TSF Shell 3D Instructions (Unofficial)

doberman16 · Mar 2, 2012

Greetings...

Until today, I’ve been just a reader of the forums and have gotten great information that way. I've finally found something that I really want to contribute on because I want to see it go to the moon and back. That said I apologize for the wall of text. If you're looking for a TL;DR, scroll to the bullets.

We all (or most of us anyway) know that TSF Shell 3D was released a couple days ago and the buzz is slowly growing. Anyone who has read the Market description of this launcher pretty much knows that it's straight from Google Translate. By no means am I bashing the developers for this. Hell, I purchased it the day after purchasing SPB Shell. So I more than support their work.

However, as I stated, the Market description is pretty terrible. As far as I can tell, the TSFUI website is down, and there really isn't a one-stop-shop to find out what features you just spent $16.80 on (more on price later).

So, hopefully the wonderful users of XDA can come up with an unofficial guide which can be added to as we stumble across features. Everything I've found has been in random article comments, very few forum posts, and personal experience. At any rate, I'll list what I've been able to confirm and hopefully we can go from there?

TSF Shell - Unofficial User Guide [WIP]
Disclaimer: This guide is based on personal experience. I have no connection to the developer of TSF Shell. All claims regarding working/broken, supported/unsupported features are strictly based upon my experience using a rooted, stock rom Motorola Milestone X. If you see something incorrect, please let me know and I will correct it immediately.

The Switch Button
1. The switch button is used to switch between your 4 personalized pages as well as the App Drawer or App Page.
2. You can tap the Switch Button to show a preview of your screens. Simply tap any screen to switch to it.
3. A slightly quicker way to use the switch button is to tap and hold it, and then drag your finger to the desired screen.
4. Tapping and holding an icon from any Personalized Page and dragging it to the Switch Button will also show the screen preview, allowing you to quickly move the icon to a different screen.
The App Drawer
1. The App Drawer or App Page can be accessed by tapping the Switch Button and then tapping the far left page.
2. The App Drawer uses a horizontal paginated scroll effect. As of yet, there is no way to switch to a vertical scroll.
3. There are 6 different scroll animations to choose from. You can switch the animation style on the fly by tapping the small tab in the upper left (just below the first row of apps).
4. Double tapping an app in the App Drawer will put a green check mark on it. This can be done to several apps at a time. Click and hold any of the apps you've pre-selected and the screen preview will appear, allowing you to move several apps to the same screen at once. When you drop them on the preferred screen, they will automatically arrange nicely into a grid. You can resize and move this grid to your liking. Tap anywhere off the grid or tap the circular arrow (refresh-looking symbol?) in the upper right.
5. When a new app is installed, it will have a fire animation on it until it is launched for the first time. On my phone (Milestone X), the fire is only animated while scrolling and is static while not scrolling. I'm unclear whether this is intended or a bug.
Personalized Pages
1. Personalized pages are fairly similar to the standard screens we are used to with Android. One major difference, however, is swiping them does not switch screens. It draws a lasso instead.
2. This lasso can be used to select multiple icons. When you complete a full circle with the lasso, a menu will pop up. This menu allows you to Arrange, Multi-Choice (like double-tapping in the App Drawer), Create a Folder, or Delete. There is a fifth option called "Gather", this feature is unavailable thus far. There is also a '?' in the center of the option menu which appears to do nothing. The lasso tool cannot select widgets.
3. All normal widgets can be placed on the Personalized pages as usual. Long press, or Menu > Add. Both of these methods allow you to change wallpaper as well. **Note** Live Wallpaper is apparently not supported currently.
4. Personalized pages do not have a defined grid, so the only way to align your asia neatly is to lasso them and use the arrangement option.
5. Personalized pages also allow you to place apps at any angle using multi-touch. Press and hold the app and turn it with the other finger.
The Side Bar
1. By default, the tab that activates the Side Bar is located on the middle left of the screen.
2. The Side Bar has 3 available tabs, they are as follows:
  - Smilie Face - I assume the Smilie Face implies favorites? Basically you can drag and drop apps in and out of this tab for fast access.
  - Settings Cog - This tab contains all TSF Shell specific widgets. You will NOT find these widgets (yet, anyway) through Menu > Add > Widgets or through Long Press > Widgets.
  - Thumb Tack - I'll call this the "Decorations Tab" because, as far as I can tell, there are three items listed here. A cloud, a ghost, and a pumpkin. Each of these can be places on any Personalized page. You can not tap through them, so placing them completely over an app or widget will require you to move them before being able to use the app or widget from that location. These "Decorations" don't appear to be animated and don't appear to serve any purpose other than "Hey guys, check this out!” I would imagine these will be elaborated on in the future?
3. Finally, if you tap and hold any of the above listed tabs, you can change their order around, as well as drag the whole side bar tab. You can move the side bar tab vertically anywhere between the bottom of the notification bar and the top of the Switch Button.

