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Epichrome Changelog

What's new in Epichrome 2.4.27

Jan 6, 2022
  • New in this release:
  • 💔 FINAL VERSION OF EPICHROME -- there will be no more updates after this
  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.33.106
  • Fixed in this release:
  • Worked around removal of PHP in macOS 12 (Monterey) by changing PHP calls so users can try to limp by with a local PHP install

New in Epichrome 2.4.26 (Dec 15, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.32.115

New in Epichrome 2.4.25 (Nov 29, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.32.113

New in Epichrome 2.4.24 (Nov 18, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.32.106

New in Epichrome 2.4.23 (Nov 15, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.31.91

New in Epichrome 2.4.22 (Oct 31, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.31.88

New in Epichrome 2.4.21 (Oct 21, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.31.87

New in Epichrome 2.4.20 (Oct 14, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.30.89

New in Epichrome 2.4.19 (Oct 7, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.30.87

New in Epichrome 2.4.18 (Sep 14, 2021)

  • Due to changes in Brave Browser, new apps will likely display a "Set Brave as default browser" window on first run
  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.29.80

New in Epichrome 2.4.17 (Aug 26, 2021)

  • Removed new com.apple.developer.networking.vpn.api key from Brave engine entitlements
  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.28.106

New in Epichrome 2.4.16 (Aug 6, 2021)

  • Brave engine NO LONGER runs natively on Apple Silicon due to a change in how Brave is released as of 1.27.111
  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.27.111

New in Epichrome 2.4.15 (Jul 25, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.27.108

New in Epichrome 2.4.14 (Jul 18, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.26.77

New in Epichrome 2.4.13 (Jul 2, 2021)

  • Updated Platypus to latest build
  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.26.74

New in Epichrome 2.4.12 (Jun 24, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.26.67

New in Epichrome 2.4.11 (Jun 16, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.25.72

New in Epichrome 2.4.10 (Jun 8, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.25.70

New in Epichrome 2.4.9 (May 31, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.25.68

New in Epichrome 2.4.8 (May 23, 2021)

  • Turned off GitHub error reporting
  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.24.86

New in Epichrome 2.4.7 (May 13, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.24.84

New in Epichrome 2.4.6 (May 6, 2021)

  • Epichrome is no longer under active development, and there will be no
  • more updates after the end of 2021
  • New in this release:
  • Now hides Epichrome Runtime extension action item in welcome page if app already has it installed
  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.24.82

New in Epichrome 2.4.5 (May 3, 2021)

  • New in this release:
  • Added advanced setting to suppress welcome page after minor updates and edits
  • Added prompt for URL when automatic icon requested and app has no URLs
  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.23.75
  • Fixed in this release:
  • Changed launch code to make multiple attempts to try and prevent occasional failed app launches
  • Changed first launch of a new app from Epichrome so the app is registered first

New in Epichrome 2.4.4 (Apr 25, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.23.73

New in Epichrome 2.4.3 (Apr 18, 2021)

  • Improved auto icon downloading to be compatible with more sites
  • Added advanced setting to allow app browser data to be backed up on update or edit
  • Preferences for advanced settings are now remembered for future app creation
  • Improved how advanced settings are shown in the summary dialog
  • Changed schedule to check GitHub for new versions every other day instead of once a week
  • Added version information to package
  • Added version numbers to GitHub error reporting
  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.23.71

New in Epichrome 2.4.2 (Apr 5, 2021)

  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.22.71

New in Epichrome 2.4.1 (Mar 26, 2021)

  • Improved messaging of changes in new versions
  • Built-in engine updated to Brave 1.22.67

New in Epichrome 2.4.0 (Mar 21, 2021)

  • Apps are now fully compatible with macOS 11 Big Sur and run natively on Apple Silicon
  • Epichrome apps can now be edited by dropping them on Epichrome.app!
  • Major update to icons, including automatic downloading of icons based on an app's URL, icon preview during the creation process, and an interface for creating Big Sur-compatible icons
  • Added advanced settings during app creation and editing to control how apps handle updates, and to customize their IDs
  • New unified app engine architecture for better compatibility with the dock, notifications, and other system services
  • Apps are now automatically backed up whenever they’re edited or updated (in the Backups subfolder of the app's data directory)
  • Progress bars now appear during lengthy operations such as updating an app
  • Added a login scan to restore apps left in an unlaunchable state after a crash, and Epichrome Scan.app to do the same manually
  • Checking GitHub for updates is now unified across all apps so when a new update is found, you will only receive one notification, which will display info on changes in the new version
  • Both the GitHub update notification and the app update prompt now show info on changes in the new version
  • Many more improvements and bug fixes...

