I've tried a LOT of Personal Knowledge Management software in the journey for the perfect way to record all knowledge I want to save.

TL;DR: I've tried a bunch of apps to try and replace a combination of Todoist and Obsidian. What software and system do you use to keep track of personal knowledge and tasks?

What I'm looking for
There are three different attributes I am looking for in a PKM, in the following order:

1. Ease of use. I need whatever I use to be really easy and frictionless to record information with. If there's too much resistance to getting information into the application than I probably won't end up saving it and I'll just forget about it.
2. It needs to be easy to surface relevant information but also browse through less relevant information. This one is sort of a few sub categories. On one hand, I need reminders, due dates, and the UX to make sure that I don't miss certain tasks. On the other hand I need to be able to categorize and view all recorded entities - tasks, as well as pieces of information unrelated to tasks. This means I want to be able to categorize the information in a way that allows me to filter down from a larger list or from completed tasks - the best way to do this is usually tags.
3. I like to use software that doesn't allow the developers to access my information; usually this is done through end to end encryption. This is especially important in a PKM because of the volume and sensitivity of the information being recorded. However, this is last on the list because I use multiple devices which introduces additional surface vectors if someone were to try and get my information. End to end encryption is just a nice to have.
4. A bonus, being able to share tasks in a secure and easy way with my significant other.

Where I've been
Todoist
I won't make you read the whole post to find out my favorite... it's Todoist. I've used it for years! It really locks down that first attribute, ease of storing tasks. Todoist makes it really easy to add tasks, move tasks, and reschedule tasks. It's a simple and functional task manager that really works for me. I basically use it to keep track of everything across several projects. I roll over most of the tasks from day to day until I'm able to complete them. For tasks that need a reminder I add a due date - the reminder system is pretty basic but it works. It's the app I keep coming back to after trying all the others. But being primarily a task manager it lacks the ability to store information not related to tasks. Like information about people, places or things. So I searched for another app.

Obsidian
I'm trying this out on Obsidian right now! It's a wonderful piece of software that has full end to end encryption. I use it as a sort of digital "safe" for information I definitely don't want to lose. Unfortunately Obsidian lacks some critical functionality:

• Tasks are just checkboxes. There are plugins that can help you handle them better but the native UX for managing them is just copy, paste, and delete.
• There's tagging and folders but there's no real way to move through lots of semi-related pieces of information. I like a big list of stuff that can be filtered down, not lots of scattered documents. All of the linking and tagging happens in the middle of the rest of the text and a list of backlinks at the bottom of the UI.
• Maybe this sounds silly to you the reader - but basically it's all just too manual. If Obsidian had a sort of "parent note" at the top of each folder - like Notion which I'll cover next - it would make Obsidian a lot easier to use. Instead I always have to choose between a new block in a note, a whole new note or a folder. I'd love to be able to write out stuff as I think of it and then move stuff into sub folders - or lists - more easily.
• It's expensive for a journaling app with a relatively basic feature set. Note to note linking and cloud sync are just expected features at this point for an application like this.

Between Todoist and Obsidian I am able to meet all of those listed attributes:

1. Todoist makes it easy to enter information and make sure I remember it when I need to. I can write a reminder in Todoist to make sure I record information in Obsidian.
2. It's pretty easy to keep track of a lot of relevant tasks and other pieces of information in Todoist. For information that I need longer term or isn't related to a current task, it goes in Obsidian
3. Obsidian is end to end encrypted. Anything related to sensitive stuff goes in Obsidian.
4. Todoist allows setting sharing at a project level. So this makes it pretty easy to share tasks.

After using this system for awhile I started to see cracks forming. Todoist makes it easy to keep track of tasks but complex projects are often hard to manage. It's easy to lose track of tasks that are further out then a few days without using obtuse filters. Obsidian is difficult to use on mobile and having to transfer information from Todoist to Obsidian is frustrating. There are probably Obsidian plugins I could use to manage some of this but then I'd have to evaluate each one for data privacy concerns. And paying so much for Obsidian it's a little frustrating to have to rely on community plugins.
So I began looking for a new application, one that could do it all.

