# Notes and knowledge

> A markdown editor with links, graph, canvas, journal, and tags.

Every note in Kempt is a plain markdown file in your home folder, and the editor renders it as you type. Links connect notes to each other, and to your tasks and projects, and the app keeps those links correct even when you rename or move things.

## Try this

1. Create a note called `Reading list`, then create a second note called `Book ideas`.
2. In `Reading list`, type `[[` and pick `Book ideas`. Click the link to open it, then go back.
3. Rename `Book ideas` to `Books to write`. Look at `Reading list`: the link text has already updated.
4. A toast appears after the rename. Click it once to undo the whole operation, rename and links together.
5. With `Reading list` open, press `Alt/Option+G` to open the Local Graph tab and see the two notes connected.

## The editor

The editor renders markdown as you type: headings, lists, checkboxes. If you want the raw text, switch to Source mode. Files stay plain markdown either way, nothing is converted.

Type `/` for a block menu with headings, lists, callouts, and more. Callouts are supported, and math and Mermaid diagrams render in place.

The Outline tab in the right sidebar (`Alt/Option+O`) lists the open document's headings, and headings fold in the editor.

> **Note:** Because nothing is converted, the file on disk is exactly what you would expect: the same markdown text, readable in any editor.

## Links and mentions

Type `[[` to link to any note or item, or `@` to mention one. The same `[[links]]` can point at tasks and projects, so a note can reference the plan it belongs to. See [Planning](/help/planning).

Obsidian-style shortest-name links resolve, so a unique note name is enough.

The **Links** tab in the right sidebar (`Alt/Option+B`) shows backlinks: everything that links to the open note.

## Renames never break links

Renaming or moving a file updates every wikilink that points to it. After the operation, a toast lets you undo the whole thing in one click: the rename and every updated link revert together.

## Graph

Two views, two scales:

- **Local Graph** (right sidebar tab, `Alt/Option+G`) shows the neighborhood of the open document.
- **Global Graph** (left rail, `Cmd/Ctrl+3`) shows everything, with workspaces clustered by color.

## Canvas

**Canvas** in the left rail gives you an infinite canvas. Nodes can be text cards, notes, links, and groups. You can export a canvas as a PNG.

Each canvas is a plain `.canvas` file in the open JSONCanvas format, so it lives in your home folder like any other file.

## Journal

**Journal** in the left rail keeps one daily note per day. A mini calendar in the right sidebar (`Alt/Option+J`) jumps between days.

Set a daily template in **Settings > Journal** to start each day with the same structure.

## Tags

Use `#tags` anywhere in a note. The Tags tab in the right sidebar shows them as a hierarchical tree, so `#project/client` style nesting works. Click a tag to search for it, or rename a tag everywhere at once.

## Properties

Any file can carry frontmatter fields. Edit them in the right sidebar Properties tab.

Search understands both `tag:#name` and `[key:value]`, so tags and properties become filters. See [Search and speed](/help/speed).

## Templates

Any `.md` file inside the `_templates` folder is a template. Tokens like `{{date}}` fill in when you use one.

## Embeds and viewers

Embed notes, web pages, PDFs, and HTML inside a note. Built-in viewers open PDF, CSV, and image files directly in the app.

## Linked folders

Some folders should stay where they are: a code repository, a company share, a folder full of large files. Link them instead of moving them.

The file tree has two tabs, **Files** (your home) and **Linked folders**. Add a folder with the plus button in the **Linked folders** tab, or just drag a folder onto the tab. Nothing is copied ("no copy made"), and you can open and edit its markdown files in the same tab bar as your own notes. The Outline tab works on them too.

Linked folders are deliberately unmanaged. They stay out of the search index, the graph, sync, and version history, and their files carry a **Linked folder** badge so you always know which side you are on. Search still reaches them by file and folder name, in a separate **Linked folders** group. Unlinking a folder never touches the originals.

The quiet superpower is the AI: mention a linked folder with `@` and the assistant can work with what is inside. Nothing in a linked folder reaches the AI unless you mention it. See [Your AI](/help/ai).

## Related

- [Your data](/help/data): version history protects your notes.
- [Importing](/help/import): bring your existing notes into Kempt.