Pages, properties and links
A page is an ordinary Markdown file presented as a subject. Begin with a heading and your own words; add structure only when it helps.
Write, Read and Source
Section titled “Write, Read and Source”| Mode | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Write | Write Markdown with live presentation of common headings, emphasis, inline code and quotes. |
| Read | Read the rendered document, artwork, tables and supported diagrams. |
| Source | Edit the exact Markdown text, including frontmatter and fenced blocks. |
These modes share one document. Write is an initial Markdown authoring experience, not a full block editor. Use Source when the exact syntax matters.
The first main heading owns the page title. File names and titles can differ; a rename is a file operation, not a side effect of changing a table’s display label.
Properties and artwork
Section titled “Properties and artwork”Use page properties for facts you want to compare: type, region, design state, tags or a relationship. The same values can appear in a collection table. Keep long explanations in the page body.
Properties are stored with the authored subject rather than in a separate cloud database. A field may be read-only when it is derived, such as a path or heading-owned title. Optional cover artwork supports the subject; a page without it remains fully usable.
Links and backlinks
Section titled “Links and backlinks”Link to related project pages using the supported Markdown or wiki-link form. Open a link to visit its target; backlinks help you find pages referring to the current subject.
Use project-relative links for portable knowledge. Check a missing target before creating a new subject: the original may have been renamed or moved.
Diagrams
Section titled “Diagrams”Write a fenced mermaid block in the document to create a diagram. Read and preview render supported Mermaid diagrams locally. Available diagram export actions produce PNG or SVG from that diagram.
The source remains text in the page. A diagram is useful for a small flow or relationship; use a canvas or spatial map when position itself is part of the design.
Saving and external edits
Section titled “Saving and external edits”GDE saves text to the working files automatically. Ctrl+S requests a save. Neither action commits or pushes to Git.
If another editor changes the file while you have a draft, GDE reports a source conflict instead of silently overwriting it. Preserve your work with File → Save a copy if you need both versions. Use Reload from disk only when you intend to take the disk version.
Keep the document open until its save or recovery state is resolved. A renderer crash can preserve text already received by the application, but cannot guarantee an edit that never left the failed renderer. See Troubleshooting.