Joplin - Detailed Review
Productivity Tools
Joplin - Product Overview
Introduction to Joplin
Joplin is a free, open-source note-taking and to-do application that stands out for its versatility, security, and customization options. Here’s a breakdown of its primary function, target audience, and key features.Primary Function
Joplin is designed to help users manage a large number of notes, organized into notebooks. It supports Markdown formatting, making it easy to create, edit, and search notes. The app also includes to-do list functionality, allowing users to manage their tasks efficiently.Target Audience
Joplin is suitable for a wide range of users, including students, professionals, and anyone looking to organize their digital life. Its user-friendly interface makes it accessible to both Markdown enthusiasts and those new to Markdown.Key Features
Note Management
- Joplin allows users to create, organize, and search notes and notebooks. Notes can be copied, tagged, and modified either within the app or using an external text editor.
Data Security and Synchronization
- The app is “offline first,” ensuring all data is stored locally on your device, making notes accessible even without an internet connection. It also supports secure synchronization with various cloud services like Nextcloud, Dropbox, OneDrive, and Joplin Cloud using end-to-end encryption.
Customization
- Joplin can be customized with plugins and themes. Plugins such as the Admonition Markdown Extension, Agenda, and Automatic Backlinks to Note enhance the app’s functionality. Users can also create their own plugins and themes.
Import and Export
- Joplin allows the import of notes from Evernote, including formatted content, resources, and metadata. It also supports the import of plain Markdown files.
Web Clipper
- A Web Clipper is available for Firefox and Chrome, enabling users to save web pages and screenshots directly into their notes.
Search and Summarization
- Full text search is available across all platforms, making it easy to find information quickly. Additionally, there are plugins like the AI Summarisation plugin that help users synthesize main ideas and arguments from their notes.
Additional Features
- Joplin supports tagging and categorization of notes, and it integrates well with local programming and events, though this is more relevant to its use in specific contexts rather than a core feature.
Joplin - User Interface and Experience
Joplin Overview
Joplin, a versatile and feature-rich note-taking application, offers a user-friendly interface that caters to a wide range of users, from markdown enthusiasts to those new to note-taking apps.
Interface Layout
The Joplin interface is divided into several panels or sections, making it easy to organize and access your notes. On desktop versions, the layout includes:
- The first panel on the left displays the list of notebooks and tags.
- The second panel shows the notes within the selected notebook, allowing you to create new standard or To-Do notes.
- The third panel is dedicated to the note content, split into two sections by default: one for writing the note and the other for viewing the rendered markdown.
On mobile devices, particularly Android, the interface is adapted for a smaller screen. The main window displays the notes within the selected notebook. You can access different notebooks, create new ones, or manage tags through the menu icon.
Ease of Use
Joplin is known for its intuitive design, making it accessible to users of various skill levels. Here are some key aspects that contribute to its ease of use:
- User-Friendly Panels: The clear separation of notebooks, notes, and note content helps in quick navigation and organization.
- Markdown Support: Joplin uses GitHub-flavored Markdown syntax, which is easy to learn and use, even for those new to markdown.
- Multimedia Integration: You can easily add images, videos, audios, PDFs, and other multimedia content to your notes, enhancing the note-taking experience.
- Search and Organization: The app includes a powerful full-text search feature and the ability to organize notes using tags, notebooks, and sub-notebooks, making it easy to find specific notes quickly.
Customization and Themes
Joplin allows significant customization to fit individual preferences:
- Themes: The app includes several dark and light themes, enabling users to choose an interface that suits their visual comfort.
- Plugins: Joplin supports a range of plugins that can extend its functionality, such as the Admonition Markdown Extension, Agenda, and Automatic Backlinks to Note, which can enhance the user experience and adapt the app to different workflows.
Synchronization and Offline Access
One of the standout features of Joplin is its reliable synchronization across multiple devices:
- Cloud Services: Joplin supports synchronization with various cloud services like Dropbox, Nextcloud, WebDAV, OneDrive, and its own Joplin Cloud. You can also use your own Joplin server or file system synchronization tools like Syncthing.
- Offline Access: The app is offline-first, meaning you can access and edit your notes without an internet connection. The changes will synchronize once the connection is reestablished.
