Apple Notes Liberator
Productivity
note export tool
SHOW HN2023
563points
105comments
#45of 3,109 in 2023
Top 2%of 2023 by points
How HN took it
MixedNo clear lean
13 positive, 10 neutral or asking, 1 mixed, 3 critical, out of 27 comments about the project. Thread score +0.29.
Idea: 7 for, 3 againstExecution: 2 for, 0 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Interesting reverse engineering of Notes database
From 2 comments
I am excited to see more solutions that work with Apple Notes database directly. This is my go-to application to capture unstructured memos while researching various topics. Last…
oneearedrabbit on HNVery nice reverse engineering work! I wrote a python library and CLI that does something similar but interacts with Notes via Scripting Bridge:…
rhettbull on HN
Useful for escaping lock-in to Obsidian or other tools
From 2 comments
I’m trying to consolidate my note taking with Obsidian but I’m with you about Notes being a go-to tool… it’s just so much better integrated into all the apple devices, I can…
techdragon on HNIt would be really cool to set this up to automatically sync notes to Obsidian.
yosito on HN
Objections
Adds little over existing export libraries and tools
From 3 comments
I don't understand what value this tool adds over the library it uses under the hood (which includes a command line tool for exporting your notes; I've been using it for years).…
dmd on HNWhy not just use the built-in Shortcuts to export to your preferred format?
akerr on HN"Liberator" implies it was locked down. But notes content has always been easily accessible with AppleScript.
mdmglr on HN
Relies on the undocumented database format, which may change
From 2 comments
I wrote a similar tool in Python a few weeks ago, which uses AppleScript to liberate the data and saves it to a SQLite database: https://datasette.io/tools/apple-notes-to-sqlite…
simonw on HNI second your sentiment that it is a hack, and here be dragons. At the same time, I had an honest conversation with myself about the dilemma, and whether I am worried about…
oneearedrabbit on HN
Requests
Export to Markdown or HTML
From 2 comments
I have published an app [Exporter](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/exporter/id1099120373?mt=12) that does something similar - exports Apple Notes to HTML and markdown with the…
ChintanGhate on HNCool! Thanks for sharing. Also worth noting that there's a Mac app in the app store to export to markdown or html: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/exporter/id1099120373?mt=12 (I…
dangoor on HN
Automatic sync to Obsidian
From 1 comment
It would be really cool to set this up to automatically sync notes to Obsidian.
yosito on HN
Questions
Why JSON as the output format
From 1 comment
I have published an app [Exporter](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/exporter/id1099120373?mt=12) that does something similar - exports Apple Notes to HTML and markdown with the…
ChintanGhate on HN
Where the NoteStore.sqlite file is located
From 1 comment
Nice! It throws an error that it cannot find the notes folder though. Where is it located usually? Or what's the file name?
kolinko on HN
Alternatives named
Exporter Mac app
From 2 comments
I have published an app [Exporter](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/exporter/id1099120373?mt=12) that does something similar - exports Apple Notes to HTML and markdown with the…
ChintanGhate on HNCool! Thanks for sharing. Also worth noting that there's a Mac app in the app store to export to markdown or html: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/exporter/id1099120373?mt=12 (I…
dangoor on HN
apple_cloud_notes_parser
From 1 comment
Here's a Python script that takes the JSON output from https://github.com/threeplanetssoftware/apple_cloud_notes_parser (needs master), and rebuilds Notes in Markdown format (or…
vszakats on HN
apple-notes-to-sqlite via AppleScript
From 1 comment
I wrote a similar tool in Python a few weeks ago, which uses AppleScript to liberate the data and saves it to a SQLite database: https://datasette.io/tools/apple-notes-to-sqlite…
simonw on HN
macnotesapp Python library
From 1 comment
Very nice reverse engineering work! I wrote a python library and CLI that does something similar but interacts with Notes via Scripting Bridge:…
rhettbull on HN
Apple Shortcuts export
From 1 comment
Why not just use the built-in Shortcuts to export to your preferred format?
akerr on HN