“It’s a portable app in Windows”. This was my first impression when I heard about AppImage.

To try out AppImage, I downloaded LocalSend’s AppImage version. I double-clicked it to run and nothing happened…

Maybe my click didn’t register? I double-clicked it again. Still, nothing happened.

Executable Permission

After googling, I found out that I needed to set the permission:

  1. Select and right-click the AppImage.
  2. Click Properties and Permissions tab
  3. Check the Allow executing file as program box.

Then I double-clicked it again and it started to run.

AppImage Desktop Integration

Now, I had another question. Why don’t I see my app in the menu?

I googled again and found out that I needed to write a .desktop file to integrate it.

For convenient, someone already made AppImageLauncher to simplify the process and add useful functions.

I did it manually, referring to the Example Desktop Entry File from freedesktop.org, and wrote a simple .desktop.

[Desktop Entry]
Name=LocalSend
Comment=An open-source cross-platform alternative to AirDrop
Version=1.17.0
Type=Application
Categories=Utility;Network;FileTransfer
Exec=/home/juan/Apps/LocalSend/LocalSend-1.17.0-linux-x86-64.AppImage
Icon=/home/juan/Apps/LocalSend/logo-512.png

Save the file in /home/\<user\>/.local/share/applications.

Then, it should appear in the menu.

For more info, please visit Freedesktop.org Specifications