ntbk is a simple command-line journaling tool written in Node.js.
To install ntbk using npm:
npm install -g ntbk
Type ntbk into your shell window followed by a message:
> ntbk 11-month-old stood up today for the first time
then hit enter to have the entry added to your designated notebook.
Alternatively, you can type ntbk and hit return and then type your message. When you're ready to save your entry, hit return again.
You can see all your entries by using the --list option:
> ntbk --list
You can also pass a number to the --list option and it will return a subset of your entries. For example if you passed 2 it will return the last two ntbk entries.
> ntbk -l 2
The above uses the shorthand version -l of the --list option.
As you write entries in ntbk you might want to group similar entries together. You can do this by using tags.
ntbk supports Twitter like hashtag syntax.
I really think pizza is the best! #food
The syntax is a word that describes your entry with a hash (#) symbol prepended. Tags can be used anywhere within your entry.
When using tags while writing your entry, you might have to escape them using the backslash (\) character.
> ntbk Implemented tags in ntbk today \#dev
To list all ntbk entries containing a tag, you can use the --tag option:
> ntbk --tag food
As you can see in the example above, the tag option doesn't need to have the hashtag symbol prefixed when passing it a parameter.
You can also get a list of all existing tags in your notebook. Simply use the --tag option without passing in a tag as a parameter:
> ntbk --tag
The shorthand version of --tag is -t.
Like a time machine, the --moments option allows you to relive your past entries from a year go.
> ntbk --moments
If you didn't write any entries a year ago from your current day, no problem, ntbk will retrieve a random moment from your entries.
The --moments option also allows you to pass in several time units to retrieve moments in time.
Let's say instead of a year, I wanted to relive my moments from last month, I could do this:
> ntbk --moments 1m
As you can see the syntax goes, numerical value paired with a single character unit. The units of time that --moments recognizes are:
d - day
m - month
y - year
The shorthand version of --moments is -m.
See how many entries you've got in your notebook with --count.
> ntbk --count
Added information on how to hack on ntbk from local machine.
The --tag option can now list existing tags from your journal. Run ntbk --tag without passing a tag and it'll list all your tags.
Fixed a bug with --moments where the default entry is a year from today.
See how many entries you've captured in your notebook with --count.
ntbk was inspired by the Python journaling app, jrnl.
Help make ntbk better. If you're handy with some JavaScript and/or Node.js, feel free to create a pull-request. You could also create a new issue on GitHub. If you have any questions feel free to shoot me a tweet @michaelsoolee.
To hack on ntbk on your local machine, first clone the repo, then from within your local copy, type npm link. This will make a symlink to your local copy.