The data‑deluge problem

Every day we generate a torrent of digital artifacts—photos from our phones, videos from cameras, chat logs, GPS traces, social‑media posts, contact lists, and countless other snippets of our lives. Most of us rely on a patchwork of proprietary services (Google Photos, iMessage, Facebook, Google Maps) to store and view these fragments, often surrendering privacy, control, and the ability to see the whole picture at once.

Timelinize solves this by giving you a single, cohesive timeline that lives only on your computer. It imports data from almost any source, stitches it together chronologically, and lets you explore your memories in ways you never thought possible—without any vendor lock‑in.

Why Choose Timelinize?

• Full Data Ownership – All your photos, videos, messages, and location points stay on your local drive. No hidden cloud sync, no third‑party harvesting.
• Multi‑Source Import – Pull data from phones, computers, online accounts, GPS‑enabled radios, contact lists, cameras, and virtually any app that can export files.
• Rich, Interactive Visuals – From classic chronological lists to bubble charts, map‑based 3D explorations, and custom dashboards that highlight patterns across years.
• Entity‑Aware Timeline – Timelinize understands people, places, and things, letting you see every interaction (a photo, a message, a check‑in) linked to the same entity.
• Open‑Source Transparency – Built by the community, auditable on GitHub, and free to fork, extend, or integrate with your own tools.
• Privacy‑First by Design – No telemetry, no data leaves your machine unless you explicitly export it.

Spotlight on Key Features

Getting Started

1. Grab the latest binary

The easiest way to try Timelinize is to download a pre‑built release from GitHub.

# Linux/macOS example – adjust the URL for your OS/architecture
curl -L -o timelinize.tar.gz https://github.com/timelinize/timelinize/releases/latest/download/timelinize-linux-amd64.tar.gz
tar -xzf timelinize.tar.gz
chmod +x timelinize
./timelinize

Windows users can download the .zip asset, extract it, and run timelinize.exe.

2. Run the setup wizard

When you launch the app for the first time, a wizard walks you through:

1. Selecting a folder where the timeline database will live.
2. Connecting accounts or pointing the app at local export files (e.g., Google Takeout, iPhone backup, WhatsApp chat export).
3. Choosing which data types to import (photos, videos, messages, location logs, etc.).

3. Explore your timeline

After the import finishes, you’ll see:

• Classic Timeline – a scrollable list grouped by day/week/month.
• Bubble Chart – a heat‑map of data‑type density over time.
• 3D Map – a globe view with colored paths that follow your movements.

4. Contribute or extend

Timelinize welcomes contributions. To build from source:

git clone https://github.com/timelinize/timelinize.git
cd timelinize
# Follow the README for language‑specific build steps (e.g., `cargo build --release` for Rust)

Check the User Guide on the website for detailed developer docs, or hop into the Discord community to discuss new import adapters.

How Timelinize Stacks Up Against the Competition

Takeaway: Timelinize offers the most privacy‑centric, extensible, and cross‑platform solution for anyone who wants a unified, searchable timeline without surrendering their data to a cloud giant.

Call to Action

Ready to reclaim your digital memories?

• Explore the live demo (when available) on the website.
• Read the full User Guide to master imports and visualizations: User Guide
• Star the repository and join the community on Discord: GitHub Repository
• Download the latest release and start building your personal timeline today: https://timelinize.com/download

Your life story deserves a timeline you control. Give Timelinize a try and keep every photo, message, and footstep forever—on your terms.