FAQ

Frequently asked questions about Mindwtr.

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General

What is Mindwtr?

Mindwtr is a cross-platform Getting Things Done (GTD) productivity app that helps you capture, clarify, organize, and engage with your tasks. Available for desktop (Windows, macOS, Linux) and mobile (Android, iOS).

Is Mindwtr free? Will it stay free?

Yes. Mindwtr is open source (AGPL-3.0) and free to use. There are no paywalls, no subscriptions, and no premium tiers for sync or anything else. The plan is for it to stay that way: good software should be accessible to everyone regardless of their financial situation, and support should come from people who choose to give it, not from a paywall.

The project carries real ongoing costs: the annual Apple developer fee, hosting, development tools, and the time that goes into features, fixes, and community support. Donations are what keep it sustainable.

One honest caveat: donations do not cover the costs today, and the maintainer absorbs the difference. If that gap ever grew too large to sustain, an optional paid service (for example, a hosted sync server for people who don't want to self-host) could be added to cover it. The app itself stays free and open source either way. Nothing you can do today would move behind a paywall.

How long will Mindwtr be maintained?

Mindwtr is a passion project, and it is also the tool the maintainer runs his own life with, so it gets maintained because he needs it maintained. The commit history is the honest picture of what that looks like in practice.

No solo project can promise "forever", so Mindwtr is designed to make the worst case safe instead: it is local-first, your data lives in open formats in files you control, and the code is AGPL with reproducible builds on independent channels. Even if development stopped, the app keeps working offline, your data stays readable, and anyone can fork the code. You can commit your workflow to it, or leave, with your data intact at any time.

Is Mindwtr AI-generated? What is the project's stance on AI?

Mindwtr is AI-assisted, not AI-generated. That distinction matters.

The architecture, product direction, feature design, and GTD philosophy behind Mindwtr are designed and owned by the maintainer. AI tools help with execution: drafting implementations faster, reducing boilerplate, improving wording, and speeding up bug investigation. Every shipped change is still specified, reviewed, tested, and the maintainer takes responsibility for the result.

AI-assisted development is normal software engineering practice today, including at major technology companies and across open source. AI is a tool, like IDEs, autocomplete, documentation, and Stack Overflow. Using it does not remove the developer's work; it shifts more of the work toward direction, judgment, review, integration, and validation.

Mindwtr is maintained by a solo developer with 10+ years of software engineering experience. That experience is what makes AI useful rather than dangerous: knowing what to build, what not to build, when output is wrong, and how to keep the system coherent. AI helps a project this broad stay maintainable by one person, but it does not decide the design or own the result.

Issue and discussion replies are written by the maintainer. AI may be used to polish English wording, but no agent auto-triages or auto-answers issues.

For contributions, see the LLM-assisted coding section in CONTRIBUTING.md.

Why are there so many commits and issue reports?

Mindwtr is a cross-platform end-user app, not a small CLI or library with one narrow command surface. It includes desktop and mobile clients, local-first persistence, sync backends, imports, notifications, quick capture, widgets, translations, installation channels, and GTD workflow decisions. That kind of product creates many small follow-up commits because UI polish, platform differences, packaging fixes, and edge-case reports are part of normal maintenance.

The public issue count is also intentionally broad. GitHub issues include feature requests, UX improvements, platform-specific corner cases, release packaging reports, documentation gaps, and confirmed bugs. Many reports are not blockers for the main capture/organize/review workflow, but they are still tracked publicly so users can see what is known and what changed. Fast follow-up fixes are part of the maintenance model, not a sign that issues are ignored or hidden.

Is there a roadmap or upcoming features page?

We don’t maintain a fixed roadmap page. The living roadmap is the GitHub Issues list: https://github.com/dongdongbh/Mindwtr/issues

If you have a feature request, please open an issue and describe the workflow you’re trying to support.

Where should I report bugs or request features?