Notion
I still use Notion for a few different very specific things. I could probably use Obsidian or some of the other apps I'm about to talk about for these things. But I really like Notion - when it first came out it blew me away! It did so much stuff! It's great for keeping lists of well categorized pieces of information. It has great support for tagging, and the aforementioned folder / page hybrid. It's basically a wiki software combined with a task manager. A few issues keep me from using it as my main application:

• Like Obsidian it's hard to use on mobile. Especially for complicated stuff like moving through lots of different pieces of unrelated information.
• The reminder system is clunky. Since everything in Notion is a "block", reminders are tied to them. I think if I put a lot of time and effort into building a process for keeping track of my tasks it could work. But again, I don't really want to spend that much effort when I have system that already mostly works.
• There's no end to end encryption and nothing but a true / false value assigned to your user keeps employees from accessing your information easily.

A great piece of software but ultimately one I moved away from after a bit and back to Todoist.

Workflowy
This was the first time I felt a real paradigm shift. Workflowy is basically a really big list. Every bullet on the list is a "node" and you can zoom into nodes endlessly. So you can go from seeing all of your information to seeing very specific pieces of information very quickly and easily, even on mobile. And entering information is a breeze, you just add it as a bullet and then move it to where you need it. It's amazing for what I like to do, which is start with a general idea and build more and more specific information. For example, when going on trips I could create a "trip to place" bullet. Workflowy has amazing support for two way linking lists - basically you can change a list in one place and have it updated in all the other places its linked. So I could have a packing list that I link to the trip to place bullet. Or I can copy it and add to it. You can see all the possibilities and the UX makes it seamless.

The real killer here for me was the lack of reminders. The way to handle due dates in Workflowy is to literally type the date; there are UX solutions like a pop out calendar that handles this for you. And then you can filter down to bullets that contain that date. In theory it works well but it requires me to make sure I am looking at the right information when I need to be instead of the other way around. I tried using Todoist to supplement this but ended up having to constantly check both to make sure each was properly updated. If Worflowy had a way to assign reminders to bullets so a notification popped up that would make this the perfect app. In fact, I might give it another try after writing this out!

Lastly, it doesn't offer end to end encryption.

Twos App
This is the other app that got really close to being perfect. Twos App is the software that touched the sun and lost its wings. It does everything! It's sort of similar to Workflowy where you can have checkboxes (tasks) and bullets (pieces of information). You also have lists. So you can start a "shopping list" that sits outside your daily tasks, and you can fill that list with items you need. Then when you are ready to go shopping you can move that shopping list into a "day" and it's automatically a task. It also has a pretty good reminder system.
The problem with Twos App is unfortunate: the bugs. I found it doing odd things like reordering items, separating them out of lists and just generally glitching out. My theory is that the app is so feature packed that the systems start to conflict with each other. I've seen they are going to release a new major version soon so I might give it another try.

This is getting way too long! Just real quick some others I've tried:

• Capacities. A lot of protentional, like a more structured version of Notion. It shares a ton of the same features and functions similarly. But everything revolves around "objects" which are basically just... templates. There's no inheritance or ways to compose objects that would make something like that really powerful
• Amplenote: Another app that is close in theory but one big thing is it lacks the ability to tag tasks. You can only tag notes, which tasks live inside of. There are UX solutions for this but it's pretty clunky. It also supports end to end encryption but on a note by note basis? It seems like another situation where if I put a lot of time in I might be able to get something working but just doesn't seem worth it.
• Loqseq: End to end encrypted! Great support for tasks! But I think it's just still too underbaked. The sync feature is still in beta and requires you to pay in the form of donations? They basically tie your account to the donations you make and then give you access. Seems not worth it for the current set of functionality. It also lacks task level tags, like Amplenote.
• I've also tried Day One, Daycast, Standard Notes, Legend, and probably a bunch of others I'm not listing. I almost forgot about Ticktick.

