RSVPub 📖

Warning: This project was developed for personal use 100% via Claude Code. Didn't write one line. Make of that what you will.

Self-hosted speed reading web app for reading EPUB files using the RSVP (Rapid Serial Visual Presentation) technique.

Built for fun because I couldn't find an existing OSS RSVP reader that did quite what I wanted.

2026-01-14.02-33-53.mp4

Features

Reading

• RSVP display — Words shown one at a time with ORP (Optimal Recognition Point) highlighting
• Adjustable speed — 100-1000 WPM with real-time adjustment
• Smart timing — Punctuation delays that scale with your WPM (pauses longer at periods, shorter at commas)
• Length delays — Optional extra time for longer words
• Frequency delays — Optional extra time for uncommon words (uses a 10k word frequency list)
• Paragraph view — Toggle to see full paragraphs with clickable words

Navigation

• Full keyboard control (see shortcuts below)
• Chapter dropdown for quick navigation
• Mobile touch controls

Library

• Upload and manage EPUB files
• Search books by title or author
• Automatic progress saving — resume exactly where you left off
• Duplicate detection

Settings

• Adjustable font size
• Timing delay toggles and intensity sliders
• All preferences saved to localStorage

Quick Start

With npm

git clone https://github.com/vinnymeller/rsvpub
cd rsvpub
npm install
npm run dev

Open http://localhost:7788

With Nix

To just try it out:

nix run github:vinnymeller/rsvpub

If you've cloned the repo:

# Development shell
nix develop

# Build the package
nix build

# Build and run
nix run

Configuration

The server looks for configuration in this order:

1. --config <path> CLI argument
2. ~/.config/rsvpub/config.json
3. ./config.json (current directory)

Config file format

{
  "server": {
    "port": 7787,
    "host": "0.0.0.0"
  },
  "storage": {
    "dataDir": "~/.local/share/rsvpub"
  }
}

All fields are optional — defaults are shown above.

CLI overrides

npm run dev -- --port 3000 --host 127.0.0.1

Data storage

Books and the database are stored in dataDir:

~/.local/share/rsvpub/
├── books/           # Uploaded EPUBs (stored by content hash)
└── rsvpub.db   # SQLite database

NixOS Module

Add the flake to your inputs:

{
  inputs = {
    nixpkgs.url = "github:NixOS/nixpkgs/nixpkgs-unstable";
    rsvpub = {
      url = "github:vinnymeller/rsvpub";
      inputs.nixpkgs.follows = "nixpkgs";
    };
  };
}

Import and configure the module:

{ inputs, pkgs, ... }:
{
  imports = [ inputs.rsvpub.nixosModules.default ];

  services.rsvpub = {
    enable = true;
    package = inputs.rsvpub.packages.${pkgs.system}.default;
    port = 7787;
    host = "127.0.0.1";  # Use "0.0.0.0" to expose to network
    openFirewall = false;
  };
}

Module options

Option	Type	Default	Description
enable	bool	false	Enable the service
package	package	—	Package from flake (required)
port	port	7787	Server port
host	string	"127.0.0.1"	Bind address
dataDir	string	"/var/lib/rsvpub"	Data directory
openFirewall	bool	false	Open firewall for the port

The service runs as a systemd unit with security hardening (DynamicUser, ProtectSystem, etc.). Data in dataDir persists across reboots.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Key	Action
Space	Play / Pause
← →	Previous / Next word
R	Restart current paragraph
[ ]	Decrease / Increase speed (±25 WPM)
PageUp PageDown	Previous / Next chapter
V	Toggle RSVP / Paragraph view
Escape	Return to library

In paragraph view, click any word to jump to it.

Tech Stack

• Frontend: TypeScript, Vite
• Backend: Express 5, sql.js (SQLite in-process)
• EPUB parsing: epubjs
• Nix packaging: importNpmLock from nixpkgs

License

MIT