Decoding Drafts

Using Mastodon for thinking

Zsolt Benke — Sun, 12 Jan 2025 10:03:12 +0000

Mastodon can be really used for private thinking. It is threaded, I can just keep adding stuff to a post. And we have awesome clients like Mona.

I can bookmark a post, so then I can keep the thread going. This could be even better than how I do the Zettelkasten threading.

Also, I run Mastodon on a self-hosted server, which I like because of control. TIt is my responsibility to backup the server.

My only question is, how can I make sure that these notes can be exported?

Mona is way better for managing threads. It is like a self-hosted note-taking tool, with built-in communication capabilities.

By the way, these notes are append-only, so I can’t change them.

The question is now: do I need to have Gibberish?

I mean it can be cool to use it as a first draft tool still. I’m currently exporting a thread into a Gibberish post.

I created a shortcut that allows me to export the currently viewed post from Mona to Drafts. While it’s not the most ideal solution, as I had intended to export the entire thread, it can be useful for selectively adding posts to a new draft.

I also added Hookmark integration for Mona too.

This way I can keep thinking in threads using Mastodon, then export my ideas into a format I like.

I could even use Mastodon for daily notes. There is no Markdown formatting, but I can start a new daily thread, then just keep appending ideas. If I want to start a new thread, I can just copy the link to a post, and paste it in a new one, which will do a “re-tweet”.

This will keep the connection between posts.

Script Debugger is getting retired

Zsolt Benke — Tue, 07 Jan 2025 06:29:58 +0000

Retiring Script Debugger | Late Night Software

I ran into this post the other day about Script Debugger getting retired.

I just bought the app about 2-3 years ago, but in the short amount of time it became such an important part of my workflow.

I learned AppleScript with the help of the awesome live inspection feature of Script Debugger. Since then, I used this app to build a lot of scripts that I use in my everyday job.

I don’t know the state of AppleScript inside Apple, but the difference between Script Debugger and Script Editor is night and day. Script Editor should be part of the system.

This is why I feel sad that another great Mac app is getting retired. Especially one which has such a long history.

I’m not sure how the app could be saved. Someone could buy it. Open sourcing is not going to work, since there are some licensing issues.

But it makes me wonder why we have Emacs and Vim still around alive and well.

The problem with Script Debugger is that any macOS update could break it in the future. It’s not like 1Password 7 which I still keep around, because I’m not going to migrate to their stupid Electron app.

Script Debugger is a complex beast, so any new Windows Vista “security” dialog could kill it in an upcoming version. And boy, Apple really into “Cancel or Allow” lately.

So the proper way to keep it around would be some company buying and maintaining it, or open-sourcing it.

Or maybe we have a couple of people in the Macscripter.net community who can take care of it.

I don’t know yet, but I’ll be pretty sad the day when Script Debugger stops working.

Writing drafts in Gibberish

Zsolt Benke — Sun, 05 Jan 2025 22:53:16 +0000

I think I should start using Gibberish for drafting blog posts. Even if it’s something short or private.

I just love this chat-like UI for writing, and also how the app calls drafts thoughts, and published stuff as posts.

In my world these are not posts and I’m not writing a blog here, but it can be a great way to get started. I can just start writing my ideas like I do with messages, and at the end, I hopefully can have a draft.

I wish if it had some form of export to Drafts and then WordPress. I mean I like the idea of writing a blog like this, but other than that, it’s just a feed of my thoughts.

I could even post these things directly to Mastodon and Bsky, but that’s not the point. I want to have a way to import these things into Drafts. I can copy paste, but that’s not elegant.

It’s more like I’m just rambling about ideas here, then doing something with them. I use Gibberish to just collect thoughts then post them to somewhere in the second round.

But I wish the app would be more powerful. I would love to have

URL schemes for thoughts
shortcuts support for starting and exporting a thought
direct sharing from the app

Trying out Strflow for Project-related Status Updates

Zsolt Benke — Tue, 03 Sep 2024 06:06:39 +0000

I used Strflow today in conjunction with OmniFocus and it is pretty good for an interstitial journal. I can quickly bring it up and leave a status update about projects. It is especially useful when I’m making a phone call, and log what we talked about.

