Obsidian's Core Philosophy: Local + Markdown + Links

Unlike cloud-based note tools like Notion, Obsidian adheres to three principles:

  • Local-first: Notes are just a local folder containing .md files;
  • Pure-text Markdown: All notes are .md files, not locked into any proprietary format;
  • Links over trees: Organize notes with backlinks, not directory trees.

Benefits of these three points:

  • Data is in your hands, no fear of the vendor shutting down;
  • Markdown is universal, always openable with other tools (like mdview, Sublime Text);
  • Network structure is closer to how the human brain actually thinks than tree structure.

Installation and Creating a Vault

Download from obsidian.md (Windows / macOS / Linux).

On first launch, you'll create or open a Vault (knowledge base)—a Vault is essentially a local folder. Recommendations:

  • Place it in an easy-to-sync location (OneDrive, iCloud, Dropbox folder);
  • Use English names for the Vault to avoid special characters in paths;
  • One Vault is enough for personal use; teams/projects can use multiple Vaults.

Backlinks: Obsidian's Soul

Obsidian makes "links" a first-class citizen. The syntax is simple:

This is a note about [[Rust]].
You can also use [[Rust|alias]] to display as "alias".

Double brackets around a word create a link to the corresponding note. If the target note exists, you can jump directly; if it doesn't, it shows as "uncreated"—click to create it.

Backlinks are the other half of bidirectional linking:

  • In the [[Rust]] note, you can see all notes that "link to me";
  • This means every note has connections in both directions—who references me, and who I reference.

This "network structure" means you're never writing notes in isolation—no note is an island, because it'll always be referenced by others.

Daily Notes: Making Journaling a Habit

Daily Notes is one of Obsidian's most popular features. When enabled, each day automatically (or manually) creates a date-named note:

2026-07-24.md

Every time you open Obsidian, it jumps to today's note—write and close. Very lightweight.

Advanced usage:

  • Use the Templater plugin to auto-insert templates in Daily Notes (todos, links, templates);
  • Use the Calendar plugin for a calendar view—at a glance, see which days you wrote;
  • Use the Periodic Notes plugin to add weekly and monthly review notes.

After sticking with it for a while, Daily Notes naturally become the input stream for your "second brain."

Graph View: See Your Knowledge Structure

Press Ctrl + G (or click "Open Graph View" in the top left) to open the graph:

  • Each node is a note;
  • Lines between nodes represent backlinks;
  • Densely connected nodes = "core concepts" in your notes.

The graph isn't just pretty—it intuitively reveals:

  • Which notes have no links at all (isolated nodes);
  • Which notes are referenced most (hub nodes);
  • Unexpected connections between notes—you may not realize certain concepts are actually related.

Tags and Properties: Another Dimension of Organization

Obsidian supports hierarchical tags:

#work
#work/project-a
#work/project-a/spec

Also supports YAML front matter:

---
title: Project Notes
tags: [work, Rust]
created: 2026-07-24
---

Body text...

With the Dataview plugin, you can query notes based on properties—e.g., "list all notes with status: doing."

Plugin System: Making Obsidian Omnipotent

Obsidian's community plugin ecosystem is very rich. Settings → Community Plugins → Turn off Safe Mode → Browse.

Essential plugins:

  • Templater: Template system, insert dynamic content when creating notes;
  • Dataview: Treat notes as a database, write SQL-like queries to generate lists;
  • Calendar: Calendar view for visualizing Daily Notes;
  • Excalidraw: Draw sketches and whiteboards in notes;
  • Mind Map: Render the current note as a mind map;
  • Tasks: Manage todos across notes;
  • Various Complements: Auto-complete filenames and tags;
  • Quick Add: Quickly create notes with templates;
  • Outliner: Enhanced outline experience.

We recommend using plain Obsidian (no plugins) for a week or two first, then installing plugins where you feel friction—avoid being overwhelmed from the start.

Sync: Obsidian Sync or DIY Git?

Obsidian offers an official Sync service (paid):

  • End-to-end encryption;
  • Version history;
  • Cross-platform sync.

But many people use more economical approaches:

  • Git plugin (Obsidian Git): Auto-commit to GitHub/GitLab;
  • Cloud drive sync: Put the Vault directly in a OneDrive / iCloud / Dropbox folder;
  • Remotely Save plugin: Supports S3, WebDAV, and other protocols.

My setup: Obsidian Git + private GitHub repository—free, version-tracked, multi-device sync via git pull/push.

Working with Other Tools

Obsidian's role in my workflow is "knowledge consolidation":

  • PixPin screenshots → save to the Obsidian Vault's attachments directory → reference in notes;
  • Everything file search → double-click .md → Obsidian opens it;
  • mdview → quickly read notes (especially .md files from others);
  • Sublime Text → edit config files and logs in the Obsidian Vault that don't need backlinks;
  • CapCut → copy "video script" notes from Obsidian into CapCut for video production.

Obsidian's Limitations

Objectively, Obsidian isn't suitable for these scenarios:

  • Real-time multi-person collaboration: Obsidian isn't designed for it—it's a single-player tool. Use Notion / Google Docs for collaboration;
  • Pure reading without interlinking: mdview is lighter;
  • Heavy document writing: For long reports and formal publications, Obsidian's network structure can be a distraction;
  • Mobile-first: Obsidian's mobile experience is mediocre, with stuttering and sync issues on both Android and iOS.

Summary

Obsidian's true value isn't in being "a Markdown editor," but in providing a thinking tool that connects scattered information into a network. If you just want to keep a diary, Notion works too; but if you want to build a knowledge base that truly belongs to you and can evolve long-term, Obsidian is currently the best tool.

Free for personal use (all features except Sync). Paid license for enterprise/team use. Start with a small Vault to find your usage pattern before committing long-term.