Organise Markdown without moving your files

Organisation does not have to begin with a migration. If your Markdown already lives in folders that make sense to you, Ichi can work with that structure directly. There is no import step and no application-owned library to maintain alongside your originals.

The useful question is not how to build a perfect system. It is how to make the next document easy to find while keeping the collection understandable outside any one app.

Let the filesystem describe the collection

Open the folder that represents a useful working boundary. It might hold one project, a set of research notes or a small writing archive. Ichi presents that folder as a project and keeps a familiar file tree close to the document.

Folder and file names do most of the organisational work. Prefer names that still make sense when you see them in Windows Explorer, a terminal or another Markdown editor. A simple structure can be enough:

• Give active projects their own top-level folders.
• Use descriptive filenames rather than names that depend on a separate index.
• Group material by a stable purpose, not by a temporary mood or app feature.
• Keep .md or .markdown extensions so the files remain readily recognisable.

These are conventions, not rules imposed by Ichi. The value comes from being able to understand the collection wherever you open it.

Keep folder depth useful

More nesting does not automatically create more order. Each extra level should answer a real question about where something belongs. If you routinely forget whether a note sits under reference, research or resources, those divisions may be too fine. Combine them until the choice becomes obvious.

Start by improving one small area. A modest change is easier to check and less likely to disturb paths used by links or local images.

Use Ichi as a working map

The project tree lets you browse the structure you already have. Within it, Ichi can create, rename, move and delete files where they live. Those actions change the ordinary project, so use the same care you would in Explorer. Keep an independent backup before a large reorganisation.

Several tools help you navigate without reshaping the collection merely to make it easier to browse:

• Open several documents in tabs when you need to compare or move between related work.
• Use Ctrl + P to jump to a file in the project or find a command by name.
• Use Ctrl + Shift + F to search across documents in the open project.
• Use Ctrl + F when the text you need is within the current document.

A folder gives a note a stable home. Search gives you another route when you remember a phrase rather than its location. Using both is usually calmer than trying to encode every possible relationship in a hierarchy.

Preserve links and images as you move

Markdown can refer to other files and local images with relative paths. Moving one side of that relationship may change what the path means. After relocating a document or asset, open the affected notes and check their links and images. Do not assume a broad folder move is automatically reversible.

Time Machine keeps local history of document contents while it is enabled, and it can help recover an earlier version of a note. It is not a backup of the folder structure. Keep separate copies of anything important before renaming or moving a group of files.

Keep the files portable

Ichi supports GitHub Flavoured Markdown, including front matter, tables, task lists, fenced code, local images and sanitised structural HTML. Those capabilities let a practical collection stay in plain text rather than depending on a private document format.

Avoid adding structure solely because one application displays it attractively. A useful test is to close the app mentally and ask whether the folders, filenames and Markdown still explain themselves. Ichi is designed so the answer can remain yes: it saves plain Markdown back to the folders you chose, and your filesystem stays the source of truth.

Reorganise in small, reversible steps

A collection rarely needs a single grand redesign. Choose one untidy group, give its files clearer names, move only what has an obvious destination, then search the project to confirm you can still find the material you expect. Check linked notes and local images before continuing.

Stop when the collection is easier to use. The aim is not a flawless taxonomy. It is a quiet structure that helps you return to the work, remains legible in ordinary Windows tools and does not depend on Ichi to survive.