Today's Deep-Dive: Memos

Welcome to Deep Dive, the show where we take a whole bunch of information,

sort through it and really try to pull out the core knowledge you need.

Today, we're looking into something pretty interesting, an open source project

called Memo's.

Our goal here is simple. Help you get what this platform is all about,

especially if, you know, digital privacy and having control of your own stuff

matters to you.

We've got articles, project details, community feedback, the works.

But before we dive right in, just a quick mention of our supporter, Safe Server.

Safe Server is all about helping you with your digital transformation.

They offer solid hosting for software exactly like Memo's, the kind we're

discussing today.

Really helps you bring your ideas to life, but on your own terms.

You can find out more at www.safeserver.de.

OK, so let's get into this. Just imagine for a second a world where you actually

own your notes,

your quick thoughts, your carefully built up knowledge base,

where there isn't some big tech company looking over your shoulder, scanning your

ideas for ads.

Sounds good, yeah. Well, that's basically the promise Memo's is trying to deliver.

Bringing that digital sovereignty back to you.

Yeah, and what's really fascinating, I think, is that Memo's isn't just, you know,

another note app. There are loads of those.

It's more like a statement, almost a philosophy about owning your data, about

control.

And the really cool part is how accessible they've made it.

Even if you've never heard the term self-hosting before, it tackles that big

challenge.

Tons of information coming at us, and, well, growing worries about privacy with the

usual cloud stuff.

That's a really interesting way to put it, a philosophical stance.

So what specifically makes Memo's embody that?

Especially for someone maybe new to this whole self-hosting idea.

How's it different from, say, Evernote or Google Keep?

Well, right from the start, its own description nails it.

A modern, open-source, self-hosted knowledge management and note-taking platform

designed for privacy-conscious users and organizations.

Now, that's quite a mouthful if you're not familiar with those terms.

Definitely is. Okay, so let's break this down.

When you say open-source and self-hosted,

what does that actually mean for someone just starting to explore this?

Alright, let's simplify.

Self-hosted basically means instead of your notes

living on Google's or Apple's servers out there somewhere,

servers they control, you're running the Memo software yourself.

It could be on your own computer at home, a small server you run,

or even cloud space you rent and control directly.

The key thing is you control the hardware and the software.

Your data lives in your space.

Okay, so it's like instead of a bank vault shared with everyone,

you have your own personal states at home.

Exactly, that's a great way to think about it.

Perfect analogy.

And then open-source, this is huge for trust.

It means the actual code, the blueprints for memos are public.

Anyone can look at it, check it, does what it says it does,

make sure there are no hidden back doors.

And they can even help improve it.

The sources mention over 300 contributors,

which is, well, a lot of eyes making it better and safer.

Wow, 300 people.

That's quite the community.

And I guess that openness affects how you can use it too.

What about licensing? Is it free?

Absolutely, it uses the MIT license,

which in simple terms is super permissive.

It means it's free to use, free to change, free to share,

even free to build a business around if you wanted to.

No fees, no catches like that.

It's about freedom.

And just quickly on knowledge management and note-taking,

this isn't just for jotting down shopping lists, though you could.

It's designed to help you capture, organize, and connect ideas,

build your own personal wiki almost, a real knowledge base.

So it really prompts a question for you, listening,

how much does that complete ownership,

that control over your digital thoughts actually matter to you?

That's the core question, isn't it?

You mentioned privacy-conscious users.

Memos calls itself privacy first.

What does that translate to in practice?

Day-to-day, how does using it feel different because of that focus?

Right, so privacy first becomes very real with complete data ownership.

What this means is all your data notes, tags, images, everything lives locally.

It's stored in a database file like Skolite or maybe PostgreSQL if you choose,

right there on your machine or server.

This is totally different from cloud services where your data is on their system,

subject to their rules, their security breaches, maybe even them shutting down.

Right, so you're not constantly wondering if the terms of service changed overnight

or if the company might disappear next year taking all your notes with it.

Exactly that.

And adding to that, Memos has no external dependencies for its basic running.

This means it's not constantly sending little bits of data back to base

or relying on third-party services just to work, keeps everything contained.

So thinking bigger picture, your notes aren't being scanned for ads,

they're not caught up in some massive company data breach,

and you decide who sees them, period.

It becomes your genuinely private digital space.

The website actually calls it a painless way to create meaningful notes,

which I think highlights that privacy doesn't have to mean complicated,

it can actually make things simpler, more focused.

That privacy aspect is definitely a huge draw.

But, okay, playing devil's advocate slightly,

this complete ownership doesn't mean more responsibility for me, the user.

Like, what if my computer's hard drive dies?

Are my notes just gone?

Ah, that's a really important point, and yes, it does, that's the trade-off.

Complete control means complete responsibility.

Memos gives you the keys, but you need to look after the house.

So, backups are crucial.

If your drive fails and you haven't backed up that memos data directory,

then yes, your notes could be lost.

Setting up a regular backup for that specific data folder is essential.

It's maybe a small extra step,

but it's fundamental to truly owning your data securely.

You protect your physical journals, right? Same principle here.

That makes total sense. Responsibility comes with control.

Okay, shifting gears slightly to the tech side.

