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https://github.com/embium/notebit

NoteBit is a cross-platform desktop note-taking application built with Electron, React, and TypeScript. It offers powerful note organization, AI-assisted chat features, and offline-first functionality using local PouchDB storage.
https://github.com/embium/notebit

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NoteBit is a cross-platform desktop note-taking application built with Electron, React, and TypeScript. It offers powerful note organization, AI-assisted chat features, and offline-first functionality using local PouchDB storage.

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README 

          


  Notebit Logo

  
Notebit


  
Your Intelligent Note-Taking & AI-Powered Knowledge Companion


  


    Cross-platform desktop application (Windows, macOS, Linux) designed to seamlessly integrate powerful AI chat

    with your personal notes and knowledge bases. Built with Electron, React, TypeScript, and an offline-first architecture.

  


  


    GitHub release (latest by date)

    GitHub License

    GitHub last commit

    

  





## Overview



Notebit redefines the note-taking experience by placing AI at its core. It's not just about storing notes; it's about actively engaging with your knowledge through intelligent chat, powerful organization tools, and personalized AI assistance. Whether you're researching complex topics, drafting content, or simply organizing your thoughts, Notebit provides a smart, secure, and always-accessible environment. With its offline-first architecture powered by local PouchDB storage, your data remains private and available anytime, anywhere.



## ✨ Core Features



Notebit is packed with features designed to enhance your productivity and unlock new ways of interacting with your information:



#### 🧠 **Intelligent AI Chat & Assistance**



- **Omnipresent AI Chat:** Engage in dynamic conversations with AI directly within a dedicated chat interface or through contextually aware assistance across the app.

- **Flexible AI Model Support:** Connect to a vast array of AI providers:

  - Local LLMs via **Ollama** (e.g., Llama3, Mistral, Gemma).

  - Cloud-based services: **OpenAI (GPT models), Google (Gemini), Anthropic (Claude), Groq, Perplexity, LMStudio, xAI**, and more.

- **Customizable Model Parameters:** Fine-tune AI behavior (temperature, max tokens, context limit, Top P) and save custom model configurations.

- **Dynamic Model Switching:** Easily switch between AI models and providers on-the-fly within any chat.

- **In-Chat Document Analysis:** Upload documents (PDF, TXT, etc.) directly into chats for immediate AI summarization, Q&A, or analysis.



#### 📝 **Advanced Note-Taking & Organization**



- **Rich Text Editor:** Craft beautiful and detailed notes with a powerful [Tiptap](https://tiptap.dev/)-based editor, supporting:

  - Headings, bold, italics, strikethrough, highlights.

  - Bulleted & numbered lists, blockquotes, code blocks (with syntax highlighting).

  - Link embedding.

  - Markdown.

  - & LaTeX.

- **Hierarchical Folder System:** Intuitively organize your notes with a nested folder structure for granular classification.



#### 📚 **Smart Hubs: Your Personalized Knowledge Bases**



- **Centralized Content Aggregation:** Create "Smart Hubs" to group related documents from various local sources.

- **Multi-Format Support:** Add individual files (`.pdf`, `.md`, `.csv`, `.txt`, `.docx`, `.epub`, `.json`, `.jsonl`, `.rtf`) or link entire folders.

- **Contextual AI Chat:** Select Smart Hubs to provide deep, relevant context to your AI conversations. Control retrieval parameters like similarity and chunk count.

- **Content Processing & Indexing:** Notebit processes and indexes content within Smart Hubs, enabling semantic search and AI understanding.



#### 🚀 **Prompt Engineering & Management**



- **Prompt Library:** Build, manage, and tag a personal library of reusable system and user prompts.

- **In-Chat Prompt Injection:** Seamlessly apply prompts from your library within ongoing chats to guide AI responses.

- **Default Prompts Configuration:** Define default system prompts for new chats, title generation, and other AI interactions.



#### 🔍 **AI Memory & Semantic Search**



- **Configurable Embedding Models:** Choose from various embedding models (e.g., `nomic-embed-text`, Ollama-served models) to power semantic understanding.

- **Deep Search:** Find information based on meaning and context, not just keywords, across your notes and Smart Hubs.



#### 🎨 **Comprehensive Customization & Settings**



- **Appearance:** Light, Dark, & System themes; customizable accent colors, font styles, and font sizes.

- **AI Model Management:** Enable/disable providers, configure connection settings (e.g., Ollama API host), refresh model lists, and add custom models.

- **Data Management:** Define notes storage location and manage AI Memory (embedding model) settings.

- **General Settings:** Control link behavior, automatic chat title generation, and more.