The best place is a GitHub issue. It keeps logs, device details, and follow-up together in one trackable, searchable place, so nothing gets lost: https://github.com/dongdongbh/Mindwtr/issues

Other ways to reach out:

• In-app feedback: use Send feedback from Settings → About when it is available in your build. It sends a bug report, feature request, or other note without needing a GitHub account, and the reply email field is optional. For bug reports, Include recent diagnostics attaches a bounded snapshot of recent in-app views and actions plus any available recent diagnostic logs; it works even when detailed logging is off, and the added snapshot is not saved on the device. See the privacy policy for details.
• Email: for anything that doesn't fit a public issue (a private or account question), write to [email protected].

If you're reporting a bug, please include your platform and app version (Settings → About) so it's easier to help.

If Mindwtr is useful to you, support options are listed on the Support page.

Can I open multiple windows?

Not currently. The desktop app is single-window to keep the local-first SQLite data model safe and consistent. Multi-window support is a common request, but not available yet.

Is there a donation page?

Yes. See the donation page for all the ways to support the project.

What languages are supported?

Mindwtr currently supports these language options, listed roughly by total speakers worldwide:

• English
• 中文（简体）
• 中文（繁體）
• हिन्दी
• Español
• العربية
• Français
• Português
• Русский
• Deutsch
• 日本語
• فارسی
• Tiếng Việt
• Türkçe
• 한국어
• Italiano
• Polski
• Nederlands
• Čeština
• Svenska

Where is my data stored?

All data is stored locally on your device:

• Desktop data (Linux): ~/.local/share/mindwtr/data.json
• Desktop config (Linux): ~/.config/mindwtr/config.toml
• Windows/macOS: %APPDATA%/mindwtr/ or ~/Library/Application Support/mindwtr/
• Mobile: Internal app storage

See Data and Sync for details.

Is there cloud sync?

Mindwtr supports File Sync, WebDAV, self-hosted Cloud Sync, and Dropbox sync (supported builds). See Data and Sync.

Which sync method is fastest: local folder or WebDAV?

For similar hardware and network distance, local folder sync is usually faster than WebDAV. Folder sync reads and writes the snapshot with plain filesystem calls, while WebDAV adds HTTP round-trips, authentication, and server processing per request. The gap is most visible with large attachments, which transfer as individual uploads and downloads over WebDAV. That said, the bottleneck is usually the storage provider behind the folder (for example a Syncthing or cloud-drive client syncing in the background), not Mindwtr itself. Pick the backend that fits your setup; see Data lifecycle for what actually moves during a sync.

Does Mindwtr support iCloud sync directly?

Yes, on supported Apple builds.

• iPhone / iPad: native iCloud backend is available in Settings → Sync
• macOS desktop: native iCloud backend is available in Settings → Sync
• Android / Windows / Linux: no native iCloud backend

See iCloud Sync and Data and Sync.

How do I sync with OneDrive (especially on Android)?

Mindwtr already works with OneDrive via file sync:

• Windows/macOS: Put your Mindwtr data.json inside your OneDrive folder. OneDrive handles the sync automatically.
• Android: The official OneDrive app does not provide true two‑way folder sync.
  Use a helper “bridge” app such as OneSync (Autosync for OneDrive) or FolderSync to keep a local folder synced.
  Then point Mindwtr to that local folder in Settings → Sync (Mindwtr uses data.json inside).

This is the same approach used by local‑first apps like Obsidian.

Why doesn’t Mindwtr have a “Sign in with OneDrive / Google Drive” button?

Mindwtr is local‑first and offline‑first.

Mindwtr now supports native Dropbox OAuth sync in supported builds, but does not provide native OneDrive/Google Drive OAuth integration. Expanding to every provider adds significant maintenance and compliance overhead.

For OneDrive/Google Drive, File Sync keeps your data in your control and avoids a large maintenance/security burden.

Can Mindwtr integrate with email (Gmail/Outlook) or accept forwarded emails?

