Nabu

Browser-based RSVP speed reader. It flashes words at a chosen speed so you can read a document without moving your eyes across a page.

Live app: https://nabu-reader.vercel.app

What It Does

• Imports TXT, Markdown, PDF, and DOCX files.
• Reads with RSVP at 100-1000 WPM.
• Displays 1, 3, 5, 10, or 20 words per flash.
• Highlights the Optimal Recognition Point in amber.
• Stores documents locally in browser IndexedDB.
• Supports fullscreen reading and keyboard controls.

Run Locally

Prerequisites:

• Rust stable
• wasm32-unknown-unknown target
• Trunk
• Node.js and npm

git clone https://github.com/JDRV-space/nabu.git
cd nabu

rustup target add wasm32-unknown-unknown
cargo install trunk
npm ci
npm run prepare:assets

trunk serve

The app runs at http://127.0.0.1:8080.

Production build:

./scripts/build.sh

Build output goes to dist/.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Key	Action
Space	Play/Pause
Left/Right	Adjust WPM by 50
Up/Down	Adjust WPM by 10
R	Restart
F	Fullscreen
ESC	Exit reader

Limitations

• Documents are stored in browser IndexedDB and encrypted with AES-GCM.
• The encryption key is stored in browser localStorage as nabu_key.
• This is privacy against server upload. It is not protection against a compromised browser, same-origin script bug, browser extension, device, or user profile.
• PDF.js and JSZip are copied from pinned npm packages and served from the same origin. They are not loaded from cdnjs at runtime.
• Clearing site data can delete the library and the stored key.
• PDF and DOCX parsing happens in the browser and can fail on malformed or unusual files.
• There is no account system, sync, sharing, or backup.

Project Layout

nabu/
├── assets/                 # static assets, CSS, and vendored parser files
├── src/
│   ├── main.rs             # entry point
│   ├── components/         # reader, library, settings, controls, upload
│   ├── state/              # application state and signals
│   ├── storage/            # IndexedDB and document encryption
│   └── parser/             # PDF, DOCX, TXT, MD parsing
├── docs/SPEC.md            # technical specification and known limits
├── scripts/                # build scripts
├── Cargo.toml
├── .npmrc
├── package.json
├── package-lock.json
├── Trunk.toml
├── vercel.json
└── LICENSE

Documentation

• Project specification

License

Apache License 2.0. See LICENSE.

Attribution notices are listed in NOTICE.