The Price:
One tiny rant on that... please stop complaining about the cost of this launcher, people. I don't see anyone crying over the $200 "Diamond Widget" app that does literally nothing but prove you have $200 to blow. Or, worse yet, that you have only $200 to your name and you've now blown it all accidentally

The developers put a lot into this and it shows. Appreciate it or use the plethora of free launchers available.

lenny_kano · Mar 3, 2012

Personalised pages also don't have a defined grid, so you might wanna add that.

Also, long press an icon, and use multitouch to rotate it freely for even more control on your pages.

rashid.fairus · Mar 3, 2012

some of the feature that were demo in their website wasnt implemented in this release,so what happen and is it worth??

from the ARC

doberman16 · Mar 3, 2012

lenny_kano said:
Personalised pages also don't have a defined grid, so you might wanna add that.

Also, long press an icon, and use multitouch to rotate it freely for even more control on your pages.

Yes, thank you! I completely forgot to add that.

Rashid,

I'm confident the developer will release the missing features as they can. Admittedly, I have little to base my confidence on, but they have released several updates already. If that continues, I'm sure the features will too.

As far as whether or not it's worth it? I believe so. It's the only launcher that was brave enough to throw out the standard feel of android and completely change it.

Sent from my Milestone X using XDA

scottpole · Mar 3, 2012

Watched the video on the market and seriously the most feature packed launcher I've seen and incredibly smooth. If I ever am ready to pay 15+ on a launcher it would definitely be this one. Im using the stock launcher on my bionic at the moment and im satisfied.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk

jdiddy_ub · Mar 3, 2012

if they are going to have a page for apps instead of an app drawer then really should let you "hide" apps...i currently use go launcher and it is essential as i have a lot of system apps that i do not want something accidentally clicking or opening and changing something....also a lot of addons that ive downloaded show up in the app drawer or in this case app page and it leads to a lot of clutter

is it a nice launcher? yes, definitely...gorgeous animations and extremely fluid...but for $17 it better have everything the free ones have and some (which it does not) the features it does have are nice and pretty...but they are more luxury then necessities..go launcher, adw have a bunch of essentials that this launcher does not have...this launcher completely cripples artistic creativity (due to its lacking features)

doberman16 · Mar 3, 2012

Scott,

I totally get where people are coming from with the price... To am extent.

However, in the grand scheme of things, this is a launcher that took a lot of time and excellent coding. Lets not forget you can use it on all your future androids as well.

Jdiddy,

I also agree on the app page. App hiding isn't that important to me personally, but I get why it can be for some. Also, it's just a tad inconvenient. I can honestly say
I'm not sure why I perceive it as inconvenient... It's not like it takes long to access.

Aside from that, I do miss my dock. I can't seem to find a convenient place to put my dialer.

Sent from my Milestone X using XDA

jdiddy_ub · Mar 3, 2012

doberman16 said:
Scott,

I totally get where people are coming from with the price... To am extent.

However, in the grand scheme of things, this is a launcher that took a lot of time and excellent coding. Lets not forget you can use it on all your future androids as well.

Jdiddy,

I also agree on the app page. App hiding isn't that important to me personally, but I get why it can be for some. Also, it's just a tad inconvenient. I can honestly say
I'm not sure why I perceive it as inconvenient... It's not like it takes long to access.

Aside from that, I do miss my dock. I can't seem to find a convenient place to put my dialer.

Sent from my Milestone X using XDA

its convenient because we arent used to an app page...normally we press the button and have the ability to back out back to the homescreen..the app page forces to to switch between and choose which screen to go to after...its quite annoying...an app drawer is a lot easier

and the lack of a dockbar is a no no...i, as well as everyone else, have grown accustomed to a dockbar as even the stock launcher incorporates one...phone, contacts, texts need to be accessible from any page or else you have to have multiple clicks to perform simple tasks

IF and WHEN they incorporate the other basic stuff..dockbar, app drawer, grid size, # of pages...this launcher will be up there with the best

having an android is all about customization and using this launcher takes that away...its like having a glorified iphone...in terms of what your screen looks like

codesplice · Mar 3, 2012

Nice collection of instructions; thanks for this. I hadn't realized that the tabs could be moved!

I've played a bit with creating a false "dock" at the bottom of each page to allow me to always have quick access to the Phone, Google Voice, Gmail, and Chrome apps. Seems to be a fair compromise so far.

jdiddy_ub · Mar 3, 2012

codesplice said:
Nice collection of instructions; thanks for this. I hadn't realized that the tabs could be moved!

I've played a bit with creating a false "dock" at the bottom of each page to allow me to always have quick access to the Phone, Google Voice, Gmail, and Chrome apps. Seems to be a fair compromise so far.

that is the obvious work around...however, at this point -all launchers have it (especially for a $17 launcher) a dock seems like a pretty basic feature

doberman16 · Mar 3, 2012

Jdiddy,

The thing is... If this were iOS you'd be stuck. On Androids, we can provide feedback to the developer and, dare I say it, actually be listened to! The launcher is new, but from my perspective, the devs are listening.

