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https://github.com/3c0d/obsidian-smart-print

smart print via navigator of obsidian notes
https://github.com/3c0d/obsidian-smart-print

Last synced: 4 months ago
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smart print via navigator of obsidian notes

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README 

          
# Obsidian Smart Print



Enhanced and customizable printing for Obsidian notes, with intelligent rendering, live preview, and full control over fonts, headers, and styles.



![Browser Print Preview](assets/Browser-print.png)



**See the print quality:** [View print results gallery](examples/PRINT-RESULTS.md) | [View sample document](examples/sample.md)



## ⚠️ Desktop Only (Temporary)



**This plugin is currently desktop-only.** Mobile support exists in the code but has not been tested or debugged.



## Quick Start



1. **Install the plugin** and enable it

2. **Right-click in the editor** or on a file in the explorer

3. **Select a print option** from the context menu

4. **Adjust options** in the modal (optional)

5. **Print!** The plugin automatically uses the best rendering method



**Alternative ways to print:**



- **Right-click on files/folders** → Print from explorer

- **Right-click in editor** → Print note or selection

- **Command palette** → Search "Smart Print"

- **Ribbon icon** (optional, disabled by default) → Enable in settings



## Features



### 🎯 Intelligent Printing



Smart Print automatically chooses the best rendering method for your content:



- **Advanced rendering** (with post-render for Mermaid, Dataview, LaTeX, etc.) - Used for the active note and selections (desktop only)

- **Basic rendering** (no post-render) - Used for non-visible documents and all mobile printing

- **Automatic fallback** - Seamlessly switches between modes based on context



**What renders perfectly with advanced mode:**



- ✅ Mermaid diagrams

- ✅ Dataview queries

- ✅ Callouts with icons

- ✅ Tables, lists, code blocks

- ✅ Images and links

- ✅ Embedded images

- ✅ Nested checkboxes with proper indentation

- ✅ Custom theme colors

- ✅ Personalized styles with `.obsidian-print` CSS prefix



### 📋 Print Options Modal



Every print command opens a simple modal where you can:



![Print Modal](assets/modal.png)



- **Quick toggles** for common options. ⚠️ only relevant options are shown based on your document content:

  - Include note title (if the document has an H1 identical to the filename, it's automatically hidden to avoid duplication)

  - Use H1 as title (only if document contains an H1 different from the filename)

  - Show metadata (displayed at the end of the document)

  - Hide images (only if document contains images)

  - Hide embedded notes (only if document contains embeds)

  - Page breaks at horizontal rules (`---`) (only if document contains horizontal rules)

  - Show Obsidian comments (`%% ... %%`) (only if document contains comments)

  - Print in color or black & white

- **Font settings** with 20+ cross-platform font options

- **Auto-sync heading sizes:** All heading sizes automatically adjust when you change the **font size**



### 🎯 Multiple Ways to Print



**From anywhere in Obsidian:**



- **Ribbon icon** → Print current note

- **Command palette** → Search "Smart Print"

  - "Current note" - Print with modal

  - "Quick print" - Print immediately without modal

  - "Selection" - Print selected text only

  - "All notes in current folder" - Batch print



- **Right-click** on files/folders in explorer → Print options

- **Right-click** in editor → Print note or selection



**What you can print:**



- **Current note** (active document) - Advanced rendering

- **Selected text only** (from editor) - Advanced rendering (desktop), basic rendering (mobile)

- **Any note** (from file explorer) - Advanced rendering if visible in editor, otherwise basic

- **All notes in a folder** - Advanced rendering (desktop), basic rendering (mobile)



### 🌐 Browser-Based Printing in Desktop version



- **Opens in your default browser** for maximum compatibility and print options

- **Print window appears automatically** when the browser window opens

- **Tip:** Close the print window to view the preview window under, then press `Ctrl+P` (or `Cmd+P`) to reopen print window



## Settings Guide



### Font & Typography



- **Font family:** Choose from 20+ cross-platform fonts (Arial, Times, Roboto, Ubuntu, Georgia, Fira Code, and many more)

