[HN Gopher] Neorg - organize your life in Neovim
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       Neorg - organize your life in Neovim
        
       Author : Brajeshwar
       Score  : 85 points
       Date   : 2024-03-26 15:16 UTC (7 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (github.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (github.com)
        
       | ashton314 wrote:
       | Are there docs that I can _read_? Seems like several links are
       | broken on the README.
        
         | b33j0r wrote:
         | Oh the projects we wouldn't share until they were perfect. I'm
         | going to give this one some chance. Aren't we all dreaming of
         | this? (No offense emacs, love you).
         | 
         | But I do have the same question. Docs. Can we help?
        
           | yjftsjthsd-h wrote:
           | Sharing anything is better than sharing nothing, but it is
           | worth keeping in mind that how useful other people will find
           | it is directly based on how quickly they can figure it out
           | and use it.
        
           | cogman10 wrote:
           | It's not a terribly young project (~2 years old) so you might
           | expect a bit more maturity around the docs.
           | 
           | I installed it prior to this hn post and it works, but is a
           | bit hard to discover what you can do with it.
        
         | tinycombinator wrote:
         | I tried clicking on "Usage Modules" but it seems like it's not
         | in there yet. The documentation seems to be an incomplete item
         | on their roadmap: "Develop and ship a Neorg landing page with
         | documentation, presumably with docasaurus."
         | 
         | https://github.com/nvim-neorg/neorg/blob/main/ROADMAP.md
        
         | jasonjmcghee wrote:
         | This seems like what they have
         | 
         | https://github.com/nvim-neorg/neorg/wiki
        
       | draxil wrote:
       | So org-mode for vim I think?
       | 
       | I expect that's nice if you don't like emacs for some strange
       | reason :D (and indeed object to setting up evil mode).
       | 
       | My curiosity is dampened by it not really explaining on the wiki
       | very well and trying to force me to watch a video.
        
         | Zambyte wrote:
         | It seems to be heavily inspired by Org, but not exactly the
         | same. I skimmed through the first video (that seems to be the
         | only documentation they have?) and at least the hyperlinking
         | was different.
        
       | happy-dude wrote:
       | nvim-orgmode [1] is also available. Knowledge from emacs orgmode
       | should carry over without much issue. I didn't feel like there
       | was a need to reinvent the wheel like neorg does when there were
       | powerful notetaking solutions available; does anyone have a
       | comparison breakdown of features and capabilities?
       | 
       | [1] https://github.com/nvim-orgmode/orgmode
        
       | lawn wrote:
       | I started using Neorg for my personal notes, but I found it
       | really difficult to adapt to the markup language.
       | 
       | It's silly I know, but I vastly prefer writing in markdown and
       | it's relatives than in Neorg (or org mode for that matter).
       | 
       | It was also weird that they chose to be incompatible with org
       | mode, ditching all tooling around it in the process.
        
         | fileeditview wrote:
         | Same for me. I just use vimwiki with markdown as doc format.
         | Works great for me. If you have simple needs I can recommend
        
           | rwdf wrote:
           | Same, but I use wiki.vim. Great for daily journalling.
        
         | BeetleB wrote:
         | I find the org mode keybindings fairly ergonomic in Emacs,
         | which is one reason I prefer org mode. Did they not migrate the
         | keybindings to Neorg? Especially the use of Alt-Ret and TAB
         | cycling...
        
         | fwip wrote:
         | I've been using zk-nvim[0], it works well enough for me and
         | uses Markdown.
         | 
         | [0]: https://github.com/zk-org/zk-nvim
        
       | packetlost wrote:
       | The fact that the markup language isn't even remotely similar to
       | Markdown is a non-starter for me.
        
