OpenNote is an open-source note-taking app that combines your favorite writing, drawing, and recording features for professional and personal use. Windows comes first; macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android follow.
New here? The project wiki holds the user guide, development updates, and the developer guide.
OpenNote is in early development. Each phase of the development plan gets its own branch and merges into main when it meets its exit gate.
| Phase | Focus | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Project foundation | Done and merged |
| 1 | Spikes that test ink, text, PDF export, and audio | Done and merged |
| 2 | App shell and navigation | Done and merged 2026-10-02 |
| 3 | Document model and storage | Done and merged 2026-10-03 |
| 4 | Typed notes (text, Markdown, tables, code) | Done and merged 2026-10-03 |
| 5 to 14 | Ink, export, charts, search, audio, math, import, intelligence, hardening, and release | In progress, being wired into the app; a first beta build exists on branch beta |
OpenNote runs as a Windows desktop app. You can organize notebooks, sections, and pages, and write typed notes on a page, either in a simple document flow or in text boxes you place anywhere. Pages save on their own and recover after a crash. Typed notes support:
- Text boxes, headings, lists, checkboxes, bold and italic, links, quotes, and callouts
- Markdown shortcuts as you type (for example
#for a heading), and Markdown paste - Images by paste, drag, or file picker, with resize and crop
- Tables, and code blocks with syntax highlighting
- Spell check through the Windows spelling service
Ink, export, charts, search, audio, math, and import are still being wired into the app.
There is no release yet. When one ships, it will appear on the GitHub Releases page as three files:
| File | For |
|---|---|
OpenNote_Windows64.exe |
64-bit Windows, on most PCs |
OpenNote_Windows32.exe |
32-bit Windows |
OpenNote_WindowsARM64.exe |
Windows on Arm PCs, such as Snapdragon laptops |
On Windows, install Node.js 22.18 or newer, Rust (through rustup), and the Microsoft C++ Build Tools. Then run:
git clone https://github.com/XrxcGH/OpenNote.git
cd OpenNote
npm install && npm startThat opens the OpenNote window in development mode. Run npm run setup-hooks once, so CHECKS runs before every commit. To test your changes, run:
npm test # CHECKS, lint rule, and unit tests
npm run test:components # component tests in the installed Edge or Chrome
npm run test:ui # screen and accessibility tests in Playwright
npm run test:e2e # real-app tests, which need tauri-driver and msedgedriver
npm run perf:typing # the typing latency benchmark
cargo test --workspace # Rust testsCONTRIBUTING.md has the full setup, every npm script, and the workflow for branches and pull requests.
app/ The desktop app (Phases 2 and 4)
src/ TypeScript and React interface
editor/ The typed notes editor: schema, Markdown, tables, and highlighting
features/
page/ The page view: text boxes, images, paste, and spell check
services/
pages/ The page service contract, with its Tauri and in-memory versions
src-tauri/ Rust shell, built on Tauri 2
brand/ Design tokens, logo, and app icon
checks/ The CHECKS quality gate
crates/ Rust libraries (Phase 3)
core/ Document model, file format, storage, undo, and search
updater/ Self-updater (fetch, verify, install, rollback)
docs/ Plans, specs, and guides
adr/ Architecture decision records, including Phase 4's 0020 to 0026
design/ Screen wireframes and the generator that draws them
format/ Note file format specification and tools
perf/ Performance records, starting with Phase 4's typing numbers
spikes/ Throwaway Phase 1 experiments and their results
tests/ End-to-end, UI, performance, and crash tests (Phase 3)
crash/ Crash safety tests that kill the app during saves
e2e/ Real-app tests: the smoke set (keyboard, screen reader) and typed notes
perf/ Performance benchmarks for every budget
typing/ The typing latency benchmark for the 20-page note (Phase 4)
ui/ Screenshot tests of every screen and size
.github/ Issue and pull request templates, and the CI and release workflows
The root also holds tool settings such as package.json, Cargo.toml, and checks.config.json.
The documentation index lists everything in docs/. Start with the wiki for guides, or pick a document below.
| Document | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Project wiki | The user guide, development updates, and the developer guide |
| docs/DEVELOPMENT.md | The step-by-step plan for the Windows prototype, with tests and release gates |
| docs/FEATURES.md | The feature spec: Office and Google, handwriting, transcripts, study tools, and more |
| docs/RESEARCH.md | Popular and rising note apps, the features people love, and the gaps OpenNote can fill |
| docs/BRAND.md | Colors, type, layout, motion, accessibility, and performance budgets |
| docs/design/SCREENS.md | Wireframes of each major screen, with sizes and keep-out zones |
| docs/CHECKS.md | The quality gate every file change must pass |
| docs/format/README.md | The note file format specification and tools (Phase 3) |
| docs/adr/README.md | The architecture decision records (ADRs), and how to write one |
| docs/RELEASING.md | The maintainer guide to cutting, checking, and rolling back a release |
| CONTRIBUTING.md | How to set up, make a change, and get it merged |
| SECURITY.md | How to report a security problem privately |
| CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md | How we treat each other |
OpenNote is licensed under the Apache License 2.0.