Nib - Handwritten Diary
Your daily writing companion
Free · Designed for iPad. Not verified for macOS.
■ Where thoughts unfold
Nib is a warm handwritten diary for iPad and Apple Pencil.
The feeling of writing with a fountain pen on paper — captured in digital form.
For anyone who wants to record today, organize class notes, or let ideas flow freely on the page.
■ Features
▸ Natural handwriting
- Fountain pen, pencil, highlighter, eraser, lasso — optimized for Apple Pencil
- 21 colors to express yourself
- Blank, lined, and grid backgrounds
▸ Write directly on PDFs
- Import textbooks, handouts, papers and annotate right away
- Import from iCloud Drive, Files app, or anywhere
- Select page ranges to import only what you need
- Your annotations save separately — the original PDF stays intact
▸ Daily journal
- End the day with a short note
- Five moods (Heavy · Quiet · Even · Bloom · Radiant) to capture the feeling
- Browse past days in the calendar
▸ Recording + auto-transcription
- Record lectures or meetings while you write
- Automatic transcription in Korean, English, and Japanese
- Notes and audio live side-by-side on the same page
▸ Organize by subject
- Create subjects with 31 icons or draw your own
- Tag notes with subjects
- Browse by subject in the Shelf
▸ Three languages supported
- 한국어 · English · 日本語
- Switch language directly in the app
■ Made for
- People who want a handwritten journal on iPad
- Students annotating PDF textbooks
- Anyone recording lectures while taking notes
- Those looking for a beautifully-designed diary app
- Digital note-takers who miss the feel of paper
■ What's coming
Nib is actively being improved.
Dark mode, iCloud sync (across devices), and more transcription languages are on the way.
Feedback and suggestions welcome at stockhub.kr@gmail.com
■ About the developer
Nib is crafted by an independent developer.
stockhub.kr
more Refined library cards and filters to make note titles easier to find. Writing tools now leave more room on smaller iPad screens. On iPhone, recent notes and resume controls are now near the top, and page information is separate from writing and delete buttons.
Improved note backup reliability and handwriting recognition processing for large notes. Refined note and recording lists in small iPad windows, made recording playback and seek controls easier to tap, and improved VoiceOver labels.
1.3.24 3d ago
This update improves responsiveness and reliability, especially for large notes.
- Faster, more stable Undo and Redo in long writing sessions.
- Optimized note and page thumbnail loading to reduce temporary pauses while scrolling.
- Handwriting search indexing and automatic backups now run in smaller, interruptible batches to keep writing responsive.
- Improved backup recovery after interruptions and foreground transitions.
1.3.23 Aug 31
This update improves writing stability and the iPad writing-tool experience.
- Fixed strokes briefly reappearing or fading during repeated Undo and Redo.
- Improved visual stability so other ink no longer dims while erasing a whole stroke.
- Redesigned the writing toolbar so common actions and tools are easier to find and select directly.
- Refined tool icons and selection states for clearer, more consistent recognition.
1.3.21 Aug 31
This update improves eraser, Undo, and Redo reliability and responsiveness.
- Continuous eraser changes are now kept in one accurate history action.
- Fixed delayed or flickering presentation when using Undo or Redo immediately after erasing a whole stroke.
- Improved restoration consistency across blank notes, PDF notes, and the iPhone writing view.
- Strengthened persistence so saved ink matches the final drawing shown on screen.
1.3.20 Aug 21
Nib 1.3.19 improves stability for large PDFs, backups, and reminders.
• Improved responsiveness when browsing PDF notes with thousands of pages on iPhone, with page-range navigation and Resume from the last viewed page.
• PDF import now shows preparation and page-saving progress, with cancellation where it is safe to stop.
• Automatic Backup more clearly shows whether a backup is stored on this device or saved to or restored from Nib’s iCloud Drive app folder.
• Improved handling of Daily Reminder permissions and schedule changes.
1.3.19 Aug 10
This update improves layout, readability, and accessibility across key iPad and iPhone screens.
- Calendar, Memo, Settings, and writing controls now adapt more reliably to larger Dynamic Type sizes, reducing clipped or crowded content.
- Navigation, buttons, and writing tools have been refined for clearer layouts and more comfortable touch targets on iPad and iPhone.
- Contrast has been improved in Dark Mode across menus, writing tools, Calendar, and Library. Editor motion is also reduced when Reduce Motion is enabled.
1.3.18 Aug 3
This update makes date-based planning and handwriting on iPhone faster.
- Calendar now brings a selected date's memo, notes created that day, and important-date notes into one hub, with an option to create a new note immediately. On wider iPads, Calendar and the date hub appear side by side.
- Memo now includes recent entries and search. On iPad, a split workspace places the memo list beside the selected date editor.
- The iPhone writing screen now has a compact bottom dock, a full ink-color palette, and a dedicated highlighter palette.
1.3.16 Aug 2
This update makes notes easier to browse on iPhone and refreshes Nib's design, privacy, and usability across iPhone and iPad.