New in Epichrome 2.3.28 (Mar 15, 2021)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.21.76.

New in Epichrome 2.3.27 (Mar 8, 2021)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.21.74.

New in Epichrome 2.3.26 (Feb 25, 2021)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.20.108.

New in Epichrome 2.3.25 (Feb 8, 2021)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.19.92.

New in Epichrome 2.3.24 (Jan 22, 2021)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.19.86.

New in Epichrome 2.3.23 (Jan 5, 2021)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.18.77.

New in Epichrome 2.3.22 (Dec 28, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.18.75.

New in Epichrome 2.3.21 (Dec 13, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.18.70.

New in Epichrome 2.3.20 (Dec 9, 2020)

  • This release fixes a problem with Big Sur that prevented apps from opening when other apps were already running.

New in Epichrome 2.3.19 (Dec 6, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.17.75.

New in Epichrome 2.3.18 (Nov 24, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.17.73.

New in Epichrome 2.3.17 (Nov 12, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.16.75.

New in Epichrome 2.3.16 (Nov 5, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.16.72.

New in Epichrome 2.3.15 (Oct 28, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.16.68. (Apologies for the very short-lived 2.3.14 release--Brave released a new version literally hours after I posted it.)

New in Epichrome 2.3.14 (Oct 28, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.15.76.

New in Epichrome 2.3.13 (Oct 15, 2020)

  • This release fixes a problem that has cropped up with new versions of Google Chrome where Chrome-based apps would no longer show their names in the menubar (they showed "Chrome" instead). It also updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.15.72.

New in Epichrome 2.3.12 (Sep 25, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.14.84.

New in Epichrome 2.3.11 (Sep 18, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.14.81.

New in Epichrome 2.3.10 (Sep 13, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.13.86.

New in Epichrome 2.3.9 (Aug 31, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.13.82.

New in Epichrome 2.3.8 (Aug 21, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.12.114.

New in Epichrome 2.3.7 (Aug 16, 2020)

  • Starting with this version, release apps will no longer prompt to update themselves to beta versions of Epichrome. This release also updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.12.112.

New in Epichrome 2.3.6 (Jul 29, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.11.104.

New in Epichrome 2.3.5 (Jul 23, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.11.97.

New in Epichrome 2.3.4 (Jun 24, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.10.97 and fixes the "Launch Now" button at the end of building an app, which had gotten broken in 2.3.3.

New in Epichrome 2.3.3 (Jun 19, 2020)

  • This release updates the built-in engine to Brave 1.10.90. It also contains several fixes and under-the-hood changes, including a fix for a situation where certain apps would never prompt to update when a new version of Epichrome was installed (issue #248).

New in Epichrome 2.3.2 (Jun 2, 2020)

  • This release fixes problems with updating some version 2.2.4 apps (issue #228), incompatibility with anti-virus software (issue #213), and several other issues, and updates the built-in Brave engine to 1.9.76.

New in Epichrome 2.3.1 (May 15, 2020)

  • Updated the built-in engine to Brave 1.8.96.

New in Epichrome 2.3.0 (May 11, 2020)

  • Changed:
  • Completely rewritten for full compatibility with macOS 10.15 Catalina, including system resource permissions (e.g. microphone and camera) and AppleScript interaction
  • Added built-in Chrome-compatible Brave Browser engine for more app-like behavior, including more robust link-routing and custom icons on desktop notifications
  • Rewrote welcome page to give useful contextual information and prompt for important actions like (re)installing extensions
  • Added complete logging system
  • Epichrome is now distributed as an installer package rather than a DMG due to changes in how app engines are handled
  • Fixed:
  • Improved handling of runtime errors

New in Epichrome 2.2.4 (Mar 13, 2019)

  • Fixed problems with macOS Mojave. Apps should now run smoothly and route links to the default browser correctly (even if it's Chrome), without the long delay users had been seeing. Apps should also be less prone to losing their icons and dock names (though some users are still reporting seeing this).