I actually made two shortcuts, which works on the selected action’s project

Journal about project: ask a quick status update, then it automatically tags the note with the project name converted to a hashtag
Open project timeline: opens the hashtag timeline based on the project name

I have created a journaling shortcut for OmniFocus couple of months ago, but it is built on top of DEVONthink. It doesn’t get the project automatically and it is mixed with project related assets which I don’t like.

By the way, I can add pictures to Strflow entries too which is kind of hard to do in DEVONthink.

I used to do interstitial journaling in TaskPaper and I’m not sure yet if Strflow is better or worse than TaskPaper, but at least it is available on iOS too.

These days I’m using TaskPaper for “brainstorming” not journaling. TaskPaper is pretty cool outliner, so I can quickly create session notes related to the selected OmniFocus action. But these are just fleeting notes… I’m using TaskPaper as a temporary thinking tool.

I can actually also share Strflow notes to other apps directly like Day One, or add them to Drafts where I can process and export the, to other places as well. This makes Drafts into a tool which transforms text-based information between apps.

Also, I like how the Strflow timeline made to look like a chat app. In a way it feels like the old Twitter feed, where we just posted random thoughs to get them out of our heads. It is basically a private version of that.

Using Git Commit History as a Lab Notebook

Zsolt Benke — Sun, 01 Sep 2024 09:01:14 +0000

Discussion of this idea with ChatGPT. I copied the interesting parts here:

I’m thinking about using git commits more than just documenting changes, but as a journal for my work as it advances. Like a lab notebook in code.

I want to store my plans in the commit messages too, but I don’t want to add a bunch of temporary artifacts to the code base.

Is there any way to do this in git? Or did someone else already invented something like this?

Using Git commit messages as a form of a lab notebook is a great idea and can be highly effective for documenting your work and thoughts over time. However, you’re correct in wanting to avoid cluttering your codebase with temporary files or artifacts.

Use specific tags like [PLAN], [NOTE], or [JOURNAL] in your commit messages to categorize them.

Git has a feature called git notes that allows you to attach additional information to a commit without changing the commit itself. This is perfect for journaling since you can keep detailed logs, plans, and thoughts associated with specific commits without modifying the commit history.

If your project has a documentation directory, consider writing your plans, notes, and journal entries in markdown files or text files within that directory. You can commit these files without impacting your source code, keeping the codebase clean.

Looks like others are playing with this idea too.

Simon Willison’s Experiment: Simon is experimenting with using git notes to archive issue threads directly in the repository. This approach can help keep all relevant discussions, decisions, and context attached to specific commits, even if these discussions happen outside of the commit history (e.g., in GitHub issues).

While git notes are powerful, their lack of visibility in some platforms (like GitHub) might be a limitation. Therefore, using them in combination with more visible methods, like markdown files in a documentation branch, could provide a more robust solution.

Simon Willison also did a talk where he talked about how he uses GitHub issues to document his work. https://simonwillison.net/2022/Nov/26/productivity/

What about empty commit messages? Are they fit this use-case somehow?

Simon Willison’s talk about using GitHub issues to document his work is an insightful approach to managing and tracking the progress of projects. Here’s a summary of key takeaways from his talk, which might inspire your own workflow:

Issue-Driven Development: You could adopt a similar approach by using GitHub issues to not only track tasks but also to plan and journal your work. This could include writing down your initial thoughts when starting a new task, logging challenges as they arise, and noting how you solved them.

Cross-Referencing: Take advantage of GitHub’s ability to cross-reference issues, commits, and pull requests. This can help you maintain a detailed and interconnected log of your project’s history.

Making It Public: If you’re working on open-source projects, consider making your work process public through GitHub issues. This transparency can foster collaboration and invite feedback, potentially leading to better outcomes.

Personal Workflow: Even if you’re working on private projects, using GitHub issues as a journal can still be valuable. It provides a structured and organized way to document your work, which you can later review or share with others if needed.