Not directly. Building a full email client requires:

• OAuth access to Gmail/Outlook (which now requires costly security audits)
• Robust MIME/HTML parsing and attachment handling
• Ongoing maintenance across providers

Current alternatives:

• Desktop: Paste message:// or mail links in a task, or drag an email into a task note in clients that support it.
• Mobile: Use the share sheet to send selected email content into Mindwtr.

Mindwtr does not offer an [email protected] inbox because that would require a central server to receive and store your email.

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Features

What is GTD?

Getting Things Done (GTD) is a productivity methodology created by David Allen. It consists of five steps: Capture, Clarify, Organize, Reflect, and Engage. See GTD Overview.

How do GTD Horizons map to Mindwtr?

Mindwtr natively models the lower horizons:

• Horizon 0 (Actions): Next Actions and task lists.
• Horizon 1 (Projects): Explicit Project entities.
• Horizon 2 (Areas): Areas group related projects.

For Horizons 3–5 (Goals, Vision, Purpose), there isn’t a dedicated entity yet. Most users track them with:

• A Reference list (or a “Goals” area)
• Project notes and links to those reference items
• The Weekly Review checklist

If you rely on explicit Goal/Vision objects, please open an issue with your desired workflow and review cadence.

What is Project Section used for?

A Project Section is a labeled group inside one project. Use sections to keep a longer project readable, such as Design, Development, and Content inside a Launch website project.

Sections are not subtasks and not separate projects. They are just headings for tasks inside the same project outcome.

The Project Section field on a task assigns that task to one of the sections in its current project. It only does something when the task already belongs to a project that has sections. If the task has no project, or the project has no sections, leave it blank.

Why can a project have multiple Next tasks?

In Mindwtr, Next is a task status: the task has been clarified and is actionable. It is not always the same thing as "the single next action" for a project.

Project type controls what gets surfaced:

• Sequential: one available Next task is surfaced at a time. Later Next tasks stay in the project and wait their turn.
• Parallel: multiple independent Next tasks can be surfaced because they can be done in any order.

Later steps in a sequential project are not Reference. Reference is for non-actionable support material, notes, and documents.

How do I mark a project as done?

Archive it — archiving is how a project is completed in Mindwtr. Open the project and use the Archive button (in the project header on desktop, under Actions in the project details on mobile). Any unfinished tasks are completed along with it, and Reactivate restores everything if you archived too early. When you finish a project's last action, the "What's the next action?" prompt also offers Complete project directly, so you rarely need to go looking for the button. A project with all tasks done otherwise stays active until you close the outcome yourself, which is a useful prompt during the weekly review.

Can I turn a task into a project?

Yes. The easiest place is while processing the Inbox: when the guided flow asks whether an item needs more than one step, answer yes and the capture becomes a project, where you name it and define its first next action. Any further actions you add land back in the Inbox with the project already attached, so each gets its own clarify pass. See GTD Workflow.

Why doesn't a task show up in Focus?

Focus deliberately shows only what you can act on right now, so a task can be hidden for a few reasons:

• It has a future start date, so it reappears when the date arrives.
• It is a later task in a sequential project, so only the first available task is surfaced.
• An active context filter excludes it.
• Its status is not actionable (Inbox, Someday, Waiting).

Use Projects, Contexts, or Search to inspect the full task inventory. See How Focus sorts available actions.

Does Mindwtr support start dates or ticklers?

Yes, both:

• Start date defers a task: a future start hides it from Focus and Next actions, and it reappears with its existing status when the date arrives. Focus and the Next actions list keep deferred tasks hidden until their start day; use Projects or Search to see them sooner.
• Review date is a tickler: when it arrives, Mindwtr surfaces the task for you to reconsider. Nothing changes until you decide.
• Start lead time ties the start to the due date (e.g., become visible two days before due).

See Dates vs. Status.

