Lectura

A modern, self-hosted Markdown note-taking application featuring real-time preview, cloud sync, and comprehensive Vim support.

📸 Screenshots

Split-pane interface with live preview and comprehensive Vim support

Multiple themes with unique typography and clean, distraction-free design

✨ Features

📝 Editor & Preview

• Split-pane interface - Editor on left, live preview on right
• Synchronized scrolling - Editor and preview move together
• Resizable panes - Adjust editor/preview ratio to your preference
• Focus modes - Editor-only, preview-only, or split view
• Clean, distraction-free interface - Minimalist design for focused writing

⌨️ Vim Integration

• Full Vim support - Complete Normal, Insert, Visual, and Command modes
• Custom Ex commands - :w, :e, :new, :theme, :preview, and more
• File navigation - :bn, :bp to switch between files
• Mode indicator - Visual feedback for current Vim mode

🎨 Themes & Typography

• 15+ themes - Dark, light, and specialty themes
• Font variations - Each theme has distinct typography (serif, sans-serif)
• Live theme switching - Change themes instantly without restart
• Custom CSS support - Extend with your own themes

📁 File Management

• Sidebar file browser - Tree and list views
• Folder organization - Nested folder support
• Pin/unpin folders - Quick access to frequently used folders
• File search - Find files quickly across your workspace
• Recent locations - Easy access to recently opened folders

☁️ Cloud Sync

• GitHub integration - Sync notes to GitHub repositories
• Google Drive support - Backup to Google Drive
• OAuth authentication - Secure cloud connections
• Selective sync - Choose what to sync

🔧 Advanced Features

• Mermaid diagrams - Create flowcharts, sequence diagrams, and more
• Math support - LaTeX math rendering with KaTeX
• Image handling - Drag and drop image uploads
• Export options - HTML, PDF, and Markdown export
• Flashcards - Built-in spaced repetition system
• Custom graph canvas - Draw economic graphs and charts

🚀 Quick Start

📖 For detailed installation instructions, see INSTALL.md

Requirements: Node.js 16+ and Python 3.8+

Linux

chmod +x install-electron-linux.sh
./install-electron-linux.sh
lectura-app

Windows

install-electron-windows.bat

macOS

chmod +x install-electron-macos.sh
./install-electron-macos.sh
lectura-app

Manual Installation

git clone https://github.com/omondistep/lectura.git
cd lectura
pip install -r requirements.txt
npm install
npm start

📖 Usage

Getting Started

1. Launch Lectura - Opens at http://localhost:8000
2. Create your first note - Click the + button or press Ctrl+N
3. Start writing - Use the editor on the left, see preview on the right
4. Organize with folders - Create folders to organize your notes

Keyboard Shortcuts

Action	Shortcut
New file	Ctrl+N
Save file	Ctrl+S
Open file	Ctrl+O
Toggle sidebar	Ctrl+Shift+L
Toggle preview	F7
Focus mode	F8
Bold text	Ctrl+B
Italic text	Ctrl+I
Insert link	Ctrl+K

Vim Commands

Command	Action
:w	Save current file
:e filename	Open file
:new	Create new file
:bn / :bp	Next/previous file
:theme name	Switch theme
:preview	Toggle preview pane
:help	Open help panel

🎨 Themes

Lectura includes 15+ carefully crafted themes:

Built-in Themes:

• Light/Dark - Classic clean themes
• Cobalt - Blue-accented dark theme
• Nord - Arctic-inspired color palette
• Drake - Elegant dark theme with serif fonts
• Vue - Green-accented modern theme
• GitHub - Familiar GitHub styling
• And many more...

Each theme features unique typography choices - some use serif fonts for a book-like reading experience, others use modern sans-serif fonts.

☁️ Cloud Setup

Connect your favorite cloud services for automatic backup and sync:

1. GitHub - Sync notes to repositories
2. Google Drive - Backup to your Drive

See OAUTH_SETUP.md for detailed setup instructions.

🛠️ Configuration

Preferences

Access via File → Preferences or Ctrl+,:

• Editor settings - Font size, indentation, line endings
• Theme selection - Choose from available themes
• Vim mode - Enable/disable Vim keybindings
• Export options - Configure export formats and locations
• Cloud sync - Manage connected services

Custom Themes

Create custom themes by adding CSS files to the static/themes/ directory. Themes can override:

• Color schemes
• Typography (fonts, sizes, spacing)
• Layout adjustments
• Custom styling

🔧 Development

Requirements

• Python 3.8+
• Modern web browser
• Internet connection (for cloud features)

Project Structure

lectura/
├── static/           # Frontend assets
│   ├── editor.js    # Main editor logic
│   ├── style.css    # Core styles
│   └── themes/      # Theme files
├── templates/       # HTML templates
├── main.py         # Backend server
└── requirements.txt # Python dependencies

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make your changes
4. Test thoroughly
5. Submit a pull request

📄 License

MIT License - See LICENSE file for details.

📚 Documentation

• Installation Guide - Detailed setup instructions
• Uninstallation Guide - Complete removal instructions
• OAuth Setup Guide - Cloud service configuration

🙏 Acknowledgments

• Built with CodeMirror 6 - Powerful code editor
• Vim support via @replit/codemirror-vim
• Markdown rendering by markdown-it

👨‍💻 Author

Made by a Kenyan

• Twitter: @Stephenondiek
• GitHub: @omondistep

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Lectura - Where words become wisdom ✨