Empty commit messages might seem unconventional, but they can indeed have a place in a workflow that treats Git as a form of lab notebook or journal.

Git allows you to create commits without changing any files using git commit –allow-empty. You can use this to create log entries that represent thoughts, decisions, or plans without altering the codebase. Although these commits are empty in terms of code changes, they can still have meaningful commit messages later amended or added.

Simon also compares his issue driven development approach to lab notebooks.

Structured Documentation:

Lab Notebooks: In scientific research, lab notebooks are used to document experiments, including the hypotheses, methods, observations, results, and conclusions. They provide a structured way to record every step of an experiment, making it possible to replicate the process, verify results, and learn from past work.

GitHub Issues: Similarly, Simon uses GitHub issues to document every task, idea, or problem in a structured manner. Each issue serves as a detailed record of the thought process, decisions made, and steps taken to solve a problem or implement a feature. This structure helps ensure that nothing is overlooked and that every aspect of the development process is documented.

Incremental Progress Tracking:

Lab Notebooks: In a lab notebook, scientists record their progress incrementally, noting down each observation, result, or adjustment as it happens. This allows them to track the progress of an experiment over time and adjust their approach based on real-time data.

GitHub Issues: In the same way, Simon tracks the progress of his development tasks by regularly updating issues with new information, insights, or adjustments. This continuous documentation allows him to track how a project evolves and helps in identifying when and where things changed, which is crucial for debugging and refining the work.

Reflection and Learning:

Lab Notebooks: Scientists often reflect on their experiments in their lab notebooks, noting what worked, what didn’t, and why. This reflection is crucial for learning and improving future experiments.

GitHub Issues: By documenting not just the steps taken but also the challenges faced and decisions made, GitHub issues become a tool for reflection. Simon can look back at issues to understand what worked and what didn’t, making it easier to apply those lessons to future tasks. This reflective practice can lead to better, more informed decision-making over time.

Transparency and Reproducibility:

Lab Notebooks: One of the key values of a lab notebook is that it allows others to reproduce an experiment. The detailed documentation means that another scientist can follow the steps exactly and verify the results.

GitHub Issues: Simon’s use of issues similarly allows for transparency in his development process. By making his thought process and actions visible in issues, others can understand why certain decisions were made and, if necessary, reproduce the steps taken to achieve a particular outcome. This is especially valuable in collaborative environments or in open-source projects where multiple contributors are involved.

Communication and Collaboration:

Lab Notebooks: In a research team, lab notebooks can be shared among team members, facilitating communication and collaboration. Everyone can see the progress, contribute ideas, and stay aligned on the goals and methods.

GitHub Issues: GitHub issues serve a similar role in software development teams. They are a central place where all discussions, decisions, and updates are recorded, making it easier for team members to stay informed, contribute, and collaborate effectively.

Maybe I should subscribe to Setapp

Zsolt Benke — Sun, 01 Sep 2024 07:13:08 +0000

Maybe I should try SetApp. My Hookmark subscription is expiring and it would be cheaper to use Setapp than just trying to subscribe to Hookmark directly.

From a UX point of view, Hookmark has this weird and confusing licensing behavior. I have to pick a specific license file, and I don’t know… It’s just confusing…

I assume on Setapp it just works as long as I pay for the subscription.

I would also have access to Ulysses, since it is also on Setapp.

I’m not sure about how Setapp works on iOS though. I should look into that.

Switching to Things from OmniFocus

Zsolt Benke — Sun, 01 Sep 2024 06:47:15 +0000

I’m thinking about switching back to Things from OmniFocus.

I feel that OmniFocus 4 is too buggy and weird, especially on iOS. I just want to have simple project based lists, with todos attached to them.

Things also uses Markdown for its notes, which is pretty nice. In my mind, it just makes more sense, than rich-text in OmniFocus notes.

What I like in OmniFocus is the way that it can be used like an outliner. Things has more rigid structure, but I have scripts and shortcuts, which makes Bike a great backbone for Things. I can create a new outline, then export its todos to Things with a checklist. This could be used to avoid having some form of freeform structure behind Things.