How do I enable Priority or Estimated Time?

Mindwtr uses progressive disclosure, so optional fields are hidden by default.

Control task edit fields in:

Settings -> GTD -> Task Editor Layout

Turn on Priority and Estimated Time there (and reorder fields if needed). Hidden fields still appear under More or when a task already has content in that field.

What is the difference between Done and Archived tasks?

Use Done for tasks you have completed recently. Done tasks keep their completion date, stay visible in the Done view, and are useful during daily or weekly review when you want to see what was finished.

Use Archived for completed tasks you want to file away. Archived tasks are hidden from normal task lists and remain available in the Archived view for search, restore, or permanent deletion. Archiving does not delete the task.

In practice, treat Done as a short-term completion log and Archived as long-term history. The Auto-Archive setting can move Done tasks to Archived automatically after a chosen number of days, or you can set it to Never if you prefer to keep all completions in Done.

How do recurring tasks work?

Mindwtr supports two recurrence strategies:

• Strict (fixed schedule): next date is based on the schedule pattern itself. Example: every 5 days stays on that cadence even if you complete late.
• Repeat after completion (fluid): next date is calculated from when you actually complete the task. Example: complete today, then next is due in 5 days from today.

Set recurrence in the task editor (daily/weekly/monthly/yearly), then enable Repeat after completion if you want fluid behavior.

Mindwtr keeps one active instance of a recurring task. It does not pre-populate future Calendar entries for the series; the next task instance is created only when the current one is completed.

Can I see my Mindwtr tasks in Google Calendar or Apple Calendar?

Yes, one-way push is supported:

• Android/iOS: push dated tasks to a device calendar. Android is verified with Google Calendar; on iOS, use calendars already available to Apple Calendar. A dedicated calendar named Mindwtr in that account works best.
• macOS desktop: push to Apple Calendar via EventKit.

Recurring task rules are not exported as native recurring calendar events. Only concrete instances are pushed. See Calendar Integration.

Does Mindwtr integrate with Obsidian?

Yes, on desktop: import a vault and Mindwtr keeps deep links back to the original notes, so a task can jump straight to its source note in Obsidian. See Obsidian.

How do I collect logs for a bug report?

Logging is off by default. Enable it only when you want to report a bug.

Desktop (Tauri):

1. Go to Settings → Data.
2. Enable Debug logging.
3. Reproduce the issue.
4. Copy the Log file path and attach the file to your GitHub issue.

Linux log location (default): ~/.local/share/mindwtr/logs/mindwtr.log

Mobile:

1. Go to Settings → Data.
2. Enable Debug logging.
3. Reproduce the issue.
4. Tap Share log and attach it to your GitHub issue.

Logs are local-only and redact common credentials (passwords/tokens) before writing.

Can I use natural language to add tasks?

Yes! Mindwtr supports quick-add syntax:

• @context: Add a context
• #tag: Add a tag
• !Area or /area:<name>: Assign to an area
• %Person: Set the Assigned to person (%"Full Name" for new multi-word names)
• /due:date: Set due date (today, tomorrow, friday, next week, etc.)
• /energy:low, /energy:medium, or /energy:high: Set energy level
• /note:text: Add description
• /status: Set status (/next, /waiting, /someday, /done, /archived, /inbox)
• +ProjectName: Assign to project

Example: Call client /due:friday @phone

Bare date phrases without a token (like "next week" in the title) are detected too. If you'd rather keep them as literal text, turn off Detect natural-language dates in Settings → GTD.

What are contexts?

Contexts are tags that indicate where or with what you can complete a task. Examples: @home, @work, @phone, @computer. Filter by context to see only tasks you can do right now. See Contexts and Tags.

What is the difference between a context and an area?

They answer different questions:

• An Area answers: "What part of my life or work is this responsibility connected to?" (Work, Home, Health, a client…)
• A Context answers: "What can I do right now, given where I am and what I have?" (@computer, @errands…)

A task can have all three: Area: Client A, Project: Website refresh, Context: @computer. See GTD Overview.

