AI and writing prompts
Help with writing, only when you want it.
nexdiary can have a page written from your notes by a model your operator sets up. No AI is set up out of the box, and none comes with it. This page explains what the AI does, what it does not do, what leaves your server along the way and who decides. The question of the day and the templates need no AI at all.
What the AI does, and what it does not
In the evening, Today shows the card “Write the day up”. If an AI is set up, it offers “Write it up with AI”. The AI reads the notes of that one day and writes a suggestion for the page from them: a title and a text, in the first person, in the language of your notes, short or long.
A suggestion, not a finished text
The suggestion lands in the editor, headed “A suggestion. Change whatever does not sound like you.” With “Longer” or “Shorter” you ask again. It only becomes your page when you save, and your notes always stay as they are.
This works for earlier days too, from their writing view. If a page already exists, say because you noted something later on, “Write it up anew with AI” asks first; the old text is replaced only when you save.
In the journal and the statistics, such a page carries the mark “written up with AI”, even if you rewrote it afterwards.
What it does
- Order and smooth: It puts your notes in order and fixes spelling and grammar.
- In your words: It writes as you, in the language of your notes, and leaves names as they stand.
- With a template: It writes only under the headings your notes have something to say about. The rest stays empty.
- Summing up: In a look back it puts a week or a month into a few sentences at the press of a button. That is shown and never stored.
What it does not do
- Make things up: no people, places, feelings, reasons or events that are not in your notes.
- Judge: It does not comfort, give advice or add a moral.
- Touch your notes: It never changes a note. The suggestion is made alongside.
- Act without you: Out of the box it runs only when you press. The one exception has to be switched on by both the operator and you, more on that below.
Good to knowThe model gets these rules with every request. How closely it keeps to them depends on the model. That is why the result is always a suggestion, which you read before it becomes your page.
Which model, and what it gets to read
Which AI there is gets decided by the operator, for everybody, under Settings, AI. Out of the box it says “No AI”, and then the button does not appear at all.
Three kinds of service
A service on the internet is reached over https only. Its key is stored encrypted on the server and never shown again.
- A local model in your own network, with Ollama for instance. Then nothing leaves the house. nexdiary checks when saving and at every request that the address really is in your own network.
- A service on the internet that speaks the OpenAI interface, with its own address and key.
- A service on the internet that speaks the Messages interface, with its own key.
- To try it out, “Save and try it” sends a small test question with nothing from any diary in it and tells you how many seconds the model took.
What exactly goes out depends on the button. Nothing beyond this ever goes along.
| When | What the model gets | What never goes along |
|---|---|---|
| “Write it up with AI” | The notes of that one day with their times. Where a note answers a question, the question too. With a template, its headings and questions as well. | The name of the account, the date, photos, values and tags |
| “Ask me first” | The same notes as for writing up | The same as for writing up |
| “Sum it up” | The pages of the week or month: weekday, day of the month, title and text | Photos, values, tags and notes |
| In the morning, on its own | Yesterday’s notes, just as for writing up | The same as for writing up |
Before you press, the line next to the button says where your notes go: with a local model “Written with the local model of your server. Nothing leaves the house.”, otherwise “Your notes go to” followed by the address of the service. The notes travel as data, and the rules tell the model that they are material and never an instruction. nexdiary’s log names the service, model, result and duration of a request, never a word from the notes or the answer.
Good to knownexdiary itself collects nothing for training and sends only to the one service the operator enters. What a service on the internet does with the notes is down to its own terms. If you want to be quite sure, use a local model.
Who switches the AI on and off
There are three switches, and each of them can turn the AI off on its own. The operator sets it up, but does not see in nexdiary what anybody writes.
- The operator, for everybody
Under Settings, AI they choose the service or “No AI”. “No AI” is chosen out of the box. Below the same card, they see exactly what goes out when someone presses the button.
- The operator, per account
Under Settings, Accounts every account has the tick “AI allowed”, set out of the box. Without it there is no button for that account, and the server turns every request down.
- Everybody, for themselves
Under My account, AI there is “AI for me”, on out of the box. “Off: the button ‘Write it up with AI’ disappears for you, and your texts never go to a model.”
