https://github.com/abdallah-moh1/amethyst
Amethyst - A modern markdown note-taking application
https://github.com/abdallah-moh1/amethyst
amethyst electron markdown notes notes-app react typescript
Last synced: 3 months ago
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Amethyst - A modern markdown note-taking application
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/abdallah-moh1/amethyst
- Owner: abdallah-moh1
- License: agpl-3.0
- Created: 2026-03-25T02:58:07.000Z (3 months ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2026-04-01T23:19:47.000Z (3 months ago)
- Last Synced: 2026-04-02T08:58:02.819Z (3 months ago)
- Topics: amethyst, electron, markdown, notes, notes-app, react, typescript
- Language: TypeScript
- Homepage:
- Size: 1.92 MB
- Stars: 1
- Watchers: 1
- Forks: 0
- Open Issues: 1
-
Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.md
- License: LICENSE
Awesome Lists containing this project
README
# Amethyst
A modern markdown note-taking desktop application built with Electron, React, Vite, and TypeScript.
Amethyst is currently in early development. The current `v0.1.0` milestone focuses on the editor foundation: a working desktop shell, a CodeMirror-based editor, a resizable three-panel layout, and a basic built-in theme/settings pipeline.
## Current status
Amethyst is currently in early development.
Version 0.1.0 includes the editor foundation and application architecture.
Notes, notebooks, preview, and split view will be added in future releases.
**Released:** `v0.1.0`
What currently works:
- Electron desktop shell
- React renderer with Vite
- CodeMirror editor integration
- Resizable left / center / right workspace panels
- Collapsible side panels
- Built-in dark and light theme loading
- Settings persistence infrastructure
- GitHub Actions CI and tagged release workflow
What is not implemented yet:
- Notes and notebooks
- Saving markdown files
- Preview pane
- Split editor/preview view
- Search
- Outline panel contents
- Full settings UI
## Screenshots
## Tech stack
| Layer | Technology |
| ------------- | --------------------------- |
| Desktop shell | Electron |
| Renderer | React |
| Build tool | Vite |
| Language | TypeScript |
| Editor | CodeMirror 6 |
| Layout | react-resizable-panels |
| Styling | CSS variables + JSON themes |
| Packaging | electron-builder |
## Project structure
```text
amethyst/
├── assets/ # Icons and packaging assets
├── electron/ # Electron main process, preload, IPC, native-side services
│ ├── ipc/ # IPC handler registration
│ ├── services/ # Settings/theme services on the main process
│ ├── themes/ # Built-in JSON theme definitions
│ └── window/ # BrowserWindow creation
├── shared/ # Types shared by main and renderer
├── src/ # React renderer application
│ ├── app/ # App bootstrap and root app component
│ ├── features/ # Feature modules (editor, sidebar, right panel, workspace)
│ ├── layout/ # App shell and panel layout composition
│ ├── services/ # Renderer-side IPC client wrappers
│ ├── styles/ # Global and layout CSS
│ └── utils/ # Small DOM/UI helpers
├── .github/workflows/ # CI and release automation
├── package.json
└── vite.config.ts
```
## How the app is structured
Amethyst follows a simple Electron architecture:
- **Main process** creates the native window, owns filesystem access, and persists settings.
- **Preload** exposes a narrow, safe API to the renderer through `window.amethyst`.
- **Renderer** contains the React UI and talks to the main process only through IPC wrappers.
- **Shared types** keep the contract between both sides aligned.
For more detail, see [ARCHITECTURE.md](./ARCHITECTURE.md).
## Development
### Install dependencies
```bash
npm install
```
### Run in development
```bash
npm run dev
```
This starts:
- the Vite development server for the renderer
- Electron, pointed at the Vite dev URL through `ELECTRON_START_URL`
### Run checks
```bash
npm run check
```
This runs type-checking, linting, formatting checks, and a production build.
## Build and package
### Build renderer + Electron main code
```bash
npm run build
```
### Build installable packages
```bash
npm run build:electron
```
This packages the app with `electron-builder`.
Current targets:
- **Windows:** NSIS installer, portable executable
- **macOS:** DMG, ZIP
- **Linux:** AppImage, DEB, RPM, tar.gz
## Available scripts
| Script | Description |
| ---------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------- |
| `npm run dev` | Start Vite and Electron together for local development |
| `npm run build` | Build the renderer and Electron TypeScript output |
| `npm run build:electron` | Create packaged desktop release artifacts |
| `npm run build:electron:dir` | Build unpacked output for inspection/debugging |
| `npm run preview` | Preview the Vite production renderer build |
| `npm run lint` | Run ESLint |
| `npm run lint:fix` | Run ESLint and apply fixes where possible |
| `npm run format` | Format the repository with Prettier |
| `npm run format:check` | Check formatting with Prettier |
| `npm run typecheck` | Type-check both renderer and Electron TypeScript configs |
| `npm run check` | Run typecheck + lint + format check + build |
## Themes
Amethyst already has a small theme system.
Current built-in themes:
- `amethyst-dark`
- `amethyst-light`
Themes are defined as JSON files in `electron/themes/` and applied in the renderer by mapping theme tokens to CSS custom properties.
Longer term, this can grow into a custom-theme system without changing the basic contract.
## Settings
The project already includes a basic settings persistence layer.
Current stored settings:
- selected theme
- autosave flag
Settings are stored in the Electron `userData` directory as `settings.json`.
The settings model is intentionally small right now because the settings UI has not been built yet.
## Storage
### Current
- **Settings:** stored in the app's `userData/settings.json`
- **Themes:** built-in JSON files bundled with the app
- **Notes:** not implemented yet
### Planned
Once note storage is added, markdown notes and notebook metadata will likely live in a user-chosen local directory while app-level preferences remain in `userData`.
## Documentation
- [CHANGELOG.md](./CHANGELOG.md)
- [ROADMAP.md](./ROADMAP.md)
- [ARCHITECTURE.md](./ARCHITECTURE.md)
## Contributing
Contributions are welcome later, but the project is still in early architecture-first development.
If you want to contribute once the project stabilizes:
1. Fork the repository.
2. Create a feature branch.
3. Keep changes focused and small.
4. Run `npm run check` before opening a pull request.
5. Explain the change clearly in the PR description.
## License
Amethyst is licensed under the **AGPL-3.0-or-later** license. See [LICENSE](./LICENSE).
## Author
**Abdallah Mohammad**
- GitHub: `abdallah-moh1`
- Email: `abdallah.moh.q@gmail.com`