thermalnote

Crates.iothermalnote
lib.rsthermalnote
version1.1.1
created_at2025-04-13 21:56:00.468145+00
updated_at2025-05-01 07:00:48.924701+00
descriptionA simple utility to print notes using thermal printers
homepage
repositoryhttps://github.com/sysrqmagician/thermalnote
max_upload_size
id1632179
size1,770,750
(sysrqmagician)

documentation

README

thermalnote

A terminal utility that lets you quickly write and print notes on a thermal printer.

Overview

Thermalnote opens your preferred text editor, allows you to compose a note, and then sends it directly to a USB thermal printer. Perfect for quick reminders, to-do lists, recipes, or anything else you want to have as a physical note.

Installation

Prerequisites

  • An ESC/POS-capable USB thermal printer
  • Text editor of your choice

Downloading

Pre-built from GitHub releases

Download the binary for your platform from the latest release.

Building using Cargo

cargo install thermalnote

Configuration

Thermalnote requires the following environment variables to be set:

Variable Description Example
THERMALNOTE_VENDOR Vendor ID of your thermal printer (hex without 0x prefix) 0ed6
THERMALNOTE_PRODUCT Product ID of your thermal printer (hex without 0x prefix) 06a6
THERMALNOTE_CODEPAGE Character encoding for text PC437 or WPC1252
THERMALNOTE_ARCHIVEDIR OPTIONALLY, directory to archive notes in /home/user/thermalnotes
EDITOR Path to your preferred text editor /usr/bin/nano or /usr/bin/vim

You can find your printer's vendor and product IDs using:

  • Linux: lsusb
  • macOS: System Information utility
  • Windows: Device Manager > USB devices > Properties

Supported codepages

Run with the help flag set to see a list of supported code pages:

thermalnote -h

Usage

  1. Set up the required environment variables
  2. Run thermalnote: 
    thermalnote
  3. Your chosen editor will open a temporary file
  4. Write your note
  5. Save and exit the editor
  6. The note will be printed on your thermal printer and the temporary file deleted.

Examples

For a bash/zsh setup, you might add this to your shell configuration:

export THERMALNOTE_VENDOR="0ed6"
export THERMALNOTE_PRODUCT="06a6"
export THERMALNOTE_CODEPAGE="PC437"
export EDITOR="/usr/bin/vim"

Troubleshooting

  • "Error opening USB device": Make sure your vendor and product IDs are correct and the printer is connected

  • Editor doesn't open: Ensure EDITOR is set to a valid path without arguments

  • Text doesn't print correctly: Try changing the codepage to match your language/character needs

  • Permission denied: You might need to add udev rules for USB access on Linux

    To allow all users on your system to write to your printer, create the following file with your vendor and product id:

    /etc/udev/rules.d/999-thermalnote.rules

SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="0ed6", ATTRS{idProduct}=="06a6", MODE="0666"

License

MIT. See LICENSE file.

Contributing

Contributions welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Commit count: 10

cargo fmt