Burrito’s Labs Indie Tech Outmost Studio
Personal Instruments
Prototype
Lynx product icon with a silver L and angular green lynx mark

Lynx

A native iPad editor that combines familiar writing with precise commands, semantic documents, and local LaTeX and PDF output.

Category
Personal Instruments
Platform
iPad · iPadOS 17+
Status
Prototype

What if precise editing on iPad did not require hidden expert syntax?

Touch handles broad placement, Find identifies the exact occurrence, visible commands apply deliberate edits, and structure remains behind readable text.

User value

Precise editing without leaving readable text.

Write normally, then bring exact targeting and explicit commands into the moments that need them.

01

Target the right occurrence

Find highlights repeated words or phrases and turns each occurrence into a numbered choice.

02

See the intended action

Readable Change, Delete, Select, Format, and Structure controls replace hidden command syntax.

03

Keep document meaning

Headings, lists, quotes, and emphasis remain semantic without exposing raw markup in the writing surface.

Lynx iPad prototype highlighting four occurrences of patient and presenting each as a numbered candidate.View full size
Exact targetingRepeated words become numbered candidates. This simulator capture includes development-only voice controls.

Features

A structured editor with visible precision.

The current prototype connects editing, document structure, files, output, and learning in one native application.

  1. 01

    Numbered Find targets

    Search repeated language, inspect highlighted matches, and choose the exact occurrence before editing.

  2. 02

    Command-first editing

    Change, Delete, Select, Undo, Redo, Format, and Structure remain visible above the standard iPad keyboard.

  3. 03

    Semantic documents

    Typed blocks and inline styles preserve titles, sections, paragraphs, quotes, lists, emphasis, math, and citations.

  4. 04

    Local files and templates

    Create, autosave, organize, import, and export local documents, including eight structured starting templates.

  5. 05

    LaTeX and PDF output

    Inspect focused or complete LaTeX source, export a .tex file, or render, preview, and share a PDF locally.

  6. 06

    Guided real actions

    Ten primary demos teach targeting, editing, structure, undo, and output through the same action path as the editor.

How it works

Touch gets close. Lynx gets exact.

Precision appears as a short, inspectable sequence rather than a permanent editing mode.

  1. 01

    Write normally

    Use the standard iPad keyboard, touch cursor, and native selection behavior.

  2. 02

    Find the phrase

    Search for the word or phrase that needs a precise edit.

  3. 03

    Choose the occurrence

    Select the intended numbered candidate when the same language appears more than once.

  4. 04

    Apply the command

    Change, delete, select, format, or structure the chosen text with visible scope.

  5. 05

    Preserve meaning

    Synchronize the supported edit into the semantic document model and surface uncertainty when it cannot be reconciled.

  6. 06

    Save or publish

    Keep the document local, inspect LaTeX, or render and share a PDF.

Prototype interface

One editor from text to output.

Simulator captures from the working prototype. Some editor views still show development-only voice controls and prototype naming.

Lynx prototype showing a structured document, visible command controls, and the iPad keyboard.View full size

Familiar writing surface

Ordinary text entry stays inside a native iPad editor with the standard keyboard.

Lynx document showing headings, emphasis, a quote, bullets, and a numbered list.View full size

Semantic structure

Headings, emphasis, a quote, bullets, and a numbered list render without raw markup.

Lynx editor showing a selected heading and its LaTeX section command in a source preview.View full size

Inspectable source

A selected heading reveals its focused LaTeX representation without turning the editor into source code.

Lynx PDF Preview showing a locally rendered document and Share PDF control.View full size

Local PDF output

A synchronized document can be rendered, previewed, and handed to the system share sheet.

Lynx Guided Demos sheet showing a primary path for Find navigation and candidate selection.View full size

Learning inside the instrument

Guided scripts demonstrate the real Find, command, structure, and preview actions.

Lynx local file browser showing folders and sample Lynx, text, RTF, and TeX files.View full size

App-managed local library

Folders, Lynx documents, and supported text files remain organized inside a local browser.

Product concept

Bring expert ideas into one approachable instrument.

