# Tomboy Notes Manual

Tomboy is a simple desktop note-taking application, with many features designed to help organize ideas, such as spell checking, highlighting, auto-linking URLs, lists, font stylizing, quick access with a table of contents for notes, and add-ins to extend Tomboy's capabilities. .

2009
Alex Graveley
2009
Brent Smith
2009
Free Software Foundation
2009
Boyd Timothy
2009
Sandy Armstrong
2009
Paul Cutler
GNOME Documentation Project
Alex
Graveley
GNOME Documentation Project

    alex@beatniksoftware.com

Brent
Smith
GNOME Documentation Project

    gnome@nextreality.net

Boyd
Timothy
GNOME Documentation Project

    btimothy@gmail.com

Sandy
Armstrong
GNOME Documentation Project

    sanfordarmstrong@gmail.com

Paul
Cutler
GNOME Documentation Project

    pcutler@foresightlinux.org

Tomboy Manual 2.1
2009-03-23

Paul Cutler

GNOME Documentation Project

Tomboy Manual 4.0
2008-03-07

Paul Cutler

GNOME Documentation Project

Tomboy Manual 3.0
2007-09-13

Sandy Armstrong

GNOME Documentation Project

Tomboy Manual 2.0
2007-02-28

Boyd Timothy

GNOME Documentation Project

This manual describes version 0.14.0 of Tomboy

## Feedback

To report a bug or make a suggestion regarding the Tomboy application or this manual, follow the directions in the GNOME Feedback Page.

## Introduction

### Notes Application

Tomboy is a desktop note-taking application for GNOME, Microsoft Windows, and Mac OS X. It is simple and easy to use, and allows you to organize the ideas and information you deal with every day. Tomboy has some very useful editing features to help you customize your notes, including:

- Highlighting Search Text

- Inline Spell Checking

- Auto-linking Web & Email Addresses

- Undo/Redo Support

- Font Styling & Sizing

- Bulleted Lists

Tomboy is accessed through the GNOME panel, the taskbar in Microsoft Windows, or the dock in Mac OS X. To startup Tomboy automatically when you log into GNOME, see .

## Getting Started

### Adding Tomboy to the GNOME Panel

To add Tomboy to a panel in GNOME, right-click on the panel, then choose Add to Panel . Select Tomboy Notes in the Add to the panel dialog, then click Add . You should see a yellow note icon appear in the panel, representing Tomboy. The panel icon is illustrated in .

Tomboy is automatically added to the taskbar when run on Microsoft Windows, or the dock when run on Mac OS X.

### Creating Notes

Once you have successfully added Tomboy to the panel, you can create new notes using one of the following methods.

To create a new note using the mouse:

1. Click on the Tomboy note icon present in the GNOME Panel or Windows taskbar. A menu will appear.

2. Select the Create New Note option in the menu.

To create a new note using the keyboard:

1. Open the Tomboy menu using the key combination Alt F12 .

2. Use the N key to select the menu option Create New Note .

### Editing Notes

After creating a new note, a new window will appear with the title `New Note N`. At the top of the note is a toolbar with several buttons and text. Directly below this toolbar is the content area of the note. This is illustrated in .

The note can be edited by clicking in the content area and using the keyboard to add and remove content. The first line is considered the title of the note. By default this is populated with the text `New Note N`. The title is changed by clicking in the content area on the first line and using the keyboard to change the title. By default, focus is given to the content area upon creation of a new note, so you can immediately start editing the note without the need to click on the content area with the mouse.

Using the toolbar available on each note is discussed in .

#### The default window for a New Note

### Table of Contents

To get an overview of all the notes managed by Tomboy, select the Search All Notes menu item from the panel menu. By default, the Search All Notes dialog will display the notes in the order that they were last modified. Click the Note or Last Changed column headings to change the sort order. Click the column heading a second time to toggle between ascending and descending order.

You can find specific notes by entering text into the search field in the Search All Notes dialog. The list of notes will automatically update to list only the notes which have matching text.

