Create a terminal-based journal app

Here’s a simple terminal-based journal app written in Python. It supports adding journal entries with timestamps, viewing all entries, and searching entries by keyword. The entries are saved in a local file (journal.txt).

python
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import os
from datetime import datetime

JOURNAL_FILE = "journal.txt"

def add_entry():
    print("nWrite your journal entry. Type 'END' on a new line to finish.n")
    lines = []
    while True:
        line = input()
        if line.strip().upper() == "END":
            break
        lines.append(line)
    entry_text = "n".join(lines).strip()
    if entry_text:
        timestamp = datetime.now().strftime("%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S")
        with open(JOURNAL_FILE, "a", encoding="utf-8") as f:
            f.write(f"{timestamp}n{entry_text}n---n")
        print("Entry added.n")
    else:
        print("Empty entry discarded.n")

def view_entries():
    if not os.path.exists(JOURNAL_FILE):
        print("nNo journal entries found.n")
        return
    print("nAll journal entries:n")
    with open(JOURNAL_FILE, "r", encoding="utf-8") as f:
        content = f.read().strip()
        if content == "":
            print("No journal entries found.n")
            return
        entries = content.split("---n")
        for i, entry in enumerate(entries, 1):
            print(f"Entry {i}:n{entry.strip()}n")

def search_entries():
    if not os.path.exists(JOURNAL_FILE):
        print("nNo journal entries found.n")
        return
    keyword = input("Enter keyword to search for: ").strip().lower()
    if not keyword:
        print("Empty keyword.n")
        return
    with open(JOURNAL_FILE, "r", encoding="utf-8") as f:
        content = f.read().strip()
        entries = content.split("---n")
        matched = [e.strip() for e in entries if keyword in e.lower()]
        if not matched:
            print(f"nNo entries found containing '{keyword}'.n")
        else:
            print(f"nEntries containing '{keyword}':n")
            for i, entry in enumerate(matched, 1):
                print(f"Match {i}:n{entry}n")

def main():
    while True:
        print("Journal App")
        print("1. Add entry")
        print("2. View all entries")
        print("3. Search entries")
        print("4. Exit")
        choice = input("Choose an option: ").strip()
        if choice == "1":
            add_entry()
        elif choice == "2":
            view_entries()
        elif choice == "3":
            search_entries()
        elif choice == "4":
            print("Goodbye!")
            break
        else:
            print("Invalid option. Try again.n")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

Run the script in your terminal. It will create a file journal.txt to store your entries.
Type your journal text line by line and finish by typing END on a new line.
Use the menu options to add, view, or search journal entries.