I’m not 100% sure where or when I last left an update on my note taking situation, with this post about reorganising everything again likely being my most recent update, but I thought I ought to make a new post with where I am now, and the findings I’ve made trying out some other applications.

Flatnotes

I first mentioned Flatnotes in a previous Self Hosting update, and wasn’t convinced by it. I initially tried it as I liked the idea of having .md files rendered, which made for simple backups without a database, and how this was accessible through a web browser. But my feelings from that self hosting update proved the stay the case, and I found myself not enjoying the format, instead preferring a more structured system and navigation. However, I can see it appealing to others, so it might be worth a go if you want everything flat and organised by tags and searches.

Memos

I wrote about Memos in July within another self hosting update post, and although it went against my personal rule of favouring .md files over databases, there were so many features I liked, I really wanted to give it a shot, particularly since I could sync Memos with Logseq as a type of “back up”.

However, the syncing had issues and then when Docker inexplicably one day caused half the containers to fail, I suddenly found myself disconnected from the notes - which of course included all the docker-compose files for those containers.

I managed to restore the containers with no data loss, but it was a huge sign that this wasn’t worth all the hassle, despite how lovely the app and web interface were, alongside the unique navigation system which worked surprisingly well for me.

Where From Here?

Well, my mind of course reverted back to Logseq and Obsidian, but I was having some issues here as well. For some reason, Obsidian, which I was using for notes, wasn’t playing nice with Syncthing, and the Notes folder was always marked as “Out Of Date” for some reason. With Logseq, the syncing between it and Omnivore also had errors which made no sense and I could not fix. However, I then had an idea, could I swap them around?

Logseq

I began by creating a new graph in Logseq, installed the Catppuccin theme, and then created index pages to link and organise the notes into faux categories, like this for my “Food” section:

Index.md
│
├── Food.md
│   ├── Grocery Shopping.md
│   ├── Meal Ideas.md
│   ├── Food Tips.md
│   │   ├── General Food Tips.md
│   │   ├── Preservatives.md
│   │   └── Sauces.md
│   └── Recipe Ideas.md

I found I prefer making notes in bullet lists, and so Logseq works well in this regard, though I do still feel that I am not utilising Logseq to its full potential. However, I feel reassured I have the raw MarkDown files which are portable anywhere, and easy to back up and restore, working perfectly with Syncthing to distribute the graph and its files across my devices, and useable on my Android phone through Logseq’s app.

Obsidian

Over on Obsidian, I created a new vault, installed and setup the Omnivore plugin, and also added its Catppuccin theme. After a few tweaks, I managed to get the articles synced, and I am happy with the output, where the articles are organised into folders based on dates of when I initially saved the article, and then the article is listed within it with its title, a link to read on Omnivore, a link to read the original, and extracts of highlighted text alongside any notes I wrote. In lieu of a fully self hosted version of Omnivore, I at least feel better using this service with Obsidian backing up vital details, and happy these are all also accessible though an Android app.