Use DTP as my library/research house - already do this.
Use Obsidian as my notebook, only Markdown, with links, inter alia, to DT - already do this also.
Be able to search my Obsidian notes within DT
The issue: Obsidian is using Obsidian sync, so indexing with DT is likely to mess with this.
My setup: 1 Macbook, 1 iPad. DTP 4. Obsidian.
Any ideas? (I am invested in using these programs as Library/Notebook as it seems to meet my style perfectly - except for the issue).
I have thought about using, say, Hazel to automatically keep a duplicate Obsidian dB that I can index, but that seems clunky, and I lose the link to Obsidian.
Fool’s paradise?
Thanks for any suggestions to solve this if it is indeed possible in a robust and automated way.
For anyone who might have similar thoughts, here are my test experiences (so far):
My setup is:
DT and Obsidian on laptop, DTTG and Obsidian on iPad
Local sync for DT, Obsidian sync for Obsidian (!)
I created a test DB in DT to index the duplicate of a fairly small existing vault in Obsidian.
Other than the vault setup to sync in Obsidian I did nothing else.
Everything seems to be working well:
Indexing went well
New Md note in Obsidian-Laptop - followed soon to DT.
New Md note in Obsidian-iPad - ditto
Edit existing Md note in DT - No issues, followed soon to both Obsidians (Note: This is not my use case, but I wanted to see what would happen. This was a small edit to a small note, in case that might be important.)
Create .txt file in DT - followed to Obsidian-Laptop, but not Obs-iPad.
I converted the .txt to .md via the menu in Dt - followed perfectly to both Obsidians, although the delete of the .txt from DT did not seem to follow to Obsidian.
Created a new Md text in DT - followed soon to Obsidian.
For me this is a fantastic success. I can now search and research in DT, and still keep my notes in Obsidian. When my brain farts, or my fat fingers slip, there is not likely to be any issue.
Before I used a dodgy DT json script ChatGPT crafted for me that performed some of this, but was quite fragile.
In my search of the forums, it became apparent that indexing CHANGES the file metadata. There does not seem to be a way to index in a read-only way, which would solve the issue for me. Am I incorrect in this?
DEVONthink gets metadata for creation and modification dates from the Finder. It applies its own Addition Date internally. But other changes depend on what you’re doing in DEVONthink.
Thanks. Yes, I’ll do that, but I find it easier to learn from the experience of others. It’s the strength of forums. And my single test might miss something. But now, I am ready to test! Thanks again.
DEVONthink doesn’t change anything on its own. Therefore as long as you (including your scripts or smart rules) do not organize, modify, rename, tag the indexed files or change their URL or comment, you should be fine. The Finder comment probably doesn’t matter (I doubt that Obsidian’s sync handles this or extended attributes like tags or URL) and exporting of Finder tags can be disabled in Settings > Files > Tags since version 4.
As may every single experience shared in the forum. Which is also in many cases tied to an unspecified environment. You can’t, btw, „lock“ a database in DT.
I see. Otoh, I don’t see what the point of locking a DB in the OP’s setup would be: if they add a new file to the Obsidian vault, a locked DT database indexing that vault would not see the new file. Or would it?
Respectfully, you’re missing the point I was trying to make:
If I’m lucky, I might find a gazillion posts discussing this topic. And, the more posts there are, the more prepared I might be. It is a given that all posts on fora are at least somewhat anecdotal. But the point is that many anecdotes sometimes give a clue. And prevent wasted effort.
Mostly based on my misunderstanding. My concern was that by “changing” the DT dB by editing, even accidentally adding a space, etc, it might change the indexed file metadata and cause syncing conflicts. So the locking was to prevent me from editing a file I was using for search only. As I stated in the update at the edited bottom of my original post, I tested it, and all seems good.