Good to knowSo a family does not have to agree. Paul can use the AI every evening while Jule writes everything herself and her notes never go to a model.
Ask me first
Notes are short, and some things are only half there. “Ask me first” gives the AI a chance to ask before it writes.
Up to two questions, then the page
The AI reads your notes and asks up to two short questions about what they leave open: who was meant, what it was about, how it went on. If Jule noted a headache since midday, it might ask “Did the headache get better in the evening?”, and about the conkers she gathered, “What will you do with the 47 conkers?”.
Your answers join the other notes as new ones, anything left empty is passed over, and then the AI writes the page. “Go on without answers” goes straight to writing up. If nothing is open, the dialogue says “Nothing in your notes is open.”
- Only about what is there: It asks nothing that does not come up in the notes, and it does not guess.
- With care: It asks about health or feelings only when a note talks about exactly that.
- The same notes: Exactly what goes out for writing up goes out here, nothing more.
On its own in the morning, only if you both want it
Out of the box, nothing goes to an AI without a press of a button. The one exception is writing up automatically: every morning, yesterday’s notes become a draft without you pressing anything. As this is the only place where notes leave on their own, it has several bolts.
Three bolts
- An AI is set up
The operator has entered a service, and your account may use it.
- The operator allows it
With “Allow writing up automatically” under Settings, AI. It is off out of the box.
- You switch it on for yourself
With “Write up automatically” under My account, AI. nexdiary asks first and tells you where your notes will go every morning. This is off out of the box as well.
A draft that waits for you
At the time you choose, 7 am out of the box and anywhere from 4 am to 11.30 am, the draft is made. If a device is signed up for push, “A draft for yesterday is waiting for you.” arrives, and Today shows “Your draft from yesterday is waiting”.
The draft is not a page yet. It is not in the journal, does not count for streak or statistics and cannot be shared until you read it and press “Accept”. “Discard” deletes it.
- Only where there is something to do: on a day with notes, no page, no draft and not locked.
- One try a day: If it fails, nexdiary does not try that day again.
- With your template: If you have a default template, the AI writes under its headings.
Templates, with fixed headings for your page
Some people prefer to write in sections, under the same headings every evening. Templates are for them, with or without the AI.
How they work
Under My account, Writing you can make up to 20 templates, each with 1 to 12 sections. A section has a heading and, if you like, a question as a hint. You make one template your “Default template”; it is then preselected when you write, and on any page you can pick another.
- Writing yourself: The headings are already in the text, the question as a grey hint. Empty sections are dropped when you save.
- With AI: The AI fills only the sections your notes have something to say about. The rest stays empty instead of being made up.
- To take over: “Daily review” with Today, Good things, On my mind and Grateful, and “Work day” with Worked on, Went well, Got stuck and Taking along. You get a copy you can change freely.
A question for the days when nothing comes to mind
Today shows a small question every day. It comes from nexdiary itself, not from an AI, and helps on the days when the empty field feels too big.
The question of the day
“Answer” turns your answer into a note that keeps its question, so the AI later knows what you were answering too. “Another question” shows a different one for today. The question stays the same all day, on every device, and each person gets the questions in their own order. On the phone it sits above the field of the quick note.
When you write in the evening, “Keep writing?” offers more questions. A tap adds one as a subheading at the end of your text. An evening reminder can bring the question of the day along as well.
Your writing prompts
Under My account, Writing, “Writing prompts” you switch whole groups on or off, add up to 50 questions of your own, or turn everything off with “Show questions”. What you choose there is encrypted like your diary, because your own questions say something about you as well.
The family question is something else: one question a day for everybody who takes part. It is on the Family page.
Lovely moments
“What did you laugh about today?” On out of the box.
Feelings
“What is on your mind right now?” On out of the box.
Wishes and goals
“What are you looking forward to?” On out of the box.
Gratitude
“Which small thing made your day better?” On out of the box.
Family and friends
“Who did you enjoy spending time with today?” Off out of the box.
Looking back on Sunday
“What was the best thing about this week?” Sundays only, off out of the box.