How to build a second brain as a software developer

1

Joplin

I was disappointed that Joplin (https://joplinapp.org/) wasn't included in the app list. Having used both Evernote and OneNote, I've found Joplin to be a better choice, especially when I'm bouncing between platforms. It doesn't lock you to a particular ecosystem or cloud service, and the open source app is free for use. For what it's worth, I'm not affiliated with Joplin, I'm just a user.

#Note Taking #Notes #Todos 350 social mentions

2

BrainTool

#Bookmarks #Chrome Extensions #Information Browser 90 social mentions

3

Amna

You should try Amna (https://getamna.com). It wraps around this workflow and manages all of your browser windows.

#Task Management #Productivity #Todos 12 social mentions

4

Obsidian.md

I don't currently use it so can't comment on what features it has or doesn't have, but I find it interesting that [Obsidian ](https://obsidian.md/) is only given an honourable mention in this article when according to the Wayback Machine, its elevator pitch has been "A second brain, for you, forever" since before this article was published.

#Knowledge Management #Knowledge Base #Markdown Editor 1454 social mentions

5

TiddlyWiki

#Note Taking #Knowledge Base #Personal Knowledge Base 180 social mentions

6

Zettlr

#Note Taking #Markdown Editor #Knowledge Management 10 social mentions

7

Productivity Power Tools

I've switched to doing this, too. I've ping-ponged between Evernote, OneNote, Obsidian, Notion, Confluence, and probably half a dozen other tools over the years. Now I just write markdown files and store them in a hierarchical folder structure. I use VSCode to write everything which gives basic formatting for italics, bold, and code highlighting as well as an outline of the headings. You can click on links to go to other files. It has a preview feature if you want to see embedded images or videos or HTML. I use an extension that lets you edit draw.io diagrams and embed them without leaving the editor (https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=hediet.vscode-drawio) Global search across all notes is instant. I have a few node.js scripts I've written to take care of automating some tasks, and since it's all markdown parsing it is easy with a library. I've even been built a VSCode extension to show all of the markdown files in a folder in a webview and lets you organize them on a grid (I'll probably release this + make it open source once some bugs are ironed out). Best part is, it's all just text files in git. I can read the formatted markdown files on github (and edit them in _any_ browser with https://vscode.dev/ !!!). It all works offline and syncing can be done with a click of a button.

#Regular Expressions #Programming Tools #Development 359 social mentions

8

Anki

What I miss from these conversations is an emphasis on memory. I know it has a bad rap, since it's not the same as understanding. But I have the feeling that most of our work relies on things that we've done so many times, they've been memorized and do not need to be looked up again. Have a look at Anki https://apps.ankiweb.net/, the tool that I use to make memory a choice. See also Michael Nielsen blog on this: https://augmentingcognition.com/ltm.html.

#Studying #Flash Cards #Spaced Repetition 844 social mentions

9

Foam

I cam across two alternatives for Roam Research: Foam. Built on Visual Studio Code and GitHub, Foam is early but already powerful. Write your content in markdown, use [[page]] for internal links, and explore your content with an interactive graph. The Backlinks Explorer lets you find all notes that link to a specific note. Foam also makes it easy to back up your notes on GitHub. [1] Athens. Quite ambitious, Athens aims to offer a full open-source version of Roam. Built with Clojure. It's founder wanted to work for Roam but was rejected because he didn't know Clojure. So he learned Clojure and started writing an open source alternative. Roam was rejected by YC but AThens was accepted. [2] [1] https://foambubble.github.io/foam/ [2] https://github.com/athensresearch/athens.

#Note Taking #Knowledge Base #Knowledge Management 45 social mentions