PKM Weekly - 2024-12-07
A look at the latest Personal Knowledge Management PKM news from the past week.
Hi Everyone,
Due to various different reasons, I had to take a month away from PKM weekly. I apologise to anyone who felt withdrawal symptoms after going cold turkey. Here is a photo to hopefully make up for the lost time.
This week we are back, and we have a lot to get through so let’s get to it.
Video of this week's update:
CAPACITIES
V1.43.44 Update
Some users experience issues with updating objects across devices. In these cases, content is always synced to the server but not live updated on some devices. Your data is saved, just not live updated.
With this update, we added a fix that should improve the situation. On top, we added improvements to the “Offline & Sync” settings, so the current state is more transparent. We’re working full steam on fixing the remaining issues.
Improvements
Better display of updating issues. If you’re device is not able to get changes from other devices, you’ll now see a warning symbol in the top right.
Improved “Offline & Sync” settings. You now see details the current status of the synchronization of your device and the current state of the offline support.
The ability to pin collections to the dashboard has been added to the object menu.
Improved the UI/UX of the drop-down menu for object properties, e.g. for multi-select properties.
Fixes
The functionality to upload files to Capacities via the share sheet on iOS has been restored.
Files can now be uploaded via the upload modal within collections again.
See the original changelog here.
New Team Member
The Capacities team grew this week with the addition of another member. Luis is a super-talented, ambitious full-stack engineer and will support us in putting the engine room of Capacities on another level. He'll work on our infrastructure, database systems, and many exciting features for Capacities.
Welcome Luis, and good luck!
I used Capacities for a month and here are my thoughts.
OP posts their thoughts having used Capacities for a month. OP found a number of positives/benefits of using Capacities and a few niggling things (empty objects being a prime example). All in all, OP had a good experience and will be using Capacities for a prolonged period.
LOGSEQ
Logseq DB Version Open to Backers and Sponsors
Although everyone can access the DB Version of Logseq, the devs have now opened up to more testers (in addition to the early alpha testers already testing the DB version) to receive comments and feedback.
You should have received an email from the Logseq team with a form to sign. Please just be aware that “testers are invited in batches and by way of Discord. Once you're added to the tester group, you will receive of notification from the Logseq server on Discord (so make sure you've joined).”
The above allows the devs to control the volume feedback they will potentially receive while expanding the testing circle.
Struggling with Syncing Notes
David recently posts that “After a long time trying to resolve synchronization flows, going through Git (I’m not a programmer), Syncthing and Google Drive… I got tired and finally opted for the house solution: Logseq sync.”
His conclusions was “What a marvel! I should have done this much earlier”.
If you are also struggling with something like the above, maybe just give Logseq Sync a try - USD 5 per month and you can help the app be sustainable.
TANA
Mobile App (iOS only for now)
The Tana Mobile iOS app is now available to all users in App Store. The team are aware there are a few niggling issues and are picking up both larger and smaller pieces from the feedback and will release improvements continuously.
Just be aware that features are being added incrementally so for now, you cannot Just edit nodes, re-order them, or move them somewhere else, but these basic features will be added as soon as the devs feel that part 1 of the app is functioning as they would like.
If you are after the Android version, this is being worked on and will be released in due course - as confirmed by the Tana team in the latest release node “🥳 Tana Mobile for iOS is finally out! Android is not far behind! 🥳”
Tana's Affiliate Program
Tana recently launched an affiliate program and to accompany the launch, they have set up a Q&A session on 10 December - check Luma for your local timezone,
It's official—Tana's affiliate program is launching in 2025, and we're ready to tell you all about it! Join us for a Q&A with Brage and Marilyn from our affiliate team as they share an overview of program perks, how to film engaging Tana content, and more. Plus, get a walk through of PartnerStack—the official dashboard of Tana's affiliate program. Bring your questions, snacks and excitement—we'll see you there!
Webinar length: 1 hour (may run over for Q&A)
See here for more information in the meantime.
Tana Official Release
From Olav’s recent appearance in the Tana Office Hours, it seems that the team are readying themselves to officially launch Tana into the hands of everyone early in 2025. There will be more announcements on this I am sure, but it will be an interesting time, but a few questions do come up:
Will Android app be ready for the launch?
