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Linking Items

Connect items to each other with links. Relationships like "these minutes are about this document" get their own axis, separate from tags.

How this differs from Obsidian

Melanite's links are not markup inside note text. They are directed references between item IDs, managed in the database like tags.

That's why any file kinds can link to each other — image → PDF, PDF → note, video → image, anything goes.

From the Inspector

  1. Select an item
  2. Focus the "Links" field in the Inspector
  3. The 10 most recently imported items appear as suggestions
  4. Typing filters them by name (display name and file name), with the closest names first
  5. Pick one with ↑↓ and press Enter (or click it) to create the link

Next to the highlighted suggestion, the same card you see when hovering over a link appears (thumbnail or the start of the text, plus the modified date), so you can tell similarly named items apart by their content. The suggestions for linking from multiple items at once work the same way.

The item itself and already-linked items are excluded from the suggestions.

Suggestions and the link list always show file extensions, so you can tell a .md from a .pdf of the same name (independent of the extension setting for lists). Long names in the suggestions wrap instead of being cut off, so the full name is always visible.

Separate words with spaces

Space-separated words all have to match, so only items whose name contains every word stay in the list (minutes 2026). Word order doesn't matter → Finding Items

From the note body ([[)

While writing a Markdown note, type [[ (half-width) to get link suggestions.

  1. Type [[ in the body (the 10 most recently imported items appear)
  2. Keep typing part of a name to narrow them down (names only and the same order as in the Inspector; space-separated words work too)
  3. Pick one with ↑↓ and Enter (or click it). Next to the highlighted suggestion, the same card you see when hovering a link in the Inspector (thumbnail or opening text, and the modified date) appears, so you can tell similar names apart by their contents

The [[… you typed is replaced with just the item's name (without extension), and a link from this note to that item is created. No [[ or ]] is left in the text. Press Esc to dismiss the suggestions (the editor stays open).

Linking to a note that doesn't exist yet

If you type a name after [[ and no suggestions appear, you get a single Create note “name” suggestion instead. Picking it replaces the [[… you typed with the name, creates a note with that name (name.md), and links to it.

  • The new note isn't opened (you stay in the note you're writing). Open it from the Inspector's "Links" field
  • The new note is empty and has no tags
  • It doesn't appear while similar names are suggested. Pick an existing one, or keep typing

Text and links are not kept in sync

The link is created once, when you pick a suggestion. Deleting or editing the name in the text later, or renaming the other item, leaves the link as it is. To remove a link, use the × in the Inspector's "Links" field.

Note

Full-width brackets (such as ［［ or 「「 typed in Japanese kana mode) don't trigger suggestions. You can type [[ first and then switch your input method to type the name. Suggestions don't appear inside code (``` blocks or ` spans).

By drag & drop

In the grid / list, drag an item onto another item. The link is created from the dragged item to the drop target.

If you grab an item that is part of the selection, links are created from the whole selection (self-links are skipped).

Linking to an item further down the list

While dragging, move the cursor near the top or bottom edge of the list and it scrolls automatically — faster the closer you get to the edge. Hold it at the bottom and the list keeps going as more items load.

Note

Dragging is disabled in the Trash view.

From multiple items at once

Select multiple items and a "Links (bulk)" field appears in the Inspector. It creates links from every selected item to the same target.

Adding only. Existing links differ per item, so edit them with a single selection.

The Inspector has two sections.

Section Contents
Links Items this one points to
Backlinks Items that point here

Each row shows a kind icon + file name.

  • Click — jump to that item
  • Hover — peek at what's inside (below)
  • Hover and × — remove the link

Both sections are editable. The "×" in the backlinks section removes the link the other item points here with, so there is no need to open that item to undo an accidental link. Removals can be undone with Cmd/Ctrl+Z.

Peeking inside

Rest the mouse on a name in Links, Backlinks or 2-hop links and a small card showing that item appears just left of the Inspector. You can check which one it is before jumping.