We heard Go and React.js, lightweight deployment.

For someone listening who isn't a developer,

what does that actually mean for using the app?

Does it make it fast, smooth?

Yes, exactly that. You don't need to care about the code itself,

but you absolutely feel the results.

Using Go for the back end, React for the front end,

think of it like having a really well-tuned engine

and a super responsive dashboard in a car.

It means memos is built for speed.

It's designed to be really responsive, use minimal resources.

So, you know those apps that feel heavy, slow to load, maybe crash a bit?

Memos aims for the complete opposite, notes save instantly.

Scrolling through hundreds or thousands of notes feels quick and smooth.

It's designed to just get out of your way and let you think,

and lightweight deployment.

That just means it doesn't need a beast of a machine to run.

It runs happily on pretty modest hardware.

Great for personal use, maybe on a small home server or even like a Raspberry Pi.

Plus, the cross-platform compatibility Linux, Mac OS, Windows,

containers means you can run it almost anywhere you want.

It's incredibly flexible.

The tech is solid, but it serves the user experience making it feel effortless.

Okay, that sounds great.

Fast, light, runs anywhere.

And how does that impact the actual like writing and organizing experience?

Does it have the features we expect from a modern notes app?

Oh, yeah, definitely.

That solid foundation allows for a really nice user experience.

You get instant saving with plain text, which is reassuring,

but it also has really good markdown support with syntax highlighting.

So you can format notes nicely using simple text codes, make headings,

lists, bold text, whatever, really efficiently.

And it's not just text.

You can easily embed images, links, other bits of content right into your notes.

So it becomes a much richer, more dynamic space for your knowledge.

Okay, this all sounds fantastic.

Privacy, control, speed, good features.

But then we hit that word again, self-hosted.

If I'm just starting out, maybe not super technical,

how hard is it really to get memos running?

You mentioned Docker, Docker Compose.

Sounds a bit intimidating.

Right, and this is often the hurdle for people with self-hosted stuff,

but memos does a great job here.

Think of Docker as like a self-contained appliance.

Imagine buying a coffee machine.

You just plug it in, add water and coffee, and it works.

You don't need to assemble the heating element and the pump yourself.

Docker is similar for software.

It packages memos and everything it needs into one neat container.

You just need Docker itself running on your computer server.

And the requirements are really low, like 512 megs of RAM, a gigabyte of disk space.

Most laptops from the last five, even 10 years, could handle it easily via Docker.

So I don't need to be a Linux sysadmin.

Just install Docker, run a command, and this box starts working.

Pretty much, yeah.

For a basic setup, the documentation usually shows a single Docker command.

You copy, paste, run it, and boom, memos should be up and running.

Docker Compose is just a way to manage that box alongside maybe other boxes

if you start self-hosting more things.

But for just memos, the single Docker command is often all you need to start.

But again, and this is super important, remember that data directory we talked

about?

Usually something like .memos or maybe .data, depending on the command.

That folder holds everything, your notes, your database.

It has to be backed up regularly.

That's your responsibility part again.

Got it. Back up the magic box is important content.

Yeah.

And if I do run into trouble or just want to learn more, what's the community like?

Is there help available?

Oh, the community is fantastic.

That's a really strong point for memos.

The numbers kind of speak for themselves.

Over 43,000 stars on GitHub.

That's huge interest from developers.

Over 3,100 forks, meaning people are actively using and adapting the code.

And get this, over 5.3 million Docker polls.

That means it's being downloaded and run a massive amount.

Plus those 300 plus contributors we mentioned, it's alive and kicking.

So yeah, it's a very vibrant, well-supported project.

Things are constantly being fixed and improved.

And for help, there's a Discord server for live chat,

GitHub issues for reporting bugs or suggesting features,

and the official documentation is pretty good too.

Which leads to another thought for you, the listener.

When you're picking a tool like this,

how important is having that active community behind it?

For self-hosted things, I'd argue it's really, really valuable.

That's a great point.

Knowing there are people to ask and that the project isn't abandoned is huge.

So let's wrap this up.

What we've seen today is that memos is,

well, it's a really strong contender in the note-taking space

if privacy and ownership are high on your list.

It brings together that open-source philosophy,

puts you in control of your data,

and manages to do it in a way that's surprisingly user-friendly

and performs really well.

It's basically a tool designed from the ground up

to put your information back in your hands.

So what's the big takeaway here?

I think in a world where we often feel like

our digital lives are rented from big companies,

memos is a clear signal that actually digital ownership, digital sovereignty,

isn't just for massive companies or super nerds.

It's becoming a real practical choice for anyone who wants to take that step,

manage their own knowledge, truly, you know, their way.

So maybe ask yourself,

what knowledge, what thoughts do you really want to own outright,

no strings attached?

And before we go, a huge thank you again to Safe Server for supporting the Deep Dive.

They really help make these conversations possible.

For reliable hosting that can power your digital projects,

including running software like memos,

check them out at www.safeserver.d.

Yeah, just think about that feeling.

Knowing your ideas, your research, your personal journal,

it's all yours, exclusively.

No ads, no tracking, no one else's agenda involved.

That's not just convenient, it's best.

information.

information.