         | iLemming wrote:
         | Even though I use Vim I never used Neorg. I suppose they use
         | the same markup as in Org-mode.
         | 
         | Org-mode is far more superior than Markdown. Again, I don't
         | know about Neorg, but Org-mode in Emacs supports tons of
         | interesting things that don't exist in Markdown, - things like
         | "smart" datetime stamps where you can calculate the difference
         | between dates, change the date and it would automatically
         | adjust the day of week, or pick a date using the calendar UI;
         | 
         | - it supports time clocking - you can for example use pomodoro
         | to automatically clock you in and out for each task, and then
         | later build a time report, showing you how much time you spent
         | on each task;
         | 
         | - priorities and tags; habit tracking and task management;
         | 
         | - tables that you can use like spreadsheets in Excel - can you
         | do calculations in your Markdown tables?;
         | 
         | - embedded LaTeX snippets - indispensable if you need formulas
         | and stuff;
         | 
         | - exporting to many different formats - e.g., you can easily
         | turn your notes into a reveal.js presentation;
         | 
         | And of course code blocks. But not just static code blocks, you
         | can run them and see the results. Moreover, you can for
         | instance run some curl command, pipe the results into a
         | javascript code block, then results of that calculation pipe
         | into a python block and finally into some other backend that
         | generates a graph.
         | 
         | In addition, there are tons of plugins you can use for example
         | to automatically git commit your notes. Or have Zettelkasten
         | system like in Roamresearch, Loqseq or Obsidian. You can keep
         | your pdf annotations that automatically sync with the book, or
         | keep notes to a codebase, where each note correlates to
         | specific file, line or function in your code. Or you can manage
         | your Anki cards to help you retain information - your notes and
         | the anki cards would be the same, you wouldn't have to store
         | and maintain the same info in two different places.
         | 
         | So, my suggestion is that before dismissing any tool that
         | doesn't look very familiar to you or the majority of your
         | peers, maybe first try to understand why some people choose to
         | use that tool, even though it seems to contradict more popular
         | choice.
        
           | ChilledTonic wrote:
           | No, Neorg does not use the same markup as Org-mode. They use
           | their own specification that is specifically designed to be
           | different from Org-mode spec.
           | 
           | https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvim-neorg/norg-
           | specs/main...
           | 
           | Furthermore, each item you have listed as a benefit to Org-
           | mode is in fact capable of being done in Markdown via plugins
           | for neovim, and probably other markdown editors, like Loqseq,
           | Roamresearch, or Obisidian, much in the same way you speak of
           | plugins that interface with .org docs.
           | 
           | https://github.com/wthollingsworth/pomodoro.nvim
           | 
           | https://github.com/Myzel394/easytables.nvim
           | 
           | https://github.com/vimwiki/vimwiki
           | 
           | So, my suggestion is that before dismissing a comment
           | regarding a plugin that is unfamiliar to you, is to read its
           | spec, and then try to understand why people would be perhaps
           | dismissive of that tool, especially when it chooses to
           | conflict with existing, more popular choices.
        
             | iLemming wrote:
             | > No, Neorg does not use the same markup as Org-mode.
             | 
             | Okay, I admit I assumed that prematurely. I do stand by my
             | words though - Org-mode in Emacs is much more capable than
             | Markdown in any other editor or a specialized tool I have
             | seen. Emacs is not without flaws, and Org-mode also has
             | weaknesses. Sometimes Markdown is a better tool for certain
             | things, but when strictly comparing capabilities and
             | potential, Org-mode would be ahead. Anyone who has used it
             | sufficiently would attest to that.
        
           | packetlost wrote:
           | All of this is possible in markdown. None of that is specific
           | to the text format, it's all in the tooling, of which
           | Markdown is _unrivaled_. Sorry, Org is not that popular in
           | the grand scheme of things, just with Emacs people.
           | 
           | The problem is neorg is neither Markdown nor Org and I'm not
           | bothering to use a one-off format for this one tool.
        
             | iLemming wrote:
             | Yes, indeed, many of these individual features I listed,
             | are available in other tools. For example:
             | 
             | - Literate programming can be done in Jupyter Notebooks, R
             | Markdown, and other computational notebooks.
             | 
             | - Advanced to-do tracking, agenda views, and tagging are
             | available in productivity tools like Asana, Trello, and
             | Todoist.
             | 
             | - Customizable exports can be done in many document
             | preparation systems like LaTeX or pandoc.
             | 
             | - Spreadsheets and calculations are, of course, native to
             | Excel and Google Sheets.
             | 
             | However, the real power of org-mode - and what makes it
             | stand out - lies in the integration and synergy of all
             | these components in one place, inside a powerful text
             | editor (Emacs). This tight integration is harder to achieve
             | when you're using various separate tools to accomplish the
             | same tasks.
             | 
             | It not only makes org-mode a versatile tool for many text-
             | related tasks (note-taking, programming, writing papers,
             | planning projects, managing to-dos), but also allows these
             | tasks to naturally intertwine and interact. For example,
             | you could extract to-dos directly from your code comments,
             | or include executable code snippets in your project plan.
             | 
             | Moreover, as a component of Emacs, org-mode can tap into
             | the vast ecosystem of Emacs plugins and extensions, meaning
             | you can further extend its capabilities to suit your
             | particular needs.
             | 
             | So, while it's true that many of these individual features
             | can be found elsewhere, the unique combination and
             | integration offered by org-mode give it a singular and
             | valuable position in the tools landscape.
             | 
             | > Markdown is unrivaled.
             | 
             | Respectfully, I disagree. Yes, Markdown is more popular.
             | Yet, in the hands of an experienced Emacs user, things that
             | are possible to do with Org-mode can sometimes be on
             | another level of awesome. You just probably haven't seen
             | it.
        
