{"id":31392209,"url":"https://github.com/bryanhogan/obsidian-vault-template","last_synced_at":"2026-05-15T13:07:26.852Z","repository":{"id":317115815,"uuid":"1066023268","full_name":"BryanHogan/obsidian-vault-template","owner":"BryanHogan","description":"A Obsidian vault as described on https://bryanhogan.com/blog/obsidian-vault","archived":false,"fork":false,"pushed_at":"2026-03-13T03:33:15.000Z","size":540,"stargazers_count":11,"open_issues_count":0,"forks_count":0,"subscribers_count":0,"default_branch":"master","last_synced_at":"2026-03-13T10:46:56.644Z","etag":null,"topics":["markdown","obsidian","obsidian-md","obsidian-template","obsidian-vault","obsidian-vault-t"],"latest_commit_sha":null,"homepage":"https://bryanhogan.com/blog/obsidian-vault","language":null,"has_issues":true,"has_wiki":null,"has_pages":null,"mirror_url":null,"source_name":null,"license":null,"status":null,"scm":"git","pull_requests_enabled":true,"icon_url":"https://github.com/BryanHogan.png","metadata":{"files":{"readme":"README.md","changelog":null,"contributing":null,"funding":null,"license":null,"code_of_conduct":null,"threat_model":null,"audit":null,"citation":null,"codeowners":null,"security":null,"support":null,"governance":null,"roadmap":null,"authors":null,"dei":null,"publiccode":null,"codemeta":null,"zenodo":null,"notice":null,"maintainers":null,"copyright":null,"agents":null,"dco":null,"cla":null}},"created_at":"2025-09-28T22:25:26.000Z","updated_at":"2026-03-13T03:33:19.000Z","dependencies_parsed_at":"2025-09-29T00:19:42.109Z","dependency_job_id":"86d47dad-98fc-42d3-a233-ff270722290d","html_url":"https://github.com/BryanHogan/obsidian-vault-template","commit_stats":null,"previous_names":["bryanhogan/obsidian-vault-template"],"tags_count":0,"template":false,"template_full_name":null,"purl":"pkg:github/BryanHogan/obsidian-vault-template","repository_url":"https://repos.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/hosts/GitHub/repositories/BryanHogan%2Fobsidian-vault-template","tags_url":"https://repos.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/hosts/GitHub/repositories/BryanHogan%2Fobsidian-vault-template/tags","releases_url":"https://repos.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/hosts/GitHub/repositories/BryanHogan%2Fobsidian-vault-template/releases","manifests_url":"https://repos.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/hosts/GitHub/repositories/BryanHogan%2Fobsidian-vault-template/manifests","owner_url":"https://repos.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/hosts/GitHub/owners/BryanHogan","download_url":"https://codeload.github.com/BryanHogan/obsidian-vault-template/tar.gz/refs/heads/master","sbom_url":"https://repos.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/hosts/GitHub/repositories/BryanHogan%2Fobsidian-vault-template/sbom","scorecard":null,"host":{"name":"GitHub","url":"https://github.com","kind":"github","repositories_count":286080680,"owners_count":33067520,"icon_url":"https://github.com/github.png","version":null,"created_at":"2022-05-30T11:31:42.601Z","updated_at":"2026-05-15T11:35:32.926Z","status":"ssl_error","status_checked_at":"2026-05-15T11:35:31.362Z","response_time":103,"last_error":"SSL_connect returned=1 errno=0 peeraddr=140.82.121.5:443 state=error: unexpected eof while reading","robots_txt_status":"success","robots_txt_updated_at":"2025-07-24T06:49:26.215Z","robots_txt_url":"https://github.com/robots.txt","online":false,"can_crawl_api":true,"host_url":"https://repos.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/hosts/GitHub","repositories_url":"https://repos.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/hosts/GitHub/repositories","repository_names_url":"https://repos.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/hosts/GitHub/repository_names","owners_url":"https://repos.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/hosts/GitHub/owners"}},"keywords":["markdown","obsidian","obsidian-md","obsidian-template","obsidian-vault","obsidian-vault-t"],"created_at":"2025-09-29T03:59:53.573Z","updated_at":"2026-05-15T13:07:26.846Z","avatar_url":"https://github.com/BryanHogan.png","language":null,"funding_links":[],"categories":[],"sub_categories":[],"readme":"# README\n\n# Obsidian Vault Template\n\nA clean, durable Obsidian Vault setup, focussing on simplicity, bottom-up approaches, using as little as possible plugins or similar adjustments. It's what I use for daily for writing, research, projects and collections for books or games.\n\n**Companion post:** [*Obsidian vault setup tour*](https://bryanhogan.com/blog/obsidian-vault) - goes deeper into the setup and ideas behind this template.