So this brings me to my question: what application and system do you use?

I get a lot out of browsing Tildes and all the conversations here. This is in keeping with the Tildes philosophy of high-quality content and conversation.

In the spirit of quality discussion, context is everything and reference points matter. I have found my own thoughts nudged many times here, and often the comments and points of view lend entirely new perspective to the content (and are sometimes more interesting).

While I appreciate the discussions, there are often links to an article, a video, a blog, or anything really, with no context and little description.

So in the spirit of conversation, I'm asking if there could be "conversation starter" comments for posted links. I'd like to know why this video or that blog is different from just randomly finding some link online. Why is this link on Tildes? What makes it interesting or important? What are we talking about? Where is the quality conversation?

Is that too much, or would that be reasonable? Thoughts?

After a particularly grueling and frustrating week at work, I was driving home from picking up my daughter from school, and there were several different honking exchanges at this one stoplight. This is Pittsburgh, which is more midwest than east coast, so I rarely hear anyone honk, and almost never the sustained angry honks I was hearing. I thought, "They must be having the kind of week I'm having."

A bit later, I found myself alone on the road, no other cars visible either way. I thought, maybe I could honk. So I did. A nice long one. And it felt very good. I did it again a bit later. Still cathartic. I finally had to stop because my 10 year old was going to die of embarrassment.

So that's my recommendation. Get out there and let out a big honk. Not at anyone, not road rage, just let loose a little.

What are your other outlets for relieving stress?

1995 A.D.

I traveled back to this year to revisit the release of Chrono Trigger.

The game is out for the Super Nintendo Entertainment system in Japan and the United States. It is not available in Europe or Australia. Those regions won't get an official release until Crono uses the Epoch to visit the Nintendo DS in the year 2008 A.D., over a decade later.

I travel around and speak with different townsfolk. Everyone seems to have opinions on the game.

My first stop is a little cave called GamePro where I speak with Sir Scary Larry:

Chrono Trigger is another satisfying and superlative game from Square. If you've finished FF III and are itching for some fantasy field work, pick this one up. Thankfully, the fantasy isn't final yet.

I then meet Al Manuel in a little town square by the name of Electronic Gaming Monthly:

THIS IS AWESOME!! Chrono Trigger is an RPG that combines the best features of the FF series and Mana and puts them all in a game that easily gets my vote for RPG of the year! As with all Squaresoft games, the visuals are drawn with stunning detail, and the music immerses players even further into the quest. Of course, the game's best feature is its endearing story line. Add multiple endings to that and you've got a must-have for your RPG collection.

I wander into some houses and find Video Game Magazine lying on a desk. Geoff Higgins has written about it:

Chrono Trigger is the newest in an increasing number of quality RPGs to come out in the past year. Coming on the heels of games like Ogre Battle and Might & Magic III, Chrono Trigger could easily have paled in comparison. Instead, Squaresoft has brought us another reason to hold onto our SNES.

Right next door is Game Informer, with this posted on their bulletin board:

In contrast to Square adventures of the past, Chrono is a shining new star. [...] The characters that you meet during your quest all have well-developed storylines that make their small sprites seem larger than life. The magic spells advance and become more grandiose as they go to double and triple techs. To put it simply, Chrono is the pinnacle for RPG's on the Super NES and must be played to be believed.

While there, I also speak with Andy "The Game Hombre" McNamara:

Let me tell you a little story. Everytime one of these Square Soft RPG's comes to the office I can't get any sleep. I get so involved in the storyline that I stay up late trying to see what happens next to this soap-opera on a cart. You'd think that one of these days these guys are going to screw-up and I may finally get some sleep, but noooooo. It never happens. Once again, this game put me into that guru floating sensation of "wow." If you're looking for an RPG, you don't need to look any farther. Chrono is the feel-good game of the summer!