To open a note in the Search All Notes dialog, do one of the following:

1. Double-click on a note.

2. Highlight a note by selecting it and then select Open from the File menu.

3. Right-click on a note and select Open from the context menu that appears.

4. Highlight a note by selecting it and then press the key combination Ctrl O .

## Working With Notes

Notes are modified and edited through the main window for each note. The toolbar at the top of each note allows you to stylize the note and perform other note-related functions. We discuss the functions of each item on the toolbar in the following sections.

### Search

Clicking the Search button will open the Search All Notes dialog described earlier (.)

### Link

The Link button allows you to create a link to a new note from within the current note. For example, if your note contains the phrase FinalExam, you can select this text with the mouse and click the Link button to create a new note with the title FinalExam. A link will also be created in the current note that can be clicked to open the new FinalExam note.

Changing the title of a note will update links present in other notes. This prevents broken links from occurring when a note is renamed.

### Text

Formatting text within your notes can be done using the Text button. The Text button will display a menu with several options from which you can choose. Each menu item is explained next.

Undo

  Support for Undo is available in Tomboy through this menu item. The Undo function allows you to revert previous changes made to your note during the current session. To undo your last change using the keyboard, use the standard keybinding, Ctrl Z .

Redo

  The Redo function is used to put back changes that were removed using the Undo feature. To redo your last change using the keyboard, use the standard keybinding, Shift Ctrl Z .

Bold

  To make text within your note bold, first select the text you want to modify. Then select the Bold option from the Text menu. You may also use the keybinding Ctrl B after selecting the text.

Italic

  To make text within your note italic, first select the text you want to modify. Then select the Italic option from the Text menu. You may also use the keybinding Ctrl I after selecting the text.

Strikeout

  The strikeout style will put a line through the selected text. To add a strikeout, select the text and then select the Strikeout option from the Text menu. You may also use the keybinding Ctrl S after selecting the text.

Highlight

  The highlight style will put a yellow background around the selected text. To add a highlight, select the text and then select the Highlight option from the Text menu. You may also use the keybinding Ctrl H after selecting the text.

Fixed Width

  The fixed width style allows text to use a fixed width font. To change existing text, first select the text you want to modify. Then select the Fixed Width option from the Text menu. You can also select the Fixed Width option from the Text before you start typing to have the text you type be in a fixed width style.

  The Fixed Width option is a feature provided by the Fixed Width Add-in. For more information on add-ins, see .

Font size

  There are actually four options in this part of the menu:

  - Small
  - Normal
  - Large
  - Huge
  . Each one of these options represents a font size to use for the selected text in the note. To modify the font size, select the text and then select one of
  - Small
  - Normal
  - Large
  - Huge
  options from the Text menu.
Bullets

  Select the Bullets option from the Text menu to begin or end a bulleted list. If the cursor is inside a bulleted list, the

  - Increase Indent
  - Decrease Indent
  options will be enabled.

  With the cursor on a bulleted list line, select the Increase Indent option to shift the current line to the right or the Decrease Indent option to shift the current line to the left.

  For more information on bullets, see .

Find in This Note

  Use this to search for text within the current note. A small find bar will open up at the bottom of the note. To open the find bar using the keyboard, use the standard keybinding, Ctrl F .

  Enter text to find. After entering text, the matches will be highlighted. Click Find Next to highlight the next match and place the cursor there. Click Previous to move to the previous match.

  To close the find bar, click X (Close Button) on the far left or press the Escape key.

### Tools (gear icon)

The Tools button is represented by the icon. When you click the Tools icon on the toolbar present on your note, a menu will appear with the following items:

Synchronize Notes

  Select this option to synchronize your notes with a central server. For more information on note synchronization, see .

What links here?

  This option allows you to quickly see what other notes link to the current note. This feature is provided by the Backlinks Add-in. For more information on add-ins, see .

Export to HTML

  You can create an HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) document from one or more notes by selecting this option. For more information, please see .

Print

  Select this option to print the current note. You will be presented with the standard GNOME print dialog.

Depending on the add-ins that you have installed for Tomboy, you may have more or less items available in the Tools menu.

### Delete

The Delete button will pop up a dialog box asking if you want to permanently delete the note and its contents. Click the Delete button to discard the note permanently, or Cancel to abort the process. Links to this note from other notes will still exist, but will re-create the note upon activation.

