Obsidian
Productivity
note-taking knowledge base
SHOW HN2020
1,087points
477comments
#3of 3,028 in 2020
Top 1%of 2020 by points
How HN took it
DebatedReal support and real criticism
69 positive, 78 neutral or asking, 21 mixed, 77 critical, out of 245 comments about the project. Thread score -0.06.
Idea: 31 for, 16 againstPricing: 2 for, 27 againstDesign: 7 for, 11 againstExecution: 4 for, 11 againstPrivacy: 6 for, 5 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Local Markdown files and data ownership
From 2 comments
It's not exactly Roam, but the thing looks promising still. I like that it is offline-first and Markdown based, really feels like the crew has got some ideas in what direction to…
katktv on HNFor the people complaining it’s not open source: Why does that matter ? It’s not like your markdown disappears if they do. You would just have to write software or purchase…
alexmingoia on HN
Bidirectional links and graph view
From 2 comments
It's not exactly Roam, but the thing looks promising still. I like that it is offline-first and Markdown based, really feels like the crew has got some ideas in what direction to…
katktv on HNThis looks great! Good timing too, since Roam has recently closed its doors to new signups. I've been looking for a new notetaking / PKM / Markdown app recently, but…
benrbray on HN
Objections
Not open source, longevity concerns
From 3 comments
It looks like this isn't open source. If this is supposed to be one's second brain, please at least consider using a time-bomb FOSS license. Something like: you're permitted to…
cxr on HNI will never again build any kind of workflow for my knowledge on top of anything that isn’t open source. 5y is a long time and 10y is an eternity for these sorts of products but…
loughnane on HNNothing is forever. Especially if it is not free. Especially if it is not open source. If personal use is free forever but not open source, how am I supposed to believe that it…
christiansakai on HN
License restricts commercial and professional use, costly
From 2 comments
I was about to spend $25 for a one-time/lifetime license, until I read your license. No commercial or professional use? I'm not paying $50/yr for that sorry. A yearly fee for…
itsspring on HNAs several people have pointed out, both the "Personal" and "Catalyst" licenses are intended for personal use only, making this quite an expensive product should I want to use it…
hkh28 on HN
No mobile access
From 1 comment
How do I browse and edit my notes when I’m on mobile? Desktop only is a non starter for actually going all-in on a notes solution.
bravura on HN
Requests
Inline math support and WYSIWYG editing
From 2 comments
This looks great! Good timing too, since Roam has recently closed its doors to new signups. I've been looking for a new notetaking / PKM / Markdown app recently, but…
benrbray on HNCan somebody help me understand something about Markdown and Obsidian? Why would I ever want an edit mode and a preview mode while taking notes? Don't I want to be able to both…
jtbayly on HN
Open source guarantee if company shuts down
From 2 comments
We'll likely make a formal guarantee to open source in the case of us shutting down. Didn't realize that was a possibility, thanks for the suggestion!
ericax on HNThat's an interesting idea and we'll look into it! We plan to stay in business in the long run, but if things do go wrong and we shut down, we do intend to open source the app.
ericax on HN
Questions
How to sync across devices and use on mobile
From 2 comments
I actually get a lot of value from cloud hosted solutions, I bounce between 2-3 machines daily and multiple OS installations several times a week, and would like for my notes…
qppo on HNHow do I browse and edit my notes when I’m on mobile? Desktop only is a non starter for actually going all-in on a notes solution.
bravura on HN
How to link between files
From 1 comment
Four bits of feedback: 1. How do I select the font to use? The variable-width default font feels entirely out of place for me with Markdown. 2. This could dearly use integration…
crooked-v on HN
Alternatives named
Roam
From 2 comments
This looks great! Good timing too, since Roam has recently closed its doors to new signups. I've been looking for a new notetaking / PKM / Markdown app recently, but…
benrbray on HNWhat I'm looking for: 1st priority: macOS & iOS apps that always sync, open FAST, and look clean, to enter new notes with no friction. Like Bear (which I currently use) and…
rrherr on HN
Trilium
From 1 comment
How does this compare to Trilium? Looks similar. https://github.com/zadam/trilium
gexla on HN
Notion or Airtable
From 1 comment
The closest thing in Markdown is probably front-matters. You're right in that Obsidian is not great for structured data right now, and for that purpose Notion or Airtable is much…
ericax on HN