I am about to leave, but he keeps going:

Originally, the cover of this issue of Game Informer was going to be graced with Chrono Trigger [...] However, the artwork created for the game was done by a well-known Japanese artist known as Akira Tomiyama. This man is famous in Japan for such artistic feats as Dragon Ball Z and Chrono Trigger -- the hottest game right now in Japan. In his ride to glory, however, he managed to forget the little people.

He and his company refused us the rights to use his artwork on the cover because they felt that any magazine that featured Akira Tomiyama artwork on the cover would instantly be worth quadruple its original cover value. They even went as far as to say that it would be traded on the black market because his artwork is so sought after in Japan.

I think he meant "Akira Toriyama" but I don't mention it. And now that I think about it, none of the places I visited had Chrono Trigger artwork on their main displays. Sure, you can see some of the characters and screenshots tucked away in individual houses and shops, but the banners I see when entering the locations are always for different games: Killer Instinct, Lunar: Eternal Blue, Super Bomberman 3, the Virtual Boy.

Everybody is talking about Chrono Trigger, with many people seeing it as the hero of the time, but nobody is featuring its artwork.

But then I notice a little Game Players shop, and it, quite surprisingly, does have a small picture of Crono and Marle on its door. Interesting. Inside, I talk with Chris Slate, who doesn't mention it:

Can Square Soft do anything wrong? I mean, look at the track record: Secret of Mana, Breath of Fire, Final Fantasy II and III [...] it's hard to criticize near-perfection. The graphics are beautiful, the interface is slick, and the gameplay is just plain fun. It's RPGs like this that wil eventually win over the mainstream.

As I'm leaving, I notice Super Play, the shop across the street, has a full, front-and-center display: Chrono with the Epoch! Did they get permission from To[m|r]iyama? Did they break the rules? Was this actually just fan art drawn by someone else?

Wil Overton doesn't have any answers for me, but he does share this:

This is a fine game and one Square fans will get a lot out of. The time travel premise is superbly implemented, and the way things are intermingled through the different periods means the main underlying story stays strong throughout all the individual quests. Definitely recommended... if you've got the time (ha!).

Having thoroughly explored the region, I hop back in the Epoch and return to...

2025 A.D.

It is here that I noticed that the threat of Lavos still remains, his heat steadily growing, slowly placing the entire planet in peril. Meanwhile, despotic royals lust after power and oppress their subjects to pursue their own selfish glory and greed.

We can use a hero. Maybe Crono will visit our time?

Or maybe we have to pursue this quest ourselves.

Team up, level up, fight for good, support one another, and...

...maybe...

...against all odds...

...change the course of history.

So concludes this month of our COLOSSAL GAME ADVENTURE!

For anyone wondering, u/ali asked me to step in and host because they are traveling and weren't sure if they'd have consistent internet. I hope what I wrote is up to their standards!

This topic is to share your thoughts on Chrono Trigger:

• The good
• The bad
• The fun
• The interesting
• How the game was like back then
• How the game holds up now
• Your favorite moments
• Your least favorite moments
• The things it reminded you of
• The memories you have of it
• The memories you made playing it
• And absolutely anything else!

Because we are now removing the cartridge, spoilers will not be hidden in dropdown blocks so please be aware of this if you haven't yet finished the game.

This topic remains open, so you are welcome to post in it whenever you do finish the game, even if it is days or weeks later.

Up Next:

• Current CGA Schedule

Our next month, November 2025, is our very first Arcade Special, which is a group of shorter games that are intended to be played together.

The theme is: PlayStation WHAT? and will be hosted by the esteemed u/Lapbunny.

It's a collection of oddball, off-the-wall games, 4 of which are on the PlayStation and 1 of which is on the PlayStation 2 because someone forgot to check the games' information before bundling them up.

It was me. I'm the someone.

Important Upcoming Date:

• Timasomo Showcase Thread -- Wednesday, November 5 (one week away!)

Technically all work should be finished before November 1st (but don’t worry, it’s not enforced 😉).

