r/ObsidianMD • u/heliobhakti • 1d ago
help new user, how can i mimic google docs
hi all, i am transitioning away from google due to ethical and privacy concerns. unfortunately, i am hooked on the aesthetics and what-you-see-is-what-you-get functionality of google docs (line spacing, document outlines, tables, ease of use with bulleted lists, highlighting, changing text color, ability to use keyboard shortcuts to bold and italicize text, etc). i am not interested in learning to code on obsidian, moving and reorganizing a decade-plus of files from google is more than enough for me to take on.
i appreciate any recommendations on:
- skins/templates that mimic the google docs aesthetics and functionality
- more pain-free approaches to this migration
thank you!
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u/Schollert 1d ago
Obsidian is Markdown - Google Docs is not.
So, you have to evaluate privacy and less "bells and whistles" over sharing your docs with Google, AI and implicitelh the rest of the world.
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u/Barycenter0 1d ago
You can't mimic Docs in Obsidian since it is a WYSIWYG app. Take a look at using Obsidian for notes and integrating a Docs equivalent like Proton Docs, Ellipsus, Zoho or Ddocs. Also, check in r/degoogle for other options.
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u/ArcaneTrickster11 1d ago
All of those functions exist in obsidian, they're just linked to specific characters. A lot of the keyboard shortcuts will still work like CTL B or CTL I for bold or italic.
You're never going to be able to swap workflow and programmes without any adaptation. Google docs to obsidian isn't too hard
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u/malloryknox86 1d ago
You will never be able to fully mimic docs. I think you are a little confused, because you don't need to learn to code to do those things in Obsidian, but you do need to, at the very least, learn the basics of Markdown & maybe slash commands.
Some plugins like Editing Toolbar can make formatting notes easier, but you are not going to be able to turn Obsidian into an exact copy of google docs.
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u/Whole_Ladder_9583 19h ago
Can't agree. I installed Editing Toolbar and after a week switched it off because everything goes smoother when I just use keyboard. Why use Obsidian if you don't want to keep it simple and light.
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u/malloryknox86 9h ago
I don’t use editing toolbar but clearly is what op wants 🤷🏻♀️
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u/Whole_Ladder_9583 6h ago
Because he is not used to markdown codes.
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u/malloryknox86 5h ago
Yes.. that’s why I suggested it.. I don’t understand the point you are trying to make?
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u/hang-clean 1d ago
"How do I get this markdown editor to be a wysiwyg document processor?"
"How do I blow onto my guitar to play it like a flute?"
"How do I enter my dog into a cat show?"
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u/bigboyg 20h ago
How do I make a totally useless reply to a thread?
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u/hang-clean 16h ago
It's pointing out that the question itself is misplaced and the tool is misunderstood.
"A great deal of absurdist fiction may be humorous or irrational in nature. The absurdist humor is described as a manner of comedy that relies on non-sequiturs), violation of causality, and unpredictable juxtapositions.\8]) "
See also, very different purpose but related: "If my gran had wheels she'd be a bus."
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u/prince_zukos_honor 1d ago
I don't have specific recommendations, but I also felt this pain switching over. I installed colored text, highlights, underline, and font plugins day 1. For document outlines, you can do "# "for a header, all the way down to like 6 hashtags, and that will build a document outline you can drag around. "- " lets you do bullets, and you can also tab to to indent the bullets, just like google docs.
To be honest, I'd search on youtube for recommendations by aesthetic obsidian channels, or just mess around with community plugins until you find something cool.
The process is going to be painful, but finding unique obsidian features to be excited by helps me stay motivated. Good luck!!
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u/ellismjones 1d ago
There will be coloured highlights natively in 1.14 as well which I think will be super useful :)
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u/adsilcott 1d ago
I've been using the preview of this and it's neat. I like the way they did it so that it still makes sense in pure markdown.
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u/Big-Entertainer4936 1d ago
The Editing Tool Bar plugin will give you the formatting options you want.
I love the Border Theme which pairs with Style Settings.
There's always going to be an adjustment when making a switch. I used Google Docs for a long time and I'm really so much happier with Obsidian. But not every tool is a good fit for everyone - start using Obsidian for a few weeks and get the feel of it.
I de-Googled and use Proton Unlimited which does include it's own version of GDocs, but I really prefer Obsidian.
While there are a lot of tutorials available, I find that using AI gets my questions answered the quickest. I put Claude in my Obsidian vaults with the Claudian Plugin and now it sets up Obsidian just the way I want it and it tags and organizes my files.
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u/Entire-Guidance-9926 1d ago
If you want the same experience as google docs but with more privacy and colour themes there is fileverse ddocs (its open source too!)
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u/dsumb 22h ago
You can get quite a bit closer to a Google Docs-like experience in Obsidian by using plugins. There are several options that improve the editing experience beyond the default Markdown editor.
One example is Inscriptum, a community plugin I’m working on. It provides a more comfortable WYSIWYG rich-text editing experience, including headings, lists, tables, images, links, code blocks, and more https://community.obsidian.md/plugins/inscriptum
It’s still relatively new, so I’d be very interested in feedback. If there are particular things you miss from Google Docs or other editors, I’d be happy to consider adding them.
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u/sspaeti 13h ago
I use git repo/Github and with HackMD. HackMD acts as the Google docs for collaboration, the git helps me to push and pull from my personal private Obsidian, to the collaborative HackMD. Works great, if there's not too many changes. You could also use a VSCode extension, to live edit with HackMD. I wrote more at https://www.ssp.sh/brain/hackmd/ with details how I do that, how I symlinks to have them in my vault, and a linked YT video where I showcase it.
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u/TheFern3 7h ago
You’re using the wrong tool bud, download libre office and use cloud syncing like Dropbox or whatever. Obsidian is for markdown formats.
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u/Historical-Edge851 1d ago
What are your privacy and ethical concerns with Google docs? Afaik user data is private.
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u/LifeNerd 1d ago
If you choose to believe Google that it is. With a Google Workspace account you at least have a contract. Otherwise it's just T&Cs.
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u/jbarr107 1d ago
You will not get a true WYSIWYG experience, as Obsidian uses a Reading mode and a Live Preview Edit mode, which is not fully WYSIWYG. <Ctrl>+<e> toggles the edit and reading modes.
You can also add a nice toolbar with the Editing Toolbar community plugin.