Item What the card shows
Images, videos, PDFs, etc. (anything with a thumbnail) The thumbnail
Notes and text files The start of the text (the same part shown on its card)
Anything else Its kind icon and extension

Below that are the full, untruncated file name and the modified date.

  • Moving across a row doesn't show it — pause briefly. Once a card is showing, moving to the next row switches it right away
  • Esc, a click, or scrolling the Inspector hides it
  • It also appears when you reach a name with Tab on the keyboard
  • The list's arrow keys keep working while it is showing

Only the beginning

Notes show only the first few lines, as on their cards. To read the whole thing, jump to it, or select it and use the Space preview.

How jumping behaves

Target Action
Note Opens in the editor
Anything else Switches to the grid, showing and selecting just that item

The target is shown via a filter, so it is visible even if it wouldn't be on the first page of the list. Clear it with the "×" on the toolbar chip (it also clears automatically on normal navigation).

Back to the list before the jump

Once you've checked where you landed, press Cmd+[ (Alt+Left on Windows, or your mouse's back button) to return to the search text, filters and selection from before the jump. → Back / forward

Press "Select N items" in the backlinks section to select all backlink sources in the grid, ready for the Inspector's bulk tag operations. The links section has the same "Select N items" button, which selects all link targets instead (everything below works the same way for both).

Your current tag, search and other filters stay on. It just adds one more condition, so — as with tags — the order doesn't matter:

  • Tag first: pick a tag in the Sidebar, then press the button to select only "backlink sources that also carry this tag". While other filters are on, the button reads "Select within filters" (hover it to see the original count)
  • Tag afterwards: clicking a tag after pressing it keeps the "Selected by backlinks of …" chip — the two stack the same way, and whatever is left gets selected again

The chip's "×" undoes it. If nothing matches, the list says so — press the "×" on the tag chip and every backlink source appears (the backlink filter stays).

Example

Say minutes, a quote, and slides all link to a "Project A kickoff" note. From the note's backlinks, "Select N items" → apply the "Project A" tag to all of them.

The Inspector can also list the items connected one step beyond the items you link with — the same idea as "2-hop links" in Scrapbox / Cosense. They are hidden by default: tick "Show 2-hop links" under Settings → Appearance → "2-hop links".

They appear below the backlinks section, grouped by the item they connect through.

2-hop links
 ▾ 📄 via design notes.md        [Select 4 items]
     📄 ADR summary.md
     📄 old design.md
     📕 spec.pdf
     🖼 diagram.png
 ▸ 🖼 via whiteboard.jpg         [Select 12 items]

For example, if your meeting minutes link to "design notes" and "ADR summary" also links to "design notes", the minutes show "ADR summary" under "via design notes.md".

  • Direction doesn't matter. Links the other item points out with and links pointing at it are both followed
  • An item reachable through several items appears in each of those groups
  • The item itself and anything it is directly connected to (backlinks included) are left out
  • Items in the Trash are left out (and are never used to connect through)
  • Groups are ordered smallest first — the fewer items, the closer the relationship

In each group:

  • Click the heading — collapse / expand (selecting another item expands them all again)
  • Click a name — jump to that item (same as How jumping behaves)
  • Hover over a name — peek at what's inside (same as Peeking inside)
  • "Select N items" — select every item in the group in the grid (same as the backlinks' "Select N items")

Each group shows up to 5 names, most recently modified first. When there are more, "N more" appears — use "Select N items" to see them all in the grid.

Note

2-hop rows have no "×" to remove them, since they aren't links this item made. To disconnect one, open the item it connects through and remove the link there.

In Melanite Viewer (iOS / iPadOS)

An item's details also have "Select N items" on Links, Backlinks and each 2-hop group. The Viewer has no multiple selection, so it filters to just those N items and goes back to the list (the Grid, List, Calendar and Map tabs all show the same N items). As on the desktop, your current tag and search filters stay on; while any are active, the button reads "Select within filters". Press "×" on the chip in the filter bar (such as "Backlinks of …") to undo it. "N more (show all)" in a 2-hop group still lists everything in place, without going back to the list.

State Links
Moved to Trash Kept
Deleted forever Removed with the item