ARK Desktop Wallet: Introducing Plugin Manager

Find, install and access plugins for your ARK Desktop Wallet in a few clicks

Fresh out of development, today we launch the new Plugin Manager for the ARK Desktop Wallet. With Plugin Manager, you’ll now be able to browse, find and install plugins direct to your wallet in just a few clicks. This means easier access to all the great plugins the ecosystem has to offer; including themes, tools, exchanges, games and more. Here’s a run-through of how to use Plugin Manager, how you can get started with building your very own plugins, and how to take part in the special launch competition to win ARK prizes…

The ARK Desktop Wallet just got an upgrade. Now, not only can you use your wallet to securely store your ARK tokens, to vote for delegates or to send transactions; but with the new Plugin Manager feature, there’s now an even easier way to find and use your favorite plugins.

From plugins that customize your wallet to games and tools; the new Plugin Manager builds on existing features by adding a more intuitive interface that allows you to quickly see, access and use all of the plugins the ecosystem has available for the Desktop Wallet. Check it out here…

Access Plugin Manager by downloading the latest version of the ARK Desktop Wallet v2.7.0, available here: https://ark.io/wallet

Pretty great right? With plugins for games, themes, exchanges and tools already built-in; you’ll now benefit from a more user-friendly experience when it comes to finding and managing your plugins. Better yet, developers will be able to get the plugins they create white-listed and added to the Plugin Manager for easy discovery by the entire ecosystem.

To get you started with building your very own plugins, we’re even running a “Design a Theme Plugin” competition with **up to $500 worth of prizes **for the best themes created. More on that below… but first, let’s take you through how to get up and running with Plugin Manager…

Finding and Installing a Plugin

With Plugin Manager, all of the plugins are easy to find and even easier to install. Just browse the categories, or search for the plugin you’re looking for using the search bar. Then in just a few clicks you can install the plugin you want directly into your wallet and use it within seconds. Here’s how it works…

1. If you haven’t already, the first step is to download the latest version of the ARK Desktop Wallet (available here: https://ark.io/wallet). If you’re not sure how to set up or use the Desktop Wallet, follow this handy guide.

2. Once you’re up and running, just click on the “Plugins” icon and either search or browse for your favorite plugin. Choose from games, themes, tools, utilities and more.

3. Then just click the “Install” button on your selection, download the plugin and confirm the install by clicking again.

4. That’s it! You can now access your plugin directly from the “Plugins” icon. Enjoy!

For a full walkthrough of the Plugin Manager, check out this video:

Design Your Own Theme Plugin Competition

Now that you’re up and running with the Plugin Manager, we want you to get involved with building your very own plugins for the ecosystem.

Have a good eye for design? Want to share your creations with the community and win prizes for doing so? To celebrate the launch, we’re running a “Design a Theme Plugin” competition so that everyone can get started with building their very own simple plugin.

There’s up to $500 USD worth of prizes for the best themes, including:

• 1st place = $300 USD worth of ARK Tokens (Ѧ), Ledger Nano S, and ARK-branded merch

• 2nd place = $150 USD worth of ARK Tokens (Ѧ), and ARK merch

• 3rd place = $50 USD worth of ARK Tokens (Ѧ), and ARK merch

Plus, all competition entrants will also be added into a prize draw to win a swag bag full of ARK-branded merch!

All you need to do is come up with a color theme for Desktop Wallet and create it as a plugin. How about a retro theme? Or ARK red? What about a nod to your favorite video game? You can even just throw all of your favorite colors together and see what happens.

With the easy to follow tutorial, absolutely anyone can enter the competition by creating their own theme plugin. The winning themes will be added to Plugin Manager for use in the ARK Desktop Wallet. Why not give it a go? Not only will you have a chance of winning some great prizes, but you’ll also be in with a chance of getting your theme published for everyone to use.

Follow the step-by-step tutorial to create your own theme plugin in around one hour…

How to develop a theme plugin: https://themes.ARK.io

Competition Entries

So, what are you waiting for? To enter the competition, just create and submit your own theme **using the tutorial**. Once you’ve done this, follow up with an email to **[email protected] **(with the subject: Theme Competition) and include a link to your Github repo and the package name from NPM for your plugin; we’ll then be in touch to verify you as the author.

The *“Design a Theme Plugin” *competition closes on January 30th 2020, all themes created after this date will not be counted as entries into the competition. Winners will be selected by ARK Delegates via a poll in the Delegate slack channel and will be announced in February.

Physical prizes (such as Ledger Nano S and ARK Merch) may be awarded by way of a 100% discount voucher to use in the **ARK shop**. Finally, we’ll be announcing the winners across our blog and social channels, so stay tuned. Good luck!

In the meantime, check out the Plugin Manager by downloading the latest Desktop Wallet, and let us know your thoughts using hashtag #arkpluginmanager on social media.

Changes In Numbers

Since the previous release:

• **7 different developers **contributing to the ARK Desktop Wallet.

• 73 new commits to the ARK Desktop Wallet.

• 267 files changed in the ARK Desktop Wallet.

• 14,646 lines of code added to the ARK Desktop Wallet.

• 3,970 lines of code deleted from the ARK Desktop Wallet.

Hashes for 2.7.0 of Desktop Wallets (SHA256)

• **Linux *(ark-desktop-wallet-linux-x64–2.7.0.tar.gz)
  *** e993ae2dc8c7b3cd29087d424cac60b5c3fed6aed1dfa25fc6a0e27e4fb1a0df

• **MacOS *(ark-desktop-wallet-mac-2.7.0.dmg)
  *** c7496e1586c0958b80da73ea3f96cda8a86d50bd9b26cb1157b6c5d6b6b5837b

• **Ubuntu *(ark-desktop-wallet-linux-amd64–2.7.0.deb)
  *** 86b55043a493bc6ad57e1d992697d96a3b444bd0432d3f2a6fabbfcfed076291

• Windows X86 & X64 (ark-desktop-wallet-win-2.7.0.exe)
  ** 077ddb437b9ce48d3f64f668298bf0910ef358656497cf786f7dbcc79a3655ad

• Linux-AppImage ***(ark-desktop-wallet-linux-x86_64–2.7.0.AppImage)
  *** ea15ed4cfe97488da4029ca57dc050158bc6392e2db83b867a4d4307d806a3b9

I found a bug / an issue — what do I do?

Please open an issue with all of the details on **ARK Desktop Wallet Issues **page.

I want to help with development — what do I do?

Please open a **pull request, and don’t forget, we are also running **Github development bounty, so you can earn some extra ARK.

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