November 1-4 are for putting finishing touches on the project to ready it for the showcase.

To get a feel for what the Showcase will look like and how to prep your project, check out past ones:

• 2024 Showcase
• 2023 Showcase
• 2022 Showcase
• 2021 Showcase
• 2020 Showcase
• 2019 Showcase

Update us on your progress so far!

• What did/didn't you get done this week?

• Anything go according to plan?

• Anything go off the rails?

• Any successes or struggles to share?

• Do you need feedback or help on anything?

This is your topic to share anything and everything you want about what you’ve made so far.

I've gotten very tired of fighting the GUI of my company's self-hosted charts.io instance, so I've been looking around at diagramming tools. I saw D2 posted on Hacker News, which seems like an interesting option, but I'm curious if anyone around here has a beloved tool to recommend.

I think my main use-case would be diagramming how components of a software system go together, although sometimes I'm interested in making wiring diagrams and stuff, too. Something that lets you specify overall dimension constraints for diagrams would probably help, since I often need to throw a diagram into a PowerPoint.

When I was a kid, I remember going to a book store with my Mom and asking for a recommendation from the clerk there for something in the fantasy genre. He kindly pointed me to the Dark Elf trilogy by R. A. Salvatore. I noticed that it had a Forgotten Realms logo on the cover, and when I went back to the store I noticed other books with that logo as well. That was my introduction to a setting that is shared between authors who can write stories in the same universe.

On the smaller end, there are settings where 2 (or a few) authors collaborate (like the Malazan universe), while on the larger side of things you have settings with dozens to potentially hundreds of authors (like Warhammer 40k, Star Wars, Star Trek, etc).

Some quick questions I thought of that might be interesting below, but please feel free to share anything you'd like about this topic!

• What was the first shared setting you read books in?
• Do you have a favorite shared literary setting?
• Do you mind the varying quality of the books in shared settings?
• Do you find yourself more likely to read a book in this shared setting compared to a book outside the setting?
• Are there any books in that setting that you don't recommend people read?

What have you been watching and reading this week? You don't need to give us a whole essay if you don't want to, but please write something! Feel free to talk about something you saw that was cool, something that was bad, ask for recommendations, or anything else you can think of.

If you want to, feel free to find the thing you're talking about and link to its pages on Anilist, MAL, or any other database you use!

It's almost time...

...for another Backlog Burner -- the event where you try out games you've always wanted to play (but haven't yet -- for whatever reason).

The Backlog Burner for November 2025 will officially begin in two days on November 1st.

If you're new to the Backlog Burner, check out our previous events to get an idea of what's going on:

• 2025 - May
• 2024 - November
• 2024 - May
• 2023
• 2022
• 2020

Backlog Bingo is back (of course) and better than ever!

• Backlog Bingo

If you participated last time, clear your old card and start fresh with a new one. If you're new to the event, click the link above to generate your card (if you want to -- playing a bingo card is NOT required to participate).

New Category List

We've got Flux for those of you that like to get specific with their cards.
We've got Flow for those of you that like a bit of wiggle room.
We've got Free for those of you that take the "anything goes" approach.

And now, our newest addition: Form

This set is a list of genres, letting you fill your bingo card with God game, Tactical RPG, Visual novel and 89 other choices! Go for the bingo of your choice, as long as your backlog has the game types to fulfill it...

New Site Features

u/Wes, coding wizard that he is, has added some incredible new features to the site:

• AI Integration: Why rely on a boring set of predetermined, carefully curated, energy efficient categories when you can instead harness the unlimited cognitive power and water usage of an AI? Use Bingie, our new Bingo companion. It can not only set up a card to your liking, but it can actually play the games for you! Trained on millions of hours of League of Legends matches, Bingie is ready to smugly gloat when it wins for you and get shockingly, offensively salty when it loses. Why game yourself this month? Have Bingie do it for you.

