recText/README.md

mp3Transriber

mp3Transriber is a desktop app for managing MP3 recordings from a pocket recorder, viewing their metadata, and generating transcriptions.

The project is being designed with privacy first in mind:

• Local transcription is the default
• MP3 files and transcripts stay on the user's machine by default
• Cloud AI providers may be supported later as an explicit opt-in choice

Goals

• Import and manage MP3 recordings from a handheld or pocket recorder
• Read and display MP3 metadata
• Transcribe recordings to text
• Store transcripts inside the app
• Use a local SQLite database
• Run on Linux and macOS
• Be easy to start and use after download

Planned Product Direction

The current plan is to build this as a Tauri desktop application with a small web UI and a Rust backend.

Core design points:

• Desktop-first app for Linux and macOS
• Local file import and local storage
• Local transcription engine by default
• Optional cloud provider support only when the user enables it

Privacy Model

Privacy is a core requirement for this project because recordings may contain confidential information.

Default behavior

By default, the app will:

• keep recordings on the local machine
• transcribe audio locally
• store transcript text locally in SQLite
• avoid sending audio or transcript text to the internet

Optional cloud mode

The app may later support cloud transcription providers, but only under these conditions:

• cloud mode is off by default
• the user must explicitly enable it
• the user must configure their own provider credentials
• the UI must clearly warn that audio and transcript data may leave the machine

Planned Tech Stack

This is the current working stack proposal:

• Desktop shell: Tauri
• Frontend: React + TypeScript
• Backend orchestration: Rust
• Database: SQLite
• Metadata extraction: local MP3 tag reader library
• Local transcription: whisper.cpp or another fully local ASR engine
• Audio conversion: ffmpeg when needed for transcription preprocessing

Expected Features

Recording management

• Import MP3 files from disk
• Keep a list of recordings inside the app
• Prevent duplicate imports where practical

Metadata viewer

• Show common MP3 metadata fields such as:
  • title
  • artist
  • album
  • date
  • duration
  • bitrate
  • file name and path

Transcription

• Start transcription from the app UI
• Save the resulting text to the local database
• Re-open saved transcripts later
• Support local-only transcription as the primary mode

Project Status

This repository is currently in the planning and scaffolding stage.

What exists so far:

• initial project notes in todo.txt
• an implementation plan for a privacy-focused desktop app

What is expected next:

• scaffold the Tauri app
• define the SQLite schema
• implement MP3 import and metadata extraction
• integrate local transcription
• add a basic user interface

Non-Goals for the First Version

To keep the first version focused, these are likely out of scope initially:

• real-time live microphone dictation
• syncing files across devices
• automatic cloud backup
• multi-user collaboration

Development Notes

The first implementation will prioritize:

1. local-first behavior
2. simple setup on Linux and macOS
3. a clear and minimal UI
4. auditable privacy behavior

License

License not chosen yet.