\n\n---\n\n## Table of contents\n\n- [README](#readme)\n- [Obsidian Vault Template](#obsidian-vault-template)\n  - [Table of contents](#table-of-contents)\n  - [Why this template?](#why-this-template)\n  - [Quick start](#quick-start)\n  - [Folder tour](#folder-tour)\n  - [Core conventions](#core-conventions)\n  - [Smart notes (bottom-up)](#smart-notes-bottom-up)\n  - [Navigation \\\u0026 Bases](#navigation--bases)\n  - [Templates](#templates)\n  - [Recommended plugins](#recommended-plugins)\n  - [Common workflows](#common-workflows)\n    - [Capture a new insight (Zettel)](#capture-a-new-insight-zettel)\n    - [Start a project](#start-a-project)\n    - [Log a book or game](#log-a-book-or-game)\n    - [Draft a blog post](#draft-a-blog-post)\n  - [Syncing between desktop \\\u0026 mobile](#syncing-between-desktop--mobile)\n  - [FAQ](#faq)\n  - [Contributing \\\u0026 customization](#contributing--customization)\n  - [Recent changes](#recent-changes)\n    - [Credits \\\u0026 further reading](#credits--further-reading)\n\n---\n\n## Why this template?\n\n* **Stable, future-proof**: Sticks to plain Markdown and Obsidian core features.\n* **Lightweight**: Minimal folder count, minimal plugins, zero CSS snippets.\n* **Bottom-up**: Notes grow into Maps of Content (MOCs) organically.\n* **Multi-purpose**: Works for writing, research, personal projects, and collections.\n\nBuilt to **help your other work**, instead of becoming the work.\n\n---\n\n## Quick start\n\n1. Download my vault or clone it from the Github repo.\n2. Unzip the `.zip` file to a folder of your choosing.\n3. In Obsidian open the folder as a vault.\n\n---\n\n## Folder tour\n\nEach top-level item is a folder:\n\n```\n01 - Note Box/           → Zettels, projects, blog posts, scripts, locations, and MoCs\n02 - Collections/        → Subfolders: Books, Clippings, Games\n03 - Tasks \u0026 Reminders/  → Monthly task notes\n04 - Temporary/          → Short-lived scratch notes\n05 - Meta/               → Archive, Attachments, Bases, Templates\n```\n\n**Rules of thumb**\n\n* Knowledge notes, projects \u0026 writing → **Note Box**\n* Media \u0026 external content → **Collections**\n* Things to get done this month → **Tasks \u0026 Reminders**\n* Remove soon → **Temporary**\n* Vault config \u0026 templates → **Meta**\n\n---\n\n## Core conventions\n\n* **Keep it simple.**\n* Prefer **one vault** over many.\n* **Minimize folders**; use links, tags, and MOCs for structure.\n* Stick to **standard Markdown** (future-proof).\n* **Pluralize tags / links** (e.g., `[[books]]`, `[[games]]`).\n* Dates in **`YYYY-MM-DD`**.\n\nTheme: Obsidian **basic dark**.\n\n---\n\n## Smart notes (bottom-up)\n\nThe `01 - Note Box` folder is the most important folder in the vault. It contains:\n\n* **Zettel notes** - long-lasting knowledge notes that explain one concept (atomic) and **link** to related topics with `[[Wiki Links]]`.\n* **Project notes** - notes belonging to a project or problem that can end.\n* **Blog posts, scripts, locations** - other note types that also live here alongside everything else.\n\nTopics naturally attract clusters; those clusters become **MoCs** (Map of Content). The pattern: Individual notes → Topic pages → MOCs. Project notes show up in project overviews (using Bases) when they are of type `Project`.\n\nIf you're new to this style, see the [blog's section on smart notes / Zettelkasten](https://bryanhogan.com/blog/obsidian-vault#smart-notes-bottom-up-note-taking).\n\n---\n\n## Navigation \u0026 Bases\n\nObsidian [Bases](https://help.obsidian.md/bases) let you display notes in table, list, or card views with filtering and sorting.\n\nThis vault uses Bases in combination with the **FolderNotes** plugin to create overview pages. Clicking on `01 - Note Box` or `02 - Collections` opens a folder note that includes Bases listing all relevant MOCs, active projects, and other content — ending with a complete list of all notes in that folder.\n\nBetween in-note links, MOCs with Bases, and Obsidian's built-in search, relevant information doesn't get lost.\n\n---\n\n## Templates\n\nEnable **Templates** (core plugin) and set the template folder to `05 - Meta/Templates`. Choose a hotkey with which to insert a template (I use `Ctrl + R`).\n\nTemplates used in **Note Box**: `Zettel`, `Project`, `Blog Post`, `MoC`, `Script`\nTemplates used in **Collections**: `Book`, `Game`\nTemplates used in **Tasks \u0026 Reminders**: `Tasks \u0026 Reminders`\n\nAdditional utility templates: `Location`, `Incoming Links Base Template`, `iFrame Snippet`.\n\nEach template pre-fills sensible **properties** and **sections** so you can start typing immediately.