macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install libhandylocal Homebrew formula metadata
MacPortsverified · 94%
sudo port install libhandyMacPorts ports tree · gnome/libhandy/Portfile · source: api.github.com
brew
Install libhandy with Homebrew, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, apt, zypper
Building blocks for modern adaptive GNOME apps. Version 1.8.3 via Homebrew; verified from local package data.
install
Additional install commands
Linux
Fedora dnfverified · 92%
sudo dnf install libhandyFedora Rawhide package metadata · libhandy · source: dl.fedoraproject.org
Nixverified · 92%
nix profile install nixpkgs#libhandynixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/li/libhandy/package.nix · source: api.github.com
Arch Linux pacmanverified · 92%
sudo pacman -S libhandyArch Linux sync databases · libhandy · source: geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com
Ubuntu aptverified · 92%
sudo apt install gir1.2-handy-0.0Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes · gir1.2-handy-0.0 · source: archive.ubuntu.com
openSUSE zypperverified · 92%
sudo zypper install glade-catalog-libhandyopenSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · glade-catalog-libhandy · source: download.opensuse.org
overview
Package summary
Building blocks for modern adaptive GNOME apps
Project links
Commands and aliases
- handy-1-demo
history
Project history and usage
Libhandy is Purism and GNOME's GTK 3 widget library for adaptive applications, especially interfaces that need to work on both desktop windows and phone-sized screens. It is historically important because it bridged Librem 5 mobile work, mainstream GNOME applications, and the later GTK 4-era libadwaita direction.
Project history
Purism's June 10, 2021 retrospective says Libhandy was created after experiments with mobile-specific and adaptive widgets showed that GTK developers needed a library they could include without modifying GTK itself. The name reflects Handy, the German word for a mobile phone, and the upstream README states the library's aim as helping develop mobile-device UI using GTK/GNOME.
The NEWS file records version 0.81.0 migrating the project to GNOME GitLab, archiving the previous source.puri.sm project, switching CI to GNOME infrastructure, and publishing reference documentation through GNOME GitLab Pages. The same release made documentation and Glade catalog installation parallel-installable with libhandy 0.0, a packaging-friendly move during API transition.
Adoption history
Libhandy began as part of Purism's Librem 5 effort, but Purism described it as quickly gaining popularity among GNOME application developers and being used by both third-party GNOME apps and core apps such as Settings, Files, and Web. It became an unofficial high-level widget layer above GTK before the GTK 4 work was redirected into libadwaita.
The batch input lists packages for Homebrew, Fedora, MacPorts, Nix, Arch, Ubuntu, and openSUSE, showing that Libhandy's adaptive-widget role crossed from phone-oriented development into general distribution packaging.
How it is used
Developers use Libhandy to add adaptive GTK 3 widgets such as leaflet, carousel, view switcher, preferences, deck, flap, keypad, and other interface pieces. The handy-1-demo executable is the package-level demonstration surface for trying those widgets.
Why package nerds care
Libhandy is a rare dependency whose history explains a platform transition: it made GNOME-on-phone work practical without forking the desktop ecosystem, then informed libadwaita as GTK 4 arrived. For package maintainers, it is also a compatibility library for GTK 3 applications that adopted adaptive GNOME UI patterns before moving to libadwaita.
Timeline
- 2018: Purism and GNOME contributors were actively using Libhandy widgets for adaptive Librem 5 application work.
- Version 0.81.0: The project migrated to GNOME GitLab and started publishing reference documentation with GNOME GitLab Pages.
- Version 1.0.0: The NEWS file marked the 1.0 API line with no extra release-note changes.
- 2021-06-10: Purism described Libhandy's creation, GNOME adoption, and its relationship to libadwaita.
Related projects
- GTK 3 is the toolkit targeted by Libhandy.
- GNOME applications such as Settings, Files, and Web are named by Purism as adopters of Libhandy-style adaptive UI work.
- libadwaita is the GTK 4-era successor direction described by Purism for GNOME's high-level adaptive widgets.
- The Librem 5 and Phosh ecosystem supplied much of the original mobile GNOME pressure that made Libhandy useful.
Sources
- https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/libhandy
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy/-/raw/main/NEWS
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy/-/raw/main/README.md
- https://gnome.pages.gitlab.gnome.org/libhandy/doc/main
- https://puri.sm/posts/making-a-platform-adaptive-for-everyone/
security posture
Risk level: green
library-like package without higher-risk signals.
Risk classifier
green risk · low confidence · appliance
Why
- library-like package without higher-risk signals
Signals
- metadata:library-like
Install behavior
- No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
- Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 10 platform targets.
- Installs with 9 runtime dependencies.
- Build metadata lists 6 build dependencies.
