Cerebro vs Rofi

Cerebro is a free, open-source desktop launcher for Linux, macOS, and Windows. It searches a user’s machine and the internet, and can find and open files, reveal them in Finder, copy contact details, and show Google suggestions. Core plugins add web search, application search and launch, file navigation with previews, a calculator, and a smart converter. Cerebro can also display maps, translations, and files within its results without opening another application. It includes a plugin manager, and users can build and share plugins through its API. The default shortcut for showing the app window is Ctrl+Space, and users can change it in Preferences. The search plugin lists Google, DuckDuckGo, Ecosia, Brave, MetaGer, and StartPage as options, though the project notes that not all are implemented yet. Cerebro is developed in Electron, and its README identifies the license as MIT. The official site links to downloads labeled version 0.11.0 for Windows, Mac, and Linux. The listed plan costs nothing, with no paid plans listed.

Rofi is a free utility for Linux and macOS that combines window switching, application launching, SSH access, and menu workflows. It can move between open windows, start applications, or provide a dialog for connecting to a remote machine. Its modes include window, windowcd, run, drun, ssh, keys, script, and combi. Navigation supports keyboard and mouse input, filtering by typing, and tokenized search. A dedicated script mode can replace dmenu. Configuration can come from a system configuration file, a Rasi theme file, or command-line options. Rofi builds with X11 and Wayland backends when available, and either can be disabled. Installation guidance covers Debian or Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch Linux, Gentoo, openSUSE, and FreeBSD; macOS installation is through MacPorts. The downloads page lists release archives, with version 1.7.9 as its newest listed release. Development versions have no tarball release; the installation instructions explain how to obtain and compile one. Support links lead to GitHub issues and discussions.