Starting Point

Like many, I consume online content: articles, blogs, essays, or even videos and podcasts on various topics.

At first, I consumed content “simply.” I would come across an interesting article shared on social media. I would open it in a new tab. Then, within that text, I would sometimes find hyperlinks pointing to other content. I would open all these tabs and read each piece of content one by one. Sometimes, I would even open new tabs to research a particular point. Very quickly, I found myself with dozens of tabs open in my browser and articles/content that were only half-read or not read at all.

This quickly became disorganized, and ultimately, the content was not read or lingered in the browser until I decided to read it or close the tabs.

In both cases, this approach was completely unstructured. So, I looked for tools and methods to avoid these situations.

Fortunately, this situation is common, and the internet is full of “tips & tricks” on the subject. If you’re reading this, it might be because you found me while browsing the web (who knows? :))

In the past, I used read-it-later apps. I also started pinning content in Evernote or Notion, but using these tools didn’t work for me, and the methods proposed by productivity “gurus” were time-consuming. The habits I developed didn’t last, and my dissatisfaction led me to change tools every six months until I completely abandoned them.

I continued to consume content but reduced the volume. I limited myself to sending interesting content links via email or in a private channel on Telegram. I tried to sort the types of content by tools and then started creating multiple Telegram channels by topic.

This methodology was interesting but still very “simple” and unstructured. It only shifted the problem. I had content to consume “later” scattered across my email, OneDrive, and Telegram channels.

Result: things pile up and gather “digital dust.” For various reasons (not all of which are clear to me), I wanted to improve the situation and started looking for solutions. I was searching for an effective system to organize and read this information.

The term system is important here. I had tried almost all mainstream tools that allow for a second brain, but using a tool without methodology or a system has little value.

So, I’m sharing the system I found and implemented to improve my reading and content management method, integrating the tools Obsidian and Omnivore for an optimal experience.

The Problem

As mentioned, initially, I found myself with information sources scattered across various websites. My initial system for managing this information was inefficient. I lacked a centralized tool to organize all this content, making reading and tracking articles very complicated.

I had a tendency to collect a large volume of content. This content was somewhere, but I didn’t do anything with it. It was scattered and static. This passive collection of data and information brought me nothing but frustration.

I understood that I needed to structure the data and then exploit it. The ideal is to connect ideas and knowledge. These connections allow for the evolution of thought, creating a virtuous circle fueled by natural curiosity.

Searching for Solutions

I focused my research on centralizing content. The fragmentation of content was a barrier to its consumption.

The variety of formats also posed a problem in addressing this issue.

I needed an application that could centralize content into an “inbox.” The goal was to send all interesting content to this inbox as simply as possible to read later (when I had the time or desire).

Productivity enthusiasts may recognize this as the first step often present in productivity methods available on the market (Get Things Done, CODE Method).

One of the first steps in these methods is to capture an idea as simply and easily as possible so that it can be processed later.

Trials and Errors

I tested several applications hoping to find one that perfectly suited my way of reading and managing content. Each had its own limitations and did not offer the optimal experience I was looking for. Whether in terms of interface, functionality, or compatibility with different types of content, none fully met my expectations.

The applications I used (Notion, Evernote, or OneNote) did not fully meet my needs, and I realized that reading content was not the goal. In reality, through this process of finding the right application, I understood the reason why I was reading: to learn and make connections between subjects and/or my ideas.

As simple as it may seem, the content I consumed was just “consumed.”

Before, I would read an article or listen to a podcast, identify relevant or interesting elements, but not do much with them.

The Importance of Note-Taking

I understood that an important aspect when consuming content, especially written content, was to digest this content by taking notes.

I started taking notes when reading a book. I would dog-ear the interesting page and transcribe the page number and interesting passage into OneNote.

This was in the summer of 2023.

The work of transcribing content into OneNote was often done a posteriori, allowing me to “review” the book after reading it. A sort of second, accelerated reading that I found interesting for fixing ideas that I considered interesting. (I later discovered the method of “[[progressive summarization]]” which also aims for this approach)

Through this small exercise of “note-taking” when reading paper books, I realized that taking notes not only allowed me to retain information somewhere but also to “store” it more easily in my memory.

After taking these notes, I became interested in the best way to take notes because I quickly realized that “copying” passages was interesting but limited in terms of “utility.”

I understood that it was necessary to transpose, in my own words, the relevant and/or interesting content to get even more out of the reading.

At this point, I found more pleasure in reading and started reading more books. I switched to Notion to create “tables” of my readings where I list, on an annual basis, the books I have read (for reference, I read 26 books between January 1, 2024, and July 31, 2024 - see the table below)

I continued this note-taking during my readings, reformulating the content whenever possible.

The Zettelkasten Method

An obligatory step in my journey, I looked for other ways to take notes and discovered the Zettelkasten method, particularly through this site.

I won’t dwell on the subject as it is extensively documented, and I will simply note that this methodology gave me a huge “boost” in my note-taking and the implementation of the system I currently use.

Obsidian

Following my discovery of the ZettelKasten, I started using Obsidian as a note-taking tool.

Obsidian became my primary tool for structuring my ideas and taking notes. I quickly understood the importance of writing and taking notes regularly. The ability to organize my thoughts in a structured way was a real “game changer.”

Omnivore

After several weeks of using Obsidian, I discovered Omnivore, an open-source application dedicated to read-it-later functionality.

Omnivore allows you to save articles and other content to read later, acting as an inbox for my pending readings.

The advantage of Omnivore is that it is specifically designed to group various types of content in one place. It “scrolls” the content and reformats it within the application. This provides better readability of the content (by removing distractions sometimes present on a website) and integrates highlighting and note-taking within the app.

I can read content, highlight, and take notes within the application. While these features are known and present in many applications, the connection between Omnivore and Obsidian is the real reason I use these two applications.

Connection between Omnivore and Obsidian

One of the most important advantages of these two applications, in my opinion, is the ability to connect via an API key. This connection allows for the automatic integration of notes and highlights made in Omnivore into Obsidian.

Thanks to the API connection, these highlights and notes are automatically transferred to Obsidian. A note is created in Obsidian for each article I have highlighted or annotated.

I therefore find in Obsidian only the extracts and/or passages and notes taken from the articles I have read. Articles read without notes or highlights are not transferred to Obsidian.

Advantages of this synchronization

This synchronization between Omnivore and Obsidian offers several advantages:

• Time savings: No need to manually transfer notes and highlighted passages. Everything is done automatically, saving valuable time.
• Efficient structuring: Notes and highlights are automatically classified in Obsidian, making them easier to search and use later. Additionally, the structuring is completely customizable with variables. The base model proposed by Omnivore in Obsidian is already very comprehensive.

Conclusion

By using Omnivore for read-it-later functionality and Obsidian for structuring my notes, I have created a content management system that is both efficient and intuitive.

The combination of these two tools makes the process of reading and note-taking much smoother and more productive. Incidentally, and without having read Tiago Forte’s book, I created a second brain (at the time of writing, I am finishing reading this book, which is very inspiring given what I have already achieved with Omnivore and Obsidian).

This methodology is starting to prove itself and brings me great satisfaction.

By continuing to adjust and optimize this system, I am certain that I can further improve my productivity and my ability to manage information.