I also couldn't make Albert work and also learned that it doesn't have nearly as much features as on macOS.
I finally figured out how to make Albert work.
- Remove Albert - only if you already tried installing Albert (First startup of Albert crashed on my system and broke the install)
killall albert
sudo apt-get remove albert
sudo rm -rf /usr/bin/albert
sudo rm -rf /usr/share/albert
sudo rm -rf /home/YOUR_USERNAME/.cache/albert
sudo rm -rf /home/YOUR_USERNAME/.config/albert
sudo rm /etc/apt/sources.list.d/home:manuelschneid3r.list
sudo apt-key del E192A257
sudo apt-get autoremove && sudo apt-get update
- Download key and add repository
curl https://build.opensuse.org/projects/home:manuelschneid3r/public_key | sudo apt-key add -
sudo sh -c "echo 'deb http://download.opensuse.org/repositories/home:/manuelschneid3r/xUbuntu_18.04/ /' > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/home:manuelschneid3r.list"
sudo apt-get update
- Install Albert
sudo apt-get install albert
Note:
You manually have to activate Alberts features in the settings (like file search)
For troubeshooting I recommend starting albert first time from terminal by just typing "albert". Then you can see potential error messages.
Resources:
https://albertlauncher.github.io/docs/installing/#importing-the-keyfile
https://www.reddit.com/r/elementaryos/comments/gi8edf/how_to_install_a_spotlight_like_search_launcher/fqd81te/
Best alternative from my point of view is uLauncher combined with the extension "File Search" using fd.
Installation Steps for uLauncher
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:agornostal/ulauncher
sudo apt update && sudo apt install ulauncher
Installations Steps for File Search
Download & Installation of fd
Go to https://github.com/sharkdp/fd/releases and download the appropriate package for your system. If you're unsure which package to choose, paste the following in the terminal: uname -a
It should give you something like e.g.: x86_64
Then download the matching .deb package, e.g.: fd_8.0.0_amd64.deb
Change to "Downloads" dir with: cd && cd Downloads
Install .deb package with: sudo dpkg -i fd_8.0.0_amd64.deb
Configuration of fd
# fd search alias used by ulauncher
alias fd=fdfind
- Save and exit file with Keys "CTRL+X" then "Y" then "Enter"
Download & Installation of "File Search" uLauncher Extension
- Then execute uLauncher from installed apps.
- Click the settings button on the right of the small search window.
- Navigate to extensions tab and click "Add extension".
- Paste following link: https://github.com/brpaz/ulauncher-file-search
Usage of File Search with uLauncher
Now you can type in uLauncher "fd SEARCHPHRASE" to find dirs/files or "ff SEARCHPHRASE" for files only. For apps you can directly start typing the name without any keyword.