Easier said than done, but if they incorporate a few more features, no other launcher competes. The fact that they have decided to say "To hell with the standard, lets be innovative." Is huge. I mean... Seriously, other launchers are nice, but come on. They're all same **** different day. They come up with slightly different ways to do it, but never far enough off the beaten path to really drop jaws.

Code, thank you! Glad I could help. Good idea with the pseudo dock. I might try that. I'm just the type of person that likes everything aligned and there really isn't a way to do that. At the same time, I enjoy the option to place things wherever you want. If a snap to grid feature were added... It'd be perfection.

Sent from my Milestone X using XDA

doberman16 · Mar 3, 2012

Jdiddy, I don't disagree at all. Lets again not forget the fact that this launcher is not written in stone. Smart devs, which I believe the TSF devs are, will listen. If they don't... I'm out $17... I've spent way more on way less useful things in my lifetime.

Sent from my Milestone X using XDA

codesplice · Mar 3, 2012

I keep seeing folks lamenting "oh, it doesn't do this that Launcher X does". So what? It does plenty of things that other launchers can't touch! It wasn't meant to be just another clone of the stock Android launcher (like ADW, LauncherPro, Apex, Nova, Trebuchet...). TSF Shell is revolutionary, a way to interact with your Android device that is completely new and breaks from tradition. It's fantastic to have the option of a launcher that is truly different from all the others.

jdiddy_ub · Mar 3, 2012

did i state my comments in a negative way? i was just stating what they needed to add..and giving reasons as to why its important...im commenting on the state of the launcher as it stands right now and nothing else...i said it crippled customization...which is the truth..i didnt blast their product or say their work was shoddy..its called constructive criticism

and yes, this launcher does things that others dont...but the KEY is that it limits customization...im not asking for bells and whistles to be taken from other launchers...its great that this launcher is unique...but im not about to trade convenience for a few cool animations..tell me that the app page is more convenient then a drawer and tell me that not having a dockbar is a good idea...didnt think so..thats all im saying..if they add all the customization options and had everything they have in their demo video then i can understand the hefty price tag

that was my entire point.

also..my perspective is of someone that creates a lot of artistic homescreens in the http://mycolorscreen.com mold

so to me grid size, icons, # of pages all that stuff is crucial...and after seeing the stuff this launcher has to offer...if they added those things, it would be incredible

doberman16 · Mar 3, 2012

Jdiddy,

Perfect response. I don't think anyone took your comment negatively... I didn't at least. Does it have took for improvement? Absolutely! Does it have the capability to meet our expectations? Yes! The only question is whether the devs respond to their paying customers in the way that they should.

I could email them myself, but lets be realistic. They're flooded as it is. My email would get lost in the mix and I completely understand that. The key here is to be the squeaky wheel... Because that's the one that gets oiled first.

Sent from my Milestone X using XDA

vallcho · Mar 3, 2012

When install new app, icon of this app will be on fire, but not animated for now. Music widget allso will appear in nice music preview mode when swipe over it. And one bug - when using lasso function to select icons and release screen, then choose arrange icon function, the last selected app will run automatically.
Nice launcher, very fast with great potential, but it's only born before 3 days

, will be improved.

Sent from my HTC HD2 using xda premium

doberman16 · Mar 3, 2012

Vallcho,

The fire animation shows up only while scrolling. I some this is a bug.

The lasso function you are talking about is the multi select. And, yes, it does open the last app you selected. I'd assume this will be fixed.

Edit: I noticed that double tapping in the screen preview makes the screens jump in an odd way. Could be a bug, could be a broken feature.

Also, I somehow was able to get the lasso to appear in the app page. Again, could be a bug or intended. Let me know if you see the same and how you got it to happen. Haven't been able to replicate it intentionally.

Sent from my Milestone X using XDA

lenny_kano · Mar 3, 2012

I will say one thing, this launcher is the single most unique launcher available for android. I challenge anyone to give an example of something with as much creativity. There all either stock launcher clones, or clones of other OS's like windows phone.

That said, its far from perfect, but looking at a lot of apps on the market, the price vs effort/originality ratio is better with this then any other launcher available , so I very much look forward to what they can do in the future.

doberman16 · Mar 3, 2012

Very well said, Lenny. The thing we need to keep in mind is that it's a new launcher. It's innovative, and it's about time. If the devs need time to release everything... Give it to them. It will pan out.

Sent from my Milestone X using XDA

lenny_kano · Mar 3, 2012

doberman16 said:
Very well said, Lenny. The thing we need to keep in mind is that it's a new launcher. It's innovative, and it's about time. If the devs need time to release everything... Give it to them. It will pan out.

Sent from my Milestone X using XDA

As long as they don't abandon it. Its a great idea if they support it and keep it up.

Don't let it go the way of uber music. Great start, **** commitment and follow through. Innovative is a very good way of putting it. First original idea I've seen on the market for a long time.

And no offence to other launchers devs , there's amazing work going on in terms of feature adding and bug fixing, but the innovation is low to nonexistant.

TSF Shell 3D Instructions (Unofficial)

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