Will an actual workable export be available at launch?
How will users feel about the current import functionality?
How will users take to the Tana concept?
How will the team/servers react to the sudden influx of potential users?
Interesting times ahead for sure.
OBSIDIAN
Obsidian Web Clipper is Better Than What I Thought
This video explores the Obsidian Web Clipper and how you can set it up and start using it to maximize your personal knowledge management workflow.
Shaping Obsidian’s Tomorrow - How Obsidian Can Embrace AI and Stay True to Its Roots
In the ever-evolving landscape of personal knowledge management (PKM), few tools have captured the attention and loyalty of users quite like Obsidian.
Yet, as the PKM community increasingly embraces artificial intelligence (AI), Obsidian stands apart for its absence of native AI features. This article explores Obsidian’s unique stance, the broader evolution of PKM tools in the AI era, and a proposal for potential pathways for integrating AI into Obsidian without compromising its core principles of privacy and user control.
Check out this excellent piece by TFTHacker here.
The Never-Ending Dilemma of Choosing the Perfect Note-Taking App
OP is in a conundrum: When using Obsidian and Notion, I find myself in a huge dilemma. Both programs essentially do the same thing but have some different features, and I can't decide which one I should invest more time in learning. Then, after watching some videos online, I discovered there's an endless number of alternatives for note-taking apps, which multiplied my indecision infinitely. I end up spiralling between wanting to fully learn one program or jumping to another and learning it too.
See the full post here.
RemNote
RemNote recently added a lot of AI features to their already impressive app. Check out this video for details and previews on YouTube Annotator, New PDF Reader, Ask AI, Voice Typing, and More!
AnyType
December Town Hall is planned for Wednesday 11 December. Check out the luma link for the call time in your timezone. Town Hall will include a recap on a busy year, what’s coming to Anytype and a teaser. Be sure to sign up here.
For those in Berlin, a few of us are headed to an offline Local-First Meetup the day after our Town Hall, 12 December. We’re excited to engage with fellow enthusiasts and talk about local-first approaches. Join the Waitlist
AnyType also launched a substack, Positive Sum by Any. Our newest publication is a space to share our ideas about building the next wave of technology. Anytype co-founder Janna Sharipova has recently shared two articles. We hope you enjoy them! Subscribe if you want to keep up with the latest posts.
AppFlowy
AppFlowly had a good few releases of late and added things like:
Manage spaces on mobile
Add toggle headings on mobile
Improve the AI chat page UI
Support uploading WebP and BMP images
Revamped the simple table UI
Added support for capturing images from camera on mobile
and a lot more - Do check the latest download link if you are interested in AppFlowy.
AFFiNE
It is the time for giving. Throughout December get 1 year of AI for free with the purchase of the lifetime Believer Plan.
Also - Mobile development is coming along nicely. Looking forward to sending out the first batch of invites soon.
Heptabase
In the latest version, you can open the whiteboard on which a card appears directly from the right sidebar. See X/Twitter link for more details and a preview.
SiYuan
So many new updates that the changelog would be too cumbersome to include in full here, so check out the GitHub link. Includes things like:
Support creating new entries when filling in the database relation field
The right-click menu of multiple selected documents or blocks supports more copy options
Improved spacing and width of horizontal layouts
Improve image width setting
Support dragging assets to the database and assets field in the attribute panel
Improve line breaking behavior when sublists contain lists and normal blocks
Maintain block position after editor width resize
and lots, lots more.
Personal Knowledge Management meetup #1 at The Tower (London, UK)
An Inaugural London, UK PKM meetup, dedicated to the practice of Personal Knowledge Management, tools for note taking, and other ways to use software to organise large volumes of information for knowledge work. Wednesday 11 December, be there of be square.
If you use any note taking system (Google Keep, Apple Notes, AnyType, Evernote etc.) or Knowledge Management System (Logseq, Obsidian, Tana, Notion, RoamResearch , etc.) and want to share your experience or see how power users of these tools organize their information come and join us.
Link for more info.
That’s all for this week. Thank you very much in advance for reading and I look forward to bringing you more PKM news next week.