What features does HelixNotes offer for editing and organizing notes?

HelixNotes is a local Markdown note-taking app built on Rust and Tauri, and its editing and organizing features are aimed at people who want rich editing on top of plain .md files they own. The core set covers a WYSIWYG editor with a source mode, [[wiki links]] with an auto-generated graph, a Tasks view that aggregates checklists across notes, a built-in Daily Notes calendar, and supporting tools like full-text search, tags, and an outline panel. It is free and open source, with no account required, and it is explicitly not a hosted workspace or team collaboration suite — there is no HelixNotes cloud, so your files and sync setup stay yours.

Editing features

The editor is designed to stay out of the way while still supporting structured content.

• WYSIWYG with plain Markdown output — you edit in a clean rich view, but the file on disk remains readable Markdown (the site notes you can read it with cat).
• Source mode — switch to the raw text when you want direct control over the Markdown.
• Slash commands — insert blocks and elements without leaving the keyboard.
• Tables — supported in the editor, including on the Android app.
• Code blocks with highlighting — fenced code is rendered with syntax highlighting.
• Live KaTeX math — math expressions render as you write.
• Callouts and collapsible sections — for structured asides and long content you want to fold away.
• Mermaid diagrams — rendered natively, with CJK-aware handling.
• Focus mode, multi-window, and file associations — for working on a single note or across several.
• Customizable keyboard shortcuts and hideable sidebar items — so the interface matches your habits.
• Themes and display scaling — pick a built-in theme or build your own, set accents and fonts, and scale the interface from 80% to 200%.

Organizing features

Organization in HelixNotes leans on links, tags, and aggregated views rather than folders and databases.

Linking and the graph

• Link notes with [[wiki links]].
• The graph fills in automatically as links are created.
• Hover a node to trace its connections and find related ideas.

Tasks view

• HelixNotes pulls every - [ ] checklist item from across your notes into a single Tasks view.
• Each row can carry a priority and a due date.
• Work through tasks as a list, or drag them around a calendar.

Daily Notes

• A built-in calendar gives you a note for every day.
• Click a date to open it or create it.
• Useful for standups, journaling, or thinking out loud.

Search, tags, and outline

• Full-text search powered by Tantivy.
• Tags with autocomplete.
• Outline panel for navigating within a note.

Supporting details

• Version history with diffs and automatic backups.
• Optional WebDAV sync to your own server — sync is your choice, not a requirement.
• Optional AI, either local with Ollama or using your own key.
• Obsidian import and an external .md viewer.
• Platforms: Linux, Windows, macOS, Android, iOS (iPhone and iPad). The Android app opens the same Markdown vault without creating an account and includes the editor, Tasks, Graph, and Daily Notes.

What HelixNotes is not

It is not a hosted workspace or a team collaboration suite. There is no HelixNotes cloud and no account to create. If you need shared team spaces or server-side collaboration, this app is a deliberate tradeoff away from that model — it is built for local files and your own sync arrangement instead.