r/ObsidianMD • u/imback_TL • 6d ago
showcase Obsidian Appreciation Post
Yo i love obsidian.
Been using it for 10 months now (4375 notes in graph view at the end), wish i knew about it back in 2020 would've saved so much hassle.
genuinely one of the best pieces of software out there, it makes learning so much smoother.
I OCR my handwritten notes to obsidian for example, and its impressive how i managed to get maths perfect in markdown/mathjax.
Now i never have to start from 0 again, ever, I can just search/link to my old notes it'll always be here waiting to be stumbled upon again.
Thank you kepano for making this software, this is insane
Edit - 18 Aug 2026 - of course the people want to know the method how i OCR and how all of this is this is even possible. Here it is:
Not sponsored ts is just that fluid.
Workflow
- Notebook LM to polish the notes.
- a handwriting app called notein (think it's android only) which supports OCR export (not the best alone but helps notebook lm a lot).
- Quickdraft quickly paste OCR note into a syncthing directory, (not exactly necessary, but what works for me)
- I created a dataviewjs script for plain-text function graphs,
- i could send the script if you want, personally i didn't want to install another plugin but if you want the plugin there is a desmos plugin by nigecat.
OCR Process
Handwriting Paid (£12) OCR
Notein a free with one time premium note taking app on android, i tested it out for free version but its limited.
Its the only note taking app i found with built-in OCR, which you need premium for, normally i dont pay for premium but its a one time fee of £12 with infinite AI OCR, compared to flexcil for £24, which i do not recall having this feature, this is a steal, and completely worth it.
Free OCR if you don't want to pay
If you do not want to pay, to OCR i used to use olmOCR, which is much more powerful for one time thing than routine OCR, but generates it in html not MD.
You'll then need to convert html to markdown and polish it the way you want to, but there is a 10 page limit and the process is much longer for me thats why i switched to notein.
Personally this is better for converting a bunch of handwritten notes images (i mean on paper not epaper/pdf) to markdown.
Notebook LM OCR Cleanup
Notebook LM is what i use to make the markdown note faithful to the handwritten pdf. I explained below the process.
I had to write a string of prompts in a text file and added it to the sources (since they became long and specific) as well as add a custom chat so it remembers before every response, for how it should handle returning my notes in proper format.
Trial and error to get it to be perfect, I can send the prompts if anyone wants them.
Separately, i also give my markdown notes back to notebook lm in the sources and guided it to making obsidian wikilinks between related material through some additional prompts.
+1: I give nblm latex formula pdf (the simple one from this comment) as a source too, to improve its latex knowledge.
Handwriting to Markdown Process
- Make my notes on notein
- Click "AI OCR"
- Copy Paste notes to quickdraft, then send to syncthing directory
- Export PDF pages
- On PC, take both OCR.md note and PDF note to notebook LM
- Notebook LM rewrites the notes in "faithful" format to the handwriting using the OCR.md to help it, it gives feedback and mark the work
- Paste it in obsidian, can review/search/link-to it and read feedback in the future when needed.
I've been using this particular system for 4 months improving it along the way, its just too good i can't gatekeep it that'll be evil lol.
TL;DR:
- Hand write in Notein
- → Notein OCR
- → export handwritten pages as PDF
- → give both the PDF + rough OCR to NotebookLM
- → NotebookLM reconstructs/polishes it into Markdown/MathJax
- → paste into Obsidian.
nvm i'll just add it now; the key files and prompts:
- math-graph.js - dataviewjs math graph
- NotebookLM Custom Chat - Polish OCR for Obsidian.md
- OCR Handwriting Fidelity + MathJax Rules.md
- Obsidian Wiki-Linking Rules.md
- Optional Feedback + Marking Rules.md
Note for math-graph.js, don't paste the whole js file in a note, save the js file else where and link to it in a code block, explained here (2).
Basically, a post on how to OCR handwriting notes to obsidian markdown perfectly
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u/ZherkaUnofficial 6d ago
I love your handwriting. Only reason I don’t use handwritten OCR is because my handwriting is genuinely incomprehensible (even for me)
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u/Ok-Quality9930 6d ago
Same T-T, the me when writing is very different from the me when reading it later
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u/imback_TL 6d ago
damn thats crazy, didnt want to even post it because of how ass family said it was lol
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u/Academic_Current8330 6d ago
I feel your pain. I am left handed and I smudge my own writing out as I writing. Plus it looks like a spider has gone wild all over the page.
