Comments

• Sascha

  9:28AM

  I had an equivalent of a main structure note. I had a saved search for a number of buffer notes and central structure notes that I checked with a similar reasoning as the Feynman's Darlings.

  However, as my Zettelkasten and especially its complexity grew, the idea of checking this collection didn't stand the test of practice.

  I could've currated the list tightly. However, I found myself to have plenty of invitations to connect each new idea. So, I didn't saw the need for it.

  I am a Zettler
• Edmund

  10:18AM

  My collection of structure notes is constantly growing. For this reason, I have started to organise my structure notes:

  

  Ever since I read Duncan’s book Index: A History of, my Index Notes have been my favourite.

  Edmund Gröpl — 100% organic thinking. Less than 5% AI-generated ideas.
• Will_Jenkins

  5:31PM

  I also don't have a main structure note for everything.

  I have seen a few cases online where people have a main structure note as a kind of 'homepage' for their note-taking app. Depending on which app they use, they have this note pinned so that it's there whenever they open the app. I'd consider it in the future, although right now it's more convenient that the app opens on whatever I was last working on.

  The idea of a main structure note suggests that someone has a single way to summarise everything... maybe a list of 'Map of Content' notes or similar. Right now, there's so much crossover between different areas in my ZK that I'm not sure how I would even do a top level. I think I'll just let it evolve naturally.
• Will_Jenkins

  5:35PM

  @Edmund said:
  My collection of structure notes is constantly growing. For this reason, I have started to organise my structure notes:

  

  Ever since I read Duncan’s book Index: A History of, my Index Notes have been my favourite.

  Interesting how you have 'Atlas' as an overview and 'Maps' within that. I thought of doing something similar, maybe calling mini-structure notes something like 'signposts' or 'paths'. But at the same time I don't want to over-prescribe and make it more complicated than it needs to be. But it's definitely good to try these things out as ideas.
• andang76

  5:47PM edited 5:58PM

  Actually, I don't have a main structure note. I have many well-established starting points first in my head (e.g. Atomicity, Morning Runs, Serendipity, What to Eat Before a Morning Run, that problem X, that project Y — the list goes on) and that I know exist as notes into Zettelkasten.

  These starting points are often regular notes that contain both body text and a structure-note-like section. I use them as entry points: when I need to navigate to a specific area of my Zettelkasten, I try to recall the closest existing note and retrieve it through search or by following links from another connected note.

  For example, if I have a new idea about morning running, or need to retrieve something I wrote about it, I'll remember that I have a "Morning Runs" note. The idea I'm looking for is almost certainly attached to that note, or somewhere nearby.

  What works particularly well for me is densely interconnecting these notes with one another.

  One important detail: initially, I maintained a strict separation between structure notes and Zettels. Over time, however, virtually every Zettel started functioning as a kind of micro-structure note for its own specific, smaller domain. Eventually, I stopped making an explicit distinction between the two types.

  As a result, connections between Zettels also serve as connections between structures, supporting navigation throughout the Zettelkasten.

  In essence, I no longer distinguish structure notes as a separate note type. Any Zettel containing enough relevant links can function as a structure note, and I can reach the area I'm looking for by following a path from the closest note I remember having.

  Of course, some notes are much more general than others and tend to function as proper structure notes (e.g. "Running") . In practice, though, I rarely go through them to get where I want to go. Almost always, I can remember something closer to the specific point I'm looking for.
• iylock

  7:08PM

  It is interesting that my experience is similar to yours. As I used Zettelkasten more, I also stopped accessing the central structure notes. I go straight to where ideas come to me and work. Unlike my personal experience, I expected that organizing the main structure notes well was essential, but after reading your comments, I realized that it is not.

  On the other hand, because I wanted an organized structure overall and was worried that new structure notes would become orphaned, I managed them by dividing them into sections, much like the menu window in RPG Maker XP.

  

  Main structure note A
  1. Practice
  2. Perspective
  3. Mental model
  4. Knowledge Work
  5. RPG mode

  @Edmund Your visualizations are a work of art! Are there any benefits to writing main structure notes and visualizing them?