             | eadmund wrote:
             | > it's all in the tooling, of which Markdown is
             | _unrivaled_.
             | 
             | The tooling for Emacs is unrivaled. Markdown is, honestly,
             | pretty cool: it's probably the best thing the John Gruber
             | has ever done. I think that it's arguable that Markdown
             | will survive everyone now alive on Earth.
             | 
             | But I believe that Emacs will last longer still, because
             | Emacs is not a text format but a powerful user-extensible
             | environment. As long as general-purpose computers are
             | legal, folks will use something recognisable as an Emacs.
        
       | VTimofeenko wrote:
       | I gave this project and nvim-orgmode honest tries about a year
       | ago but ultimately went back to Emacs even though I only use it
       | for org mode and email these days.
       | 
       | There's just too many org-adjacent packages already written in
       | elisp. Plus, terminal independent image rendering just works in
       | Emacs.
        
       | ChilledTonic wrote:
       | I appreciate the idea of having an org-mode equivalent in Vim,
       | but man do the docs suck for this project. Lots of broken links,
       | very hard to discover how to actually hit the ground running.
       | 
       | I hate this trend of having video explainers before having
       | actually functional docs. I have no interest in watching someone
       | fumble around a Youtube video when I could alternatively just
       | Ctrl+F a docs page and find the information I need.
       | 
       | For anyone interested, there are alternatives that are more
       | Markdown compatible. Vimwiki, as an example, is great.
       | 
       | https://github.com/vimwiki/vimwiki
        
       | melodyogonna wrote:
       | I thank Neorg for making me learn about Obsidian.
        
         | tmerse wrote:
         | There also is obsidian.nvim [1] if you want to mix and match
         | obsidian and neovim for using/editing obsidian vaults.
         | 
         | 1: https://github.com/epwalsh/obsidian.nvim
        
           | Ringz wrote:
           | I use this combination for months and can recommend it.
        
       | dang wrote:
       | Related:
       | 
       |  _Neorg - Life Organization Tool Written in Lua for Neovim_ -
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29330805 - Nov 2021 (5
       | comments)
       | 
       |  _Neorg: Neovim 0.5's answer to modern life organization_ -
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27802153 - July 2021 (72
       | comments)
        
       | lilboiluvr69 wrote:
       | Anybody know how this compares to org-mode? Specifically in terms
       | of a customizable agenda?
        
       | Nijikokun wrote:
       | Think Obsidian for neovim
       | 
       | It has it's own language (not markdown) and key bindings
       | 
       | I find it harder to use than markdown with wiki link support
        
       | ShitHNDorksSay wrote:
       | "Organize life using terminal tech" - some self-perceived "10x
       | developer" tech idiot
        
       | SuperNinKenDo wrote:
       | I'd really like to see what the value proposition is over org-
       | mode first and foremost. Yes it runs on Neovim (is it exclusive
       | to Neovim?), but vim-orgmode is a thing.
       | 
       | From watching the videos, the guy mentions that a problem early
       | on was that it was constantly compared to org-mode, which was
       | confusing to people not familiar with org-mode, so I guess
       | they're trying to get away from that?
       | 
       | I watched a few videos and saw syntax and features almost
       | identical to the most basic level of org-mode.
       | 
       | The one feature it seems to have over org is that it uses a C++
       | based parser, which might be faster than the mostly elisp parser
       | from org-mode? But even that means it relies on features of
       | C++14, which isn't included with macOS, so I'm left feeling like
       | this is half anti-feature compared to org-mode's highly portable
       | parser: If Emacs works, org-mode will work, and Emacs is mostly
       | elisp itself, so if the elisp interpreter works, Emacs will work.
       | 
       | If I can run an executable I can run org-mode essentially, but
       | this requires I'm allowed to install a whole new compiler on a
       | machine before using it.
       | 
       | I think it was Prot that put forward a strong case for building
       | an org-mode specification with multiple compatibility levels, so
       | that tools for other platforms could say they implement a certain
       | subset of its features and syntax using a simple shorthand like
       | "Org-Mode Level 3 Compatible". I'd like to see that effort go
       | further.
        
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       (page generated 2024-03-26 23:01 UTC)