devonthesofa_obsidian-note-status/wiki/User Manual.md

User Manual

Complete guide to all Note Status plugin features.

Core Concepts

Status System

• Status: A label applied to notes (active, completed, etc.)
• Multiple Statuses: Notes can have multiple statuses simultaneously
• Unknown Status: Default for notes without assigned status
• Templates: Predefined sets of statuses for different workflows

Storage Format

Statuses are stored in YAML frontmatter:

---
obsidian-note-status:
    - idea
    - HelloWorld
---

Interface Components

1. Toolbar Button

Location: Editor toolbar (rightmost icon) Appearance: Shows current status icon or ❓ for unknown Function: Click to open status dropdown

Visual Indicators:

• Single status: Shows status icon
• Multiple statuses: Shows primary status + count badge
• Unknown status: Shows ❓ icon

2. Status Bar

Location: Bottom of editor Display: Status: active or Statuses: active, inProgress Behavior:

• Click to open dropdown
• Auto-hide when status is unknown (configurable)

3. Status Dropdown

Trigger: Click toolbar button, status bar, or context menu Features:

• Current status chips (removable)
• Search/filter statuses
• Status options with icons
• Multi-file support

4. File Explorer Integration

Visual: Status icons next to file names Interaction: Right-click for context menu Multi-select: Select multiple files for batch operations

5. Status Pane

Location: Left sidebar Access: Ribbon icon or Command Palette Features:

• Notes grouped by status
• Search functionality
• Compact/standard view toggle
• Pagination for large groups

Basic Operations

Setting Status (Single Note)

Method 1: Toolbar

1. Open note
2. Click toolbar status icon
3. Select status from dropdown

Method 2: Right-click

1. Right-click note in file explorer
2. Select "Change status"
3. Choose status

Method 3: Command Palette

1. Ctrl/Cmd + P
2. Type "Change status"
3. Select status

Multiple Statuses

When enabled in settings:

Add Status:

• Click non-selected status in dropdown
• Status is added to existing ones

Remove Status:

• Click X on status chip
• Status is removed

Toggle Mode:

• Each click toggles status on/off
• Useful for quick status management

Batch Operations

Select Multiple Files:

• Ctrl/Cmd + Click for individual selection
• Shift + Click for range selection

Apply Status:

1. Right-click selection
2. Choose "Change status"
3. Select status
4. Chooses add/remove based on majority

Batch Logic:

• If >50% of files have status → Remove
• If <50% of files have status → Add
• Smart handling preserves other statuses

Advanced Features

Status Pane Operations

Views

• Standard: Full file icons and spacing
• Compact: Dense list format

Search

• Filters notes by filename
• Real-time filtering
• Case-insensitive

Pagination

• Configurable items per page (default: 100)
• Prevents performance issues
• Per-status pagination state

Group Management

• Click group header to collapse/expand
• State persisted between sessions
• Shows file count per status

Context Menus

Single File

• File Explorer: Right-click → "Change status"
• Editor: Right-click → "Change note status"

Multiple Files

• Batch Selection: Right-click → "Change status"
• Status Management: Dedicated multi-file interface

Commands

All commands available via Command Palette:

Core Commands

• Open status pane - Show status sidebar
• Change status of current note - Open dropdown
• Add status to current note - Add mode dropdown
• Cycle to next status - Rotate through statuses
• Clear status - Set to unknown

Quick Commands (Configurable)

• Set status to [status] - Direct status assignment
• Toggle status [status] - Toggle specific status

Utility Commands

• Copy status from current note - Copy to clipboard
• Paste status to current note - Apply from clipboard
• Toggle multiple statuses mode - Enable/disable multi-status
• Search notes by current status - Global search

Global Search Integration

Use Obsidian's global search with status queries:

[obsidian-note-status:"active"]
[obsidian-note-status:"inProgress" OR "review"]

Keyboard Shortcuts

Default Shortcuts

None assigned by default - customize in Obsidian settings.

Recommended Shortcuts

• Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + S - Change status
• Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + P - Open status pane
• Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + A - Set status to active
• Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + D - Set status to done

Quick Status Commands

Configure in settings to enable hotkeys for frequently used statuses.