#### 🌐 **Cross-Platform & Offline-First**



- **Works Everywhere:** Use Notebit consistently on Windows, macOS, and Linux.

- **Always Accessible:** Full offline functionality for notes and core features, thanks to local PouchDB storage. Your data is yours.



## 📸 Screenshots



Click to expand screenshots



|                Chat Interface                 |          Notes & Rich Text Editor           |

| :-------------------------------------------: | :-----------------------------------------: |

| ![Chat Interface](screenshots/chats_main.png) | ![Notes Editor](screenshots/notes_main.png) |



|        Smart Hubs / Knowledge Base        |                  Prompt Library                   |

| :---------------------------------------: | :-----------------------------------------------: |

| ![Smart Hubs](screenshots/smart_hubs.png) | ![Prompt Library](screenshots/prompt_library.png) |



|                  Settings: General & Appearance                  |             Settings: AI Model Configuration              |

| :--------------------------------------------------------------: | :-------------------------------------------------------: |

| ![Settings General](screenshots/settings_general_appearance.png) | ![Settings AI Models](screenshots/settings_ai_models.png) |



|                    Settings: AI Memory                    |                In-Chat Features (Prompts, Hubs, Docs)                |

| :-------------------------------------------------------: | :------------------------------------------------------------------: |

| ![Settings AI Memory](screenshots/settings_ai_memory.png) | ![In-Chat Smart Hub Context](screenshots/chat_smart_hub_context.png) |



## 🛠️ Tech Stack



### Core



- **Electron**: Cross-platform desktop application framework

- **React**: UI library for building the interface

- **TypeScript**: Type-safe JavaScript

- **Vite (via `electron-vite`)**: Fast build tooling and development server



### Data Management & State



- **PouchDB**: Offline-first local database for notes and application data

- **Legend State**: Performant state management library

- **TanStack React Router**: Type-safe routing for the web/renderer process

- **tRPC**: End-to-end typesafe APIs for communication between main and renderer processes



### User Interface



- **Tailwind CSS**: Utility-first CSS framework for rapid UI development

- **shadcn/ui**: Re-usable and accessible UI components



### Artificial Intelligence



- **Vercel AI SDK**: Core SDK for interacting with various AI language models and providers

- Extensive support for multiple LLM providers and local models via Ollama.



## 🚀 Getting Started



### Prerequisites



- Node.js (v18+ recommended)

- npm or yarn



### Installation



1.  Clone the repository:

    ```bash

    git clone https://github.com/embium/notebit.git

    ```

2.  Navigate to the project directory:

    ```bash

    cd Notebit

    ```

3.  Install dependencies:

    ```bash

    npm install

    # or

    # yarn install

    ```



### Development



To start the application in development mode with hot-reloading:



```bash

npm run dev

```



### Building for Production



To build the application for packaging:



```bash

npm run build

```



This will compile the TypeScript code and prepare assets.



### Packaging for Distribution



To package the application for your current platform or specific platforms:



```bash

npm run package          # Package for current platform

npm run package:win    # Package for Windows

npm run package:mac    # Package for macOS

npm run package:linux  # Package for Linux

```



Packaged applications will be found in the `release/${version}` directory.



## 🏗️ Project Structure



A brief overview of the main directories:



- `src/main`: Electron main process code (Node.js environment). Handles window management, system interactions, and tRPC backend.

- `src/preload.ts`: Secure bridge script between the main and renderer processes, exposing necessary APIs via `contextBridge`.

- `src/shared`: Code, types, and utilities shared between the main and renderer processes (e.g., tRPC router definitions).

- `src/web`: Renderer process code (React application running in the browser-like environment).

  - `app/`: Core application setup, providers, global state.

  - `components/`: Reusable UI components (often built with shadcn/ui and Tailwind CSS).

  - `features/`: Self-contained modules for major application features (e.g., Notes, Chats, Settings, SmartHubs).

  - `routes/`: Routing configuration using TanStack React Router.

  - `shared/`: Web-specific shared utilities, hooks, and contexts.

- `src/assets/`: Static assets like icons and images.



## 🤝 Contributing



_(Optional: Add contribution guidelines if you plan to accept them)_

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a pull request or open an issue.



1. Fork the Project

2. Create your Feature Branch (`git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature`)

3. Commit your Changes (`git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature'`)

4. Push to the Branch (`git push origin feature/AmazingFeature`)

5. Open a Pull Request



## 📜 License



This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the [LICENSE](LICENSE) file for details.



## ✍️ Author



Michael Mooney - [GitHub](https://github.com/embium)



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## Share your passion: If you find Notebit useful, consider starring the repository! ⭐



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