Make Your Chrome TweetDeck App Operate as a Windows Desktop App

I am a heavy Chrome browser user. It's not usual for me to operate with multiple tabs open throughout the day. I might have one open to my Blog, another in Facebook, another in my Gmail, and so on. When the version of TweetDeck you're using is the Chrome Browser App, it also normally operates within a Chrome tab. You have to click on a TweetDeck Chrome tab to view the program. It is possible though, to change how the Chrome TweetDeck app behaves so that it functions more like a separate Windows application.

Of course you could install the Desktop version of TweetDeck and solve this problem. But I have noticed lately, that Twitter seems to update the Web or Chrome version first when there are new features. This means some of TweetDeck's newest features are available in the Chrome App way before the Desktop app. For example, right now, in the Chrome Browser app, the TweetDeck columns have handles and you can simply click on and drag your those columns into any order you wish. I'm sure this will be available at some point in the desktop version, but for now, it is only available in the Chrome app version.

If you would like to have your Chrome TweetDeck app behave more like a separate Windows application, here's how you do that, and you can create a shortcut to your desktop, start menu, or taskbar in the process.



Four Easy Steps to Get Chrome TweetDeck App to Behave Like a Windows App

1. Open your TweetDeck  App in your Chrome browser and it will appear as a tab below like the illustration below. This is how TweetDeck in Chrome normally operates, as a tab all to its own.

Chrome Tweetdeck Tab View

2. After TweetDeck Chrome loads, go to your Chrome Settings button in the top right-hand corner. When you click on the settings button, your drop-down menu appears like below.

Chrome Browser Settings Menu

3. Select "Tools" from the Menu. Then, select “Create Application Shortcuts.”  A dialogue box will appear like the one below. You can choose to pin the Application Shortcut to your Desktop, Start Menu, or Taskbar. Once you select the way you want he shortcut to appear, simply click the "Create" button. Your icon will appear as you have selected, and TweetDeck will open in its own window instead of a tab.

Chrome Application Shortcut Dialogue Box

4. Your Chrome TweetDeck app now operates from a separate window, just like the desktop app. Just click on the icon you created to access your Chrome TweetDeck app from now on.

Chrome Tweetdeck Running 

This Chrome trick makes your TweetDeck Chrome App operate as its own application.

3 Alternatives for TweetDeck as Your Twitter App

Ever since Twitter updated TweetDeck into its current manifestation, there have been many, including me, who have been disappointed with the new product. I immediately began experimenting with several alternatives, yet none of them have completely replaced the ease with which I used TweetDeck. In my explorations for an alternative, I have used more than just the three below, but these three seem to be the ones I personally have continued to use. It seems, being able to modify Hootsuite so that it has the feel of being a desktop app, makes it my go-to Twitter app for the time being.

• Silver Bird (Twitter Extension for Chrome Browser): Silver Bird offers users access to Twitter by clicking a button on their browser extension toolbar. Users can do everything you can in the other apps. They can receive real time updates. They can choose between three themes for the app. There are even update notification options on the browser button and in the window when receiving a mention. This is a simple, but highly functional app for accessing and using Twitter. Check out Silver Bird in the Chrome Web Store (Silver Bird Page in Web Store).

Chrome Extension Silver Bird Interface

• Seesmic Desktop: Seesmic offers a fairly straighforward interface with this product. It is as easy to use as TweetDeck in my opinion. Users enjoy many of the same features such as realtime updates, adding custom columns, adjusting font size, and customizing backgrounds. There are even desktop notifications. The interface for this app is similar in layout to the old Tweetdeck in some ways, with the input bar at the top, with the columns arranged underneath. Adding a search column for chats such as #edchat is rather easy too. The only issue I’ve had with this product is an occasional unexplained app crash, so it suffers for me just a bit in the reliability department.

