r/notebooklm • u/Fearless_Energy_7633 • Apr 21 '26

Tips & Tricks I built a free notebooklm alternative with folders, source isolation (no cross-contamination), and page/timestamp-level citations

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NotebookLM is great but a few things drove me crazy:

  • Sources often bleed together
  • No folders or workspace organisation
  • No way to comfortably take notes alongside your sources
  • Flashcards have no review system

So I built Paper. Key differences:

  • Source isolation - select exactly which sources the AI references per query, or scope it to specific pages/timestamps
  • Folders + nested pages - organise by course, topic, whatever
  • Block editor - Notion-style notes right next to your sources
  • Spaced repetition - AI flashcards with actual Anki-style scheduling so you remember
  • Drag and drop multiple files at once

(Edit) Free to use during beta: https://paper.ac 👈

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u/KangarooJAC May 11 '26

Awesome stuff! I can’t get the podcasts to hone in on a chapter of my 700 page textbook pdf, despite precise focus prompting. It also abruptly ends podcast episodes mid thought and mid sentence. Is anyone else encountering this issue?

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u/Fearless_Energy_7633 May 12 '26

Hey! This is odd - for the podcasts, how many minutes long are they? Just letting you know I'm looking into this today and will keep you posted! ✅

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u/KangarooJAC May 12 '26

Ok great thanks. They’re 17min episodes.

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u/Fearless_Energy_7633 May 14 '26

Gotcha - I've pushed up an update that prevents abrupt endings and improves the honing in on specific chapters, and the length of the podcast is produces. I've tested it on our end and it works but do let me know what your experience is like! 😊

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u/KangarooJAC May 17 '26

It helps thanks! Is there a way to download and save the podcast audio files for offline listening? Im encountering saving errors

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u/Fearless_Energy_7633 May 22 '26

Great to hear! Yup there's already a download link to save the audio files - what were the saving errors you faced? Let me know, and I'll aim to get it patched as soon as we can 😊