HelixNotes is completely free, open source, with no bloat. Your notes should be yours.

So we made sure they are. https://helixnotes.com/

  • Hanrahan@slrpnk.netEnglish
    0·
    2 hours ago

    I’m using Joplin, sync’d across Nextcloud to my android phone, Linux laptop and Linux desktop.

    this do much the same or …better ?

  • cybervegan@lemmy.world
    0·
    8 hours ago

    Seems quite good - I’ve tried a LOT of MarkDown editors over the years, but until quite recently, I’d stuck with Zettlr for a long time. I’ve recently reinstalled my laptop, which made me look for alternatives to some software, and I’ve been playing round with MarkText for the last few days, which seems nice.

    HelixNotes is definitely good - if I had to drop MarkText, I think I could get on well with it. I like that they have a debian repository, so I can keep it updated with the usual system update software. I downloaded the AppImage as a quick test, but it didn’t work because it was compiled against an old version of glibc.

    The only thing I don’t like so far is the format toolbar is at the bottom of the editor screen, and I haven’t found a way to move it.

  • siravious@lemmy.world
    0·
    9 hours ago

    Looks cool… but as an Obsidian user, i’m uncertain as to the depth of the differentiators. Open source sure, but obsidian has served me well and is lightning fast to open even with all core plug-ins enabled plus several community plug-ins. Nearly all of which are optional anyway.

    Obsidian also has quite a moat in terms of third-party functionality enhancements with very feature rich examples like Xcalidraw.

    They also offer an end to end encrypted synchronization service that works better than file based synchronization services like iCloud, and a publish service that also works well.

    No casting of aspersions, but as a former fortune 500 decision-maker for enterprise software in the millions, I have a tendency to critically think about why X vs Y for my personal stack as well. Counterpoints welcome!

    • Ozymandias88@feddit.ukEnglish
      0·
      8 hours ago

      Enshitification.

      If they were really committed to keeping it “for the users” they would open source it.

      The fact that they haven’t means they are keeping in their back pockets enshitification to drive more users to paid options in case their current investment dries up.

      • pemptago@lemmy.mlEnglish
        0·
        8 hours ago

        I love FOSS and Obsidian is literally the only close-sourced software in my stack, but open source is not necessary to prevent enshittification, not if you have interoperability. As long as data is stored in md files, if the obsidian team makes bad moves people can pack up and migrate to logseq or other competitors. While the 3rd party plugins add enhancements that might bog down switching, many of those plugins are open source and could be ported.

  • bleustenns@lemmy.ml
    0·
    10 hours ago

    Was AI used in the process of making this app, and if so, how? I have personal issues with using ‘vibe-coded’ software. This looks very, very nice, so I figured I’d ask.

    • rockyroad226@lemmy.worldOP
      0·
      9 hours ago

      Thanks for asking. Yes, we use AI as a tool in our workflow. The difference between our workflow and ‘vibe coding’ is that we can catch and fix problems. We’re not just shipping whatever an AI produces and hoping it works.

  • Voroxpete@sh.itjust.works
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    12 hours ago

    If - hypothetically - you were trying to convince me that this is better than Notesnook, what would your pitch be?

    • rockyroad226@lemmy.worldOP
      0·
      12 hours ago

      Since you’re using Notesnook, I’m guessing you strongly care about your privacy and data security. Notesnook encrypts your notes before they leave which is great, but with HelixNotes, there’s nothing to intercept in the first place. Your notes live on your device. You decide if they ever go anywhere. In addition to that, HelixNotes is free with no account creation.

      • Voroxpete@sh.itjust.works
        0·
        11 hours ago

        I guess I should specify that I’m selfhosting Notesnook, so the data never leaves my personal device ecosystem, and the central sync server is a big plus for me. No account required either (apart from the ones I create on the server I control).

      • bitwolf@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
        0·
        24 hours ago

        Electron runtime in general. It seems all of the popular cross platform note taking / knowledge garden apps are electron.

        I long so much for a native version that I started learning QTQuick to do just this.

  • grapemix@lemmy.ml
    0·
    1 day ago

    Oh, hey, I saw your repo is stall for months and I thought your project go south. So you finally satisfied with your gui speed after rewritten? Good to see you make it, congrats. Already find a job? You should really design a good plugin sys with py, to expand more interactive data type. Let me know if you want to hear more.

  • mmmm@sopuli.xyz
    0·
    1 day ago

    Just downloaded it and opened it and the first thing it does is to ask me for a “notes folder” with .md files, which I don’t have. I just wanted to try it by writing notes.

  • Aria@lemmygrad.ml
    0·
    2 days ago

    Excellent. Thank you. But using an online AI provider to me seems against the stated goals. I know online is the preferred option for most people, but you should provide them alongside connecting to a local server.