Scratchpad

by KVH
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Score: 56/100

Description

The Scratchpad plugin adds a lightweight sidebar panel for jotting down quick text notes and making freehand drawings without leaving your current workflow. It features a simple text area for typing and a canvas with customizable brush size and color for sketches or annotations. Content can be manually saved to disk but remains temporary by default, clearing when Obsidian closes. The plugin focuses on minimalism and speed, ideal for capturing fleeting ideas or visual notes during active sessions.

Reviews

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Stats

11
stars
3,711
downloads
3
forks
474
days
101
days
101
days
1
total PRs
0
open PRs
1
closed PRs
0
merged PRs
2
total issues
0
open issues
2
closed issues
12
commits

Latest Version

3 months ago

Changelog

  • Tabbed Interface: The scratchpad UI has been refactored into a tabbed system, cleanly separating the Textarea and Canvas into their own distinct views. You can now easily toggle between them to keep your workspace focused.
  • "Copy to Scratchpad" Integration: A new option has been added to the editor context menu. You can now select text in any Markdown note, right-click, and choose "Copy to Scratchpad" to instantly append it to your scratchpad.
  • Fixes: Addresses various plugin warnings and improves overall code quality.

README file from

Github

Scratchpad

Scratchpad is an Obsidian plugin that provides a simple space in the sidebar for quick text notes and freehand drawings - perfect for jotting down ideas while working across multiple notes.

Features

  • A text input area for quick notes
  • A canvas for freehand drawing with customizable brush color and size
  • Content can be saved to disk
  • Lightweight and distraction-free

Installation

  1. In Obsidian, open Settings → Community Plugins.
  2. Make sure Safe Mode is turned off to enable plugin installation
  3. Click Browse, then search for "Scratchpad" or open directly:
    obsidian://show-plugin?id=scratchpad
  4. Click Install, then Enable the plugin.

Usage

  1. Open the command palette (Ctrl/Cmd + P) and search for Scratchpad, or click the notebook-pen icon in the left ribbon.
  2. The plugin opens in the sidebar with two tabs: Text and Canvas.
  3. In the Text tab, you can type quick notes. Use the Copy to Scratchpad option from the context menu in any Markdown note to append selected text here.
  4. In the Canvas tab, you can draw using your mouse or stylus, with tools to adjust color, brush size, and clear the canvas.
  5. Click the Save button at the top to save your current text and drawing content to disk.

[!NOTE]

  • This is a temporary note - your content is stored in memory and will be lost when the app is closed unless you manually save it to disk.
  • Scratchpad does not support multiple notes.

Read the blog at https://bit.ly/4exb8PZ.

License

MIT

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