Veer

Veer is a small Debian link swapper written in C++ with Qt6. When you click on a link in any application, Veer displays the browsers installed on your computer and opens the link in your chosen browser, rather than using a fixed default every time.

How it works

• Veer reads the .desktop files in your system, user, Flatpak and Snap application folders.

• An entry counts as a browser when it handles http or https links and is marked as a web browser (or handles HTML files).

• Veer registers itself as the default web browser. Every clicked link goes to it, and it launches the browser you pick with the link filled in.

Install the Debian package

Download veer_0.0.1_amd64.deb, open a terminal in the folder that holds it, and run:

sudo apt install ./veer_0.0.1_amd64.deb

veer --set-default

To check that it worked:

veer --status

The install puts the program in /usr/local/bin, the launcher entry in /usr/local/share/applications and the icon in /usr/local/share/icons. If the icon does not show up in your taskbar or menu right away, log out and back in. If veer --set-default fails, choose Veer under System Settings, Default Applications, Web browser.

wl-clipboard (Wayland) and xclip (X11) are only needed for the highlighted link feature below.

Using it

• Click a link anywhere. The swapper opens.

• Press 1 to 9 to choose a browser by number, use the arrow keys with Enter, or click one.

• Tick "Always use this browser for example.com" to skip the swapper for that site next time. The www. prefix is ignored.

• The last browser you used is preselected.

• Escape or Cancel opens nothing.

• If only one browser is installed, Veer opens it directly.

Command line options:

veer --list           print the detected browsers

veer --set-default    make Veer the default web browser

veer --status         show which program currently opens web links

veer --clear-rules    forget all remembered sites

veer --selection      open the link in the highlighted or copied text

veer --setup          open the setup window

veer                  with no link, open the setup window

Icons come from the system icon folders, Flatpak and Snap exports. SVG icons need the libqt6svg6 package, which the install line above includes.

Uninstall it with:

sudo apt remove veer

This removes the program, the launcher entry and the icons. Your remembered sites stay in ~/.config/veer, so delete that folder as well if you want a clean removal. After removing Veer, choose a browser again under System Settings, Default Applications, Web browser, otherwise links have no handler.

Distributed under the MIT License. See LICENSE.