Overall User Experience
The overall user experience of Joplin is positive due to its:
- Privacy Focus: Joplin emphasizes privacy with end-to-end encryption, ensuring your notes are secure and private.
- Community Support: The app has an active community on the Joplin Forum where users can share ideas, ask questions, and provide feedback, which helps in continuous improvement and customization.
- Accessibility: Features like larger text for notes in the list and improved fluidity in animations contribute to better accessibility, especially on mobile devices.
In summary, Joplin offers a well-structured, user-friendly interface that is easy to use, highly customizable, and secure, making it an excellent choice for anyone looking for a reliable note-taking application.
Joplin - Key Features and Functionality
Introduction
Joplin is a versatile and feature-rich open-source note-taking application that offers a range of functionalities, including some AI-driven features, to enhance your productivity and note-taking experience.Data Privacy and Ownership
Joplin prioritizes data privacy and ownership. Your data is stored locally on your device, and you have the option to export it in various formats. You can also self-host your sync server and use End-to-End Encryption (E2EE) for added privacy, ensuring that your notes are encrypted on the storage server and only accessible to you.Multi-Platform Support and Syncing
Joplin is available on multiple platforms, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS. It also includes a terminal app. You can sync your notes using various services such as Joplin Cloud, Dropbox, OneDrive, or even your own Nextcloud server, ensuring you can access and edit your notes from any device.Multimedia Notes
Joplin supports the creation of multimedia notes, allowing you to include images, videos, PDFs, and audio files. You can also take photos directly from the mobile app and save them to a note. Additionally, you can create math expressions and diagrams directly within the app.Web Clipper
The Joplin Web Clipper extension, available for Chrome and Firefox, lets you save web pages or take screenshots as notes. This feature seamlessly integrates web content into your note-taking workflow.Customization and Plugins
Joplin is highly customizable. You can use plugins to extend its functionality, change themes to personalize the interface, and even create your own scripts and plugins using the Extension API. Plugins like Note Tabs, Templates, and Outline can significantly enhance your note-taking experience.AI Integration – Jarvis Plugin
One of the standout AI-driven features of Joplin is the Jarvis plugin. Jarvis is an AI note-taking assistant powered by large language models (LLMs) such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT or GPT-4, Hugging Face, Gemini, and Universal Sentence Encoder. Here are some key features of Jarvis:Key Features
- Semantic Search: Find related notes based on their content.
- Chat with LLMs: Engage in conversations with LLMs using your personal notes as context.
- Prompt Templates: Use predefined templates to interact with the AI.
- Auto-Tags: Automatically annotate your notes.
- Literature Review: Compile automatic reviews of scientific literature using additional API keys for services like Scopus/Elsevier and Springer.
Organization and Tags
Joplin offers a robust system for organizing your notes. You can create notebooks and sub-notebooks, assign icons, and use tags to categorize notes from different perspectives. This makes it easy to find and access your notes quickly.Drawing and Visual Notes
The app includes a drawing feature that allows you to sketch diagrams, mind maps, and visual design ideas directly within your notes. You can choose from various pens, colors, and shapes to create structured diagrams and flowcharts.Markdown Support
Joplin supports Markdown, allowing you to create beautifully formatted notes using a rich Markdown editor or a user-friendly toolbar. This feature is particularly useful for those who prefer a more structured and visually appealing note format.Conclusion
In summary, Joplin combines traditional note-taking features with advanced AI capabilities, customization options, and multi-platform support, making it a powerful tool for managing and organizing your notes efficiently. Joplin - Performance and Accuracy
Performance
Joplin generally performs well, especially on more powerful hardware. Here are some performance highlights:- On faster hardware, such as an AMD Ryzen 5 with 8 GB of RAM, Joplin starts quickly, often in under 5 seconds.
- For users with a large number of notes, Joplin can handle thousands of notes without significant performance issues. For instance, users have reported smooth performance with around 5,000 notes.
- However, on older or less powerful hardware, such as an Intel Core 2 Duo or certain Android devices, Joplin can be slower to start and may experience lag, particularly during synchronization or when dealing with many tags.
