[get started]
Getting Started
Vaults, your first note, and your first wikilink.
A vault is just a folder on your computer. Open one (or make a new one) and you’re already using Nolagmind — there’s no account to create and nothing to configure before you start writing.
Your first vault
The first time you launch the app, you’ll be asked to either create a new vault (an empty folder, ready to go) or open an existing folder of notes you already have. You can make as many vaults as you want — a separate one for work and personal life, or a single vault where everything can link together. Switch between them anytime from the vault button at the bottom of the sidebar, or the vault: search command (more in Search & Colon Commands).
Creating a note or folder
Cmd+N, type a name, hitEnter→ new note- Same, but end the name with
/→ new folder
Notes and folders both live in the sidebar — home base for everything in your vault. Toggle it with Cmd+B.
If you’d rather skip naming altogether, Shift+Cmd+N creates a note called “Untitled” (or “Untitled 1”, “Untitled 2”…) instantly, no prompt.
Renaming, moving, and deleting
- Rename — click the title at the top of an open note and type a new one, or right-click the note in the sidebar → Rename. (
Shift+Cmd+Rdoes the same from the keyboard.) - Move — right-click in the sidebar → Move, or
Shift+Cmd+Mwith the note open. - Delete — right-click → Delete, or
Shift+Cmd+Dwith the note open.
Everything here is undoable — Cmd+Z / Shift+Cmd+Z covers note and folder changes, not just text edits.
Your first wikilink
Type [[ inside any note and start typing a note’s name — an autocomplete drops down, ranked by the same fuzzy matching that powers the main search bar (see Search & Colon Commands). Pick an existing note to link to it, or type a name that doesn’t exist yet and the app offers to create it for you on the spot.
Once you have a link, you don’t need the mouse to use it:
- Use the arrow keys to move the highlight onto a link.
- Hit
Cmd+Enterto open it. (Shift+Cmd+EnterorCmd+Clickopens it in a new split instead — see Workspace: Tabs & Splits.)
Every note also keeps track of which other notes link back to it — see Linking Notes for backlinks, aliases, and everything else linking can do.
A couple of basics worth knowing right away
Cmd+Ffinds text inside the open note;Shift+Cmd+Ffinds and replaces — same as any text editor.Cmd+Oopens search from anywhere, so you’re never more than a keystroke from any note. Head to Search & Colon Commands next, or jump straight to Keyboard Shortcuts for the full list.
design note
Nolagmind is local-first on purpose: a vault is nothing more than plain .md files sitting in a folder you already own. There’s no account, no server-side database, and no proprietary format — open any note in any other text editor and it looks exactly the same.