Standard Notes

Standard Notes is an open-source, cross-platform note-taking app that provides a secure environment for capturing notes and files with a focus on privacy and data longevity. The software serves as a centralized repository for digitalists and professionals to store their life's work and sensitive information without relying on proprietary cloud providers.

The software is available as a web application and can be deployed on a private server. It supports cross-platform synchronization across unlimited devices, ensuring that notes remain accessible while remaining encrypted. Users can register via the official web app or set up their own infrastructure to maintain full control over their data storage and synchronization process.

Key features

• End-to-end encrypted synchronization of notes and files
• Cross-platform sync across unlimited devices
• Self-hosting capability for the sync server
• Public source code for transparency and auditing
• Integration with Listed for creating online publications
• Automatic email newsletter delivery for published content
• Support for developer-created extensions
• Offline access to stored notes

The architecture relies on a sync server that can be configured via the DEFAULT_SYNC_SERVER environment variable. The web application is compiled into a folder of static HTML, JS, and CSS files, which allows it to be served behind any standard web server using tools like Python's http.server. This design enables a flexible deployment model where the user decides where their encrypted data resides. Developers can further extend the functionality of the app by creating and publishing their own extensions through the provided documentation hub.

Standard Notes positions itself as a privacy-centric tool for users who prioritize encryption and ownership of their personal data over the convenience of non-encrypted cloud services.