How To Edit Start Menu Items on Elementary OS

On GNOME we use Alacarte, on KDE we use KDE Menu Editor, on XFCE we use MenuLibre, but how to edit Applications Menu on elementary OS? For example, you run LibreOffice AppImage, but you cannot add it to start menu by drag-and-drop nor right-click on it. Then how to do that? It is easy, you may use either mentioned MenuLibre, or the native AppEditor. Finally I practiced this on version 5.0 Juno and it works. Try it and let's see if you love it. Enjoy!

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Installing Tools

You may choose either to install AppEditor or MenuLibre.

$ sudo apt-get install menulibre
$ sudo apt-get install com.github.donadigo.appeditor

Examples

To make it clearer for you who do not familiar with menu editing, I prepared 2 programs and 2 logos I will use here. Logo may be in either PNG or SVG format. The programs are in AppImage (portable executable) format, they are Firefox and Inkscape you could get them yourselves from Probono's Bintray. The logos are of course you could get from either Wikipedia or each official website. Both AppEditor and MenuLibre can make they work, and this works as well for any other type of programs.

AppEditor

This one is the one specifically created for Pantheon desktop published on AppCenter by third-party developer. It's very straightforward in reading your start menu items only without the unnecessary ones. You can later show hidden items by toggling the Show hidden entries button on bottom.

Add item:
For example I want to add my Firefox AppImage into elementary OS start menu.

• Click New Entry button on the titlebar
• Type the name of the program
• Type the description, if you wish
• Type the command line

Remove item:
For default entries like Pantheon Files, Delete button is disabled, so for such item simply turn off the Show In Launcher option; but for items we created ourselves, we can simply click Delete button and then save.

Change an item:

• Select the item
• To change the icon, click the icon, select Choose from file or Choose from available icons
• To change the description, edit the text below the program name
• To change the command line, edit the text in the command column

MenuLibre

This program is originally from XFCE desktop but it's working on elementary OS (Pantheon desktop) as well.

Add item:

• Run Menu Editor from start menu.
• Click plus ("+") button > Add Launcher > new blank item created.
• On the right area, determine the program name (double-click and type anyway), description, command line
• Click Save Launcher button on titlebar.

Remove item: 

• Search with the name of the program, or,
• Find the program among categories available
• Select the program
• Click Delete button on titlebar.
• It will ask you "Are you sure to delete it?" and click Yes anyway.

Change item:

• Select the program
• To change the icon, click the icon, select Browse icons (for system provided ones) or Browse files (for icons you have prepared yourself)
• To change the description, click the text below program name and type whatever you like
• To change the command line, edit the command column
• To hide it from start menu, turn on the Hide from the menu option

Happy working!

References

• https://elementaryos.stackexchange.com/questions/2133/is-there-a-way-to-remove-add-applications-from-to-the-slingshot-launcher-of-elem
• https://elementary.io/docs/human-interface-guidelines#desktop-integration
• https://devkeep.wordpress.com/2014/02/17/add-custom-application-to-applications-menu-in-elementary-os/

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