Search Performance
Joplin’s search functionality is one of its strong points. It is known for its fast search speeds, which are comparable to other top note-taking apps. The search engine is efficient, and features like “Goto Anything” provide almost instant results.Accuracy and Data Integrity
Joplin ensures high accuracy and data integrity through several features:- End-to-End Encryption: Joplin offers industry-standard end-to-end encryption, ensuring that your notes remain private and secure across all devices. However, it’s important to note that local databases are not encrypted at rest.
- Data Ownership: Being open-source and allowing minimal data collection, Joplin gives users full control over their data, enhancing accuracy and security.
- Syncing: Joplin supports syncing via various third-party cloud services like Nextcloud, Dropbox, and OneDrive, as well as its own Joplin Cloud. This ensures that data is accurately synchronized across different devices.
Limitations and Areas for Improvement
Despite its strengths, Joplin has some limitations:- Cross-Platform Consistency: Joplin lacks consistency across different platforms, particularly in its mobile apps, which can be less visually appealing and less feature-rich compared to the desktop version. For example, the iOS version does not have a rich text editor.
- Interface Polishing: The interface of Joplin could be more polished, especially on mobile devices. Users have noted that the app’s design and user experience are not as modern or seamless as some other note-taking apps.
- Encryption at Rest: Joplin does not offer encryption at rest for local databases, which might be a concern for some security-minded users.
- Plugin Support on Mobile: While Joplin has a rich ecosystem of plugins that extend its functionality, these plugins are not fully supported on mobile devices, limiting the app’s capabilities on these platforms.
Plugin Ecosystem
Joplin’s plugin ecosystem is a significant strength, allowing users to extend the app’s functionality in various ways. Plugins can add features such as AI assistants, semantic search, automatic backups, and more. However, the lack of full plugin support on mobile devices is a notable limitation.Conclusion
In summary, Joplin performs well on powerful hardware and excels in search speed and data security. However, it faces challenges in cross-platform consistency, interface design, and the lack of encryption at rest for local databases. Addressing these areas could further enhance the user experience and make Joplin an even more compelling choice in the productivity tools category. Joplin - Pricing and Plans
Joplin Pricing Plans
Joplin, a popular note-taking and productivity tool, offers a range of pricing plans to cater to different user needs. Here’s a breakdown of the available plans and their features:
Free Plan
While Joplin itself is free and open-source, the free plan for Joplin Cloud is not explicitly detailed in the sources. However, it is mentioned that users can use Joplin without cloud storage costs by utilizing third-party cloud services like AWS, Dropbox, or OneDrive. There have been discussions about introducing a free plan with very limited storage (e.g., 100MB or 500MB) for users who mainly access shared notes.
Basic Plan
- Price: Initially €1.99 per month, increasing to €2.99 per month from September 2023 for new users and from September 2024 for existing subscribers.
- Features:
- 10 MB of space per note or attachment
- 1 GB of overall storage space
- Publish notes to the internet
- Sync across multiple devices
- Web Clipper
- Ability to receive shared notebooks from Pro accounts.
Pro Plan
- Price: €4.79 per month.
- Features:
- 200 MB of storage per note
- 10 GB of total storage space
- Ability to share and collaborate on notebooks
- All features from the Basic plan.
Teams Plan
- Price: €6.69 per month.
- Features:
- 200 MB of storage per note
- 10 GB of total storage space
- Team collaboration tools, including:
- Manage multiple users
- Consolidated billing
- Sharing access control
- Priority support
- All features from the Pro plan.
Additional Notes
- The prices and features are subject to change, as seen with the recent price increase for the Basic plan due to increased operational costs and investments in infrastructure and new features.
- Joplin continues to evolve, with plans to add more features, such as AI-driven note summarization, to enhance user productivity.
Joplin - Integration and Compatibility
Joplin: A Versatile Note-Taking Application
Joplin, a versatile and feature-rich note-taking application, offers extensive integration and compatibility across various platforms and devices, making it a highly versatile tool for productivity.
Multi-Platform Support
Joplin is available on a wide range of platforms, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS. This multi-platform support ensures that you can access and edit your notes from any device, providing seamless continuity across different operating systems.
