Please share your ideas!

[adibhanna]

Hey friends, if you have ideas on how to make ZenNotes better, please share them here!

[TheAjaykrishnanR]

Very nice application ! Thank you for building it !
I am an avid user of SiYuan: https://github.com/siyuan-note/siyuan which was missing just this (vim motions) to become complete.

There are two things I like about SiYuan:

1. S3/Webdav based syncing which allows easy syncing without having to run a secondary server other than the kernel on the client (siyuan also has a backend written in go)
2. A plugin system which allows injecting an iframe into the note to display custom content. This would allow it to have graphs, plugins that could create free hand drawings, etc..., obsidian too has something similar I think.

I know its easier said than done, but if they align with the project's goal it would be really helpful if you could implement them.
Thanks again !

[ezio-noir]

Hello, I'm an Obsidian user coming across your Youtube video. Really nice effort. I got some questions after skimming through the doc and README:

1. Is graph view (local + global) supported or planned?
2. How does ZenNotes scale on large vault?
3. Does ZenNotes support properties/frontmatter and query on them?
   Really appreciate your work. If any feature I'm asking does not exist or planned, please consider adding them. Thanks again

[g-omahony]

Hi Adib,

Thank you for building a great app!

One suggestion that I could make is that you add custom vim keybindings, so for example, I could map jk to esc in insert mode.

Regards,

Ger

[adibhanna]

sorry, i just saw this! I shipped this feature in the last release

[g-omahony]

Brilliant! Thanks again for your great work!

[Jaeiya]

One of the big reasons I couldn't get used to Vim editing in Obsidian was how Vim interacted with word-wrapped lines. If I want to edit a word in the middle of a paragraph, it was near impossible without lots of different motions, instead of just moving to the line with j/k and using f (which isn't possible here) or w/b to get to the word in question.

It would be nice to have an option to move by visible lines with j/k. Yes, I know g j/g k works, but in large paragraphs this is very cumbersome and often faster using the mouse.

[skytale75]

I concur, maybe even ctrl-k ctrl-j so you can just hold ctrl and navigate into position.

[IrregularPersona]

This one is a weird one, but is it possible to modify the vim mode, and create a Helix mode? I prefer Helix/Kakoune's way of working with text.

Also, perhaps add support for Typst for math! People might be more used to LaTeX,, but me personally for note-taking, It'll be so much easier to write Typst on the fly compared to LaTeX.

Thanks :D

[skytale75]

I stopped using obsidian and joplin awhile ago. I love using vim motions and "render-markdown" in neovim has been great for me . . . and the fact that all that markdown works seamlessly in ZenNotes is a huge bonus. Also, the "qutebrowser" like highlighting is incredible and makes perfect sense.

I have 1 thing that I would like to see. maybe something like this is already in place and I am not seeing it.

I would like to see the ability to designate 1 file in every "vault" as the "home" file. Maybe you can hit "leader h" to automatically navigate to "index.md" or something like that. For me I like a "main file" to compose myself.
I can live without it, but that is my 2 cents.

This is the first of the non neovim note taking paradigms that has an actual shot of taking over for my current paradigm. Very well done sir, I commend you. The use of images is clunky at best in neovim. They work . . . sometimes and mostly lol.

[yeiko-dev]

It would be cool to have the ability to set an icon/emoji for notes and folders, maybe even set a color for them. Like what this obsidian plugin does.

This is a great app btw!

[TomSchimana]

Hi everyone,

I found ZenNotes through @adibhaana's YouTube video and fell in love with the idea right away.

Today I moved my personal knowledge base (about 5000 files) from Obsidian over to ZenNotes. I run it with a setup called myPKA, which I can really recommend (https://github.com/myICOR/myPKA). The whole migration went very smoothly. The MCP works great too, and I use it directly in Claude as part of the instructions I give it.

I installed the desktop app on macOS and on Omarchy Linux. On top of that I set up the Docker version so I can reach my notes from my Nothing Phone and an iPad, including remote access over Tailscale. That works really well. I did run into two small things and filed bug reports for them, but overall everything just works.

One thing I would really wish for is a more mobile optimized experience. It works on the phone already, but especially on a smartphone a more polished mobile layout would make a big difference for me.

