Your notes are just
.md files on your disk.
A Markdown knowledge base that runs in your browser. Every word you write is saved straight into a local .md file. Not an export, not a sync, the file itself.
One .md file, three modes
--- tags: local-first --- # Local-First Software Design Principles ## Seven ideals 1. **Works offline** 2. **Network is optional** 3. **Direct device sync** 4. **Multiplayer**: CRDT 5. **Your data is yours**
Every Markdown mark, visible
Local-First Software Design Principles
Seven ideals
- Works offline
- Network is optional
- **Direct device sync**
- Multiplayer: CRDT
- Your data is yours
What you see is what you write
Local-First Software Design Principles
Seven ideals
- Works offline
- Network is optional
- Direct device sync
- Multiplayer: CRDT
- Your data is yours
Pure render · reads like a finished article
Local-first
The same .md opens in any Markdown editor
Once you pick a local folder, NoteLoom reads and writes the Markdown files inside it directly. The same .md opens identically in Obsidian, Typora, VS Code, or any other editor.
In NoteLoom
Local-First Software Design Principles ×
Local-First Software Design Principles
Reading Ink & Switch’s the Local-First paper, I collected these seven ideals.
Seven ideals
- Cloud-independent works, even on a plane
- The network is an optimization, not a requirement
- Devices sync directly: no detour through a server
- Multiplayer without a central server: CRDTs let each device move on its own
- Your data is yours, readable for the long haul
- End-to-end encryption: the sync provider can’t see content
- You own the software’s fate: if the service dies, your data remains
In the file system · the same .md
C:\Users\you\noteloom-demo-vault\Dev Notes\
Name Date modified Size
Local-First Software Design Principles.md
React Performance Checklist.md
attachments
3 items · double-click to open in VS Code / Typora / any editor
Plain
.md files · compatible with the CommonMark / GFM standards Pair with iCloud / Dropbox / Git, no extra sync setup
Ownership is yours · stop using NoteLoom and the files stay on your disk
Three-mode editor
One note, three modes
Source, live, and reading: three equal modes, switch between them anytime.
Live · What you see is what you write
Local-First Software Design Principles ×
---
source: inkandswitch.com/local-first
created: 2026-04-22
---
Local-First Software Design Principles
Reading Ink & Switch’s the Local-First paper, I collected these seven ideals; every NoteLoom design decision traces back here.
Seven ideals
- Cloud-independent works, even on a plane
- The network is an optimization, not a requirement
- Devices sync directly: no detour through a server
- 4. **Multiplayer without a central server**: CRDTs, each device on its own
- Your data is yours, readable for the long haul
- End-to-end encryption: the sync provider can’t see content
- You own the software’s fate: if the service dies, your data remains
Where NoteLoom stands today
- 1·2·3·5·7: notes are .md files
- 4 · Multi-device collaboration: not in v1 yet
- 6 · End-to-end encryption: left to iCloud / Cryptomator
Source
Every Markdown mark, in full
For tables, code blocks, frontmatter and other complex structures. Shows the full Markdown syntax with no hidden characters.
Live
What you see is what you write
Bold, lists and tables render as styled output; the line under the cursor falls back to source, for line-level WYSIWYG.
Reading
Pure render · zero distraction
A read-only view that shows the note the way it’ll look when finished. Full CommonMark / GFM / KaTeX support.
Instant on the web · zero install
Open a web page to write; your data stays on your local disk
No sign-up, no install. About 30 seconds from opening the page to writing. Works in Chrome, Edge, or Arc on desktop.
1 Open the app URL in your browser
Type the URL and go
A pure web app: no installer, app store, or license key. Start editing as soon as the page loads.
2 Choose a local storage folder
Select folder
Documents
Notes ←
Projects
Allow access Built on the browser File System Access API. NoteLoom can only read and write that folder after you grant access; no other files are touched.
3 Write to a local file as Markdown
# My first note
NoteLoom saves this note as
my-first-note.md
The file lands straight in the folder you just chose
Close the browser and the file stays put. The generated .md follows common Markdown conventions and opens directly in VS Code, Typora, Obsidian and more.
0:00
Open the page
0:15
Grant the folder
0:30
Write your first note
Browser extension · on the Chrome Web Store
Whatever you read in the browser, save it into your NoteLoom in one click
The NoteLoom browser extension is a companion to the web app: turn any page into a clean reading view, and clip page content and YouTube / Bilibili captions into .md, saved into your own local knowledge base. No server, no account.
NoteLoom Actions
Reading view
Extract the main text from any page in one click, auto-build a table of contents, three eye-friendly themes with font-size and line-width controls, and drop the ads and pop-ups (shortcut: Alt+R).
Clip to NoteLoom
Clip page content into Markdown along with its source link and formatting; preview in NoteLoom first, then pick a local folder to save (pages like Xiaohongshu work too).
YouTube · Bilibili captions
Auto-extract and segment captions; click a timestamp to jump, follow-along highlighting, full-text search and multi-language switching. Turn a video into notes in one click.
Local-first
Content is processed locally in the browser, only when you act on it. Nothing uploaded to a server, no account required, the same principle as the web app.
Works in Chrome / Edge / Arc and other Chromium browsers
Your notes live on your disk.
NoteLoom is just a window onto them.
Get Started No sign-up · first note in 30 seconds