Syncing Capabilities
One of the key features of Joplin is its robust syncing capability. You can sync your notes using various cloud services such as Dropbox, OneDrive, Nextcloud, and even Joplin’s own cloud service, Joplin Cloud. This allows you to access your notes from any device connected to the same sync target. Additionally, Joplin supports End-to-End Encryption (E2EE) for enhanced privacy, ensuring that only you can read your notes on the storage server.
File System Sync
For users who prefer not to use cloud services, Joplin also allows syncing via the file system. However, this method may require additional tools like Syncthing or Resilio to achieve proper two-way syncing across different devices. This flexibility is particularly useful for those who prefer to manage their data locally or through self-hosted solutions.
Web Clipper and Browser Integration
Joplin includes a web clipper extension available for Chrome and Firefox, enabling you to save web pages or take screenshots directly as notes. This feature enhances your ability to capture and organize information from the web efficiently.
Customization and Extensions
Joplin is highly customizable, allowing you to extend its functionality with Markdown plugins, custom themes, and multiple text editors (including Rich Text and Markdown). You can also create your own scripts and plugins using the Extension API, which makes it adaptable to various user needs and preferences.
Multimedia Support
The app supports multimedia notes, including images, videos, PDFs, and audio files. You can create math expressions and diagrams directly within the app, and even take photos with the mobile app to save them as notes.
Collaboration
Joplin facilitates collaboration through its cloud service, allowing you to share notes with friends, family, or colleagues. You can also publish notes to the internet and share the URL with others, making it easier to work together on projects.
Conclusion
In summary, Joplin’s integration with various cloud services, its multi-platform support, and extensive customization options make it a highly versatile and compatible note-taking application that can be used effectively across different devices and platforms.
Joplin - Customer Support and Resources
Customer Support
Joplin Cloud Support
support(at)joplincloud.com. This is often recommended for urgent or specific issues that require immediate attention.Community Forum
Additional Resources
Official Documentation and Guides
Community Forum
Plugins and Extensions
Social Channels and Discord
By leveraging these resources, users can effectively address any issues they encounter and make the most out of the Joplin note-taking application.
Joplin - Pros and Cons
Advantages of Joplin
Free and Open-Source
One of the most significant advantages of Joplin is that it is completely free to use, with most of its functionality available at no cost. This makes it an attractive option for those on a budget or who prefer open-source software.
Customization and Plugins
Joplin offers a high degree of customization through plugins, allowing users to tailor the app to their specific needs. This flexibility is particularly appealing to users who like to tweak their tools.
Cross-Platform Compatibility
Joplin is available on multiple platforms, including desktop and mobile devices, and it supports a web-based interface. This widespread compatibility makes it convenient for users with diverse device setups.
Security
Joplin is highly secure, which is a critical feature for users concerned about data privacy. The app’s open-source nature and lack of AI features, which can be privacy concerns, add to its security appeal.
Syncing Capabilities
Although syncing across devices requires a paid plan (Joplin Cloud), the feature works well and is essential for users who need to access their notes on multiple devices.
Import and Export
Joplin allows easy import and export of notes in various formats, making it simple to transfer data from other note-taking apps.
Disadvantages of Joplin
Limited Storage on Free Plan
The free plan of Joplin comes with limited storage (10 MB per note and 1 GB overall), which can be impractical for users who need to store large files such as audio, images, and videos. Upgrading to a paid plan or using external cloud storage is necessary for more space.
Feature-Limited Compared to Alternatives
Joplin lacks some advanced features available in other note-taking apps like Evernote and Microsoft OneNote, such as mobile scanning, email forwarding, document scanning, and OCR (Optical Character Recognition) for images.
Complex Interface
The interface of Joplin can be dense and overwhelming, especially for new users. It requires some time to set up and learn, which may deter casual users looking for simplicity.
Limited Customer Support
Joplin does not offer direct customer support. Instead, users rely on community forums, Discord, and unofficial Subreddits for help, which can be a significant drawback for some users.
No AI Features
While some users see the lack of AI features as a positive due to privacy concerns, others might find the absence of features like note summarization or handwriting recognition to be a disadvantage.
Overall, Joplin is a solid choice for users who value customization, security, and cross-platform compatibility, but it may not be the best fit for those needing advanced features or extensive customer support.