Since this discussion is about collecting ideas, here is mine. I opened a feature request for an embedded terminal. A lot of people already do this in VSCode or Obsidian, because then you have a full environment for your notes including AI right next to them. As I mentioned, I use myPKA together with Claude Code for exactly that.

I think this is where it gets interesting. With the MCP and a built in terminal, ZenNotes could become a complete replacement for Obsidian for a lot of (AI working) people. Obsidian is mostly used as nothing more than a plain text editor anyway, and not everyone wants to deal with VSCode. I was honestly about to write my own Neovim plugin for this, but what you have built with ZenNotes is exactly what I was looking for.

Thanks for the great work.
Tom

[gbonazzoli]

Well done !

I use ZenNotes along Obsidian on the same vaults. I miss only these two features from Obsidian:

• git plug-in
• collapsable markdown front matters' properties

The git plug-in enable us to share a vault of documentation among 20 editors, the second is needed in order to set properties to drive other publishing programs in the commit triggered workflow.

[nitinja]

+1 for git integration and auto sync!

[lifeosnico-bot]

+2 for git integration and auto sync

[sh0nuff]

I am currently testing how ZenNotes works using the official Obsidian sync service (essentially pointing Zen at the same local folder that is synced through Obsidian)

[TannerGabriel]

Great work on the application. I'm currently using Obsidian and am trying out Remnote and would be interested in the following two features:

• Flashcards with spaced repetition
• PDF viewer and annotator for papers and technical documents

[adibhanna]

this is coming soon actually

[defau1t]

I've run across a little annoyance. In the tasks view, the hints (leader+h) view doesn't work. There's also no way to expand the "Done" category. Am I missing a hotkey?

[akhilmulpurii]

Hi, i am loving your app,

Are there any plans for mobile apps in the future? In case you need any help, i am open for contributing on that front.

Keep up.

[arche-dwelly]

Better Vim mappings control

I'm using a split keyboard and my resting position (and hence navigation) is on j-k-l-; instead of the regular h-j-k-l which is usually just a 4 lines in .vimrc

To my understanding there is currently no way to re-map the basic left-down-up-right navigation commands to different keys and this is basically a deal breaker for anyone with a non-conventional keyboard

[ewhac]

I suspect you've already considered this but, rather than implementing a Vim-clone on your own, why not simply connect to a Neovim server:

https://neovim.io/doc/user/api-ui-events/#ui-protocol

There's a VSCode plugin that does exactly this. Consequently, the Vim "emulation" with that plugin is perfect, because it is Vim, complete with all your Vim settings -- VSCode is doing little more than just drawing the characters.

[adriancostin6]

Encryption

Cheers on the wonderful app you've build. Any plans to add builtin encryption in the future? Only thing keeping me from switching from Joplin.

[TomSchimana]

I'd be against encryption, or at most make it optional. The whole point of ZenNotes or apps like Obsidian is that they work with Markdown, which is something AI can read too. I'd rather focus on securing the location itself, so I can keep working with the files in the open.

[adriancostin6]

I'd be against encryption, or at most make it optional. The whole point of ZenNotes or apps like Obsidian is that they work with Markdown, which is something AI can read too. I'd rather focus on securing the location itself, so I can keep working with the files in the open.

different strokes for different folks. can never trust my data to be 100% safe from the cookie monster, not even on my own server 😄

[TomSchimana]

You can use KeepassXC in an LUKS Volume in a VeraCrypt-Container for your notes. 😂Am 03.07.2026 19:11 schrieb Adrian Costin ***@***.***>: I'd be against encryption, or at most make it optional. The whole point of ZenNotes or apps like Obsidian is that they work with Markdown, which is something AI can read too. I'd rather focus on securing the location itself, so I can keep working with the files in the open. different strokes for different folks. ca never trust my data to be 100% safe from the cookie monster, not even on my own server 😄 —Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub, or unsubscribe.You are receiving this because you commented.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[gustavoe]

I've just switched from Joplin and I'm loving Zennotes. The only thing I miss at this point is a sort of homepage or dashboard providing direct access to notes and folders. I can wait for that anyways.

