✍️ Rob's Notes

Obsidian_Graph_Guide

2 min read

Obsidian Graph Optimization Guide

This guide helps you turn your vault’s graph from a “hairball” into a discovery tool by leveraging the folder structure and the new concepts metadata.

1. The Global Graph (Structure & Meaning)

The Global Graph is best for seeing the “entire world” of your reading. Open Graph Settings (cog icon) and apply these settings:

Filters

  • Search: -path:"40_References/Concepts/Great Ideas"
    • Why: This hides the 100+ “Great Idea” nodes that create massive hubs. Removing them lets you see direct links between Works (e.g., how The Odyssey connects to The Iliad) and Authors.
  • Orphans: Toggle OFF to focus on the connected web.
  • Tags: Toggle OFF (unless you use tags for structural meaning).

Groups (Color Coding)

Add these groups to give nodes structural meaning at a glance (Use the “New Group” button in the Groups tab):

  1. Authors: path:"40_References/People/Authors" → Yellow
  2. Works: path:"30_Interests/Great Books" OR path:"20_Book Notes" → Green
  3. Great Ideas: path:"40_References/Concepts/Great Ideas" → Purple
  4. Characters/Gods: path:"40_References/People/Great Books" OR path:"40_References/People/Fictional Characters" → Red

Forces

If the nodes are too bunched up:

  • Repel Force: Increase to ~15.
  • Link Distance: Increase to ~100.

2. The Local Graph (The “Discovery” View)

This is your most powerful tool for finding insights while reading.

  1. Open any note (e.g., Justice or Herodotus).
  2. Open the Local Graph (Command Palette → “Open local graph”).
  3. Depth: Set this to 2 or 3.
    • Depth 1 shows only what is directly mentioned in the note.
    • Depth 2 shows you “Neighbors of Neighbors.”
    • Example: On the Herodotus page, Depth 2 will show you Thucydides because they both link to War and Peace and State.

3. Practical “Insight” Workflow

To find new connections between different authors or works:

  1. Open a “Great Idea” page like Fate.
  2. Open the Local Graph at Depth 2.
  3. Look for “Triangles”: These occur where two different authors or works both point to the same sub-concept or character.
  4. If the view is too crowded, use the Filter -path:"40_References/Concepts/Great Ideas" to hide the other “Idea” nodes, leaving only the connections between historical figures and their texts.

Graph View