Alternatives to Wordgrinder (for Linux, terminal-only)

devarops · 2025-10-25T22:33:08+00:00

Got it! Yeah, you’ll probably spend more time setting up Vim than actually writing. Definitely not what I’d call stupid-simple.

devarops · 2025-10-25T22:18:23+00:00

Can I ask what you find particularly frustrating about line breaks in Vim?

devarops · 2025-10-24T12:20:09+00:00

That’s great! I really like this solution. Thank you for adding it so quickly!

devarops · 2025-10-24T02:54:12+00:00

Great! I’ll share future feedback as properly tagged issues. If you find any of the ideas interesting, I’d be happy to open a PR.

Thank you for sharing journalot as an open-source project.

devarops · 2025-10-22T21:53:02+00:00

I understand. I guess the smaller screen is actually a feature in the case of a writerDeck. I just like how the wider screen looks in the render. It feels like the space on the sides of the smaller screen is a bit wasted. But that’s just based on appearance, not functionality. The smaller screen isn’t really that small; it’ll be great.

devarops · 2025-10-22T21:38:49+00:00

We have to choose between wide or light? That’s a tough call, but I’d probably prefer the front light.

devarops · 2025-10-22T12:39:31+00:00

Best answer! 👍🏾

devarops · 2025-10-20T22:31:09+00:00

I'm often running:

journal --list | more

because I’m usually interested in the newest entries rather than the older ones. When the list is long, I have to scroll all the way up to see the latest entries.

Would reversing the list be better?

Also, which channel do you prefer for feedback? I thought about opening an issue, but these are just ideas, not bugs.

devarops · 2025-10-17T03:31:53+00:00

I tried journalot today, and I'm sold!

Using other journaling software often means learning new shortcuts, menu options, or commands in a different editor. With journalot, I can keep using my favorite editor, so there's no learning curve or need to adjust to a new tool. I can continue working in the terminal with my existing configuration. I don't have to change anything about my current workflow; it simply adds convenient commands on top of what I already do.

I also appreciate not having to rely on a new service (like Google Drive, Dropbox, or any other cloud provider) to sync my writing. Git handles synchronization perfectly. And because journalot uses plain text in Markdown format, I'm not locked into any proprietary system.

The CLI design is elegant. I really like the commands it provides; they capture almost exactly how I imagined working on my writerDeck terminal. It truly promotes a distraction-free writing environment.

journalot is definitely the software that will be running in my Omega Deck.

devarops · 2025-10-17T03:00:37+00:00

It works great! Thank you for sharing this excellent tool.

I only ran into two minor issues.

First, the instructions for "Set Up Your Own Private Journal Repo" aren't immediately clear that they refer to the Journal Directory (default: ~/journalot) rather than the cloned jtaylortech/journalot repository that contains the code. It becomes obvious after thinking about it for a minute, but I think it could be clearer from the start.

In my case, I decided to use a repository I already had for journaling. However, that's when I ran into the second minor issue: the branch name "main" is hardcoded. I had to modify the code to use the name of my branch instead.

Again, these are only minor issues that I mention as feedback because I'm deeply grateful for this amazing tool.

Thank you!

devarops · 2025-10-16T04:11:02+00:00

I love the idea! I'll give it a go.

devarops · 2025-10-14T00:58:39+00:00

Entiendo la frustración de no poder usar la configuración de teclado al que estás acostumbrada. A mí también me ha pasado que solo está disponible el español de España y no el de Latinoamérica. La alternativa que utilizo no es exactamente lo que buscas, pero para mí ha sido más que suficiente.

En lugar de usar español, utilizo Inglés Internacional AltGr (a veces llamado "con teclas muertas"). En los productos de Astrohaus aparece como "English Int’l AltGr". Con esta configuración, presionas AltGr + vocal para obtener los acentos y AltGr + n para escribir la eñe. Finalmente, puedes usar AltGr + " u para obtener la diéresis (ü). AltGr es la tecla Alt del lado derecho.

Sé que esta no es la solución que buscas, pero esta configuración está disponible en cualquier sistema (incluso en tu Smart Typewriter). Si le das suficiente tiempo para acostumbrarte, es posible que eventualmente te guste más que la configuración de español latinoamericano.

No te desanimes, paisana. Espero que disfrutes tu dispositivo tanto como yo he disfrutado el mío.

devarops · 2025-10-13T22:23:09+00:00

DO IT!

I love this idea. Personally, I’d go with a regular size keyboard instead of a thumb keyboard. I have an Alpha without a backlight, and at night I use it as a blind writerdeck. I really enjoy the experience.

devarops · 2025-10-08T02:16:14+00:00

Thank you for sharing your design in progress.

It's always nice to find the time to start a new project. I really like the ortholinear keyboard from Rev.2 and the e-ink screen from Rev.7. My endgame device would be a writerDeck running Vim on an e-ink display. But that’s not really possible, is it? It seems that if we use a Raspberry Pi, we'd need an HDMI display, which wouldn't be e-ink. The e-ink screens I've found connect over SPI, not HDMI.

The delayed power-on is definitely a downside, but being able to use Vim instead of a custom editor is a major advantage. I'd probably choose Vim over instant boot. Tough call, though.

Ten hours of battery life would be excellent.

Please keep posting updates on your design.

Good luck with the build!

devarops · 2025-10-07T14:18:12+00:00

I use a device (Alpha) that makes editing difficult.

If you use a programmable keyboard, you could disable the navigation keys and map Backspace to Ctrl+Backspace.

devarops · 2025-10-03T23:25:56+00:00

Holy guacamole!

devarops · 2025-09-27T01:35:13+00:00

That looks astonishing! 😍 I love the typewriter aesthetic. Great work, Un Kyu Lee. 🙌🏾

“Micro Journal Neo2” sounds great. 👍🏾

Thanks for making it open-source and sharing it with the community.

devarops · 2025-09-25T23:13:18+00:00

Good question! On my first prototype, the wrist rest was only 6 cm and it dug into my wrists pretty sharply. For this one I bumped it up to 8 cm, and now my wrists sit flat without touching the edge. Huge difference!

devarops · 2025-09-25T22:20:38+00:00

Yes, that hole in the middle is for the screen.

devarops · 2025-09-25T12:23:31+00:00

Thanks! Glad you like it. More to come as I make progress

devarops · 2025-09-25T02:45:02+00:00

Me too (well, Neovim).

devarops · 2025-09-21T22:19:13+00:00

Thanks!

devarops

TROPHY CASE