Thanks

[adibhanna]

glad you're enjoying it!

We have a relatively minimal dashboard for now, it allows you to see recent notes and tasks.

Im more into encouraging people to use the search functionality more.

either way, ill keep your recommendations in mind!

[SandeepKumarKuanar]

Hey friends, if you have ideas on how to make ZenNotes better, please share them here!

I got a good one, I bet you remember, I have asked for that default "home" implement from Notion.
This is a feature request, I was planning to release it on GitHub issue, though I would like to mention it here as well.
A floating table of content, it's easy to overdo it, so I am trying to learn some UI design in Figma to give u some initial mockups to work with, but it ain't finished, but here is the brief of it, if u wanna implement it then please go ahead:

A floating outline/side dial that:

• Shows all headings (H1, H2, H3, etc.) in the current Markdown file
• Respects nesting/indentation (hierarchical structure)
• Always visible but collapsed, like a clock's hands or a tiny strip, expands on hover
• Overlaps on the content if the size decreases, follows the glassmorphic aesthetic, but visible text.
• Disappears when not in use (keeps the interface clean)
• Clicking a heading scrolls to that section
• Possibly shows a dot or indicator for the current section you're reading
• Bottom right corner (like a mini-map)
• Keyboard shortcut — :Outline
• Click and drag to reorder, , but at the same time probably overkill for v1
• May be vim binding enabled, but at the same time probably overkill for v1

I am going to open an issue right now

[SandeepKumarKuanar]

Have opened it #386, please check it

[kurdasuli]

I there is any possibility for Zotero integration? This is very important for people in academia.

[SandeepKumarKuanar]

This is a good addition as well.

[adibhanna]

I actually started looking into this!

[rodrigolj]

There are two features that make a lot of difference for me that I would like to have:

1. YouTube embeds, because I used to do them easily in Obsidian with the iframe that I used to get from the share functionality on YouTube. It helped me to keep track of all the information that I had without actually having to open a browser to do it.
2. To add the command :!, because that way we can run e.g. :!git to run a git command from the software itself.

[adibhanna]

Great ideas! ill implement this soon!

[sh0nuff]

A few things here..

1. I'm loving how much more simple ZenNotes is than Obsidian, but I also equally enjoy being able to feel comfortable using the same vault
2. Option to add front matter to every note created, regardless of if I choose to use a template or not. I currently get around this by applying a custom template to every note I write, but it'd be nice to have those templates be for specific note types that aren't as common, like the front matter and note structure I apply when adding, for example, a book file to my directory.
3. Support for tasks as files format (this would be huge, I currently use TaskForge for handling my todos, and I love the inbox format, but don't use inline tasks for this organization. Happy to discuss more in a dedicated thread
4. An understanding as to how people who are using this tool are handling the creation, viewing, and editing of notes on mobile. I haven't looked into running a docker through my Unraid for this (I see others using Tailscale which is promising), but as someone who's using Obsidian's official / paid cloud service, I am curious if there are other offline tools for mobile (specifically Android) that make for quick reference and quick capture when on the move. I've used Markor in the past, but the inability to select a default save location + new note creation at the same time has led to a less than ideal experience. I do feel that an offline editor that plays nicely with ZenNotes formatting (or has an option to do so) would be preferrable to a WebUI, but if there's some one who can design a super slick material designed UX I would try it out!

[adibhanna]

Thank you for sharing this!

a quick note on the mobile app, I actually built and submitted the ios app (iphone and ipad) to app store! hopefully it will be available soon! for now it syncs using icloud, you need to out your vault in icloud, there will be a paid version in the near future that allows you to sync, backup and even publish notes online, but im mostly focused on mobiles apps first!

regarding your other points, ill look into them soon!

thank you again

[adibhanna]

Thank you for sharing this!

a quick note on the mobile app, I actually built and submitted the ios app (iphone and ipad) to app store! hopefully it will be available soon! for now it syncs using icloud, you need to out your vault in icloud, there will be a paid version in the near future that allows you to sync, backup and even publish notes online, but im mostly focused on mobiles apps first!

regarding your other points, ill look into them soon!

thank you again