Zettelkasten Forum


Getting an Index (or list of tags)

Hey Y'all. I've been hunting around for zettlekasten software. ZKN3 looked super-promising, and could potentially be an amazing app. But it apparently gets very slow as the number of notes increases, and its file format is so obscure that you might be in trouble if it ever gets corrupted.
Zettlr was irritating to use - something as basic as creating a new directory never seemed to work. The program was so anti-intuitive that I think whoever designed that software was clearly affected by the curse of knowledge. No clear idea of how their program might be approached by someone without programming experience.
I'm still undecided on whether to put $20 into getting The Archive, or TBH just saying "fuck it" and going with an old-fashioned pen/paper zettlekasten instead. The Archive definitely seems promising. But I still have two relatively basic questions here:
1. How do I get a list of all the tags I've made? (like do I search for #any-character-following-the-hash-except-space? do I search for "#! " or something)?
2. ZKN3 lets me view all my tags and my list of notes side-by-side. How can I do that in The Archive?

Would love to know any answers y'all can give ASAP.

Comments

  • @Phoenicia said:
    1. How do I get a list of all the tags I've made? (like do I search for #any-character-following-the-hash-except-space? do I search for "#! " or something)?

    There is nothing built into The Archive that produces a list of tags. It is very extensible though. Because the notes are in plain text markdown, a vast variety of tools work with the files. I use a bash script for this function.

    cd /Users/will/Dropbox/zettelkasten/
    egrep  --exclude="◆*.*"  -ohsr "(?:^|\s)#[A-Za-z0-9_ÄÖÜäöüß\-]+" -- * | sed -e 's/[[:space:]]#/#/' | sed /^[^#]/d | sort | uniq -c | sort -t# -k2  >  "Tag Cloud.md"
    

    This produces a note titled 'Tag Cloud' that look like -

    I use Keyboard Maestro to run this at a regular interval. Some users use Alfred for a similar function I think.

    1. ZKN3 lets me view all my tags and my list of notes side-by-side. How can I do that in The Archive?

    Once you have the Tag Cloud note then you can open and place it in a new window. Size windows next to each other.

    I know this sounds fiddly. It is. Set this up once in a macro and then easy peasy. Everybody's workflow is a bit different. For example, I've never considered viewing tags side by side with notes. I'm not sure why I'd want to. But if that is what you want to do then The Archive can be tweaked to conform.

    Will Simpson
    I must keep doing my best even though I'm a failure. My peak cognition is behind me. One day soon I will read my last book, write my last note, eat my last meal, and kiss my sweetie for the last time.
    kestrelcreek.com

  • @Phoenicia said:
    I'm still undecided on whether to put $20 into getting The Archive, or TBH just saying "fuck it" and going with an old-fashioned pen/paper zettlekasten instead. The Archive definitely seems promising. But I still have two relatively basic questions here:

    Hi. I've been using The Archive for about 6 months. It is a simple and at the same time a powerful program and a bargain at the price. The value of the support you get from the developers and other users in this forum far exceeds its cost. What? Wouldn't you spend more than that on a couple of fancy cups of coffee? Give it a try; you won't be disappointed.

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