- View pages full screen on iPhone, swipe between pages, zoom in or out, or switch to continuous view.
- Improved handwriting and highlighter fidelity in iPhone previews, along with library and page-navigation responsiveness.
- Added an iPad Live Shelf for featured and recent notes, with customizable cover colors and symbols.
- Expanded Calendar and added date memos on both iPhone and iPad.
- App Lock now authenticates note opening and setting changes, and hides content while the app is inactive.
- Improved dark-mode readability, touch targets, writing tools, Settings, and onboarding.
1.3.15 Aug 1
Added a document outline for faster navigation through long notes and improved the visual stability of automatic shape completion.
- Add a heading to individual pages to build a document outline.
- Select a heading in the outline to jump directly to its page.
- Rename or delete headings, or enter a page number to navigate directly.
- Document outlines and page headings persist across app relaunches and Nib backup restores.
- Improved an issue where existing or nearby ink could flicker when an automatically completed line, circle, or rectangle overlapped it.
- Reopening the guide from iPhone Settings now shows the iPhone-specific guide and recommends iPad for a roomier handwriting experience.
1.3.14 Jul 28
Added new ways to organize and review notes, along with improved handwriting and large-PDF stability.
• Add Feeling, Learning, and Next action markers to each note and see them in the note list.
• Set deadlines, goals, review dates, and memorable dates with relative-date indicators.
• Draw a line, circle, or rectangle in one stroke and pause briefly for automatic shape completion.
• Temporarily hide the source PDF to focus on your annotation layer.
• Fixed rough strokes reappearing after shape completion.
• Fixed whole-page ink flicker during automatic shape completion, Undo, and repeated Redo.
• Improved lined-paper zoom/scroll alignment and stability for very large PDFs on older iPads.
1.3.13 Jul 26
Improved stability when opening and annotating PDFs with thousands of pages on iPad.
- Fixed an issue that could cause the app to quit when opening a large PDF on some older iPads.
- Loads only the PDF pages needed on screen for a more reliable launch and page navigation experience.
- Improved backup restore reliability for notes and their pages.
- Improved preservation of the recent page position and ink in large documents.
1.3.12 Jul 25
This update improves scrolling in regular notes and transitions to Settings.
- Reduced repeated page-order calculations and current-page saves while scrolling through multi-page regular notes.
- Lowered the memory and rendering cost of off-screen page previews for more responsive fast scrolling.
- Settings now appears promptly while the latest ink is safely persisted and the heavy writing surface is retired asynchronously.
- Improved preservation of the latest ink and page position during rapid note changes or quick transitions between writing and Settings.
- Serialized preview rendering and cancels stale work to reduce unnecessary CPU and memory use during longer sessions.
1.3.11 Jul 23
This update improves screen-lock and background-work safety.
- Even when “Keep Screen Awake While Writing” is enabled, Nib now releases its keep-awake request 10 minutes after the last actual stroke, after which the iPad follows its system Auto-Lock setting.
- Continued writing renews the 10-minute timer, while locking or backgrounding the app releases the keep-awake request immediately.
- Full-library backups no longer run during the background transition and instead resume at a safe foreground opportunity, reducing battery use and unexpected termination risk.
- Unnecessary writing-surface processing, playback, and display-update work now stop when the screen is off.
- A lecture recording explicitly started by the user continues after Auto-Lock.
- Backup and restore are safer when new writing or Settings changes occur during an in-progress operation.
1.3.10 Jul 21
This update improves writing continuity and Settings responsiveness.
- Improved Apple Pencil input so a new stroke is not lost when it begins during the brief transition after straight-line or shape completion.
- Improved transitions to Settings by suspending heavy editor rendering work while the writing surface is not visible.
- Improved responsiveness for large note libraries by loading cloud diagnostics and backup information only when requested.
- The restart notice shown after changing the app language now appears in the newly selected language.
- Reduced unnecessary repeated work when checking app-lock availability and preparing Settings data.
1.3.9 Jul 20
This update improves PDF writing reliability and reduces device heat, while making the writing-tool panel easier to use.
- Fixed an issue where Apple Pencil strokes could intermittently fail to start after scrolling down a PDF or returning to an earlier page.
- Improved page input routing so writing remains reliable while moving continuously between PDF pages.
- Fixed unnecessary background work that could continue after opening or navigating a PDF, increasing device heat and battery usage.
- Improved scrolling and page navigation in long PDFs by focusing work on the pages currently needed on screen.
- Improved tool-panel auto-close so it closes when Apple Pencil writing begins, rather than after the first stroke ends.
- Restored a longer thickness slider in the compact tool panel for finer pen-width adjustment.
- Improved the reliability of erasing, last-page restoration, page previews, and editing state.
1.3.8 Jul 18
This update improves writing responsiveness during longer sessions and makes note editing more reliable.
- Reduced the slowdown that could develop as more handwriting accumulated.
- Reduced full-page flashing during Undo and automatic shape completion.
- Tuned highlighter colors over images and improved whole-stroke erasing across pens, pencils, highlighters, and other ink tools.