How do I capture tasks quickly?

Desktop:

• Use the global hotkey to open quick-add from anywhere
• On Flatpak/Wayland, bind flatpak run tech.dongdongbh.mindwtr --quick-add as a custom system shortcut if the built-in hotkey is unavailable
• Click the tray icon for instant capture
• Type in any view's input field

Mobile:

• Use the share sheet to capture from any app
• Add the home widget for one-tap capture
• Use the Inbox tab input field

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Desktop

What are the keyboard shortcuts?

Mindwtr supports Vim and Emacs keybinding presets. Press ? (Vim) or Ctrl-h (Emacs) to see all shortcuts. See Desktop Keyboard Shortcuts.

How do I change the theme?

Go to Settings → Appearance. Choose Light, Dark, or System.

How do I sync with my phone?

1. Configure a sync folder in Settings (point to Dropbox, Syncthing, etc.)
2. On mobile, select the sync folder in Settings → Sync
3. Both platforms auto-sync on data changes and when switching apps

See Data and Sync.

Does it support notifications?

Yes! Mindwtr sends desktop notifications for:

• Due date reminders
• Start time alerts
• Recurring task reminders

You can snooze notifications for later.

macOS will prompt for permission the first time you enable notifications. On Linux, ensure a notification daemon is running.

Mobile

Which platforms are supported?

• Android: Full support via Google Play or APK download
• iOS: Available on the App Store and via TestFlight beta. Maintaining the App Store release still requires an annual Apple Developer fee, so sponsorship support helps keep iOS available.

Why does editing feel different on desktop and mobile?

Mindwtr follows platform conventions:

• Desktop: single click toggles details, double click opens full edit mode (rename a title in place via the task's ⋯ menu), and right click opens context menus.
• Mobile: single tap opens edit mode and swipe actions handle quick changes.

These patterns keep the app fast and familiar on each platform.

How do I install on Android?

Install from Google Play or download the APK from GitHub Releases. Enable "Install from unknown sources" if prompted. See Mobile Installation.

How do I capture from other apps?

Use the share sheet! When viewing content in any app (browser, email, notes), tap Share and select Mindwtr. Mindwtr opens the capture screen with the shared content in the note so you can add a title, adjust fields, and save it to your Inbox.

Is there a widget?

Yes! Add the Mindwtr widget to your home screen for quick capture and focus items.

Is the AI assistant required?

No. The AI assistant is optional and off by default. Mindwtr works fully without it. When enabled, it uses your own API key (BYOK). See AI Assistant.

How do swipe actions work?

In the Inbox, swipe right on a task to mark it as Done. Other views may have different swipe actions.

How do I sync with desktop?

1. Export backup to your sync folder (Google Drive, Syncthing, etc.)
2. Select that folder in Settings → Sync
3. The app auto-syncs on data changes and when going to background

See Data and Sync.

Does the mobile app send notifications?

Yes! Mindwtr sends push notifications for:

• Due date reminders
• Start time alerts
• Daily digest prompts
• Weekly review reminders

You can snooze notifications directly from the notification.
Tapping the notification body opens the Review screen.

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Sync & Data

Will I lose data if I sync?

No. Mindwtr uses Last-Write-Wins merge, keeping the most recent version of each item. Soft-deleted items sync properly across devices.

Can I use multiple sync services?

We recommend using one sync folder to avoid conflicts. Pick one service (Dropbox, Google Drive, Syncthing) and use it consistently.

How do I backup my data?

Desktop: Use Settings → Data → Export Backup, or back up data.json from the app data folder. Mobile: Use Settings → Data → Export Backup to save a copy.

See Backup and Restore.

Can I restore deleted tasks?

There’s no single-task undelete UI yet, but you can restore your local data from a previous backup or recovery snapshot.