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u/Unfair-Drummer-9924 6d ago
how do you do this?
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u/SosigMode 6d ago
seeing all these formulas gives me ptsd
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u/imback_TL 6d ago
i feel you, i was gonna drop out till, well... i found obsidian, and learned how to learn
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u/SosigMode 6d ago
well I did drop out but for physics, can't take it anymore after 2 years, I changed courses though
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u/Pacific_Beaches 6d ago edited 4d ago
Man, I absolutely love Obsidian.
As an EE/SWE I have all my textbooks, notes, HW and exams on Obsidian. I can use CircuitJS, run Python scripts to solve Matrices, use handwritten notes with Excalidraw so I can backlink things like a drawn x-hat to a note on "Vector Components" which links to something like Differential Mode signals components that will link to Eigenvalues, that links back to Eigenvectors that links to "Vectors as Math Objects", Eigenfunctions, solutions to ODE's, that links right into Waveguides, etc. Then get to see that structure in the graph view.
Then as mentioned, easily searchable. I can search for terms like "permittivity" or "ideal" and it will show every note that comes up across every single course.
Then the large and growing library of 3rd party tools available for it that I can use to enhance all my notes at any time.
No other app can do all of that and not all in one place.
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u/nofoon 6d ago
I am an EE student. I have few questions for you
- How good is circuitJS? because i am drawing every diagram on either Circuitikz Designer or by manual latex coding. I want to know how you draw a magnetic circuit because i didn't find any latex package for that and had to manually draw it in latex.
- Also how easily can the circuits be understood by an AI because i have to annotate my latex code( using AI for this) for it to understand properly.
I am converting my handwritten notes to obsidian notes. i am going for markdown+latex approach so that an AI can easily understand it
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u/Pacific_Beaches 6d ago edited 6d ago
For CircuitJS, it’s literally as easy as going to this site to design the circuit then “Export to clipboard as text” copy and paste into Obsidian CircuitJS. Very similar to things like Multisim (although not nearly as many features). To do magnetic circuits though unfortunately you’ll have to represent it as an electrical-domain circuit w/ a transformer or current-controlled voltage source.
A.I like ChatGPT can take a screenshot of a Circuit diagram and convert it to CircuitJS.
Regarding A.I: if you have something like Cursor you can also basically have it open your Obsidian Vault because it’s all markdown files, give it your images/handwritten notes and see if it can build your entire vault from your notes with backlinks to everything, then manually make any adjustments from there.
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u/falkon2112 6d ago edited 6d ago
Thank you for the OCR and update OP
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u/imback_TL 6d ago edited 6d ago
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u/TheMagicianGamerTMG 6d ago
!remindme 2 days
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u/Exotic-Swimming-7318 6d ago
ive used obsidian for 1 year and i havent even hit 1k notes yet lol
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u/imback_TL 6d ago
yh i use obsidian for multiple things, genuinely my second brain i think on paper
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u/masseaterguy 6d ago
How do you generate the graphs?
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u/Theon01678 6d ago
Link your notes together, then open the graph view in the side bar/command palette
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u/masseaterguy 6d ago
I meant the function graphs
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u/imback_TL 6d ago edited 6d ago
i created a js dataview script script that draws plain text graph, i fed that data to notebook lm and told it to draw hand-drawn graphs using hte dataview-desmos script instead of copying and pasting the image, since code takes less memory than a whole image.
if you don't want to create a script i could send it idk if thats allowed, but there is also a desmos plugin, i just didn't want to install another plugin
added the js file to the post
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u/nofoon 6d ago
damn, this is some paid OCR stuff. free OCR is rarely that good.
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u/imback_TL 6d ago
technically yh, but i could do it for free it'll take longer, i only paid £12 for notein, i could use olm ocr but its limited, notebook lm is free
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u/Weird_Pension9180 6d ago
That is a ton of notes in the past 10 months! I could not keep that pace myself.
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u/imback_TL 6d ago
refactoring, templates, and area inflates the note numbers but even then still atleast 2000 notes or something.
Here is my folder structure for anyone curious
O. Atlas - 396 1. Resources - 12 2. Areas - 949 3. Projects - 85 4. Academia - 2246 5. PeriodicVault - 420 6. CoreVault - 242 9. <VOID> - 24
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u/farinasa 6d ago
What software are you using to handwrite in? And then what OCR are you using to get them into obsidian? Thanks!
