Support

Contact

Email [email protected]. Joys & Woes is independently developed by Vladislav Morgun.

Please include the app version from Settings, your iPhone, iPad or Mac model, the operating-system version, and the steps that led to the problem. A screenshot can help, but hide private journal content. Do not send journal exports or sensitive information unless necessary and you are comfortable sharing them.

Devices and availability

• iPhone: iOS 18 or later.
• iPad: iPadOS 18 or later, with layouts that adapt to portrait, landscape and resized windows.
• Mac: a native macOS app requiring macOS 15 or later.

The Local file mode on Mac

In Mac version 0.1.5 and later, switch between Standard and Local file in the window toolbar. The modes keep separate journals. To create a local file, choose a location on your Mac or a USB drive and enter its password twice. An existing .joys file opens with its own password. Moving or renaming it does not change that password; another compatible Mac can open it with the same password. iPhone and iPad do not open .joys files. The app does not synchronize or merge independent copies.

Keep separate encrypted backup copies and protect the file password: the developer cannot reset it. Autosave is configurable; wait for Saved before disconnecting a drive. If saving fails, keep the journal open, reconnect the drive or save to another location. The Markdown export of saved entries asks for the file password again and creates an unencrypted text file without drafts or attachments. Old copies can retain earlier content and passwords.

Storage and iCloud sync

How do I sync between iPhone, iPad and Mac?

Use the same Apple Account on your devices and choose iCloud storage in Joys & Woes on each device you want to synchronize. Entries and attachments then synchronize through your private CloudKit database. The developer has no journal server and cannot read that database.

Keep the app open and allow time for the initial transfer. Synchronization needs a connection and available iCloud service; large attachments may arrive later than text. An available iCloud account does not mean that every entry has finished syncing. Local development builds can use a separate test environment and do not exchange data with App Store or TestFlight builds.

Appearance, reminder times, App Lock and other device preferences are set separately on each device.

What does “only on this device” mean?

In local-only mode, changes stay on that device and do not synchronize. Choosing this mode does not delete the copy already stored in iCloud. An entry deleted only locally may return if you turn iCloud back on.

To remove synchronized entries, delete them while iCloud storage is active and let all connected devices finish syncing. Switching off iCloud is not a way to erase cloud data.

What if synchronization seems stuck?

Check your Apple Account, iCloud availability, free storage and connection. Confirm that the app uses iCloud mode on both devices. Reopen the apps and allow time for attachments to transfer. Do not delete the app or repeatedly change storage modes to force a transfer; first export a copy of any data you need to keep. If the issue continues, contact support with the device and app versions, without sending private entries.

Photos, files and audio

On iPhone and iPad, use the photo picker or camera to add media. The picker shares the items you select. Camera permission is needed when you capture a new photo or video from the app. Check permissions in the device’s Settings if a feature is unavailable.

On Mac, use Add attachments or drag supported image, video and audio files into the editor. The Mac app does not request camera or Photos-library access for this flow.

Recording an audio attachment requires microphone permission. Dictation and audio transcription use on-device speech recognition where supported; if the selected language or local model is unavailable, type your entry or attach an existing audio file instead. Check Microphone and Speech Recognition in Settings on iPhone/iPad, or in System Settings → Privacy & Security on Mac.

Backups and moving data

Private iCloud sync keeps connected devices up to date; it is not a separate historical backup. Deletions can synchronize too.

Use the export options in Settings for a copy you control. JSON contains journal data and available media; Markdown is a readable text export and does not include media files. The media ZIP contains attachments. A backup ZIP bundles entries and available attachments. On iPhone, iPad and Mac, you can import a journal JSON or backup ZIP, preview the import and merge it into your journal. A media-only ZIP is not a journal backup. The Mac bulk-transfer limit is 256 MiB of raw content.

Exported files are not encrypted by the app or protected by App Lock. Save them somewhere safe and manage copies separately. An export is not imported automatically.

App Lock

Optional App Lock uses Apple’s system authentication: Face ID, Touch ID or the device passcode on supported iPhone/iPad hardware; Touch ID or your Mac password on Mac. The app does not receive your biometric data or password.

The lock protects access through the app interface. It does not encrypt exported copies or lock them in other applications. If authentication fails, check that system authentication is available on your device.

Reminders

Enable reminders in the app and allow notifications in system settings. Check Focus and other notification restrictions if reminders do not arrive. Reminders are scheduled locally and do not include journal-entry text. Memory reminders also need eligible joyful entries to show.

Burning and deleting entries

Burning a woe permanently deletes it and its attachments from the app. There is no in-app undo, trash or restore. Export anything you want to keep before burning. When iCloud storage is active, deletion can synchronize to your other devices. Copies you previously exported remain separate.

Deleting the app is not a complete data-deletion method. On iPhone and iPad, deleting the app removes its local app data; offloading is different and keeps data. On Mac, removing the application can leave journal data in your user Library. iCloud copies, system backups and exported files may remain on any platform.

To remove synchronized journal content, delete the entries inside the app with iCloud active and allow synchronization to finish. The developer cannot retrieve or erase your private iCloud journal for you. For help with remaining local data on Mac, contact support before removing files manually.

Privacy

Read the Privacy Policy for details about storage, permissions, exports and deletion.