Seesmic Desktop Interface

• Hootsuite: When I was experiencing crashing difficulties with TweetDeck, several other Twitter users tweeted, “Use Hootsuite.” I’ve used Hootsuite on all of my devices before, but the one thing I did not like about the app was that it was a browser-based app, and there are times when I close my browser, I like to have the Twitter app running separately. I could have simply opened Hootsuite as a separate tab in its own browser Window, but it turns out you can make the browser-based Hootsuite look like a desktop app by following these simple instructions from Hootsuite. (Making Hootsuite Look Like a Desktop App)

Hootsuite Converted to a Desktop App Look

Out of the three options, I can easily see that by modifying Hootsuite into a desktop like app makes it the most attractive option for me right now.

Twitter Releases More Stable TweetDeck Update: No More Crashes!

TweetDeck crashes seem to be fixed with Twitter’s update to version 1.1. Earlier this week I posted that TweetDeck fans might want to wait before downloading and installing the new TweetDeck native Windows app. It constantly crashed when I used it on my Windows 7 64-Bit laptop, and it crashed on the Windows XP computer I used at work as well. As of today, I have installed the updated version that came out today and have not had any crashes. Still, there are some features from the old Air version I miss. Hopefully, Twitter will find a way to include them in their new desktop app. Here’s just a few that I and others have stated they would like to see included.

• The input Windows at the top of the screen is gone and is replaced with a button, that when clicked, a pop-up window appears. I personally liked the input window at the top and would like to see it placed there again. There are times when I need to look back at a Tweet as I am posting one. I can’t do that now because the pop-up input screen is in the way.
• There is no right-click menu. I miss this one, especially when I want to paste a link in a post. I have to resort to using Ctrl-V for pasting, but I suppose I can get used to that.
• The size of the columns and window are fixed and can’t be adjusted. I often adjusted the column sizes to fit the screen when I had multiple windows open for multiple apps. That’s not possible with the new fixed TweetDeck window and columns.
• Some have complained about not being able to customize the colors of the new TweetDeck interface. Honestly, I rarely used this feature, but we all like to personalize things, so I could understand some missing this feature.

New TweetDeck Screen

Ultimately, I am happy I can now run TweetDeck without it crashing every five minutes or so, but Twitter, needs to realize that besides stability, there were other features that made TweetDeck a fan of so many.

You May Want to Wait Before Using the New Tweetdeck by Twitter

If you are thinking about upgrading your Adobe Air Tweetdeck app to the new Desktop Tweetdeck from Twitter, WAIT! This is one time I think it will pay to hold on to your old Tweetdeck until Twitter has had time to work out all the bugs in their new version of Tweetdeck that ditches Air and operates natively in Windows.

I downloaded, installed and tested the new Tweetdeck on my Windows 7 machine, and like a lot of Tweetdeck fans, I immediately noticed a number of my favorite features gone from the new version. Others have better captured those missing features than I. (“The New Tweedeck Is Tweet Trash”, “Twitter Buys Tweetdeck, Takes Several Steps Backwards”.) Some have even posited some interesting theories as to why Twitter has so drastically changed Tweetdeck, Four Unfortunate Ways Twitter Is Killing Tweetdeck.

Personally, I am a Tweetdeck fan from way back. It is one of application always running on my desktop, but that did not happened with this new version. It CRASHED so many times over a week’s period I lost count. I tried all the usual fixes. The uninstall/reinstall routine, the anti-virus setting adjustments, the desktop adjustments, etc. It still crashed. I looked for help and support online and found none. I messaged the @Tweetdeck developers through Twitter and two days later I got this message, “Thanks for the information; we’ve filed this bug with an engineer and hope to have it resolved soon. Stay tuned!” Meanwhile,  Tweetdeck the New will not run on my 64-Bit Windows 7 laptop. So I reinstalled Tweetdeck the Old and have not had a single problem since.

Tweetdeck the Old Screen

I’ve relearned an old lesson you would have thought I knew by now, “New does not necessarily mean better.” That is perfectly illustrated in what Twitter has done to my beloved Tweetdeck app.