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kepano
@stephango.com
6.4K followers 740 following 290 posts
making @obsidian.md
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kepano @stephango.com · Nov 26
File over app · 2023
stephango.com/file-over-app
File over app is a philosophy: if you want to create digital artifacts that last, they must be files you can control, in formats that are easy to retrieve and read. Use tools that give you this freedom. File over app is an appeal to tool makers: accept that all software is ephemeral, and give people ownership over their data. In the fullness of time, the files you create are more important than the tools you use to create them. Apps are ephemeral, but your files have a chance to last. The ancient temples of Egypt contain hieroglyphs that were chiseled in stone thousands of years ago. The ideas hieroglyphs convey are more important than the type of chisel that was used to carve them. The world is filled with ideas from generations past, transmitted through many mediums, from clay tablets to manuscripts, paintings, sculptures, and tapestries. These artifacts are objects that you can touch, hold, own, store, preserve, and look at. To read something written on paper all you need is eyeballs. Today, we are creating innumerable digital artifacts, but most of these artifacts are out of our control. They are stored on servers, in databases, gated behind an internet connection, and login to a cloud service. Even the files on your hard drive use proprietary formats that make them incompatible with older systems and other tools. Paraphrasing something I wrote recently: "If you want your writing to still be readable on a computer from the 2060s or 2160s, it’s important that your notes can be read on a computer from the 1960s." You should want the files you create to be durable, not only for posterity, but also for your future self. You never know when you might want to go back to something you created years or decades ago. Don’t lock your data into a format you can’t retrieve. These days I write using an app I help make called Obsidian, but it’s a delusion to think it will last forever. The app will eventually become obsolete. It’s the plain text files I create that are designed to last. Who knows if anyone will want to read them besides me, but future me is enough of an audience to make it worthwhile.
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kepano @stephango.com · 5d
Ooni Karu 2 Pro. It was a gift. I could never bring myself to buy one because I feared the consequences, but now here we are.
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kepano @stephango.com · 5d
my greatest fear came true, turns out those home pizza ovens are amazing and you can have excellent pizza whenever you want

(okay, not the most circular, but this was my first attempt!)
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kepano @stephango.com · 5d
well I'm biased but I prefer Obsidian because:

1. it give me total ownership over my data
2. it's stored locally, offline first
3. it's private and end-to-end encrypted
4. my data isn't accessible to AI/LLMs unless I want it to be
5. it's super fast
6. I can extend it with plugins and themes
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kepano @stephango.com · 5d
How I use Obsidian
stephango.com/vault
How I use Obsidian
My personal Obsidian vault template. A bottom-up approach to note-taking and organizing things I am interested in.
stephango.com
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kepano @stephango.com · 5d
Just updated my vault template to show how I use the new Maps feature for Obsidian Bases. Super useful for travel planning.
Screenshot of Obsidian showing a map of Taipei made with Bases
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kepano @stephango.com · 10d
So much good stuff in this update.
obsidian.md
Obsidian @obsidian.md · 10d
Obsidian 1.10.0 (early access) is now available to Catalyst members with tons of improvements for Bases!

- New List view
- New Map view an official open source plugin
- Bases API for views
- Group results by property

