Graviton

Graviton is an app browser and cross-platform software manager.




It gives you:

  • A browser-like shell that downloads and runs desktop apps, written in languages that can run on the JVM.
  • Silent upgrades via a regular scheduled background task, like in Chrome. Apps, dependencies, the JVM and Graviton itself are all upgraded regularly, whether or not the user is currently running an app.
  • First class support for cross platform command line apps. They also smoothly upgrade, even if the app is running at the time (good for servers). Graviton enables colour terminal handling on Windows 10, so ANSI escapes can be used on any platform with confidence.
  • Publish software simply using GitHub, GitLab or BitBucket releases! The repository is cloned on a remote server in a sandbox, compiled, packaged, downloaded and this process repeats in the background on regular intervals to keep your app up to date. Push new versions to your users by simply making a new GitHub release.
  • Apps can be written in any language with a JVM backend, such as Java, JavaScript, Python, Scala, Kotlin, Haskell, Ruby, with support for sandboxed C, C++ and Rust coming in future via Sulong.
  • Detection of proxy settings from the OS or browsers, and can handle proxy auto-config files. Apps automatically benefit.
  • Use advanced designed-for-apps GUI toolkits like JavaFX with visual designers, or embed WebKit and use HTML.

Learn more by reading the Introduction.

Get involved

The project is alpha software and could benefit from your help.

Graviton needs you! We’re looking for people with:

  • Web design skills, to make a nicer site for the project (these pages would remain as developer docs).
  • Evangelism skills, to find projects that can run on the JVM and convince them to use Graviton as a distribution mechanism.
  • Developer skills:

Commercial version? Would you like a Pro/Enterprise level version of Graviton? Let me know!