## Panel Menu

Tomboy keeps the most recently used notes quickly available to you in a menu that appears when you click on the Tomboy Icon in the GNOME Panel, the taskbar in Microsoft Windows, or the dock in Mac OS X.

### Note Pinning

To force a note to always be in the panel menu regardless of when you last accessed it, click the thumbtack icon to "pin" it to the menu. Notes that are pinned to the panel menu will have a thumbtack icons that look like this: . Notes that are not pinned to the panel menu will have thumbtack icons that look like this: .

#### Tomboy Panel Menu

## Bulleted Lists

### Begin a bulleted list

You may begin a bulleted list by using one of the following methods:

1. Select Bullets from the Text menu.

2. Begin a line with a single dash character (-), type some text immediately following the dash, and press Enter.

### End a bulleted list

End a bulleted list by doing one of the following:

1. Select Bullets from the Text menu.

2. Press Enter on a blank bulleted line.

3. Select Decrease Indent from the Text menu in succession until the current line is no longer part of the bulleted list.

4. Using the key combination Shift Tab in succession until the current line is no longer part of the bulleted list.

### Increase Indentation

To increase the line indentation in a bulleted list with the mouse:

- Select Increase Indent from the Text menu.

To increase the line indentation in a bulleted list with the keyboard:

- Press the Tab key.

### Decrease Indentation

To decrease the line indentation in a bulleted list with the mouse:

- Select Decrease Indent from the Text menu.

To decrease the line indentation in a bulleted list with the keyboard:

- Press the key combination Shift Tab .

## Working with Notebooks

Notebooks allow you to group related notes together. You can add a note to a notebook in the Search All Notes window or directly inside of a Note.

### Creating Notebooks

You can create new notebooks using one of the following methods:

1. Click on the Tomboy note icon present in the GNOME Panel, the taskbar in Microsoft Windows, or the dock in Mac OS X. A menu will appear

2. Select Notebooks New Notebook.

3. Enter a name for the new notebook.

#### Create a new notebook from the Tomboy note icon on the GNOME Panel, the taskbar in Microsoft Windows, or the dock in Mac OS X

To create a new notebook from the Search All Notes dialog:

1. Open Search All Notes by choosing it from the Tomboy icon on the GNOME Panel, the taskbar in Microsoft Windows, or the dock in Mac OS X, or click on Search from an open note.

2. Using your mouse, right click in the left hand box and choose New Notebook .

3. Enter a name for the new notebook.

4. With Search All Notes open, choose File Notebooks New Notebook .

5. Enter a name for the new notebook.

#### Create a new notebook from Search All Notes

### Adding Notes to a Notebook

To add notes to a notebook, you can add a note from the Search All Notes dialog or directly within a note.

To move an existing note from the Search All Notes dialog:

1. Open Search All Notes by choosing it from the Tomboy icon on the GNOME Panel, the taskbar in Microsoft Windows, or the dock in Mac OS X, or click on Search from an open note.

2. Using your mouse, drag the note(s) onto a notebook on the left.

As you type a note, you can add the note directly to an existing notebook using the Notebook button. The Notebook button is represented by the icon.

#### Adding a note to a notebook

### Creating Notebook Templates

After you create a notebook, you can create a template for each new note that you create in a specific notebook.

1. Open Search All Notes by choosing it from the Tomboy icon on the GNOME Panel, the taskbar in Microsoft Windows, or the dock in Mac OS X, or click on Search from an open note.

2. Using your mouse, right click on a Notebook that you have created and choose Open Template Note.

3. This will open a new note that will be used as the template. Any text typed in this note will appear in all notes created in this Notebook. Create a new note in the notebook by using your mouse, right click on a notebook and select New Note.

#### Creating a Notebook Template

### Deleting a Notebook

Deleting a notebook will not delete any of the notes which are currently inside the notebook. After deleting a notebook, the notes will not be associated with any notebook and can be seen by highlighting Unfiled Notes in the Search All Notes window.