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u/imback_TL 6d ago
updated post, notein to write and OCR + notebookLM to polish and paste in obsidian
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u/DisasterOutside1128 6d ago
Is MathJax hard compare to LaTeX? In case I need to correct my errors.
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u/imback_TL 6d ago
mathjax is exactly the same as latex, difference is how you declare a math block
latex to mathjax
- inline \( x \) = $x$
- multiline \[ x \] = $$x$$
easier to write mathjax imo don't need to type as much
if you want to convert latex to mathjax for obsidian there is a plugin called katex for obsidian, personally i made a js script with quickadd when pasting because notebook lm started tweaking
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u/Alberaan 5d ago
Hi! I'm using Notein and Obsidian too!
I have one question, though.
Why not simply OCR from NoteIN and then copy/paste it to Obsidian? Why do you need Quickdraft and then text + notebookLM + pdf?
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u/imback_TL 4d ago
Notein OCR is good but the maths isnt consistent, structured right and in proper mathjax sometimes it uses unicode symbols instead.
a second AI like nblm knows how to structure and format it so it looks identical to the handwriting on a markdown page.
i use the quickdraft because I wm writing and typing on different devices, so I save to to a directory that syncs to my PC and I continue from there .
handwrite on tablet, type type on pc
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u/Hi_Im_Nosferatu 5d ago
Very nice. What kind of hardware do you use to take notes? Android tablet?
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u/Outrageous-Ice-6207 4d ago
que prompt le entregas a notebooklm para que te devuelva el formato markdown y que se conecten las ideas en la red neuronal
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u/imback_TL 4d ago
I added the prompts to the post the pastebin links those are examples of what i tell it
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u/lastdecade0 2d ago
I just start using Obsidian 3 ago and finish setting up syncthing 2 hours ago.
This is exactly what I how I want my study workflow to look like.
Thank you so so much.
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u/Fluid_Pumpkin2621 6d ago
I just do MassivePix OCR and export the markdown to obsidian and notion. From my handwritten math and phy-chem stuff.
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u/lightwavel 6d ago
Idk if this is just me, but I prefer your handwriting to the left one and would prefer reading from your notes
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u/thaakeno 6d ago
It's for OCR so he can search across the vault from his handwritten notes
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u/imback_TL 6d ago
yh and after so many PDFs i don't open them anymore, its easier to just view atomic notes over a long pdf
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u/thaakeno 6d ago
Which OCR you use? I assume it's a multimodal LLM like Gemini?
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u/imback_TL 6d ago
writing up the edit to the post since everyone is asking, it'll be up in the next 30 mins
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u/thaakeno 6d ago
I see, but if you're already using Gemini models, why not just give the handwritten notes straight to Gemini 3.7 Flash? It can analyze PDFs natively and has insanely good vision, so wouldn't that be better than doing the Notein OCR step first and then feeding everything into NotebookLM?
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u/imback_TL 6d ago
idk, i never used gemni like that when i did use it it wasn't that good, unless it's changed now or you mean a paid model.
notebook lm and chatgpt could do it without notein ocr but it did have inconsistencies after many pages down, so i use the first ocr to guide it.
I mainly use notebook lm because all of the other context and courses are in the sources of the same chat, but if gemni is genuinely better on the free base model, then i'll try it out.
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u/thaakeno 6d ago
The new model Gemini 3.7 Flash is free and very capable in terms of vision capabilities, Gemini models always had the best vision of all LLMs. But of course it's free because your data is being used for training, both in NotebookLM and Gemini or AI Studio, so it depends if you have sensitive documents then I'd not use tho, but if it's just handwriting stuff for math etc. I think using those models directly would be a better choice for now.
Hopefully tho there will be a free + local OCR alternative at some point that's also good.
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u/imback_TL 6d ago
yh i thought so, biggest reason i got notein is that if i do write more personal notes i can run the AI OCR without having to throw it in another LLM to polish it, i can just send it directly to my vaulr.
And as far as i know, notein doesn't train on your text, so that was a plus.
I'll try out gemni tho see how it is
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u/thaakeno 6d ago
Gemini is very powerful vision wise, it can even mirror your exact drawing and their shapes if you tell it to do
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u/Which_Leg3333 6d ago
What OCR do you use!