New in Epichrome 2.2.1 (Sep 3, 2018)

  • Changes Epichrome's underlying architecture significantly in order to allow it to work with Chrome 69, which has added much stricter security.
  • This version also adds a "welcome" page that displays the first time you run a new app (or if you delete your profile), with instructions on how to enable Epichrome Helper, which Chrome disables by default.
  • You shouldn't see much change in how your apps work, but there are a couple important points to be aware of:
  • Epichrome apps are now explicitly single-user apps. Because of the way the Chrome engine is dynamically linked at runtime, Epichrome apps cannot be run by multiple users at once. They also cannot be run by users who don't have write permission to the app itself. For this reason, Epichrome no longer allows authentication during app creation. (This means, for instance, that if you don't have an admin account, you cannot create an Epichrome app in the /Applications folder.) The architecture may evolve in future releases, but Epichrome apps will almost certainly remain single-user from now on.
  • If you're running Chrome 69 or later, your Epichrome apps must be installed on the same physical volume as Chrome, or the apps will at best take a very long time to start up, and at worst may not work at all.
  • You should not try to copy or archive an Epichrome app while it is running. If you do, you may end up copying several hundred megabytes of data for no reason. When your apps are not running, they are under 3MB, but during runtime they may appear to be over 100MB. (Rest assured, a running Epichrome app is not actually taking up that much space on your hard drive--unless you try to copy it.)
  • Changed:
  • Rewrote the engine architecture so it will work with Chrome 69. The Chrome engine now links dynamically at runtime and is deleted on quit. If the installed Chrome is version 69 or later, the engine is now also hard-linked to withstand Chrome 69's much stricter security. Thanks to webxl and everyone else who reported the problem.
  • Added a welcome page that displays the first time a new app is run (or if the profile folder is deleted), with instructions on how to enable Epichrome Helper (which Chrome disables by default).
  • Epichrome is now explicitly single-user, and will not allow a user to create an Epichrome app in a folder they don't have write permission for (authentication code has been removed). This is a first step toward a possible different relationship between Epichrome apps and user profile directories.
  • Epichrome is now properly code-signed, so should be installable without disabling GateKeeper. Thanks to henderea and everyone else who asked for this, and sorry it took so long to finally happen.
  • Fixed:
  • Fixed relative path for python in runtime.sh.

New in Epichrome 2.1.20 (Jul 24, 2017)

  • Adds functionality that should allow Epichrome apps to work properly with Chrome extensions that use native messaging (such as 1Password as of version 6.8). It also rolls back a change introduced in 2.1.17 that was causing some odd link redirection problems.

New in Epichrome 2.1.18 (Jul 17, 2017)

  • This version fixes a bug introduced in 2.1.17 that caused Epichrome apps to run at low-resolution on retina displays.

New in Epichrome 2.1.17 (Jul 17, 2017)

  • This version works around a bug in macOS 10.12.5 that caused Epichrome Helper to open all external URLs in Firefox or Safari no matter what the default browser is. It also fixes a number of smaller bugs and has a few smaller cosmetic changes. See README.md or CHANGELOG.md for more details.

New in Epichrome 2.1.16 (Nov 4, 2016)

  • This release finally squashes the bug that caused those failed Chrome updates to destroy the entire app. From now on, even if a Chrome update fails, the app should stay intact.

New in Epichrome 2.1.15 (Nov 2, 2016)

  • This release fixes a small bug in 2.1.14 in the code that checks github for new versions. Apps will no longer insist that there's a new version on github even though they've just been updated to that new version, so that's good news.

New in Epichrome 2.1.13 (Oct 12, 2016)

  • Starting with this version, Epichrome (and all Epichrome apps) will automatically check Github once a week for a new version of Epichrome. If one is found, a dialog is displayed giving the user the option to go to the download page for the new release, check again later or ignore this version.
  • This version also adds a check in the icon-conversion code to point out that it can't handle images with no alpha channel.