I think I also have think about how I do the deep session integration in Things, since currently this aspect of Shortcuts is also optimized for OmniFocus.

Actions are Tyme tasks, projects are Tyme projects, then folders are Tyme categories.

Things would be: todos are Tyme tasks, projects are Tyme projects, areas are Tyme categories. We can’t track todos without a project basically.

I also have a lot of someday maybe items in Things, so I don’t have to migrate that to OmniFocus, like I originally planned (yes I switched to OmniFocus from Things, because OmniFocus can focus on items).

I’m trying to use more apps, but for more focused tasks. Everything should start from Drafts, but at the end, information just gets transformed to different formats, and each app should manage its format the best.

I should also try to integrate Things with Strflow for journaling. It would make sense to keep these in DEVONthink like I did with OmniFocus, but having Strflow notes just feels a little bit more focused and better. It is minimal timeline app, and these notes are just status updates in a way. I can also link them together, like a minimal Zettelkasten.

I have to adapt my Sync OmniFocus with Calendar to Things as well.

Let’s create a project for this…

The problem with a switch like this is that it is hard to migrate all my stuff from one app to another. We have the database on it’s own, but there are automations and auxiliary apps which has to be migrated too.

Gibberish automation

Zsolt Benke — Sun, 01 Sep 2024 06:32:01 +0000

We should have some form of automation for Gibberish. Like a shortcut or something which I can use to start a post.

I mean the app is great and I usually do my brainfarts in that app, but it would be nice to actually use Drafts to start a post.

I checked the web version of Gibberish, but there is no API. It is a Rails app (which is cool), but I can’t really do anything with it.

What I want to is to have something like this:

A way to create new threads from Drafts
A way to copy link to existing threads, so I can continue writing them immediately

We can get a URL for the final public text, but I don’t use Gibberish like that. I mean I can publish stuff with it, but the main idea for me is to have chat threads which can be exported into something at the end. I just like this UI.

I could use Strflow like this, but it has channels which is a bit limited, and I like that Gibberish has these chat bubbles. I also think that it is a healthy way to think about the app like an actual blog since this makes me write and publish more stuff, even if I host that somewhere else.

Threads, Streams, and Queues

Zsolt Benke — Thu, 29 Aug 2024 06:51:53 +0000

I have a bit of love for threaded things and journal like interfaces which are revolving around time.

My thread-based tools are

Gibberish for writing thoughts in a chat-like threaded UI
Strflow for taking notes in a similar chat-like UI, but with more journal format
TaskPaper for my interstitial journal which I mostly use for brainstorming
MindNode and Bike for ad-hoc but deeper brainstorming which is a one-off thing
Markdown notes or entries in DEVONthink for project related journaling
ChatGPT project based threads which are great for processing large amounts of information

I also have streams.

Reeder for everything related around my inner browsing circle
Day One as my private stream of thoughts
My blog, which is my public stream of thoughts
My Photos which are my visual stream of memories and moments

Finally there are queues which are for processed items picked from streams or threads

OmniFocus/Things for my next actions
Calendar for my events and appointments (in a timeline)
Reminders for my reminders
Safari Reading List for my online readings
DEVONthink Reading List for my deeper readings
Books for my book readings
Podcasts saved episodes for my podcast listening sessions
Apple TV up next for watching movies and TV shows
YouTube Watch Later for online videos
And finally the various inboxes I have in different apps like Mail, DEVONthink, and OmniFocus

I should have an outline of these different types of applications.

Using Bike in pair with Reminders for GTD

Zsolt Benke — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 07:12:55 +0000

I’m playing with the idea of using solely Bike with Reminders. That was the easiest and the most effective way to capture information, organize it, plan, then create next actions out of it.

I have to create new ways to automate some things, like adding DEVONthink groups to projects then linking them together, but my idea is that, Reminders should be about tasks, and Bike should about support material. So hooking things to projects would mean that the “replacement” of an OmniFocus project would be Bike.

