User Manual

This manual covers Cognodex 1.2 on macOS 26 or later, and describes only what the app does today.

The window

The canvas fills the window. The sidebar button beside the window controls opens Maps. Search, the Outline and Settings sit at the top right, the dock along the bottom adds to the map, and the zoom control keeps the bottom-right corner.

Each action has one place on screen. Keyboard shortcuts, the menu bar, dragging and double-clicking are quicker routes to the same actions.

The Cognodex window with the Maps sidebar open on the left, search, Outline and Settings at the top right, the dock at the bottom and the zoom control in the corner.

Maps and workspaces

Maps

Maps belong to workspaces. Open the sidebar with its button or ⌘B, then use + for a new map, a new workspace or an import. Drag a map to reorder it or to move it into another workspace, and drag the sidebar's edge to widen it.

Map and workspace menus

Right-click a map to rename, duplicate, move, export or remove it. Right-click a workspace to rename it or move it up and down; a workspace with no maps can be removed.

Recently removed

A removed map waits under Recently removed at the bottom of the sidebar. Restore returns it to its workspace with its contents intact.

Saving

Changes save by themselves a moment after you make them; a dot beside a map's name means a save is under way. ⌘S saves at once. If a save ever fails, Cognodex says so and stays open with your edits.

Import and export

Import Maps… adds copies of map files to the current workspace, including maps saved by earlier versions of Cognodex; the originals stay where they are. Export Map… saves a copy of a map. Its files stay linked to this Mac's library, so they open only here.

Search

Search finds maps by name in every workspace, and nodes in the open map by title or description. Choosing a node brings it into view, unfolding its branch if needed. Escape clears the search.

Nodes

Adding nodes

Double-click empty canvas, or choose Node in the dock. With a node selected, Tab adds a child and Return adds a sibling below it; the + on the node's edge also adds a child. A new node opens with its name ready to type.

Renaming

Press Space, or double-click a node's title, to rename it in place. Return keeps the new name and Escape restores the old one.

Branches

The − or + on a parent's edge folds or unfolds its branch. Right-click a node for Tidy Branch, which lays its branch out in columns to its right, and Detach from Parent. ⌥↑ and ⌥↓ swap a node with the sibling above or below it.

Arranging

Drag a node anywhere; Cognodex never arranges the map for you. Drop a node on another to link the two, or hold ⌘ as you drop to make it a child. Deleting a node keeps its children, which move up to its parent.

Cards

Expand Card on a selected node shows its description and attachments. Double-click the description to edit it in place: ⌘Return or clicking away keeps your text, and Escape discards it. Descriptions use Markdown for headings, lists, quotes, code, bold and italic.

Links

Link on a selected node starts a link. Click another node, a file or folder on the canvas, or empty canvas for a new linked node; Escape cancels. Right-click a link to delete it. Show Related in a node's menu dims everything it is not linked to.

Text, images, files and folders

Text

Text in the dock places a block ready to type in. Double-click it to edit, drag its corner to resize it, and turn on Emphasize for bold. Text uses the same Markdown as descriptions.

Adding files

Image, File and Folder in the dock open a file picker. You can also drag items from Finder onto the canvas or paste them. Dropping items on a node attaches them to it instead.

Link or copy

Cognodex links to items where they are. Turn on Store copies when adding files in Settings to keep copies in Cognodex's own library instead. Hold Option while clicking a dock button or dropping to make the other choice once.

On the canvas

Images show a preview and folders list their first items. Double-click one to open the original. Right-click for Reveal in Finder, a compact or preview display, and Remove from Map. Drag a preview's corner to resize it.

Attachments

Attach Files on a selected node links or copies items onto it. When the card is expanded and selected, click an attachment's name to open it, or use its ⋯ menu to reveal, reconnect or remove it.

Missing files

If a linked item is moved, deleted or on a drive that is not connected, it shows File not found, Drive unavailable or Access required. Reconnect… or Grant Access… lets you choose it again, on every map that uses it.

Selecting and viewing

Selecting

Click to select, Shift-click to add or remove, and Shift-drag across empty canvas to select everything the box touches. ⌘A selects everything visible, Escape clears the selection, and Delete removes it.

Copy and paste

Copy, cut and paste work on any selection and between maps; a copied node brings its whole branch. Pasted plain text becomes a text block, and a pasted image is stored as a copy.

Undo

Each map keeps its own undo history while Cognodex is open.

Moving around

Scroll with two fingers, or drag empty canvas, to pan. Pinch or use a mouse wheel to zoom around the pointer. The zoom control's percentage menu holds Fit Map, Fit Selection and Reset View.

View

View in the dock shows or hides nodes, text, images, files and folders. It changes only what you see: nothing moves and nothing is deleted.

Root nodes

A node without a parent starts a branch and is tinted so it is easy to find. A map can hold as many as you like.

The Outline

Opening it

The Outline lists every unit beside the canvas: branches first, then everything placed freely. It and Maps take turns, so opening one closes the other. While it is open, a node's actions and editing move into the Outline.

Rows

Click a row to select its unit and ⌘-click to add more. The chevrons shorten the list without folding the canvas. Off screen brings a unit into view, and a link count lists what a node is linked to.

One unit selected

A node shows Child and Link, its description with Edit and Preview, switches for how its card appears, and its attachments. A text block shows its content and Emphasize.

Several selected

Move to gives the selected nodes a new parent, or none. Tidy lays out their branches, and Delete removes everything selected.

Settings and Cognodex Pro

Settings

Settings takes the canvas's place in the window; press its button again to return. Choose System, Light or Dark, the background grid, and whether new files are stored as copies. Show Stored Copies in Finder opens the library of copies.

Free trial

A 14-day trial starts the first time Cognodex opens, with no account or payment. Afterwards you can still open, search, export and read every map and open its files; editing needs Cognodex Pro, and trying to edit opens the plans.

Cognodex Pro

Settings › Cognodex Pro shows your status and the plans. A subscription bills from the day you choose it, even during the trial; Lifetime is a single purchase. Restore Purchases brings back what your Apple Account owns, and subscribers can manage their plan from the same page.

Your data

Maps and stored copies stay in Cognodex's own folder on this Mac, and nothing is sent to a server. The Privacy Policy covers the details.