PKM Workshop

Organizing Knowledge with Logseq and Obsidian

Cecilia Baldoni

2024-12-02

Welcome to the PKM Workshop

• Learn how to organize knowledge effectively.
• Explore tools: Logseq and Obsidian
• Build systems that work for you.

Today’s Goal

My Journey

You are the expert

• No one-size-fits-all solution.
• You are the expert on your own needs

What is PKM

PKM: Personal Knowledge Management
A system for capturing, organizing, and retrieving knowledge efficiently.

PKM helps with:
- Information overload,
- Information retrieval,
- Scattered notes,
- Communication

Your Current Workflow

• Reflect on your practices:
  • Tools you use (analog or digital)
  • How you organize notes (folders, random papers)
• Challenges:
  • Losing track of papers or ideas
  • Overwhelming, unstructured notes

Apps to the Rescue!

Note Taking Apps provide the practical infrastructure for implementing a PKM system

Common Pitfalls

• Challenges:
  • Overcomplication
  • Inconsistency
  • Fear of starting: Blank page syndrome

• Solutions:
  • Start small
  • Build workflows iteratively
  • Focus on consistency

Tools for PKM:

Logseq and Obsidian

Logseq

- Open-source
- Uses Markdown (future-proof)
- Great for journaling and task management
- Helps build structured, hierarchical notes

Obsidian

- Free with optional paid extras
- Uses Markdown (future-proof)
- Great for visualizing connections (Graph View)
- Flexible with many plugins

Tools for PKM:

Why not other apps?

• Privacy: your data is stored on their servers
• Cloud-based: require Internet for most features
• Money: one time payment or monthly subscriptions
• These Two Work Well:
  • Both Logseq and Obsidian store notes locally and work offline
  • They are free!

Limitations

• Logseq:
  • Still in beta: Occasional bugs and incomplete features
  • Limited plugin availability compared to Obsidian
• Obsidian:
  • Plugin dependency: Many advanced features rely on community plugins
  • Not possible to collaborate

PKM Strategies

Common PKM Strategies

• Zettelkasten
• Para
• Second Brain
• MindMapping

Once again…

You are the expert

The key to Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) is organizing your knowledge in a way that ensures you’ll find it when you need it.

A great system isn’t about perfection; it’s about making retrieval easy and reliable.

Once again…

You are the expert

A good system should support your workflow, not distract you from it

Do Not Perfect your PKM structure at the expense of getting things done

PKM Strategies

Zettelkasten

• German for “slip-box”, popularised by Niklas Luhmann
• Focuses on creating small notes cointaining one single idea
• Notes are connected through meaningful links, forming a web of related ideas
• Best for Developing a knowledge base that fosters creative thinking

A Zettelkasten

More info here: Zettelkasten

PARA

• A system by Tiago Forte for organizing all information.

• Projects: represent active, short-term goals

• Areas: broader, long-term responsibilities

• Resources: library of reference materials

• Archives: final place for anything that is no longer active

More info here: PARA

Second Brain

• A framework by Tiago Forte for managing and retrieving knowledge efficiently.

• Capture: refers to efficient note-taking

• Organize: note organization is essential to retrieve information

• Distil: learn to summarize information

• Express: use your notes actively

• Best for building a personal repository of ideas and knowledge

Mind Mapping

• A visual approach to organizing and connecting ideas.
• Start with a central idea and branch out with related concepts.
• Best for:
  • Brainstorming, planning, and exploring relationships visually.

More info here:Mind Mapping

What We Are Doing Now

• Explore Obsidian and Logseq:
  How these tools work and how they can adapt to your workflow.

• Ask Questions Freely:
  This session is all about answering your specific questions.

• What We’re NOT Covering: How to take notes in general

What is Logseq?

What is Logseq?

• Open-source tool for PKM and task organization
• Networked outliner
• Folder agnostic

It helps you:
- Organize thoughts using blocks
- Connections ideas using backlinks
- Daily Journaling

Key Features of Logseq:

Outliner-Based Workflow

• Structures notes into blocks (or paragraphs)
  
  • everything in Logseq is about the blocks!
    
• Blocks can be nested hierarchically for:
  • Outlining ideas
  • Organizing complex thoughts
• Easy to reorganize or move blocks

Key Features of Logseq:

Backlinks and Linking

• Create links using the [[Link Syntax]]
• Backlinks: a link for a page that is shown to the current page
• Encourages a web of interconnected notes

Key Features of Logseq:

Journaling and Daily Notes

• Automatically creates a daily note
• Acts as:
  • A chronological log.
  • A launchpad for other notes.

Key Features of Logseq:

Task Management

• Integrates tasks directly into your notes:
  • LATER -> NOW -> DONE
  • TODO -> DOING -> DONE
  • CANCELED/CANCELLED, IN-PROGRESS, and WAIT/WAITING
• Tasks can be tracked across notes using queries.

Key Features of Logseq:

Page Properties

• Uses key-value pairs for structured data:
  • priority:: A deadline:: 2024-12-01
• Helps organize and filter notes based on specific criteria

Key Features of Logseq:

Queries

• Dynamically search for and display notes or tasks
• Uses Clojure syntax for powerful, customizable queries
• Example: {{query (and [[tag-name]] (priority A))}}

Key Features of Logseq:

What Makes Logseq Different?

• Block-Based Organization
• Folderless Structure
• Emphasis on Journaling
• Open-Source and Privacy-Focused
• Advanced Queries

What is Obsidian?

What Is Obsidian?

• Local, Markdown-based knowledge management tool.
• Flexible, customizable, and perfect for researchers.

Key Features of Obsidian

• Bidirectional Linking

• Graph View

• Markdown-Based: Future-proof .md files.

• Local Storage

Using Obsidian for Research

Literature Review:

• Create notes for papers with links to key themes.
• Tag by topic (e.g., #methods, #results).
• Use Graph View to see clusters of related ideas.

Thesis Writing:

• Draft sections in linked notes.
• Use YAML metadata to track progress (status: draft).

Obsidian vs. Logseq

Similarities:

• Markdown-based and future-proof.
• Local-first, private storage.
• Powerful Graph View.
• Flexible, customizable workflows.

Differences:

• Logseq:

• Journaling and outliner focus.

• Built in functions, less plugins available

• Obsidian:

• Note-based, adaptable for any system.

• Extensive plugins for research and writing.

What We Are Doing Today

What We Are Doing Today

• Explore the Obsidian Vault and Logseq Graph:
  How these tools work and how they can adapt to your workflow.

• Ask Questions Freely:
  This session is all about answering your specific questions.

• What We’re NOT Covering: How to take notes in general - Everyone’s style is different and what works for me might not work for you.

What To Do After Today

• Reflect on Your Routine:
  • When do you take notes? (e.g., recurring meetings, during experiments, etc)
  • Do your notes follow a common theme?
• Start Simple:
  • Take one project and break it into main topics
    • Are these topics recurring across projects? (e.g., statistics, foraging)

What To Do After Today

• Build Your System Gradually:
  • Test one approach at a time: Folder-based? Tag-based? Link-based?
  • Adjust as you learn what works best

Designing Your Workflow

• How to Start:
  • Identify key goals.
  • Focus on 1-2 knowledge categories (e.g., literature, daily tasks).
• Build Iteratively:
  • Customize templates, tags, and metadata.
  • Experiment!

Final Thoughts

• Obsidian and Logseq are what you make of them
  • Start simple, grow gradually.
• Tame the chaos.
  • Build your knowledge base to serve your needs.