File over app
stephango.com
If you want to create digital artifacts that last, they must be files you can control, in formats that are easy to retrieve and read. Use tools that give you...

I personally wouldn’t recommend obsidian (mentioned at the end of the article), but still, I think the article is worth reading.

  • The Octonaut
    11•4 months ago

    “Philosophy” seems a bit grand for something that could be better described as a “tip”.

    • @[email protected]
      18•4 months ago

      No it really is a philosophy.

      There’s a vast difference in approach between software that uses documents and software that uses a database. A document based approach tends to result in work that lasts a long time. A database approach tends to have more features.

      It’s tempting to chase those features, but in my opinion it’s a mistake.

      • @[email protected]English
        1•4 months ago

        A database approach tends to have more features.

        Document based solutions can have as many feature as the developer wants, the thing is that it’s harder to build document-based solutions than DB ones.

  • @[email protected]
    3•4 months ago

    I prefer plaintext writing for a couple reasons:

    • Plaintext is readable everywhere and by anyone. It’s effortless to make an app that views it in different ways or a tool handles it in any way you want (like searching, organization, etc). I don’t have to stick to whatever Microsoft decided as rich format.
    • the baseline IS plain text. I should ask myself, what does this other rich format offer me? Some use cases are justified. But otherwise, you’re adding obscurity for no reason.