# Merla > Merla brings meeting notes, inline tasks and lasting knowledge together in one visual editor. Offline, no account, stored as plain files in your own folder. For macOS. Merla is a visual editor for your working knowledge: write meeting notes, turn any bullet into a task with a deadline, and file the results as knowledge – all linked, all searchable. Stored as plain files in a folder you choose. No account, no cloud lock-in. - Platform: macOS 12 or later · Apple silicon · English and German - Current version: 1.0.0-dev.202611131259 (2026-11-13), 129 MB, download: https://dl.merla.bnder.dev/releases/1.0.0-dev.202611131259/Merla-1.0.0-dev.202611131259.dmg, SHA-256: d777dceaf8b5ec2bceada9fb56b94537c98518bc63acae4863f111ca2b97971b - Account: none. Telemetry: none. Cloud AI: none. Works offline. - Publisher: bnder.net ## How it works 1. **Capture the meeting**: A new meeting note with date, participants and project. The template suggests agenda, notes, decisions and tasks – none of it is required. Just start writing. 2. **Turn a bullet into a task**: One shortcut turns any bullet into a real task with status and deadline. Text, formatting and links stay right where they are. 3. **See everything**: Today, Overdue, Upcoming and Blocked show every task from every document. Edit one there and you edit the task in the text – there is only one task model. 4. **File the result as knowledge**: Once the task is done, one command files its result as a knowledge note. Source and destination stay linked both ways. ## Features - **Visual editor**: Headings, lists, tables, images and PDFs like in a word processor. You never have to write Markdown. - **Tasks inside your notes**: Status, deadline, priority and recurrence right on the bullet. Optional reminders. - **Links that never break**: Link documents, people, projects, headings and single paragraphs. Renaming and moving never break a link. - **Terms and abbreviations**: Keep your own glossary. Searching for “CM” also finds “Capture Manager” – and vice versa, without rewriting your text. - **Search that understands**: Full-text search that tolerates typos, plus saved views. And a similarity search whose language model runs on your Mac. Every hit shows why it matched. - **People and projects**: Every person gets a page with meetings, mentions and assigned tasks. Projects and topics gather everything that belongs to them. - **Decisions and templates**: Decisions with rationale and rejected alternatives. Your own templates for recurring meetings – no template code. - **History and trash**: Every change is a revision. Compare and restore earlier versions, bring back deleted documents. - **Keyboard first**: Command palette, quick open, customisable shortcuts and quick capture. Plus light and dark themes and adjustable text size. ## Measured performance Merla is tested against a synthetic library of 10,000 documents, one million blocks, 100,000 tasks and 300,000 links. These are the results. - Typing in a document with 10,000 blocks: 8.6 ms (about one frame at 120 Hz) - Quick search across 10,000 documents: 43 ms (results as you type) - Opening the command palette: 23 ms (faster than a blink) - Connections without your consent: 0 (checked automatically) All times are 95th percentiles: 95 % of measurements were faster. Typing measured on a MacBook Pro with M1 Pro (16 GB, 120 Hz), search and palette on a Mac mini with M1 (16 GB), each with synthetic data in autumn 2026. Results on other hardware may differ. ## Data integrity and privacy - **Nothing is overwritten**: Every change is saved as a new revision. The complete version history lives in the knowledge folder itself, not in a hidden database. - **Conflicts instead of data loss**: When two Macs edit the same spot, the later timestamp does not simply win. Merla shows both versions and you decide. - **Sync tested under stress**: A simulator copies files out of order, twice, late and incomplete, and aborts saves midway. Afterwards every copy has to match. - **Verified backups**: The backup assistant reads the finished backup back in and checks it before it reports “successful”. - Everything lives in a knowledge folder of plain files. You choose where it lives – locally, or in a folder that a sync service of your choice brings to your other Macs. - No account, no telemetry, no cloud AI. The only connection Merla makes itself is the update check – and only after you agreed. - To be clear: the files are not encrypted. If you need protection, use FileVault or your sync service’s encryption. ## Who it is for - For you if you have lots of meetings and track the tasks and decisions they produce – in project management, consulting, product management or team leadership, for example. - For you if you work with confidential material and don’t want it on someone else’s servers. - For you if you want to write fast and do everything from the keyboard. - For you if you want to still own your notes as files ten years from now. - Not for you if you want to write in the same document as others at the same time. - Not for you if you work on Windows, on an iPhone or in the browser. - Not for you if you want an AI to summarise your notes automatically. ## FAQ ### Does Merla need an internet connection? No. Merla works fully offline. Search and similarity search run on your Mac too. Merla only goes online for the update check, and only if you agreed to it. ### Where are my notes stored? In a knowledge folder on your Mac that you choose. It consists of plain files with a complete version history. There is no Merla server and no account. ### Can I use Merla on more than one Mac? Yes. Put the knowledge folder in a folder that a file sync service of your choice keeps in sync. Merla detects parallel edits and merges them; if they contradict each other, Merla shows a conflict and discards neither version. ### Do I need to learn Markdown or a query language? No. Merla has a visual editor with a formatting bar, context menus and keyboard shortcuts. You build filters visually. ### How are tasks in Merla different from a to-do list? Tasks live right in the document where they come up, with status and deadline. The Today, Overdue and Upcoming views show those same tasks. Edits in a view go straight back to the task in the text. ### Does Merla use artificial intelligence? Merla uses no AI services and does not write text for you. Similarity search uses a small language model that ships with the app and runs only on your Mac. ### Why does macOS warn me on first launch? Merla is not notarised by Apple, so macOS says on first launch that it cannot verify the app. Go to System Settings → Privacy & Security and click “Open Anyway” once. The SHA-256 checksum below lets you confirm your download is unchanged. ### Is Merla available for Windows, iPhone or the web? No. Merla is a native app for macOS 12 or later on Apple silicon. ## Pages - [Merla (English)](https://merla.bnder.dev/en/): product page - [Merla (Deutsch)](https://merla.bnder.dev/): Produktseite - [Privacy](https://merla.bnder.dev/en/privacy/): what the website, downloads and app process