Pile is a desktop application for reflective digital journaling, designed for users who prioritize data privacy and an enhanced journaling experience through AI. It offers a simple, local-first approach to journaling, with optional AI-powered reflection and search capabilities.

How It Works

Pile is built using Electron and React, enabling cross-platform desktop application development. It stores journal entries locally, ensuring user data remains private. The application integrates with AI models, specifically OpenAI's GPT-4 API or local Ollama instances, to provide AI-generated insights on individual entries or to search and query the entire journal history.

Quick Start & Requirements

• Download the latest release from the Pile releases page.
• macOS: Open .zip or .dmg and drag to Applications.
• Windows: Run the .exe installer.
• AI Features: Requires an OpenAI API key or Ollama setup. Configure API key in Pile's settings.

Highlighted Details

• AI-powered reflections on individual journal entries.
• Search and query across the entire journal history using AI.
• Local-first data storage for enhanced privacy.
• Built with Electron and React.

Maintenance & Community

This is described as an experimental project. Contributions are welcomed via pull requests, but merging is at the maintainer's discretion. A CONTRIBUTING.md file provides further guidance.

Licensing & Compatibility

The software code is licensed under the MIT License. Brand assets are proprietary. The MIT license generally permits commercial use and linking with closed-source projects.

Limitations & Caveats

AI features require external API access (OpenAI) or local setup (Ollama) and may incur costs. The project is experimental, and feature merging is at the maintainer's discretion.