- **Font size:** Base size with automatic heading synchronization option

- **Auto-sync headings:** When enabled, changing the base font size automatically adjusts all heading sizes proportionally

- **Individual heading sizes:** Fine-tune each heading level (H1-H6) independently



### Colors & Styling



- **Header colors:** Set individual colors for each heading level

- **Import theme colors:** One-click import from your current theme (light mode)

- **Print in color:** Toggle between color and black & white output

- **Custom CSS:** Advanced styling with `.obsidian-print` prefix (desktop only)

  - Create a `print.css` file in `.obsidian/snippets/`

  - Use `.obsidian-print` as prefix for your selectors

  - Example: `.obsidian-print a { color: blue; text-decoration: underline; }`

  - No need for `!important` - your styles will apply automatically

  - The "Print in color" toggle in the modal will still work as expected



### Print Behavior



- **Page breaks:** Treat horizontal rules (`---`) as page breaks

- **Metadata display:** Include/exclude frontmatter in prints (displayed at the end of the document)

- **Hide images:** Toggle to exclude all images from print output

- **Folder printing:** Combine all notes or separate pages

- **Skip preview:** Print directly without preview window



### UI & UX



- **Show ribbon icon:** Toggle printer icon in left sidebar

- **Show context menu items:** Enable/disable right-click print options

- **Group in submenu:** Organize context menu items under "Smart Print" submenu

- **Show print mode selection:** Display options modal before printing (desktop only)

- **Show folder print options modal:** Display options when printing folders



## Tips & Tricks



💡 **Temporary files:** During advanced rendering of selections, and as a fallback for folder prints when a file isn't open in any editor leaf, a temporary `_smart-print-tmp` folder is created at the vault root and automatically deleted after use



💡 **Show comments:** Enabling "Show comments" for Obsidian comments (`%% ... %%`) switches to basic rendering since comments are stripped by Obsidian before the preview DOM is built



💡 **Rich print titles:** Obsidian filenames can't contain special characters like `:`, `?`, `/`, etc. To print with a more expressive title, add an H1 at the top of your note (e.g., `# My Report: 2024 Results`) and enable "Use H1 as title" in the print modal — the H1 will replace the filename as the document title



💡 **Theme integration:** Use "Get theme colors" in settings to match your Obsidian theme



💡 **Auto-sync workflow:** Enable "Auto-sync heading sizes" for consistent typography – all headings automatically scale when you change the base font size



💡 **Font variety:** The plugin includes web-safe fonts and popular options like Roboto, Ubuntu, Georgia, and Fira Code for different document styles



💡 **Custom styling:** Create a `print.css` file in `.obsidian/snippets/` with `.obsidian-print` selectors. No `!important` needed - your styles apply automatically and respect the "Print in color" toggle



💡 **Quick printing:** Use "Quick print" command to skip the modal and print immediately



💡 **Folder printing:** Print entire folders with a dedicated modal for batch options



💡 **Mobile friendly:** Full feature support on mobile devices with optimized interface



💡 **Image control:** Use the "Hide images" toggle to print text-only versions of your notes



💡 **Metadata placement:** When enabled, frontmatter is displayed at the end of the document with a "Frontmatter" label



💡 **Embedded images:** The plugin automatically converts embedded images to base64 for reliable printing across all platforms



💡 **Embedded files:** Embedded notes (`![[note]]`) are rendered inline with a subtle border and title for easy identification



💡 **Adaptive modal:** Print options automatically adapt to your document content - only relevant toggles are shown based on what's in your note



## Technical Details



### Rendering Strategy



Smart Print uses an intelligent capture strategy:



1. **Tries advanced DOM capture** - Captures the live preview exactly as you see it

2. **Falls back gracefully** - Uses standard Markdown rendering if DOM capture fails

3. **Handles edge cases** - Special handling for selections, folder prints, and non-active files via temporary file capture



### Print Engines



- **Browser print** (desktop): Opens in system browser for maximum compatibility and options

- **Printd** (mobile/desktop): In-app printing with Electron/mobile print dialog