Why I chose Obsidian over Roam (as a Roam investor)

I was a Roam Research power user, a Believer, and investor before I discovered Obsidian. Here's why I still ended up choosing Obsidian over Roam as my personal knowledge management tool of choice. My goal with this video is to share with you my reasons for making the choice that I did, not to judge you or anyone else who disagrees. In the end, we all have to decide for ourselves what tool fits best in our lives.

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 Intro
0:21 Owning my own data
01:56 Future-proofing
03:25 Organizing vs creating
05:00 Performance
05:48 Community and Ethics
07:22 Bonus reason: Pricing

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// ABOUT ME

// APPS I USE

// GEAR

// WANT TO SUPPORT ME?

[nicolevdh]

The Roam team has since reached out to me to say that graphs in the browser local storage have been available to non-Believers for a while. Sorry about that! However, I still think storing there is as good as nothing, so the point stands.

[ryanwwest]

This channel deserves more subs, such high quality content!

[frosticles]

I currently have a note taking app I use and I've been looking at multiple different options to level up my note management game; This has lead me to watching many different explainer and comparison videos. I was intrigued by the title, but also afraid of burning 9 mins to clickbait. I have to say this video was perhaps the most helpful on the topic I've seen so far. I think you articulated your message quite well and helped me better understand the comparisons and tradeoffs. thanks!

[patrickknight]

Nicole... you are amazing. This is just one of the most enjoyable videos I've ever watched... you are SO open and engaging, but it is just what I needed. I had bought the ROAM annual plan (and I'd getter check to make sure it doesn't auto-renew) and let is sit there for a year. Decided to try to use it and was immediately flummoxed!

[RachelVMadrigal]

This is awesome! I was never a Roam fan, but you cover all the reasons I like using Obsidian now. Also, I love your progress bar!

[Estidec]

Really loved the status/chapter bar! I’ve not seen that on other channels and it’s just a nice touch! Loved this one as usual!

[hongkonger]

Thank you for a very useful comparison between the two tools.
Now I know which to try first.

[giftegwuenu]

This video is 💯. Love the reasons you shared and the delivery/editing. Great job ❤

[phreakyphoenix]

Thanks for sharing this, gave me exactly what I was looking for super helpful, I just can't thank you enough.

[DC_TechAndTavel]

"Salamat" made me sub. 😂 Did not know you're from PH too and I just stared watching your vids on obsidian because it's very clear 👏.

[rolfw]

Thanks for the review! The fact that "O" uses standard markdown seems like a plus. Also, love that you use Hugo!!

[syzygysyzygy]

You Da Boss.
Bask in that declaration with confidence.

[spicyborg]

Thanks for being so sincere about this.
I may give Obsidian another try at some point.
For now, Logseq does the job.

[AzulWells]

Nicole - I just found your YouTube channel last week. I have been binge watching all your videos ever since. Excellent content and you have a wonderful video presence.

Quick question. Does obsidian’s block reference syntax cause any problems if in several years I decide to migrate to a different mark down based no taking system?

[Dieterbe]

Salamat, Nicole. Very useful video. I appreciate how candid you are! (Personally Im pretty sold on Logseq, but this was still interesting)

[briancarnell]

Love your videos. Just an idea for a future topic: I noticed in some of your videos you are using multiple vaults. Would love to hear your insight into the advantages/disadvantages of having multiple vaults rather than trying to squeeze everything into a single vault.

[navshergill]

Thanks for saving me hours of research and coming up such great reasoning.

[SuperBeanson]

Really like your easy-going yet thoroughly professional presentation. Thanks (new sub)

[yellowmeeplereads]

So happy to have found your channel (via Community Talks). I've just started using Obsidian and am now obsessed with it. Haven't used Roam before and thanks for the comparison. The progress bar is genius.

[RyanNagy]

So awesome. Thank you. I have never in my life been as productive in writing as I have been with Roam. It is still shocking to me how much I can write and think and link with Roam. BUT - the outlining messes with my publication ability. I think in paragraphs and documents, not in bullet points. Now that I have added Obsidian, I can pull things together so much more easily with a text file. Thanks again for the overview.