See Backup and Restore.

Can I import from TickTick?

Yes. Mindwtr can import TickTick CSV and ZIP backups from Settings → Data → Import from TickTick.

• TickTick folders become Mindwtr areas
• TickTick lists become Mindwtr projects
• Checklist content, tags, dates, priorities, and supported repeat rules are preserved when possible

See TickTick Import.

Can I import from Todoist?

Yes. Mindwtr can import Todoist CSV exports and ZIP backups from Settings → Data → Import from Todoist.

• Todoist projects become Mindwtr projects
• Subtasks become checklist items
• Every imported active task becomes a Next Action in its generated project

See Todoist Import.

Can I import from DGT GTD?

Yes. Mindwtr can import DGT GTD JSON exports and ZIP archives from Settings → Data → Import from DGT GTD.

• DGT folders become Mindwtr areas
• DGT projects become Mindwtr projects
• DGT checklists become checklist tasks
• DGT contexts and tags are preserved

Unsupported DGT repeat patterns are imported once and the original repeat text is preserved in the description.

See DGT GTD Import.

Can I import from OmniFocus?

Yes. Mindwtr can import OmniFocus CSV exports and Omni Automation JSON / ZIP exports from Settings → Data → Import from OmniFocus.

• OmniFocus folders can become Mindwtr areas when metadata is available
• OmniFocus projects become Mindwtr projects when needed
• Standalone OmniFocus actions stay outside projects
• Supported notes, tags, defer dates, due dates, completion state, and recurrence from the JSON path are preserved
• Simple nested tasks can become checklist items, while deeper hierarchy is flattened with the original path preserved

If recurrence matters, use the Omni Automation JSON / ZIP export instead of CSV. Planned dates and duration text are kept in the description when Mindwtr does not have a direct field for them.

See OmniFocus Import.

Can I import from Apple Reminders?

Yes, on iPhone and iPad. Mindwtr can import incomplete Apple Reminders from Settings → Data → Import from Apple Reminders.

• Choose the Reminders list to import from
• Imported reminders become Mindwtr tasks
• You can optionally delete reminders from Apple Reminders after Mindwtr confirms the import

Apple Reminders import is one-way import, not sync. See Apple Reminders Import.

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Troubleshooting

App won't start (Desktop Linux)

Ensure WebKitGTK is installed:

# Arch
sudo pacman -S webkit2gtk-4.1

# Debian/Ubuntu  
sudo apt install libwebkit2gtk-4.1-0

Why is the AUR install or build directory so large?

Use mindwtr-bin on Arch-based distributions unless you specifically want to build from source:

yay -S mindwtr-bin

mindwtr-bin installs the prebuilt GitHub release package and should be the small, fast AUR path. The source package, mindwtr, builds the desktop app locally and must download build dependencies for a Tauri, Rust, Bun, and React app. That can use substantially more disk space during the build.

The source package is intended to fetch the release tag archive rather than the full Git history. If an AUR helper appears to download a very large Git checkout, check that you installed mindwtr-bin for the binary package path, or report the source-package behavior so the AUR recipe can be corrected.

App crashes on startup (Mobile)

Try clearing app data:

1. Go to Settings → Apps → Mindwtr
2. Tap Storage → Clear Data
3. Reopen the app

Note: This deletes local data.

Tasks aren't syncing

1. Check that sync folder is accessible
2. Verify sync service is running
3. Check file permissions
4. Try manual sync in Settings

Notifications not working

Desktop:

• Check system notification settings
• Ensure app has notification permission

Mobile:

• Grant notification permission in device settings
• Check app notification settings

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Contributing

How can I contribute?

• Report bugs and suggest features with Send feedback in Settings → About or on GitHub Issues
• Submit pull requests
• Help with translations
• Spread the word!

See the Contributing guide.

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See Also

• Getting Started
• GTD Overview
• Data and Sync
• Contributing (Repository Guide)