Homebrew Launcher¶
Homebrew Launcher is an SY-profile menu for .MBA applications stored below
/HB. Its deliberately simple screen contains a fast, light-blue animated wave
background and a three-item horizontal carousel along the bottom. Each item is
only the application's name and the real 64×104 menu artwork embedded in that
MBA at offsets 0xA0 and 0xC0; the launcher has no substitute icon set. A
small PCM8 version of the supplied menu track loops while the menu is open.
Volume, brightness, and power controls remain active.
The retail application API does not expose verified directory enumeration.
Homebrew Manager therefore writes /HB/INDEX.HB as a compact catalog whenever
an application is added, renamed, or removed. The launcher validates that
catalog before displaying up to 16 applications. It reads the title from
HB02 and retains read compatibility with HB01; old description, author, and
icon-id fields are ignored. The original system menu remains the executable
/HB/System.MBA and appears as an intentionally text-only carousel item after
a manager installation; all other entries use their baked MBA icon.
Build it from source:
The output is build/homebrew-launcher/HomebrewLauncher.MBA.
| Action | Control |
|---|---|
| Select previous/next | Left or Right |
| Select | Tap a side icon |
| Launch | Tap the selected center icon |
| Launch selected | Primary or Enter |
| System behavior | Volume, Brightness, and Off |
Run its deterministic firmware test with:
That test overlays the launcher without editing the source NAND, validates the catalog and MBA-header artwork path, proves multiple distinct wave frames, observes the embedded PCM8 song start with repeat enabled, injects a carousel tap, and checks the follow-up application handoff.
Use Homebrew Manager for backup-first physical installation. Do not overwrite SY manually without a verified recovery copy.