You can delete a notebook you have created by one of two methods:

To delete a notebook using your mouse:

1. Open Search All Notes by choosing it from the Tomboy icon on the GNOME Panel, the taskbar in Microsoft Windows, or the dock in Mac OS X, or click on Search from an open note.

2. Using your mouse, right click on a Notebook that you have created and choose Delete Notebook.

#### Deleting a Notebook

To delete a Notebook from the Search All Notes menu, open Search All Notes by choosing it from the Tomboy icon on the GNOME Panel, the taskbar in Microsoft Windows, or the dock in Mac OS X.

1. Using your mouse, left click on the Notebook you want to delete.

2. From the menu, choose Edit Delete Notebook

## Note Synchronization

Tomboy can now keep your notes synchronized between multiple computers by relying on a central server.

### Configure note synchronization

You can configure your note synchronization preferences in the Synchronization tab of the Tomboy Preferences dialog. Default conflict handling behavior can be configured by selecting the Advanced... button.

#### Tomboy Synchronization Preferences

#### Configure note synchronization service (WebDAV)

In order to synchronize your notes with a WebDAV server, you will need the wdfs FUSE file system installed. Follow the documentation for your operating system to set up FUSE for your user. You will also need the GNOME Keyring installed.

Choose WebDAV from the Service drop-down list. Fill in the connection information for your server, and then select the Save button. You are now ready to synchronize your notes.

#### Configure note synchronization service (SSH)

In order to synchronize your notes with an SSH server, you will need the sshfs FUSE file system installed. Follow the documentation for your operating system to set up FUSE for your user. You will also need an SSH key for your SSH server account, which should be added to a running SSH daemon. This can be done using the GNOME Seahorse application, which is also known as Passwords and Encryption Keys.

It is recommended to use a third computer or server as the remote computer to store the syncronized notes that are to be synced between multiple computers.

Open Passwords and Encryption Keys by choosing Applications Accessories Passwords and Encryption Keys. Click on your key, and from the menu choose Remote Configure Key for Secure Shell... and enter the domain name or IP address of the computer you want to sync to in Computer Name. Enter the username of the remote computer in Computer Name: and click Set Up. When prompted, enter the password, and setting up your key will be completed.

In Tomboy, choose SSH from the Service drop-down list. Fill in the connection information for your server, and then select the Save button. The Folder Path, while optional, should point at an empty folder. You are now ready to synchronize your notes.

#### Configure note synchronization service (Local Folder)

You may want to synchronize your notes to a local folder if that folder is available to your other systems, or if that folder represents a local mount of a remote server.

Choose Local Folder from the Service drop-down list. Choose the desired synchronization Folder Path, and then select the Save button. You are now ready to synchronize your notes.

### Synchronize your notes

You can synchronize your notes at any time by selecting Tools Synchronize Notes from any note or from the Search All Notes dialog.

### Handling synchronization conflicts

When synchronizing notes between multiple computers, conflicts may occur. Usually this is the result of not synchronizing regularly when switching between systems. Tomboy will detect conflicts in the content of your notes and help you to avoid loss of important data.

If a conflict is detected during note synchronization, the Note Conflict dialog will appear. If you do not need the changes you made in your local note, you can select Overwrite local note. If you would like to keep your local changes in a new note, select Rename local note.

## Preferences

To set preferences for Tomboy, right-click on the icon in the panel, and select Preferences from the menu. You will see a dialog similar to the one displayed in . There are two categories of preferences, Editing and Hotkeys. Preferences for each tab will be described below.

### Editing

The editing tab will allow you to set preferences related to editing notes. There are three checkboxes on this tab, which can either be turned on or off.

Spellcheck While Typing

  Enable this checkbox to underline misspellings in red, and provide suggestions in the right click context menu. Enable or disable the checkbox using the mouse or the key combination Alt S .

  The spellcheck option is only available if you have the GtkSpell package installed.

Highlight WikiWords

  Enable this checkbox to create links for phrases `ThatLookLikeThis`. Clicking on the link will create a new note with the title corresponding to the link text. Enable or disable this checkbox using the mouse or the key combination Alt W .

