# Install nb with Homebrew, apk, MacPorts, Nix Command-line and local web note-taking, bookmarking, and archiving. Version 7.25.4 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-14. Also installable with nix: nix profile install nixpkgs#nb. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:nb ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install nb ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata - MacPorts (94%): ```sh sudo port install nb ``` Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: office/nb/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ### Linux - apk (92%): ```sh sudo apk add nb ``` Evidence: Alpine Linux edge package indexes: nb from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/testing/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#nb ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/nb/nb/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:nb - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Version:** 7.25.4 - **Source summary:** Command-line and local web note-taking, bookmarking, and archiving - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Last updated:** 2026-06-14T05:08:25Z - **Generated:** 2026-08-03T19:37:03+00:00 ## Executables - bookmark (alias) - nb (alias) ## Install behavior - Bottle: not available ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-08-03 - Package-manager version: 7.25.4 ## Project history and usage nb is a shell-script personal knowledge tool: notes, bookmarks, archives, todos, wiki-style links, search, encryption, Git-backed version history, and sync wrapped in one command-line and local-web interface. ### Project history The GitHub repository was created on 2016-01-12. The project presents itself as a portable, vendor-independent Unix tool rather than a hosted notes service: data lives in plain text formats such as Markdown, Org, LaTeX, and AsciiDoc, and the implementation is deliberately packaged as a single portable script with optional enhancements. Its design grew around composability with existing command-line habits. The README emphasizes use with Vim, Emacs, VS Code, Sublime Text, Helix, micro, terminal browsers, GUI browsers, Git, Pandoc, OpenSSL/GPG encryption, and standard Unix environments including macOS and Windows via WSL, MSYS, and Cygwin. ### Adoption history GitHub API data retrieved on 2026-07-01 showed 8,266 stars and 252 forks. Homebrew Formulae data for the same retrieval showed version 7.25.4 and 2,815 installs over the prior 365 days. The npm package nb.sh was created on 2020-06-17 and the npm downloads API reported 1,450 downloads for 2026-05-30 through 2026-06-28. The package sits in the command-line PKM and plain-text productivity niche: large enough to be packaged by common package managers and discussed by terminal-tool users, but still most useful to people who already want their notes and bookmarks as files rather than SaaS records. ### How it is used Package nerds use nb as a local-first notebook and bookmark database: add notes from the terminal, save URLs as cleaned Markdown, search cached page text with regular expressions, tag and pin items, and let Git record revisions and synchronize notebooks. A typical setup is intentionally boring: install nb, keep ~/.nbrc for preferences, point it at an editor, and optionally add Pandoc, ripgrep/ag/grep, browser helpers, GPG/OpenSSL, and remote Git sync as the workflow grows. ### Why package nerds care nb is interesting because it is not a new storage backend. It packages a familiar Unix stack into a cohesive notes/bookmarks/archive workflow while keeping the escape hatch obvious: the data remains ordinary files under Git. ### Timeline - 2016-01-12: xwmx/nb repository created on GitHub. - 2020-06-17: nb.sh package created on npm. - 2026-04-28: nb 7.25.4 release published on GitHub. - 2026-07-01: Homebrew Formulae reported stable version 7.25.4. ### Sources - - - - - - ## Security Notes narrow executable package without higher-risk signals. - **Geiger risk:** green / low - narrow executable package without higher-risk signals ## Configuration and credential file locations These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval. ## Configuration files - Unix: ~/.nbrc ## Other Package-Manager Records - Nix - nb: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/nb/nb/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - apk - nb - 7.24.1-r0: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: nb from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/testing/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | Command line note-taking, bookmarking, archiving, and knowledge base application | https://github.com/xwmx/nb - apk - nb-bash-completion - 7.24.1-r0: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: nb-bash-completion from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/testing/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | Bash completions for nb | https://github.com/xwmx/nb - apk - nb-doc - 7.24.1-r0: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: nb-doc from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/testing/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | Command line note-taking, bookmarking, archiving, and knowledge base application (documentation) | https://github.com/xwmx/nb - apk - nb-fish-completion - 7.24.1-r0: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: nb-fish-completion from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/testing/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | Fish completions for nb | https://github.com/xwmx/nb - apk - nb-full - 7.24.1-r0: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: nb-full from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/testing/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | More utilities that integrate with nb | https://github.com/xwmx/nb - apk - nb-zsh-completion - 7.24.1-r0: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: nb-zsh-completion from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/testing/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | Zsh completions for nb | https://github.com/xwmx/nb - MacPorts - nb: normalized package name match | MacPorts ports tree: office/nb/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/nb.yml](https://github.com/mxcl/pkgdb/blob/main/combined/nb.yml) ## Sources - pkg.so package database - Geiger risk classifier - curated configuration and credential file locations - curated package history - pkgdb category and tag curation - external package-manager database matches - cross-ecosystem install command graph