# nib

Capture-first note system. Catch thoughts, todos, and events before they slip — from terminal or browser. Everything lives in a single SQLite file.

nib uses a tiny grammar to extract structure from plain text. You type naturally, and nib figures out what it is: a thought, a todo with a due date, an event, a titled reference. Tags, descriptions, and time anchors are pulled out automatically. The body stays as markdown.

When something proves useful, promote it to a card (snippet, template, checklist, decision, link) for quick reuse. Cards track usage and float to the top.

## Install

Requires Go 1.24+.

```
go build -o nib .
```

Data lives at `~/.nib/nib.db` by default. Override with `NIB_DB=/path/to/file.db`.

## Quick start

```bash
# capture a thought
nib "proxy_pass needs a trailing slash"

# todo
nib "- buy mass gainer @tomorrow #errands"

# titled entry with description
nib "|nginx proxy trick // always forget this #ops"

# todo with a title
nib "- |deploy staging // rebuild docker image #ops"

# list recent entries
nib ls

# list by tag
nib ls --tag ops

# list a specific month
nib ls --month 2026-05

# terminal UI
nib tui

# start the web UI
nib serve
```

Open `http://localhost:4444` for the browser interface.

## Grammar

The full grammar fits on an index card. Here's what matters:

### Kind prefixes

The first character decides what kind of entry you're creating.

| Input | Kind | Example |
|-------|------|---------|
| bare text | thought | `just an idea` |
| `- text` | todo | `- buy milk @tomorrow` |
| `@time text` | event | `@friday 2pm lunch with alex` |
| `!time text` | reminder | `!3pm call dentist` |

The dash needs a space after it. `-deploy` is a thought, `- deploy` is a todo.

### Titles and descriptions

Give an entry a name with `|` at the start. Add a description with `//`.

```
|nginx proxy trick
proxy_pass http://backend/;

|deploy checklist // for staging #ops
1. docker build
2. docker push
3. ssh prod && restart

// quick reference for proxy config
the actual body text goes here

body text // this part becomes the description
```

Title shows as the scan label in list view. Description appears in the detail pane. Both are optional — most captures won't need them.

### Tags and flags

Tags and flags work anywhere in the input. They're extracted and removed from the body.

```
deploy nginx #ops #infra        → tags: ops, infra
important thing !pin            → pinned to top
use ##channel in slack          → literal #channel in body (escaped)
```

### Cards

Promote a fluid entry to a card for reuse:

```bash
nib promote <id> snippet    # code trick, copy-to-clipboard
nib promote <id> template   # has ${slots} to fill
nib promote <id> checklist  # step-through items
nib promote <id> decision   # chose/why/rejected
nib promote <id> link       # URL with an open button
```

Or use `^type` inline: `nib "proxy trick #nginx ^card"`

## CLI commands

| Command | What it does |
|---------|-------------|
| `nib <input>` | Capture (shorthand for `nib add`) |
| `nib ls` | List entries — filter with `--tag`, `--date`, `--month`, `--from`/`--to` |
| `nib cards` | List cards sorted by usage |
| `nib edit <id>` | Open in `$EDITOR` |
| `nib copy <id>` | Copy body to clipboard |
| `nib promote <id> [type]` | Promote to card |
| `nib demote <id>` | Strip card, back to fluid |
| `nib absorb <target> <source>` | Merge source into target |
| `nib delete <id>` | Soft delete (repeat to hard delete) |
| `nib serve` | Start web UI on `:4444` (or `--port`) |
| `nib tui` | Launch the terminal UI |

IDs are prefix-matchable. If `01KRQ4` is unique, that's enough.

## Terminal UI

`nib tui` launches a keyboard-driven interface in your terminal.

- **Stream view** — entries grouped by date with compact gutter headers
- **Cards view** — promoted cards filtered by intent (grab/read/fill), sorted by usage
- **Split-pane detail** — wide terminals (100+ cols) show list and detail side-by-side
- **Capture drawer** — inline add with live preview of parsed entity
- **Search** — type `?query #tag` in the capture bar to filter

Navigation: `j`/`k` move, `enter` opens detail, `h`/`l` switch panes, `a` to add, `?` for full keybindings.

## Web UI

`nib serve` starts a local web interface with:

- **Capture bar** — same grammar as the CLI
- **Stream view** — entries grouped by date, newest first
- **Cards view** — promoted cards sorted by use count
- **Tag rail** — filter by tag
- **Month navigator** — browse by date range
- **Detail pane** — full entry view, double-click to edit
- **Keyboard shortcuts** — `j`/`k` navigate, `n` to capture, `p` to promote, `e` to edit, `dd` to delete

Dark and light themes. Toggle with the button in the header.

## Data

Everything is one SQLite file. Back it up, sync it, move it between machines — it's just a file. WAL mode is on for concurrent reads.

```bash
# back up
cp ~/.nib/nib.db ~/.nib/nib.db.bak

# use a different database
NIB_DB=/path/to/other.db nib ls
```

## License

MIT