# MarkDone
A minimalist, folder-free note system using plain text .MD files. All notes live in a single directory. Files are named with a simple pattern that sorts automatically.
The files are:
- `YYYY-IN-MM.md` - Inbox and daily log
- `YYYY-NB-TOPIC.md` - Long-running notes and projects
- `YYYY-KB.md` - Reference information
# Files
## `YYYY-IN-MM.md` - Monthly Inbox
Your monthly inbox. Capture everything here first.
- Work completed
- Meeting notes
- Ideas and decisions
- Temporary notes
- Completed tasks
Use # YYYYMMDD as a heading for each note.
Add @person and +topic as tags to help search
Example:
'# 20260618 - Website'
@bob @jo +website +marketing
Kicked off +website redesign with @sarah. #budget signed off.
- Design approved
- Launch date picked
[ ] Write commms
At year end, start a new yearly file.
## `YYYY-NB-TOPIC.md` - Notes
Ongoing notes for anything with depth - projects, recurring meetings, people, workstreams. One file per topic, updated throughout the year.
Example:
'# 20260617 - AI'
@sam @tim +AI
- Picked LLM
[ ] Present to ELT
At year end, start a new yearly file.
## `YYYY-KB.md` - Knowledge
Information you look up regularly. Cheat sheets, commands, configs, links, documentation.
Example
# BASH
+cli +cmd
CD
PWD
LS
At year end, start a new yearly file.
# Syntax
## Markdown
Write notes using standard Markdown.
'#' - Heading
'##' - Section
'-' - Bullet list
'[ ]' - Task
'[-]' - Task (Started)
'[x]' - Task (Complete)
## Tags
Use tags to make files searchable.
@name - Person, Team or Organization
+topic - Project or Category
## Search
grep "@sarah" ~/flatnotes/*.md # everything involving Sarah
grep "+website" ~/flatnotes/*.md # everything on the website project
grep "\[ \]" ~/flatnotes/*.md # all open tasks
grep "\[-\]" ~/flatnotes/*.md # everything in progress
grep "\[x\]" ~/flatnotes/*.md # everything done
grep "\[ \].*@sarah" ~/flatnotes/*.md # open tasks involving Sarah
grep "@sarah.*+website" ~/flatnotes/*.md # Sarah and website together