Joplin - Comparison with Competitors
When Comparing Joplin to Other Note-Taking and Productivity Tools
Several unique features and differences stand out.
Cross-Platform Compatibility and Syncing
Joplin is highly praised for its ability to work seamlessly across multiple platforms, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS. It offers reliable synchronization with various services such as Joplin Cloud, Dropbox, and OneDrive, ensuring your notes are accessible from any device.
Privacy and Security
Joplin stands out with its strong focus on privacy and security. It features end-to-end encryption, which is nearly invisible in terms of performance, allowing users to concentrate on their ideas without worrying about their data being compromised.
Multimedia and Rich Text Capabilities
Joplin allows users to capture multimedia notes, including photos, videos, PDFs, and images. It also supports creating math expressions, tables, code snippets, and diagrams. The app includes a rich text editor and supports Markdown, making it versatile for various types of note-taking.
Organization and Search
Users can organize their notes into notebooks and connect them with tags by subject or priority. Joplin’s powerful search feature, enhanced by Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology, makes it easy to find notes even within PDFs and images.
Offline Access
Joplin is an offline-first app, meaning you can access your notes anytime, even without an internet connection. The app synchronizes and updates once you regain connectivity.
Community and Customization
Joplin has an active community that develops powerful plugins, allowing users to customize the app to suit their needs. Features like note tabs, templates, and outlines can be added through these plugins.
Alternatives and Comparisons
Evernote
Evernote is a popular alternative that offers a wide range of features, but it lacks the strong privacy focus and open-source nature of Joplin. Evernote also has more restrictive free-tier limitations compared to Joplin’s flexible and free model.
Microsoft OneNote
OneNote is another well-known note-taking app, but it has raised privacy concerns, such as scanning text on images, which led some users to switch to Joplin.
Notion
Notion is a more comprehensive workspace app that combines notes, docs, and projects. While it offers more features than Joplin, it can feel overwhelming for simple note-taking needs. Notion also lacks the strong encryption and open-source benefits of Joplin.
Obsidian
Obsidian is similar to Joplin in its support for Markdown and cross-platform compatibility. However, Obsidian has a steeper learning curve and is more geared towards knowledge management rather than general note-taking. Obsidian also does not offer the same level of encryption as Joplin.
Simplenote
Simplenote is a minimalistic note-taking app that, while simple and easy to use, lacks the rich feature set and multimedia capabilities of Joplin. Simplenote also does not support as many synchronization options as Joplin.
Conclusion
In summary, Joplin’s unique blend of cross-platform compatibility, strong privacy and security features, rich text and multimedia support, and active community-driven customization make it a standout in the note-taking and productivity tools category. While alternatives like Evernote, OneNote, Notion, and Obsidian offer different strengths, Joplin’s focus on privacy and flexibility makes it an attractive choice for users seeking a secure and versatile note-taking solution.
Joplin - Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some frequently asked questions about Joplin, along with detailed responses:
Installer Gets Stuck on Windows
If the Joplin installer gets stuck during installation on Windows, it might be due to a previous incomplete uninstallation. To resolve this, you need to clean up the leftover registry entries.Steps to Clean Up Registry:
- Press `Win R` and type `regedit.exe`.
- Navigate to `HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall`.
- Find and delete the folder with the “DisplayName” value matching “Joplin x.x.x”.
Changing WebDAV URL
When changing the WebDAV URL, ensure the new location has the same content as the old one to avoid data loss.Steps to Change WebDAV URL:
- Backup your Joplin data.
- Synchronize all data from a Joplin client.
- Close the Joplin client.
- Copy all Joplin files, including the `.resource` directory, to the new location.
- Open Joplin and change the WebDAV URL, then synchronize to verify everything is working.
Restoring Deleted Notes
If you accidentally delete notes and have note history enabled, you can restore them.Steps to Restore Deleted Notes:
- Use the `restoreNoteRevision` command with the `NOTE_ID` if you know it.
- If not, find the `NOTE_ID` in the Joplin SQLite database within the `deleted_items` or `revisions` tables.
Sync Status
To check the sync status in Joplin:Steps to Check Sync Status:
- On the desktop, go to `Help > Synchronisation Status`.
