the bottom of the interface.
    1. Select OPTIONS to modify its options.
    2. Select ANIMATION to adjust the dynamic behaviors.
  3. Apply the desired variable changes within the respective menus.

Understand Layout Properties

While Total Launcher offers distinct spatial arrangement types (Grid, Circle, List), the visual styling options and interaction rules for the items contained inside these layouts remain the same. The configuration interface features five standardized tabs present in every layout dialog:

These global functions must be understood first, as they constitute the standardized visual design system across all layout implementations.

Shared Style Tabs

Each layout configuration dialog includes the following four tabs for uniform object styling:

☛ Launch Sound (Shared Behavior)

While present in the general options, these trigger points exist across all layout types. Technically, this is an interaction behavior rather than a visual style property.

  • Tap, Swipe up, Swipe down, Swipe left, Swipe right: Assign device audio files to be played upon specific physical, directional interaction types.
  • Sound: Assign a specific interaction to play a device sound (see Resource - Sound when any of the objects in the list layout receives that interaction.

What this means …
A sound selected for any interaction will play for all objects in the layout that receive that same interaction. For example, a tap will cause the same sound on any list item 'tapped'.

  • Tap: - Select the sound played upon a single tap.
  • Swipe up: - Select the sound played upon an upward swipe.
  • Swipe down: - Select the sound played upon a downward swipe.
  • Swipe left: - Select the sound played upon a leftward swipe.
  • Swipe right: - Select the sound played upon a rightward swipe.


☛ Icon

This controls visual attributes of the icon. Note that this often adjusts the internal space surrounding the icons (Icon padding), global visibility (opacity and saturation), and applies color overlays uniformly to create cohesive themes.

Options - Icon

Modify the visual attributes of the icon images contained within the grid.

  • Icon size: - Adjust the overall size (scale) of the icons.
  • Icon padding: - Modify the internal space surrounding the icons.
  • Icon opacity (%): - Adjust the transparency level of the icons, utilizing values such as 100% for solid visibility.
  • Icon saturation (%): - Modify the color intensity, where 100% represents natural colors and reduced values approach grayscale.
  • Icon color filter: - Apply a specific color overlay or tint to all icons uniformly.


☛ Label

This sets the typography for descriptions for the contained items, covering typeface selection, vertical wrapping (Label lines), sizing, scaling, and the transition of color when an object is pressed or interacted with.

Options - Label

Control the display parameters and typography of the text associated with each grid item.

  • Show label: - Toggle the visibility state of the text labels to On or Off.
  • Typeface: - Select the specific font family applied to the label text.
  • Label lines: - Determine the maximum number of lines permitted for text wrapping, ranging from 1 to 3.
  • Font size: - Adjust the structural point size of the label text.
  • Scale X (%): - Stretch or compress the text width horizontally.
  • Text color: - Define the primary resting color of the text using the Launcher's Color Picker and apply a hexadecimal value such as #FFFFFFFF.]
  • Text color (pressed): - Same as Text color above, but changes the text color as the object is 'pressed' or tapped.


☛ Shadow

This provides dedicated drop shadow controls specifically for item labels. Detailed specifications regarding how to utilize Shadows can be referenced here.

Options - Shadow

Apply drop shadows to text labels for enhanced contrast against varied backgrounds. See here for more detail on how to use Shadows.

  • Shadow color: - Select the hue of the underlying text shadow.
  • Shadow radius: - Control the blur, spread, or sharpness of the shadow effect.
  • Shadow offset X: - Shift the shadow position along the horizontal axis.
  • Shadow offset Y: - Shift the shadow position along the vertical axis.


☛ Background

This configures the styling of the overall layout container and the individual background states (resting, pressed, focused) for items contained within. Standard margins and item spacing properties are also defined within this section.

Options - Background

Configure the container styling, individual item backgrounds, and spacing options.

  • Background: - Set the global color or image for the entire grid container.
  • Margins: - Define the external spacing outside the grid boundary, requiring specific integer values for left, top, right, and bottom.
  • Item background: - Set the resting background color or image for individual grid items.
  • Item background (pressed): - Set the background visual for individual grid items during a press interaction.
  • Item background (focused): - Set the background visual for individual grid items when navigated to via hardware controls or focus states.
  • Item spacing: - Adjust the internal gap distance between individual items placed within the grid structure.

The Specific Layout Types

To create custom Android interfaces, one of three specialized structural archetypes must be selected. Although they share the visual configuration system detailed above, each utilizes a distinct method of spatial organization. The following documentation details the distinct properties of each layout style.

Select 1 of the 3 layout types to review its dedicated unique options:


➡️List Layout - (Linear)


➡️Grid Layout - (Matrix)


➡️Circle Layout - (Radial)