ABird

Desktop, redistribuable, isolated browser.

ABird turns any website into a standalone desktop application with complete session isolation, advanced kiosk mode, and (WIP) enterprise-ready packaging.

📸 Screenshots

Bird has been renamed ABird: migration

If you were using the previous "bird" version (Linux):

mv ~/.config/bird ~/.config/abird
mv ~/.local/share/bird ~/.local/share/abird
rm -rf ~/.local/share/applications/bird-*

Why ABird?

• Session Isolation: Run Gmail, Slack, Notion as separate apps — each with its own partition (cookies, localStorage, cache). No more "you're signed into another account" issues.
• Ship Your SaaS as a Desktop App (WIP): Package ABird with a locked config to distribute your web app as a native desktop experience — branded, installable, out of the browser.
• Kiosk Mode: Lock terminals to specific URLs with custom escape shortcuts — perfect for dashboards, public kiosks, or digital signage.
• User-Agent Spoofing: Test mobile layouts, browser-specific features, or bypass Electron detection without switching browsers.

Platforms

• Linux — AppImage, Asar, Flatpak (planned)
• Windows — NSIS installer
• macOS — WIP

Arch Linux: yay -S abird-bin

Features

Feature	Description
Configuration UI	Visual interface to manage apps, partitions, and settings
i18n	10 languages (EN, FR, DE, ES, PT, IT, RU, ZH, AR, HI)
Themes	System, light, or dark mode
Desktop Shortcuts	Deploy apps as native shortcuts (.desktop on Linux, Start Menu on Windows)
Navigation Bar	Configurable (position, buttons, auto-hide, URL editing)
Tab Management	Multi-tab support with smart validation
URL Routing	Control which links open internally, externally, or get blocked
Downloads	Auto-open by MIME type, configurable directory, dangerous file detection
Find in Page	Built-in find with match highlighting
Partition Isolation	Each app has its own session (cookies, storage, cache) with cache limits (max age, max size)
Ad Blocking	Built-in ad blocker powered by Ghostery
Kiosk Mode	Fullscreen lock with custom exit shortcut
User-Agent Presets	Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, mobile devices, even IE6

Quick Start

Run from source

# Prerequisites: Node.js >= 20, pnpm

pnpm install
pnpm dev

Build & Package

pnpm build                    # Build for production
pnpm package:appimage         # Create AppImage (Linux)
pnpm package:win              # Create installer (Windows)

Usage

# Open configuration UI
abird

# Launch a specific app
abird --app gmail

# Browser mode (quick access to any URL)
abird https://example.com

# Kiosk mode with exit shortcut
abird --app dashboard --kiosk Ctrl+Alt+K

# Test with different user-agent
abird --app myapp --userAgent mobile:chrome

# Complete uninstall (remove shortcuts, data, config)
abird --cleanall

Configuration

ABird uses a JSON configuration file (~/.config/abird/config.json or via --config).

{
  "theme": "system",
  "navBar": {
    "position": "bottom",
    "autoHide": true
  },
  "apps": {
    "gmail": {
      "partition": "gmail",
      "startUrl": "https://mail.google.com",
      "routing": {
        "rules": {
          "^https://[^/]*\\.google\\.com": "internal"
        }
      }
    },
    "slack": {
      "partition": "slack",
      "startUrl": "https://app.slack.com",
      "userAgent": "desktop:chrome"
    }
  }
}

Documentation

• DEVELOPMENT.md — Setup, commands, debugging
• ARCHITECTURE.md — Project structure, patterns, data flow
• CONTRIBUTING.md — Code philosophy, conventions

Tech Stack

• Electron 39 — Desktop runtime
• TypeScript 5.9 — Type safety
• React 19 — UI components
• Chakra UI — Component library
• Zod — Schema validation (types = validation)
• Biome — Linting & formatting
• electron-vite — Build tooling
• Ghostery — Ad blocking

License

MIT