If you’re half as forgetful as I am then—nope, sorry; I’ve forgotten where I was going with this. Let’s talk about Linux Mint’s sticky notes app instead.
See, I used to use real post-it notes, in real life. A ton of them. I’d use them to remind me to buy cat food, put the bins out, unclog the sink and write posts here, on OMG! Ubuntu.
But most of my sticky notes ended up face down on my desk, dog-eared and ignored (or, on more than one occasion, stuck to the back of the cat).
Note taking apps have largely replaced the need to jot things down on paper. But Ubuntu doesn’t come with one preinstalled – unless you count the text editor, which can double up as way to take notes.
Linux Mint has one though, called Notes, and I really like it.
Like other XApps made for Linux Mint, you can install Notes on other distros and desktops too. In this post, I show you how to install the Linux Mint sticky notes app on Ubuntu using the Mint Tools PPA.
Install Linux Mint’s Sticky Notes App on Ubuntu
I don’t have exotic or elaborate needs for simple note-taking. I just want a way to jot down the mundane stuff I’d previously have used a colourful paper square for. As such, I find the focused feature set of Sticky suits me well, lacking in frills as it does.
Linux Mint’s sticky notes app lets you:
- Create multiple notes
- Create groups of notes
- Choose from 8 different colours
- Apply text formatting
- Add checklists and bullet lists
- Enable an “Always on Top” option
- Set a custom note font and font size
- Import/export notes
A pretty solid feature set.
One thing Notes doesn’t have, that I wish it did, is a keyboard shortcut that eouldlet me hide/show the notes on demand. I’d find that especially useful on Ubuntu as the tray icon that lets users on Cinnamon desktop show/hide and add notes doesn’t work here.
If you want to try it out, it’s easy to.
The third-party Mint Tools PPA packages this, and other tools, for Ubuntu 18.04 LTS – 26.04 LTS.
Add the PPA to your system via the terminal app:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:kelebek333/mint-tools
Run an update (so your system can see the newly available packages), then install the sticky notes app:
sudo apt update && sudo apt install sticky
Finally, search for ‘Notes’ in your desktop app launcher and open it.
There are a few quirks I noticed running this app outside of Cinnamon, the default desktop in Linux Mint.
Some in-app icons are missing or incorrectly styled; the aforementioned tray icon for managing notes doesn’t appear; and the ‘manager’ side of the app doesn’t show a dock icon when it’s open.
For comparison, I exported my notes from Ubuntu 20.04 LTS and imported them into my Linux Mint 20.2 install. Here’s what my notes look like in Cinnamon (note the tray icon in the lower right):
Nicer looking then under Yaru/GNOME, even if the broad strokes are the same.
But it’s the contents that matter most.
Sticky notes are a basic form of note taking. The pin-up reminders work by literally getting in your face until they get done. Linux Mint’s sticky notes app embodies that mechanic well. With a couple of extra features it could find itself at appearing in a list itself: a list of the best Linux apps!
Thanks Lewis