• Blockchain Babies: Think Beanie Babies, but digital. No, even digitaler than that. We've decided to extend you an exclusive offer to join us on this journey. Just let us know how many Blockchain Babies we can put you down for. Our initial offer begins with a limited edition of our most popular baby: Doomscrolling Dolphin! You'd better rush if you still want to get in on the ground floor of this growing empire. Blockchain Babies: they put the fun in non-fungible.

• Deception: What do you do when the site is already beautifully functional and it doesn't need any updates? You lie about it in hopes of attracting investment money by using key buzzwords like "AI integration" and "blockchain." We've incorporated these lies directly into our changelog by leveraging cross-functional bandwidth to verify ecosystem stability and ensure stakeholder alignment. Our holistic ideation sessions empower dynamic pivoting and scalable content delivery to future-proof our market positioning while streamlining KPIs and deliverables.

Backlog Bingo: we blackout the competition.

In all seriousness, Wes didn't need to do much with the site because it's already pretty much perfect! No major updates this time, but everything from last time is still there. It's still wonderfully functional, and still completely private! All data is stored only on your device.

Of course, with that in mind, I'll be using another seeded card this time, on the off chance that I end up wiping my computer again.

Shameless Cross-Promotion

ATTENTION ALL CGA PARTICIPANTS: The Backlog Burner event and our Colossal Game Adventure are not only cross-compatible, they are in fact symbiotic. CGA puts games on your backlog; BB takes them away! Beautiful? Or devious...

This month CGA is having its first Arcade Special with a collection of five different PlayStation oddities.

Hmmm, five games all together? That seems like the perfect lineup for a Bingo (if you get lucky with your card, that is). It's almost like it's the perfect time for CGA folks to hop on the Backlog Burner train! :D

Notification List

If you are interested in participating in the Backlog Burner, please comment in this topic. Anyone commenting/replying here will automatically be added to a notification list for the Backlog Burner, unless you specify otherwise.

Start Planning (or Playing)

Technically the event starts in two days, so you have time to roll your cards (if you're playing Bingo) and plan out what you'd like to play for the month. That said, if you're eager to jump right in, and start early, I certainly won't stop you!

Let's get ready to burn through these backlogs!

Backlog Burner FAQ

Backlog Bingo FAQ

Important: All data for your Backlog Bingo card is stored on your device, not the server. Clearing your browser data will delete your card. You can use the export feature to make backups or move your card between devices.

Have you watched any TV shows recently you want to discuss? Any shows you want to recommend or are hyped about? Feel free to discuss anything here.

Please just try to provide fair warning of spoilers if you can.

I want to set a challenge for myself and any others willing (challenge by choice) to find and post some good news today (and tomorrow and the next day) People helping each other out, new discoveries, wins, joys, small happinesses.

Even if it's good in the face of bad, even if it's the sort of good that can also remind you that shit's fucked up. For this thread, we focus on the good and we don't let the fact there's still also bad in the world drag us down? That's my ask!

I'm currently working on decluttering, and coming up with processes to stop clutter from building up in the future.

Even after getting rid of a bunch of junk, I'll be left with a ton of stuff that historically has just "floated around" my living space (cables, adapters, small tools, stationary, batteries, etc...).

I'd ideally want a bunch of appropriately sized containers that I can organize stuff into. I'd love for each box to be some tesselation of a standard volume, so that I can arrange and stack those containers neatly in a drawer or on a desk.

If you happen to work with 3D printing, this may sound a lot like Gridfinity, a modular open-source grid storage system. And I agree! Gridfinity's goals completely meet and shoot past what I'm looking for. But I currently have no interest in investing the money or time into buying a 3D printer and making prints. And there doesn't appear to be an obvious commercial version outside of "random" folks on Etsy.

I also considered getting a Drawer Grid like you'd see in a Maker Space. I might end up getting this if I can't find a better option, though I'd prefer a storage solution I can stuff in a drawer.

I was curious if:

• Anyone had any product recommendations that might fit the bill
• Anyone had any thoughts on the organizational endeavor itself, and if there are any ways I could be going about this better.