Recommended review
Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.
executables
Installed executables
| Command | Kind | Exposure | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
handy-1-demo | cli | global executable |
freshness
Version and freshness
These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.
page generated2026-07-08
manager version1.8.3
manager updated
local dataok
upstreamnot checked
latest detectednot detected
https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy
- infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence
- infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandynone confidence
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:libhandy |
|---|---|
| Version | 1.8.3 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Package manager page | https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/libhandy |
| Homepage | https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy |
| Repository | https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy |
| Upstream docs | https://gnome.pages.gitlab.gnome.org/libhandy/doc/main |
| License | LGPL-2.1-or-later |
| Source archive | https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy/-/archive/1.8.3/libhandy-1.8.3.tar.gz |
| Dependencies | at-spi2-core, cairo, fribidi, gdk-pixbuf, gettext, glib, gtk+3, harfbuzz, pango |
| Build dependencies | gettext, gobject-introspection, meson, ninja, pkgconf, vala |
| Bottle | available (on arm64_linux, arm64_monterey, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, monterey, sonoma, ventura, x86_64_linux) |
| Homebrew post-install | not defined |
| Service | none declared |
registry facts
Source database details
| Source Database | Homebrew formula API |
|---|---|
| Tap | homebrew/core |
| Full Name | libhandy |
| Version Scheme | 0 |
| Revision | 0 |
| Bottle Stable Root URL | https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core |
| Deprecated | no |
| Disabled | no |
| Keg Only | no |
| URL Keys |
|
source database matches
Other package-manager records
Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.
Nix95%
libhandy
nix profile install nixpkgs#libhandy- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
Ubuntu apt95%
gir1.2-handy-0.0 0.0.13-3build2
GObject introspection files for libhandy
https://source.puri.sm/Librem5/libhandy
sudo apt install gir1.2-handy-0.0- Section: universe/introspection
- Architecture: amd64
- Source Package: libhandy
- 3 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
Ubuntu apt95%
handy-0.0-examples 0.0.13-3build2
Example programs for libhandy
https://source.puri.sm/Librem5/libhandy
sudo apt install handy-0.0-examples- Section: universe/x11
- Architecture: amd64
- Source Package: libhandy
- 4 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
Ubuntu apt95%
libhandy-0.0-0 0.0.13-3build2
Library with GTK widgets for mobile phones
https://source.puri.sm/Librem5/libhandy
sudo apt install libhandy-0.0-0- Section: universe/libs
- Architecture: amd64
- Source Package: libhandy
- 7 dependencies
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
Ubuntu apt95%
libhandy-0.0-dev 0.0.13-3build2
Development files for libhandy
https://source.puri.sm/Librem5/libhandy
sudo apt install libhandy-0.0-dev- Section: universe/libdevel
- Architecture: amd64
- Source Package: libhandy
- 3 dependencies
- 1 optional deps
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
dnf95%
libhandy 1.8.3-10.fc45
Building blocks for modern adaptive GNOME apps
https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy
sudo dnf install libhandy- License: LGPL-2.1-or-later
- Category: Unspecified
- Architecture: i686
- Source Package: libhandy
- 14 dependencies
- 3 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
dnf95%
libhandy-devel 1.8.3-10.fc45
Development files for libhandy
https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy
sudo dnf install libhandy-devel- License: LGPL-2.1-or-later
- Category: Unspecified
- Architecture: i686
- Source Package: libhandy
- 12 dependencies
- 4 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
pacman95%
libhandy 1.8.3-2
GTK 3 UI elements for mobile devices
https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy
sudo pacman -S libhandy- License: LGPL-2.1-or-later
- Architecture: x86_64
- 9 dependencies
- 1 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
zypper95%
glade-catalog-libhandy 1.8.3-2.2
Glade catalog for libhandy
https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy
sudo zypper install glade-catalog-libhandy- License: LGPL-2.1-or-later
- Category: Development/Tools/GUI Builders
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: libhandy
- 8 dependencies
- 2 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
zypper95%
libhandy-1-0 1.8.3-2.2
A GTK+ library to develop UI for mobile devices
https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy
sudo zypper install libhandy-1-0- License: LGPL-2.1-or-later
- Category: System/Libraries
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: libhandy
- 13 dependencies
- 3 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
zypper95%
libhandy-devel 1.8.3-2.2
Source and header files for libhandy
https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy
sudo zypper install libhandy-devel- License: LGPL-2.1-or-later
- Category: Development/Libraries/GNOME
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: libhandy
- 4 dependencies
- 2 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
zypper95%
libhandy-lang 1.8.3-2.2
Translations for package libhandy
https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy
sudo zypper install libhandy-lang- License: LGPL-2.1-or-later
- Category: System/Localization
- Architecture: noarch
- Source Package: libhandy
- 1 dependencies
- 3 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
zypper95%
typelib-1_0-Handy-1_0 1.8.3-2.2
Introspection bindings for libhandy
https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libhandy
sudo zypper install typelib-1_0-Handy-1_0- License: LGPL-2.1-or-later
- Category: System/Libraries
- Architecture: x86_64
- Source Package: libhandy
- 2 dependencies
- 2 provides
- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
MacPorts95%
libhandy
sudo port install libhandy- normalized package name match
- Matched by: Libhandy
source trail
Generated from repository data
This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.
Combined YAML source
View the package source record on GitHub.
Used sources
- Geiger risk classifier
- Nucleus package database
- av.db category and tag curation
- cross-ecosystem install command graph
- curated package history
- external package-manager database matches
- package relationship graph
- package version freshness
- package-page enrichment