Lynx combines command precision, semantic structure, direct touch, local files, and executable learning without reproducing any one existing editor.

01

Give each interaction one job

Touch establishes broad intent, Find resolves the exact target, and visible commands state what will happen next.

02

Keep structure behind the page

Document meaning remains available for high-quality output without forcing writers to edit markup while composing.

03

Teach the actual system

Guided demos run through production editor actions, so learning tests whether the interface and command model are understandable.

Architecture

Readable text and semantic structure move together.

A native writing surface, deterministic command engines, and a conservative synchronizer connect the visible page to local structured output.

  1. 01Keyboard, touch, or visible command
  2. 02UIKit writing surface
  3. 03Target and range engines
  4. 04Deterministic edit action
  5. 05Semantic synchronization
  6. 06Visible text and LynxDocument
  7. 07Local .lynx or .txt storage
  8. 08LaTeX or native PDF output

Native interaction

SwiftUI owns the product interface while UITextView preserves mature cursor, selection, keyboard, and attributed-text behavior.

Conservative synchronization

Supported single-block changes update semantic state. Unsupported or uncertain changes produce an out-of-sync condition instead of silent reconstruction.

Local document path

Document storage, LaTeX generation, PDF rendering, and preview require no Lynx server, account, or remote rendering service.

Bounded experiment

Voice uses Apple speech services plus deterministic parsing and confirmation. It is experimental and is not presented as an offline guarantee.

Technology

Native editing with a local output path.

Application

  • Swift
  • SwiftUI
  • UIKit
  • iPadOS 17+

Documents

  • Semantic LynxDocument
  • Versioned JSON .lynx
  • Plain .txt
  • Atomic local writes

Output

  • LaTeX serializer
  • UIGraphicsPDFRenderer
  • PDFKit
  • System sharing

Experimental voice

  • Speech
  • AVFoundation
  • Deterministic command parser
  • Preview and confirmation

Validation

  • XCTest
  • 526 passing tests
  • Guided demo verification
  • Manual QA checklists

Development

A working prototype under hardening.

Core editor, file, output, and learning workflows build and pass automated tests. Real-iPad validation, accessibility, privacy, performance, design polish, and release engineering remain incomplete.

Stage
Prototype
Automated suite
526 tests passing
Templates
8
Platform
iPadOS 17+

Implemented

  • SwiftUI application shell with a UIKit writing surface and the standard iPadOS keyboard
  • Visible editing, selection, formatting, structure, Find, undo, and redo workflows
  • Semantic document model with conservative synchronization and explicit out-of-sync handling
  • Versioned local .lynx documents, plain text files, autosave, import, export, and file management
  • Focused and complete LaTeX source plus local native PDF rendering, preview, export, and sharing
  • Ten primary guided demos, seven secondary demos, and broad simulator-tested regression coverage

Before release

Finish editor edge-case hardening, run the existing manual QA on real iPads, validate accessibility, privacy, speech behavior, and long-document performance, then remove debug surfaces and complete release engineering.

Lynx lab notes

The project, over time.

Notes about the thinking, architecture, development, and decisions behind this work.

  1. Lynx
    21 Aug 2026 · Draft

    Worlds That Rarely Meet

    Vim, LaTeX, visual editors, and touch interfaces have solved different parts of the same problem. Their strongest ideas deserve to meet.
  2. Lynx
    1 Jun 2026 · Draft

    Teaching the Real Editor Through Guided Demos

    Executable demos taught the real command system and became a test of whether the interface could explain itself.
  3. Lynx
    26 May 2026 · Draft

    Turning a Document Model into Local Files and Output

    Versioned local documents, LaTeX serialization, templates, and native PDF generation turned semantic state into usable output.
  4. Lynx
    22 May 2026 · Draft

    From Visible Text to Semantic Documents

    A second document representation preserved headings, lists, emphasis, and other meaning without placing markup in the writing surface.
  5. Lynx
    13 May 2026 · Draft

    Making Editing Commands Visible on iPad

    The first prototype made command state and repeated-text targeting visible instead of asking writers to memorize symbolic syntax.