The import dialog warns you to make a backup before running as it modifies files in place. That said, the frontmatter overwrite on just viewing a note is a valid bug. I'll fix that, notes should only be modified when you actually edit them.
Appreciate the honest feedback, doesn't come over negatively at all, this is exactly what helps improve the app.
Obsidian wiki links not converting properly during import: that's a bug, will be fixed in the next release.
View mode, math support, frontmatter behavior, and the other UX points: all noted and will be considered. So far I've focused on features I use personally, but if something makes sense, improves the app, and keeps it focused without bloat, I just implement it.
The LockFile bug and empty graph view: I haven't seen this behavior yet but I'll look into it.
HelixNotes isn't trying to be a replacement for Obsidian. It was a replacement for Obsidian for me, but different people have different needs. Thanks for taking the time.
Daily notes - not there yet but it's a straightforward feature to add. I'll put it on the roadmap.
Templates - same, noted.
Sync conflicts - fair point. HelixNotes watches the filesystem for external changes, but conflict resolution when two devices edit the same note is a real problem with any file-based sync. Syncthing handles this better than most (it creates conflict copies instead of overwriting), but it's not perfect.
If you end up trying it and want to contribute, open issues on Codeberg for what you'd like to see. Contributions are very welcome.
You're right about the Mac shortcuts - Cmd should replace Ctrl on macOS. That's a bug, I'll fix it.
As for the frontmatter - Jayjader is correct, it's standard markdown frontmatter. It's how HelixNotes tracks metadata without using a database or sidecar files. Moving it to the bottom would break compatibility with every other markdown tool that reads frontmatter. But I understand it's not pretty in a plain preview - that's the tradeoff for keeping everything in plain .md files with no hidden database.
Glad you're enjoying it. Keep the feedback coming, this is exactly what helps improve the app.
The name comes from the double helix. Structured but flexible, like how notes should be. Trilium is a solid project, but it stores notes in an SQLite database and runs on Electron. HelixNotes keeps everything as plain .md files and uses Tauri, so much lighter on resources.
Different use case. HelixNotes is for people who want a clean, simple note-taking app that works out of the box - not a customizable text processing pipeline. If Vim snippets work for you, stick with that. Not every tool needs to be for everyone.
Good question. "No sync" means no built-in cloud sync - not that sync is impossible. Your notes are plain .md files in a folder, so you can sync them with Syncthing, Nextcloud, rsync, Git, or anything else you already use. The app watches the filesystem for external changes and picks them up automatically.
The philosophy is: I don't decide where your files go. You do.
As for contributions - absolutely welcome. PRs won't be rejected on principle. If you want to work on a self-hosted sync feature, open an issue on Codeberg and let's discuss the approach first. I'd love to see it.
Fair question. Use case: you take rough notes during a meeting, no formatting, just raw thoughts. AI can clean them up, summarize, or restructure after the fact.
It's completely optional though. Disabled by default, doesn't even show in the context menus unless you explicitly configure it in settings with your own API key. If you don't want it, it's like it doesn't exist.
AI is optional, disabled by default, and doesn't even show in the UI unless you enable it. The app works fully offline with zero AI involvement.