\n\n---\n\n## Recommended plugins\n\nI keep the list short to reduce load time and breakage risk.\n\n* **FolderNotes** — Open a folder's \"home note\" when clicking the folder.\n  [https://github.com/LostPaul/obsidian-folder-notes](https://github.com/LostPaul/obsidian-folder-notes)\n* **Filename Heading Sync** — Keeps the file name in sync with your first `# Heading`.\n  [https://github.com/dvcrn/obsidian-filename-heading-sync](https://github.com/dvcrn/obsidian-filename-heading-sync)\n* **LanguageTool Integration** — Spell/grammar checking.\n  [https://github.com/Clemens-E/obsidian-languagetool-plugin](https://github.com/Clemens-E/obsidian-languagetool-plugin)\n* **Periodic Notes** — For monthly Tasks \u0026 Reminders notes.\n  [https://github.com/liamcain/obsidian-periodic-notes](https://github.com/liamcain/obsidian-periodic-notes)\n\n---\n\n## Common workflows\n\n### Capture a new insight (Zettel)\n\n1. `Ctrl/Cmd + O` type name → create if it's a new note → **Insert** `Zettel Template`.\n2. Link related topics with `[[Topic]]`.\n3. When a cluster forms, create a **MoC** with `MoC Template`.\n\n### Start a project\n\n1. Create a note in `01 - Note Box/` from `Project Template`.\n2. Track scope, decisions, links to related notes.\n3. If the project grows, add a **MoC** to tie its notes together.\n\n### Log a book or game\n\n* Use the relevant template in `02 - Collections/` subfolders (`Books`, `Games`).\n\n### Draft a blog post\n\n* Use `Blog Post Template` in `01 - Note Box/`.\n\n---\n\n## Syncing between desktop \u0026 mobile\n\nThis vault is plain Markdown, so you can use **any** sync (Obsidian Sync, iCloud/Drive, Dropbox, Git, etc.).\nMy setup:\n\n* **Backup**: personal GitHub private repo.\n* **Sync**: Google Drive (Drive for Desktop on Windows + DriveSync on Android).\n\nFor pros/cons and alternatives, see my blog's [**how to sync Obsidian**](https://bryanhogan.com/blog/how-to-sync-obsidian) guide.\n\n---\n\n## FAQ\n\n**Why one vault instead of many?**\nCross-linking is the superpower. Multiple vaults fragment knowledge and slow you down.\n\n**Why so few folders?**\nFolders are \"hard\" structure. Links, tag links, and MoCs stay flexible as ideas evolve.\n\n**Do I need all the plugins?**\nNo. Start with **none**. Add only what solves a real problem.\n\n**How do I keep titles and file names in sync without showing file names as H1?**\nDisable \"Show file name as title\" and use **Filename Heading Sync**.\n\n---\n\n## Contributing \u0026 customization\n\n* Fork the repo and adjust:\n  * Rename top-level folders to your taste.\n  * Edit templates in `05 - Meta/Templates/`.\n  * Tweak folder overview notes and Bases.\n\n* PRs welcome for:\n  * Additional lightweight templates,\n  * Better folder overviews using Bases,\n  * Further small quality-of-life improvements.\n\nIf you publish your own variation, link it in a PR and I'll add a \"Community Variants\" list.\n\n---\n\n## Recent changes\n\n**Version 2.0:**\n\n* **Updated folder structure**: Went from 4 top-level folders to 5. Added `03 - Tasks \u0026 Reminders` for monthly task notes. `Temporary` and `Meta` renumbered to `04` and `05`.\n* **Heavier use of Bases**: Replaced Dataview with Obsidian's built-in Bases for creating overviews and structure throughout the vault.\n* **Updated plugins**: Removed Dataview, added Periodic Notes for monthly task notes.\n* **Updated templates and properties**: All templates updated with streamlined properties. Added `Tasks \u0026 Reminders` template.\n\n**Previous:**\n\n* **Simplified folder structure**: Went from 6 top-level folders to 4. `Zettelkasten` → `Note Box`, `Miscellaneous` → `Meta`, and `Projects` was removed as a dedicated folder.\n* **Streamlined templates**: Dropped the numbered prefix naming (e.g., `01A - Zettel.md` → `Zettel Template.md`). Added new templates: Location and Script.\n* **Fewer plugins**: Cut the recommended list from 7 to 4 — removed Book Search, Home Tab, and Lazy Plugin Loader.\n\n---\n\n### Credits \u0026 further reading\n\n* Companion post: [*Obsidian vault setup tour*](https://bryanhogan.com/blog/obsidian-vault)\n* On smart notes / Zettelkasten, MOCs, and bottom-up knowledge building ([see the blog post](https://bryanhogan.com/blog/obsidian-zettelkasten)).\n\n\u003e P.S. If you find this helpful, let me know!\n","project_url":"https://awesome.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/projects/github.com%2Fbryanhogan%2Fobsidian-vault-template","html_url":"https://awesome.ecosyste.ms/projects/github.com%2Fbryanhogan%2Fobsidian-vault-template","lists_url":"https://awesome.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/projects/github.com%2Fbryanhogan%2Fobsidian-vault-template/lists"}