Ember Analysis

Ember Analysis is a cross-platform desktop application for importing, visualizing, and quizzing yourself on your WhatsApp chat data. Built with Vue 3, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS, Vite, and Tauri (Rust).

Table of Contents

• Features
• Prerequisites
• Installation
• Configuration
• Development
• Usage
• Project Structure
• Scripts
• Packaging & Distribution
• Data Caching & Storage
• Testing
• Troubleshooting
• Contributing
• License
• Acknowledgments
• Appendix: Installing Rust

Features

• Import WhatsApp chat export JSON files
• Interactive graph visualization of entities and relationships
• Calendar view for timeline analysis
• Recall quiz to test your memory of chat events
• Data caching for faster subsequent loads
• Cross-platform support (Windows, macOS, Linux)

Prerequisites

• Node.js v16 or higher
• npm or Yarn
• Rust toolchain (rustc ≥ 1.60, cargo)
• Tauri prerequisites

Installation

1. Clone the repo:

   git clone https://github.com/psygos/ember.git
   cd ember

2. Install frontend dependencies:

   npm install
   # or
   yarn

3. (Optional) Create a .env file in the root to define VITE_* environment variables:

   VITE_API_KEY=your_api_key

Configuration

• VITE_* variables control API integrations and feature flags.
• Tauri settings in src-tauri/tauri.conf.json.
• GUI theming via Tailwind CSS configuration (tailwind.config.js).

Development

• Full stack (Tauri + Vue):

  npm run tauri-dev

• Frontend only:

  npm run dev

  Open http://localhost:5173 in your browser.

Usage

1. Launch the app.
2. Navigate to Import Chats and select your WhatsApp JSON exports.
3. View or filter imported chats under Chats.
4. Explore the Graph to visualize relationships.
5. Switch to Calendar for a timeline view.
6. Play Recall Quiz to test your memory.
7. Export analysis results via Export menu.

Project Structure

ember/
├── src/                      # Vue 3 frontend (SFCs)
│   ├── components/           # Reusable Vue components
│   ├── utils/                # Utility functions and API wrappers
│   ├── App.vue               # Root component
│   └── main.ts               # Entry point
├── public/                   # Static assets
├── data/                     # Imported chats & cache
│   └── cache/                # Parsed data cache
├── src-tauri/                # Rust backend (Tauri)
│   ├── src/main.rs
│   └── tauri.conf.json
├── package.json              # Scripts & dependencies
├── tsconfig.json             # TypeScript config
├── vite.config.ts            # Vite config
├── tailwind.config.js        # Tailwind CSS config
└── README.md                 # This file

Scripts

Command	Description
npm run dev	Run frontend in dev mode
npm run tauri-dev	Run full Tauri (frontend + backend) in dev
npm run build	Build frontend for production
npm run tauri-build	Build Tauri app for all platforms
npm run clean	Remove frontend build artifacts
npm run clean:rust	Remove Rust build artifacts
npm run lint	Run linters and format checks

Data Caching & Storage

• Imported chat JSON files are read and stored in data/.
• Parsed and analyzed data is cached under data/cache/ for faster loading.
• Clear cache using:

  npm run clean:cache

Testing

Currently, there are no automated tests. Future plans include unit and integration tests for frontend and backend.

Troubleshooting

• Missing Rust toolchain: ensure rustup is installed and cargo is on your PATH.
• Port conflicts: change dev server port in vite.config.ts.

Contributing

We welcome contributions! Please:

1. Fork the repo.
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/xyz).
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add new feature').
4. Push to your branch (git push origin feature/xyz).
5. Open a Pull Request.

Acknowledgments

• Vue.js
• Tauri
• Tailwind CSS

Appendix: Installing Rust

To install the Rust toolchain:

1. Install rustup:

   curl https://sh.rustup.rs -sSf | sh

2. Follow the interactive prompts to install the stable toolchain.
3. Ensure your PATH is updated (restart your shell or run source $HOME/.cargo/env).
4. Verify installation:

   rustc --version
   cargo --version