Of course there are problems with this approach since Bike is not available for iOS, but maybe MindNode could be used in those cases. My only problem with MindNode is that is exporting Reminders as lists. I want to just dump reminders as single tasks into my inbox. Also MindNode based projects would not have IDs like I can use IDs from Bike for project associations.

On the other hand, I usually administer GTD related things on my Mac, where Bike is available. My main GTD machine is my MacBook Air. It would be nice to use my iPads for something like this, but currently it is not possible because Bike is not available on iPadOS.

I don’t care about my iPhone. I only do capture there and reviewing next actions.

After more consideration, I’ll keep using OmniFocus since I don’t want to change my system yet again.

Instead I should keep completing my projects.

Thinking in threaded notes

Zsolt Benke — Sat, 10 Aug 2024 04:58:59 +0000

Now I’m starting see some Zettelkasten inspired apps, which lets you create threaded notes by chaining random ideas together. One of them is Gibberish, which packages this idea into a blogging app. The other one is Thinkdrop which is just a simple note app that can store ideas threaded together.

I also tried this Thinkdrop app for iPad but it is very minimal. But I like that that there are two apps available for this niche idea which let me write my ideas in threads.

I like Gibberish better though. It is a simple and elegant app.

The third app which is using this concept is Everlog which is more close to Day One. Everlog is a journal app, and works pretty well, but becomes pretty slow after a while when I’m typing my ideas into it. It is also more of a journal app, which is a natural place for these things. Also their Mac app is a less than optimal Catalyst app.

So we have Gibberish, Everlog, Thinkdrop for the iPad which can do threaded notes and journals. I like Everlog too, it is just buggy on the Mac. Although Gibberish too.

Each of these apps are good for different purposes. I mean I could use Gibberish for more draft-like blogging about stuff, since the end result is basically a blogpost.

My most weirdest feeling about writing a post like this is that why I would use a Zettelkasten when most of my posts are just random things that come out of my mind. I have a Zettelkasten, and I also wonder about things a lot, but the Zettelkasten way feels a bit too much work to keep a journal.

I just want to have a nice journal app, which can help me to drop my ideas into a canvas and make them available only. This is exactly what Gibberish does, my only problem is that I don’t need a blogging engine behind it. I just want to sync my posts between devices then let me copy the text or open it in Drafts and I’ll post it to places.

Okay, maybe having a blog behind these ideas is one of the ways to display a post which is not fully formed. But the app should have more ways to export the text. I could use shortcuts to grab the content and format it to a Markdown document, but it would also open yet another can of worms.

Another thing that can replicate this is basically using an outline to write. I mean the chat interface is just a small text box which lets me write in blocks. That’s what Craft does too. I could just use that do dumb ideas then export them to iA Writer to finish. I just don’t want to use Craft for this TBH. And the chat interface is pretty cool.

Actually Gibberish is a fancy way of writing Twitter threads. Which is a pretty nice thing to have by the way. So I’m actually thinking about using some form of Mastodon or Micro.blog way of doing this.

Although the best way to do this is still Gibberish.

Just a side note, seeing the same chat-like interface displayed as a post is actually not that bad. I write more or less like someone how doesn’t care about the stuff written in the previous bubbles, but it seems like flows almost like a post that I wrote in one go.

The goal should be that all posts are like one coherent thing.

Apps supporting my thinking

Zsolt Benke — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 20:33:34 +0000

I’m looking for the best outliner. I even collected the list of apps I have on my system for taking notes, and managing different set of lists.

I’m not even sure if an app like this exists.

But the Mac has really cool apps, that can be used for information management. I mean look what I have on my system.

These are just apps that work with text or information organization in one way.

There are some overlays, like TaskPaper/Bike/OmniOutliner, but these are in essence just lists.

This is what I get if I organize them by category.

I don’t use all of them, but there are different use cases for each of these apps.

I don’t see how my iPad would fit some of these.

And here are the ones which are available in some form on the iPad.

After checking the full list, here are the iPad apps that I have for planning and thinking.

I also added a description to every item so I know what my freaking expensive iPad Pro can be used for, and I can stop complaining about missing Bike and TaskPaper on my iPad.