rel:: [[PKM|note taking]] ## Journey to [[Obsidian]] I still have my [[Roam Research]] believer’s plan, but migrated to [[Obsidian]] in January 2021. The model is different and there are things I miss from [[Roam Research|Roam]] like the [[datalog]] query language and editable transclusions. But [[Roam Research]] consistently fails to prioritizing security and stability. They've been entirely focused on multi-player and [[network effects]] since taking on [[venture capital]] last April. I give them 6 months before there's an epic embarrassing data breach. In my opinion, the devs don’t have a clue how much they don't know in this area. I ultimately needed something [[local-first]] and preferably [[markdown]]-centric to ease sharing with others, something [[Roam Research|Roam]] is pretty bad at by design ([[network effects]]), thus Obsidian. ### Conversation with [[@calhistorian]] on [[Roam Research|Roam]] security https://twitter.com/pmbauer/status/1377839001391009795 > If I may ask. How can any real open plug in architecture be that secure? Plugin systems are a security minefield; even Chrome extensions are risk. But there is a risk mitigation spectrum from roam/js on the low end to Apple's App Store and locked down corporate devices. Roam's plugin system is JavaScript eval (and button click). Absent any infra support or oversight from RR, the evolved plugin ecosystem runs on copy-pasted js blocks downloading arbitrary sources on page load. Critically, updates are silent, users have no ability to roll back or prevent rogue updates and Roam has no mechanism to kill rogue plugins either. That's the technical aspect. From a business perspective, it's hard for Roam to put the genie back in the bottle when the roam/js ecosystem is adding tremendous value that's let them focus on other things. Consequence: if you want what should be core functionality like backlink sorting, you have to unconditionally trust a 3rd party. And as that ecosystem adds a greater portion of roam's value, it becomes increasingly harder to run vanilla roam. You now have to trust N extra supply chains with unfettered access to your data that update silently. E2EE and local-only graphs don't help here. With status quo, it's a matter of when not if a supply chain attack slurps some high value target's private notes and it's unlikely even RR would know it happened. ### Note durability I used `attributes::` and parent/child nesting quite a bit in [[Roam Research]]. Trouble is, none of these constructs are portable. I knew better. As part of my PKM redemption, I'm restricting myself to the [[Obsidian]] subset that lets me keep ownership of the data and not locked into a tool. Dataview is amazing, but for myself, any ancillary databasey functionality needs to be portable and not tied to Obsidian. [[bash|Bash]], sed, awk, and [[Clojure]] are dear friends here; Obsidian's open storage format is priceless. In moving to Obsidian, prioritizing * data ownership * interoperability * durability ## Tutorials - https://nesslabs.com/roam-research-beginner-guide - "https://learn.nateliason.com/courses/enrolled/764250" - [Building a Second Brain in Roam](https://www.reddit.com/r/RoamResearch/comments/eho7de/building_a_second_brain_in_roamand_why_you_might/) ## References - [Roam Issue Tracker](https://github.com/Roam-Research/issues/issues) - [Roam Changelog](https://roamresearch.com/[[/app/help/page/dxTi-iUs2]]) - [Awesome Roam](https://github.com/roam-unofficial/awesome-roam/blob/master/README.md) - [Querying](https://roamresearch.com/[[/app/commons-db/page/2p-cDjLxg]]) - [Datascript Queries](https://roamresearch.com/[[/app/commons-db/page/Nf7lHnqZb]]) - [Roam Tricks Graph](https://roamresearch.com/[[/app/roam-tricks]]) ## Tools - [Roam Backup, s3 and github actions](https://github.com/signalnerve/roam-backup) - [Roam Backup to git, local](https://beepb00p.xyz/myinfra-roam.html) - [Roam Research static site generator](https://github.com/TomLisankie/static-roam) - [[Roam Hotkeys]] ## howto ![[Convert All Roam Research Uploaded Files to Local Storage in Obsidian]] ![[Delete Roam Research Firebase Uploads]]