Docs/Notes/Links

Links

Wiki-links are how you connect one note to another. Type a note's title inside double brackets and Minerva turns it into a live link you can click. A link can also carry a type — supports, rebuts, depends on, and more — so it says what kind of relationship it is, not just that one exists.

Writing a link

The simplest link is a note title wrapped in double brackets. From there you can add a few optional pieces:

[[target]]
Basic link. The target is the note you want to point at. Start typing after [[ and Minerva suggests matching notes.
[[target|display]]
Custom wording. Whatever you put after the | is shown in the note — handy when the title is long or reads awkwardly in a sentence.
[[target#Heading]]
Jump to a heading. Points at a specific heading inside the note rather than the top.
[[type::target]]
Typed link. Put a relationship type before the target, separated by :: — for example [[supports::climate-study]]. See the list below.

You can combine these however you like — a type, a heading, and custom wording all in one link:

This claim is well established.[[supports::experiment-log#Trial 4]]

See [[depends-on::auth-redesign|the redesign proposal]] before touching this.

Typed links

A typed link is shown in its own color, so you can see the shape of a note's connections at a glance. These types are built in:

references
References. General-purpose "points at" link. The default when no type is given.
supports
Supports. This note backs up the claim in the target.
rebuts
Rebuts. This note argues against the target.
load-bearing-for
Load-bearing for. Flags the target as critically dependent on the analysis in this note — a high-leverage link worth double-checking if this note turns out to be wrong.
expands
Expands. This note elaborates on or goes deeper into the target.
depends-on
Depends On. This note requires the target to hold.
implements
Implements. This note is a concrete realization of an idea or spec described in the target.
alternative-to
Alternative To. This note proposes a different approach to the same problem as the target.
supersedes
Supersedes. This note replaces the target — a signal the target may be stale.
related-to
Related To. A loose, non-directional relation — useful when a link matters but none of the sharper types fit.
cite
Cites. Points at a source rather than a note — the target is a bibliography-style reference, not another knowledge-base file.
quote
Quotes. Points at a specific excerpt anchored in a source, for a direct quotation rather than a general citation.
A note with several links in a sentence, each shown in a different color — a green "supports" link, a red "rebuts" link, and a plain blue untyped link.
Typed links, colored by relationship

Finding the right note

You don't have to type a note's title exactly. Minerva matches on the title, on any alternate names you've given the note in its properties, and even on a short unique piece of the name — so [[raft]] can find a note called "raft" tucked inside a folder. Wherever a link appears, clicking it takes you to the same place.

Tip

If two notes could match the same link, Minerva picks the first one it finds. Give notes distinct names, or add an alternate name in a note's properties, to make sure a link lands where you intend.

While editing, clicking a link jumps to the note it points at. Hold ⌘ (or Ctrl) and click to place your cursor inside the link and edit it instead.

Links to typed notes show as cards

When a link points at a typed note — a Book, a Person, a Place — and sits on a line by itself, the preview shows it as a card instead of a line of text: the note's cover picture or its type's icon, its title, and the few fields its type picks for cards, such as a Book's author. Click the card to open the note, just as you would the link. Export the note and the export shows the same card.

Inline links stay links
A link in the middle of a sentence is left as an ordinary link. Only a link with nothing else on its line becomes a card, and only when the note it points at has a type.
Cover pictures
A cover shows as a picture only when its value is a web address, starting http:// or https://. Otherwise the card shows the type's icon.
Choosing the fields
Which fields a card shows is set per type, with the card tick boxes in Settings → Object Types.

Links work in both directions. When you're reading a note, the Backlinks panel in the right sidebar lists every other note that links to it, each labeled and colored by its link type — so you can see at a glance which notes support, rebut, or merely reference the one you're looking at.

↩️
The Backlinks panel
The right sidebar lists the notes that link to the current one, each row showing the note's title and a colored badge for its link type, such as "SUPPORTS" or "RELATED TO".