blinko
SHA-256AI-powered card note-taking tool for quickly capturing fleeting thoughts, with self-hosted data privacy and multi-platform support.
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Download Download Version
v1.8.7 · 96.2 MB
Lightweight AI note-taking app with self-hosted privacy and natural language search.
Core Features
- AI natural language search via RAG
- Full data ownership via self-hosting
- Markdown support for fast formatting
- Native cross-platform (Tauri: macOS, Windows, Linux, Android)
- Open-source and community-driven
What It Can't Do
- •macOS may show 'damaged' for un-notarized apps; self-hosting requires basic server/Docker knowledge; AI features depend on local or remote LLM setup.
Use Cases
- Capture quick ideas on the go
- Personal knowledge management with AI retrieval
- Lightweight alternative to Notion/Obsidian with privacy focus
Detailed Introduction
Blinko is an open-source, AI-enhanced card note-taking application that leverages Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) to let you search notes using natural language. It prioritizes data ownership by storing everything locally or on your own server. Built with Tauri, it is lightweight yet performant, available on macOS, Windows, Android, and Linux. Supports full Markdown for rapid formatting and sharing. The project is community-driven with transparent code on GitHub.
Troubleshooting & FAQ (2)
TroubleshootingWhy is the webhook not triggered when I switch a note to a thought in Blinko?
A known bug in Blinko prevents the webhook from firing when you change a note's type (e.g., from 'note' to 'thought' or vice versa). Root cause: the upsert function in server/routerTrpc/note.ts returns early when content is null, and type-only changes omit content, skipping the SendWebhook call. To fix, modify the code at approximately line 668–735 as follows:
if (content == null) {
SendWebhook({ ...note, attachments }, isRecycle ? 'delete' : 'update', ctx);
return note;
}
This ensures the webhook is triggered even when only the type is updated. Track the issue for a permanent release fix.
TroubleshootingWhy does Docker build from source fail with 'Could not resolve' errors for monorepo dependencies?
This happens because the esbuild.config.ts in the project is missing many required packages from its external list (e.g., mime-types, zod, dayjs, lodash/submodules, @langchain/*). As a workaround, use the official pre-built Docker image (e.g., ghcr.io/blinko-space/blinko:latest) instead of building from source. To fix the build, add all missing dependencies to the external array in server/esbuild.config.ts and ensure bun install uses the --frozen-lockfile flag in the Dockerfile.
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Getting Started
Download installer
Click the button above to download the installer for your system
Install the software
Install the appropriate package for your distro (dpkg / rpm / AppImage)
One-click Docker: run curl -s https://raw.githubusercontent.com/blinko-space/blinko/main/install.sh | bash
Desktop: download from Releases, double-click installer
macOS damaged fix: sudo xattr -rd com.apple.quarantine /Applications/blinko.app
- One-click Docker: run curl -s https://raw.githubusercontent.com/blinko-space/blinko/main/install.sh | bash
- Desktop: download from Releases, double-click installer
- macOS damaged fix: sudo xattr -rd com.apple.quarantine /Applications/blinko.app
SHA-256 checksum verified
Checksum extracted from GitHub official Release page
SHA256 Checksum
624d343107e5de4b302240e379eea5b2bba6dae15cfce20db943f0ef2c94a376This checksum is extracted from the GitHub Release page. Verify file integrity after download.
All SHA-256 checksums on this platform are extracted from the project's official GitHub Release page, without any modification. You can independently verify them on the GitHub Releases page.
Open Source Transparency
View GitHub SourceUninstall Info
Docker: docker stop blinko && docker rm blinko && remove data folder. Desktop: drag app to Trash and clear cache.
No Extra Dependencies
Ready to use after download. No additional runtime required.
Having issues? Check the FAQ below
2 FAQs
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