New in Epichrome 2.1.12 (Sep 19, 2016)

  • Fixes a minor bug in processing Chrome localization strings files.
  • It may improve your performance using the Chrome beta channel (but may not).

New in Epichrome 2.1.11 (Feb 22, 2016)

  • This version fixes a bug that broke compatibility with Browser Fairy (a great app that allows you to route URLs to different browsers based on their origin or the content of the link). For now, links are still not able to launch an Epichrome app (but will route properly if the app is already open). The next update of Browser Fairy should fix that last problem too.

New in Epichrome 2.1.10 (Feb 15, 2016)

  • If you're running any previous version, please update to version 2.1.10 as soon as possible. It fixes a potentially serious bug where updates to Chrome could break Epichrome apps permanently, so they'd have to be deleted and recreated.
  • This version also fixes a minor bug that would cause apps to display the wrong dock icon if an app was used to download a file or display certain dialog boxes. Thanks to rschend for finding this and tracking down the cause, and to the others who contributed their reports.

New in Epichrome 2.1.9 (Feb 1, 2016)

  • If you're already using 2.1.8, there's no need to install this release. All it does is fix a minor bug where on first run after update, apps would display the wrong icon in the task switcher and dock.

New in Epichrome 2.1.8 (Jan 24, 2016)

  • This version fixes a long-standing bug that caused all Epichrome apps to run without hardware graphics acceleration due to the GPU process crashing on startup. This could cause sluggish graphics response (especially on retina displays) and failures to load WebGL sites.
  • Note that it's possible the first time you run your apps or Chrome after updating to 2.1.8, you may have to re-log in to Chrome in each app's settings, and you may also have to re-log in to some or all your websites. Once you've done that, though, your credentials should persist even after you quit the newly-updated apps.

New in Epichrome 2.1.7 (Jan 24, 2016)

  • This version fixes an incompatibility that has arisen with the release (on January 21, 2016) of Chrome 48.0.2564.82. This update was breaking all Epichrome apps. If your apps no longer start, install Epichrome 2.1.7 and run them again. Each one should offer you the choice of updating to 2.1.7, after which they should work again.

New in Epichrome 2.1.6 (Jan 14, 2016)

  • Epichrome should now do its best to run robustly even when Spotlight indexing is turned off. Note that if you do have Spotlight indexing off, your Epichrome apps will not update themselves automatically (because they can't find Epichrome without Spotlight).
  • Important: You'll need to turn Spotlight on temporarily and run each of your existing apps to get them to update to 2.1.6 (previous versions won't recognize there's a new version installed without Spotlight). Starting with version 2.1.6, your apps will automatically update, but only if Epichrome is installed exactly in: /Applications/Epichrome.app.

New in Epichrome 2.1.5 (Jan 14, 2016)

  • Added the ability for non-administrator users to create and update Epichrome apps anywhere on the system by entering an admin password using Apple's authentication window.
  • Also made some minor bug fixes.

New in Epichrome 2.1.4 (Jan 14, 2016)

  • Fixed a bug in the removed 2.1.2 release that caused error alerts to not be properly displayed on startup.
  • This release also has some under-the-hood improvements to prepare for a coming update to the Helper extension.

New in Epichrome 2.1.1 (Jan 14, 2016)

  • Several small bug-fixes to Epichrome.app

New in Epichrome 2.1.0 (Jan 14, 2016)

  • Aside from the project being renamed Epichrome (and the usual bug fixes), the headline for this release is that it includes the first version of Epichrome Helper, a Chrome extension that's automatically installed with each app. It handles link redirection so the app can have rules for which links it handles itself and which should be sent to the default browser.

New in Epichrome 2.0.1 (Jan 14, 2016)

  • Bug-fix release
  • This version also includes new Info.plist filtering code rewritten in Python for more robust XML-handling

New in Epichrome 2.0.0 (Jan 14, 2016)

  • Much more robust handling of updates to Chrome
  • SSBs are self-updating when new versions of this tool are installed
  • Added several features to SSBs, including multiple tabs and registration as a browser