- Added typed and pasted text that can be moved and resized, with locking for both text and images.
- Added adjustable line spacing, a slimmer writing-tool panel, and more color choices.
- On iPhone, quick writing remains available for ordinary blank notes, while PDF and image pages are view-only with guidance to edit on iPad.
1.3.6 Jul 16
This update makes writing tools faster and more convenient to use.
- Fixed rectangle shape completion appearing like a teardrop.
- Recent tools now correctly include highlighters and tools for each recently used color.
- Improved handwriting responsiveness and stroke-processing performance.
- Reopening the app now returns to the last page you were writing on.
- Moved the add and delete page controls to the upper right with matching compact sizes.
- The expanded tool list now shows every writing tool at once without unrelated controls.
1.3.5 Jul 13
Nib 1.3.4 refines the writing and page-management workflow while improving launch stability.
- The tool panel now stays open while comparing presets, colors, and thicknesses when Auto Close is enabled.
- The panel closes automatically when handwriting actually begins.
- Auto Close now behaves consistently in blank and PDF notes.
- Repositioned the page add and delete controls for easier page management.
- Fixed an issue that could cause the app to close immediately after launch on some iPads.
1.3.4 Jul 12
Nib 1.3.3 improves shape correction and undo reliability.
- Fixed an issue where rectangles could be converted into circles.
- Improved recognition of rotated and slightly uneven rectangles.
- Reduced intermittent ink flicker during automatic line and shape correction.
- Fixed undo and redo selecting the wrong step after automatic correction.
- Improved handwriting stability across blank notes, PDF notes, and the iPhone editor.
1.3.3 Jul 11
Nib 1.3.2 fixes a critical issue on iPad where Apple Pencil input could scroll the page instead of writing.
- Restored reliable Apple Pencil input from the first touch.
- Fixed Apple Pencil writing in both blank notes and PDF notes.
- Preserved existing finger scrolling and pinch-to-zoom behavior.
- Improved input routing so overlays and masking tape no longer intercept writing.
1.3.2 Jul 10
Nib 1.3.1 refines writing and backup reliability after the 1.3.0 update.
- Improved how the last stroke is saved when switching pages or notes in PDF notes.
- Fixed cases where PDF ink state could become inconsistent after undo or redo.
- Improved iCloud backup and restore behavior so newer local writing and note details are preserved more safely.
- Reduced unnecessary saves on the iPhone writing screen when no real change was made.
- Improved overall reliability for backup, restore, thumbnails, and PDF writing.
1.3.1 Jul 4
Nib 1.3.0 improves writing cleanup and makes masking, recording, and search workflows feel more connected inside notes.
- Hand-drawn lines, rectangles, and ellipses can now be cleaned up into neater shapes.
- Added masking tape for covering parts of a page, toggling reveal/hide, and adjusting placement and size.
- Writing while recording now adds page/time markers so recordings can jump back to the related page.
- Improved the handwriting search flow so matched results open directly on the relevant page.
- Added a lasso action for quickly matching the most recent ink stroke to the current writing style.
- Improved thumbnail, PDF export, backup, and restore handling for the new writing elements.
1.3.0 Jul 1
Nib 1.2.9 is a stability update that improves the experience of using Nib across iPad and iPhone, while making common actions easier to reach from the writing screen.
- Improved automatic iCloud backup and restore behavior so handwriting created on iPad can appear more reliably on iPhone.
- Strengthened sync safeguards to better distinguish devices with new local writing from devices that only need to restore.
- Added sorting by creation date or recently written date in the note list from the writing screen.
- Improved access to recorded audio from the writing screen menu.
- Refined eraser mode memory, page controls, and handwriting display in thumbnails and read-only views.
1.2.9 Jun 30
Nib now supports iPhone, so you can review and continue your notes across iPad and iPhone.
- Improved the mobile writing experience on iPhone.
- Refined note list, page navigation, and page add/delete controls in the iPad writing view.
- Added note list sorting by creation date or recent writing date.
- Improved writing tools, including custom subject icon drawing, remembered eraser mode, and direct page number navigation.
- Strengthened automatic iCloud backup and restore behavior for more reliable handwriting sync across devices.
- Improved handwriting rendering quality in thumbnails and read-only views.
1.2.8 Jun 29
Improved the writing experience and tool controls.
- Quickly switch between frequently used writing tools from the left toolbar.
- Refined tool icons and selected states for better clarity.
- Adjusted the top menu layout to avoid overlapping with content.
- Improved writing screen spacing so the canvas feels more open.
- Improved stability around undo and eraser/tool switching.
- Fixed minor UI and usability issues.
1.2.7 Jun 23
Refined library cards and filters to make note titles easier to find. Writing tools now leave more room on smaller iPad screens. On iPhone, recent notes and resume controls are now near the top, and page information is separate from writing and delete buttons.
Improved note backup reliability and handwriting recognition processing for large notes. Refined note and recording lists in small iPad windows, made recording playback and seek controls easier to tap, and improved VoiceOver labels.
more Version 1.3.24 3d ago
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