Use Custom Font

  Enable this checkbox to set a custom font to be used in your notes. If this option is disabled, the default system font will be used. Enable or disable this checkbox using the mouse or the key combination Alt F .

#### Tomboy Editing Preferences

### Hotkeys

The hotkeys tab allows you to set global key combinations to perform different functions in Tomboy. In order to set key combinations, you must have the Listen for Hotkeys checkbox enabled. Use Alt H to toggle this option.

Show notes menu

  Enter the key combination to open the notes menu.

Open "Start Here"

  Enter the key combination to open the Start Here note, which is preinstalled with Tomboy.

Create new note

  Enter the key combination to create a new note.

Search notes

  Enter the key combination to open the Search All Notes dialog.

#### Tomboy Hotkey Preferences

### Synchronization

Please see for more details.

### Add-ins

The add-ins tab allows you to enable and configure Tomboy Add-ins.

The list of installed add-ins shows on the left. An add-in is enabled by selecting it from the list and then selecting Enable. Disable an add-in by selecting it from the list and then selecting Disable.

Please see for more information about the add-ins that are installed with Tomboy.

#### Tomboy Add-in Preferences

## Add-ins

By default, Tomboy comes with several pre-installed add-ins:

- Backlinks
- Bugzilla URL Drop
- Evolution Mail Drop
- Export to HTML
- Fixed Width
- Note of the Day
- Print Notes
- and Sticky Notes Import.

Since these are preinstalled, they are ready to use and are automatically loaded into the Tomboy interface.

Some add-ins exist that are not installed by default.

Backlinks (What links here?)

  This add-in allows you to know which notes link to the note you are currently editing. It makes it easier to keep track of the relationships between notes. If this add-in is enabled, the Tools menu will have a What links here? option. When you select this option, it will list all the notes which link to the current note in a submenu. Select a note in the submenu to open it.

Bugzilla URL Drop

  Allows you to drag a Bugzilla URL from your browser directly into a Tomboy note. The bug number is inserted as a link with a small bug icon next to it. Once the Bugzilla link has been inserted into the note, click on it to open the URL in your web browser.

  Customize the icons that are used by editing the add-in preferences in the Preferences Dialog. After highlighting the Bugzilla Add-in, click Preferences to open the Bugzilla Add-in Settings dialog. To add a new icon, click Add, select an icon on your computer, provide a Bugzilla host name (e.g., bugzilla.gnome.org), and click Open. Any Bugzilla URL that is dragged and dropped from one of these custom host names will now use the icon you specified.

Evolution Mail Drop

  This add-in allows you to drag and drag an e-mail message from the Evolution mail application to one of your Tomboy notes. Clicking on the mail icon in the note will then open the corresponding e-mail message in Evolution.

Export to HTML

  When this add-in is installed, the Tools menu will have the Export to HTML option available.

  After selecting this option, you will be presented with a dialog that allows you to choose where to save the HTML file. Enter the destination filename and click OK to save the file, or Cancel to abort the operation.

  To export any notes for which a link exists in the current note, select the Export linked notes button.

Fixed Width

  Allows you to use a fixed-width font when creating/editing notes. If this add-in is enabled, the Text menu will have a Fixed Width option.

Note of the Day

  This add-in automatically creates a "Today" note for jotting daily thoughts down. The current date is used as a basis for the title of the note. As an example, the title of a "Today" note created on February 28, 2007, would be, "Today: Wednesday, February 28 2007"

  If you leave a "Today" note unmodified, the Note of the Day Add-in will automatically delete the note.

  To customize the content of the default "Today" note, create a new note and change the title of the note to be, "Today: Template". Change the content of the template note to whatever you like. When new "Today" notes are created, it will then use the content of your "Today: Template" note.

Print Notes

  When this add-in is installed, the Tools menu will have the Print option available.

  Select this option to print the current note. You will be presented with the standard GNOME print dialog.

Sticky Notes Import

  When this add-in is installed, the Tools menu will have the Import from Sticky Notes option available.

  Use this option to import notes from the Sticky Notes application that is available in prior releases of GNOME. This option has been included in Tomboy to provide an upgrade path for users who would like to migrate from Sticky Notes to Tomboy for their note taking purposes.