Many new table view features: keyboard nav, copy/paste, summarize, undo
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kepano @stephango.com · 13d
Whoa love this! Totally up my alley even without the Obsidian shoutout. Thanks for sharing.
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kepano @stephango.com · 17d
stephango.com/40-questions
40 questions to ask yourself every year
Every year I ask myself these 40 questions. I’ve shared this list with my family and closest friends, and always enjoy discussing answers as we reflect on th...
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kepano @stephango.com · 22d
Since the start we've tried to avoid dependencies in Obsidian. It takes a bit longer to add some features, but it reduces the risk of supply chain attacks, and gives us more control over performance.
obsidian.md
Obsidian @obsidian.md · 22d
Less is safer: how Obsidian reduces the risk of supply chain attacks
obsidian.md/blog/less-is...
Less is safer: how Obsidian reduces the risk of supply chain attacks
Supply chain attacks are malicious updates that sneak into open source code used by many apps. Here’s how we design Obsidian to ensure that the app is a secure and private environment for your thought...
obsidian.md
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kepano @stephango.com · 22d
On agents and Obsidian
AI agents built into cloud apps will always be sub-par compared to state of the art agents that you can use with Obsidian. This is because your Obsidian data is in your control, in plain text formats that are ideal for LLMs to process. You can choose to run any of the best-in-class agents and AI tools: Claude, Gemini, OpenAI Codex, etc. You also have the choice to run local models and privacy-preserving options. Or you can use none of these and enjoy not seeing sparkly AI buttons everywhere. Remember that cloud-based note-taking apps are not end-to-end encrypted. This is inherently less secure, open to breaches, and allows companies to make your private thoughts part of their training set. Obsidian is not working on adding agents because we don't have to. We'll let the AI labs focus on that. We're 4 developers and our focus is on making great editing tools for plain text Markdown files that are always in your control.
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kepano @stephango.com · 23d
skyfall.dev/posts/slack
Slack is extorting us with a $195k/yr bill increase
An open letter, or something
skyfall.dev
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kepano @stephango.com · 23d
Today in ransomware, Slack increases pricing by $195k with a week's notice for a non-profit that teaches teenagers how to code.
A few years ago, when Slack transitioned us from their free nonprofit plan to a $5,000/year arrangement, we happily paid. It was reasonable, and we valued the service they provided to our community. However, two days ago, Slack reached out to us and said that if we don’t agree to pay an extra $50k this week and $200k a year, they’ll deactivate our Slack workspace and delete all of our message history. One could argue that Slack is free to stop providing us the nonprofit offer at any time, but in my opinion, a six month grace period is the bare minimum for a massive hike like this, if not more. Essentially, Salesforce (a $230 billion company) is strong-arming a small nonprofit for teens, by providing less than a week to pony up a pretty massive sum of money, or risk cutting off all our communications. That’s absurd.
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kepano @stephango.com · 25d
you're forgetting that 99% of Obsidian users don't want to pay for Sync because it's too expensive at $4/mo

$2,000 is 41.6 years of Sync 🙃
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kepano @stephango.com · 25d
This should be a fun challenge! I gave it a quick pass and was able to get something basic working in a few minutes using Notion integrations.
obsidian.md
Obsidian @obsidian.md · 25d
A new bounty is open for Importer:
$2,000 to convert Notion Databases to Obsidian Bases and plain text files
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kepano @stephango.com · 29d
Usually the English title, unless the original is in French
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kepano @stephango.com · Sep 10
it's automatic when you use this.file
help.obsidian.md/bases/syntax...
Bases syntax - Obsidian Help
When you create a base in Obsidian, it is saved as a .base file. Bases are typically edited using the app interface, but the syntax can also be edited manually, and embedded in a code block. The Base…
help.obsidian.md
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kepano @stephango.com · Sep 10
Here's my .base file for related notes in Obsidian
github.com/kepano/kepan...
kepano-obsidian/Templates/Bases/Related.base at main · kepano/kepano-obsidian
My personal Obsidian vault template. A bottom-up approach to note-taking and organizing things I am interested in. - kepano/kepano-obsidian
github.com
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kepano @stephango.com · Sep 10
One of my favorite use cases for Obsidian Bases is custom sidebar views. Here's one I made for "Related notes".

It finds notes that have overlapping links and tags with the active note. The notes are sorted by a count of overlaps.
Screenshot showing an example of a related notes view with Obsidian Bases
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kepano @stephango.com · Sep 9
Dropbox is discontinuing the Paper app. Now all your notes will only be available via the web.

It's so strange that a company designed around syncing files created the .paper format which only stores a URL, and no actual content. How did they lose sight of file over app?
In order to focus on delivering a consistent, high-quality experience on paper.dropbox.com, the Dropbox Paper mobile app will be discontinued on October 9, 2025. If you already have the app installed on your device, it will no longer function after this date. You can continue using Paper on Web on any of your devices after this date by logging into paper.dropbox.com using your browser.
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kepano @stephango.com · Sep 9
For people who don't use Obsidian services, it's "donationware", or "pay what you want". But I'm wondering if there's a catchy name for a business that makes money via optional add-on services. Maybe we need a new word.
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kepano @stephango.com · Sep 9
Is there a word to describe Obsidian's business model? Revenue primarily comes from optional paid services that have free alternatives.

Freemium isn't quite right because freemium apps typically paywall features, or have usage-based pricing. Obsidian's features are free and there's no usage limit.
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kepano @stephango.com · Sep 8
life update 💞
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kepano @stephango.com · Sep 6
passion fruit sorbet
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kepano @stephango.com · Sep 5
The sample Obsidian plugin template now has an AGENTS.md file.

Hopefully this means coding tools better follow Obsidian guidelines, and create plugins that can more quickly pass review.

github.com/obsidianmd/o...
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kepano @stephango.com · Sep 4
somehow I just learned there's a variety of blackberries called obsidian, and of course it makes the best jam
stephango.com/quality-software
photo of toast with blackberry jam
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