Hi, I love Obsidian. It’s part of my daily routine since a year or so, and I use it to store all my work and personal notes for the future. The main reason I use it is because of its note storage method. Instead of relying on a database, it utilizes plain text files written in Markdown, as most of you already know.
However, I have a strange feeling about it not being open source. The recent events with Reddit have only increased this discomfort. My notes are in plain Markdown, so I have the assurance that no one can forbid me from accessing them. I also take precautions by creating multiple backups, which provides additional security against virtual loss if I handle things correctly (which I do).
That being said, I would love to have alternatives like Joplin or LogSeq that adhere to the same philosophy of work as Obsidian.
Joplin is not suitable for me due to its reliance on database storage. I prefer to have total control over my notes. On the other hand, LogSeq is more focused on serving as a diary rather than a personal knowledge manager, and it does not use pure markdown, wich will be a problem in the future when (not if) I’ll need to migrate out of LogSeq.
Honesty I think Obsidian as a product. They have done a pretty good job of keeping my data open and available in the Obsidian Vault.
I pay them for Sync, so I consider it a service for them to maintain and upgrade the software. I would prefer the client be open source but it would hurt their ability to stay afloat and profitable to pay their employees.
If they go under or start an “enshittification” I can just take my JSON and markdown and make my own client or use one of the hundreds of other markdown clients to get my information.
This is exactly what I think.
Honestly, the whole thing felt like a textbook example of a modern FOSS program (based on the website, the premise etc) that I was quite surprised when I found out it wasn’t open source. I think it’s unfortunate.
I had the same impression
However, I have a strange feeling about it not being open source. The recent events with Reddit have only increased this discomfort.
Well, Obsidian is not a live service. If the developers disappear tomorrow or decide to aggressively monetize it, you still have access to the app in its current state, and the whole plugins ecosystem.
For me, knowing that it’s basically a text editor that has neat features, I’m not super concerned. If they ever shut down Obsidian, I’ll switch to LogSeq or one of the Emacs modes that does the same thing, maybe I’ll have to run a converter over the files, but that’s not a huge deal for me
I would prefer it to be open-source, but at least the data format (markdown) is ubiquitous and stored wherever I want it to be stored.
This is how I’ve been thinking of it too. If an equivalent open-source solution comes out, it’ll be really easy to switch to, but right now Obsidian is just unbeatable.
There’s already an equivalent out there that’s open source. I haven’t tried it though. https://logseq.com/
Of course i wish that Obsidian was open source - i wish all software was open source. But at the same time, it’s not a dealbreaker for me.
I feel like the data is the important thing. If obsidian destroys their product I’ll just edit the markdown files in something else.
True. However, there are a few nice features that’ll be harder to replace (like the dataview plugin).
There is a loooog thread on the official forum on open source for Obsidian app: https://forum.obsidian.md/t/open-sourcing-of-obsidian/1515
IMO the best approach would be for them to make the promise, that they’ll open source the code if they become unprofitable or uninterested in further developing ObsidianMD and then leave. In that case, the community has a fully open source stack.
I am aware, that Obsidian is closed source, I try to keep the number of non-compliant uses of markdown minimal. While I use quite many plugins, I am aware, that the plugins being open source removes the risk a bit.
Is there a good overview of compliant vs non-compliant markdown? Just wondering as I’ve been testing different editors/viewers and even basic things like diff blocks (git diff output in a ```diff block) seem to only be supported in some of them. Sorry if that’s a dumb question. I’m a markdown noob.
https://help.obsidian.md/Editing+and+formatting/Obsidian+Flavored+Markdown
But it’s not a full overview in detail
Cheers, looks like differences between implementations are to be expected. But I agree it’s probably easiest to just minimise use of non-standard stuff to keep the option to switch to another tool.
Hi! I used Obsidian for several years, but the open source topic is also a concern for me, so 6 months ago, I decided to move to LogSeq.
To be honest, the migration was not that easy, but not due to the different Markdown format, but for the change of methodology of writing notes. In Obsidian I was used to work with folders, but in LogSeq, I added all my notes in the same folder and started working with links. I created a note as a list of constents to link all the other notes, and now I have a nice personal knowledge database. So I don’t agree when you say that LogSeq is focus on journaling, because in my personal notetaking process I almost don’t use it. But it is true that I use it a lot in my job workflow, it’s really useful to start taking notes directly on the current day on the journal section and if you need to expand some topic, you just create a link to a new note using [[double brackets]] as in Obsidian.
I’ve built my current Obsidian vault as links-based, so basically i can open it now in Logseq and see the same data/structure. the only thing i don’t like about logseq, is that you’re limited to the bullet-point structure.
Open source concerns aside, how would you compare logseq and obsidian? What I gather from your comment, you find journaling in logseq more handy than obsidian for job. What about the knowledge management part of them? Any other pros/cons on logseq vs obsidian?
it’s easier and faster to save and search notes written in small chunks in Logseq than Obsidian IME, but the pain is when you have to write/format an article-like content.
Thank you for educating me on that!, does LogSeq allow to use standard markdown links name?
You’re welcome :)
Yes, LogSeq admits standard MD format for links and also their simpler way to do links to notes, which I personally use. But all are supported:
- Standard MD link to image: ![image name] (…/assets/image.jpg)
- Standard MD link to note: [Note Name] (Note Name.md)
- Standard MD link to website: [Note Name] (https://website.com)
- Logseq simpler link to note : [[Note Name]]
Oh that’s sooo great, I’ll give it a try for sure, thanks for the info!
I use it because it stores my files in a versatile exportable format (markdown) and the app is well made. I have blocked all network access from Obsidian so I’m not worried about data harvesting. I sync my notes with syncthing, so the folder that contains my markdown files is synced across all my devices.
I also sync them with Syncthing and I store/backup them in a private GitHub repository, that allows me to access my notes on any device connected to the internet. All of this is compatible with Android and Windows platforms.
Sorry my ignorance. But ain’t github a concern regarding data harvest?
Is there an advantage of syncthing compared to Obsidian-git?
Yes, the synchronization is in real time, and you can install it in Android and IOS devices (ok git can also be install but it’s more dificult). Also, you can have a lot of devices in constant sync without launching commands or touching any app, it works in background. I use both and they work perfectly for me.
I honestly couldn’t care less. Open source is not and never has been a differentiator for me when it comes to software, much less a requirement.
Given the open format of Obsidian I’m not really that concerned about the fact that it’s not open source. It’s just markdown files I can do whatever I want with in the future.
Came here to say this!
A bit off topic considering your post is mainly about open sourcedness, but I use Logseq, migrated from org-roam on emacs…I love it. I have no reference to obsidian, although it’s often discussed as an alternative. I don’t know if obsidian has this feature, but in logseq you can issue queries to your database…it’s amazing. It is journal based, though I haven’t found that to be a barrier.
I really like obsidian and use it even though I usually prefer FOSS tools. It just suits my needs perfectly at the moment.
Having the markdown files on my drive is the primary reason I don’t stress over it too much.
I’ll probably start using Zettlr if it improves significantly or if I feel betrayed by Obsidian.Doesn’t bother me. I’m not a FOSS-only person, although I like using FOSS stuff when I can. As others have said, in a worst-case scenario, you still have your text files. Even if you really went nuts with plugins and have all sorts of custom stuff that won’t easily transfer to another service, it’s still all yours and you can probably recreate most of it somewhere else.