- On the mobile app, go to `Configuration > Tools > SYNC STATUS`.
Multiple Profiles and Sync Issues on Android
If you’re using multiple profiles on the Joplin Android app and experiencing sync issues, it might be due to cookie management with Nextcloud.Details on Sync Issues:
- The issue is specific to the Android app and Nextcloud, and does not occur with other cloud services or on other platforms.
- A possible workaround involves having Joplin send a “delete cookies” command before each request, but this requires further investigation into Nextcloud’s WebDAV API.
Restarting Joplin on Windows
To properly restart Joplin on Windows, especially if the tray icon is enabled:Steps to Restart Joplin:
- Click `File` in the menu and then `Quit`.
- Alternatively, right-click on the Joplin tray icon and select `Exit`.
Using Self-Signed SSL Certificates on Android
If you need to use self-signed SSL certificates with Joplin on Android:Steps to Use Self-Signed SSL Certificates:
- Generate a custom CA and sign your certificates with it using tools like `openssl` or `mkcert`.
- Add your CA certificate to Android settings so that Android recognizes the certificates as valid.
AI Features and Summarization
Currently, Joplin does not have built-in AI features for summarizing notes. However, there are discussions and proposals to integrate such features, possibly through plugins.Suggestions for AI Features:
- Some users suggest using external tools or plugins like Jarvis, but there are concerns about privacy and the complexity of setting up these models.
Data Backup on iOS
Notebooks and notes on iOS are not backed up when backing up to your Mac. Ensure you have a separate backup strategy for your Joplin data on iOS devices.General Features of Joplin
Joplin is a free, open-source note-taking and to-do application that supports Markdown format, end-to-end encryption, and synchronization with various cloud services.Key Features:
- It is available on multiple platforms, including Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, and iOS.
- Notes can be imported from Evernote, and the app supports full text search and customization through plugins and themes.
Joplin - Conclusion and Recommendation
Final Assessment of Joplin
Joplin is a highly versatile and user-friendly note-taking app that stands out in the productivity tools category, particularly for those who value data privacy, multi-platform support, and customization.Key Features
Data Privacy and Ownership
Joplin ensures that your data is completely under your control. Notes are stored locally on your device, and you can export them in various formats. The app also supports self-hosted sync and end-to-end encryption (E2EE) for enhanced privacy.
Multi-Platform Support
Joplin is available on a wide range of platforms, including Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android. This allows you to access and edit your notes seamlessly across all your devices. Additionally, you can use the Web Clipper browser extension to save web pages and screenshots.
Open Source and Community
Being open-source, Joplin benefits from an active community of developers and users. This ensures continuous improvement and long-term sustainability. You can also extend Joplin’s functionality with Markdown plugins and customize its appearance using CSS.
Sync Flexibility
Joplin offers various sync options, including Dropbox, Nextcloud, S3, WebDAV, OneDrive, and even your local filesystem. This flexibility allows you to choose the sync method that best suits your needs.
Customization and Ease of Use
The app supports advanced Markdown features like tables, tables of content, math formulas, and Mermaid diagrams. It also allows you to convert notes to to-do items and vice versa without losing data. The interface is easy to use, yet customizable to fit your preferences.
Who Would Benefit Most
Joplin is particularly beneficial for:
- Individuals who value data privacy: Those who are concerned about their data being stored on third-party servers will appreciate Joplin’s local storage and encryption options.
- Users with multiple devices: Given its multi-platform support, Joplin is ideal for individuals who use different devices throughout the day.
- Developers and power users: The open-source nature and customization options make Joplin a great choice for those who want to extend its functionality or tailor the app to their specific needs.
- Those seeking a reliable note-taking solution: Joplin’s community-driven development and long-term sustainability ensure that the app will continue to improve and remain available.
Overall Recommendation
Joplin is an excellent choice for anyone looking for a reliable, customizable, and privacy-focused note-taking app. Its wide range of features, multi-platform support, and active community make it a strong contender in the productivity tools category. Whether you are a casual user or a power user, Joplin’s flexibility and ease of use make it a valuable tool for organizing your thoughts and ideas efficiently.