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Documentation Index

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Canvas Card-Materializer bridges the gap between visual brainstorming on the Obsidian Canvas and long-term knowledge management. Select any text card (or a batch of them), right-click, and the plugin instantly creates organized .md files — complete with YAML frontmatter, color-based folder placement, and backlinks to every connected node.

Installation

Install via the Obsidian Community Plugin browser or manually from GitHub Releases.

Quickstart

Materialize your first Canvas cards into Markdown files in under a minute.

Core Concepts

Understand materialization, color hierarchy, and how connections are preserved.

Configuration

Customize the default export directory and tailor the plugin to your vault.

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What It Does

Canvas Card-Materializer turns ephemeral Canvas text nodes into first-class Markdown notes. Each materialized file gets:
  • A clean filename derived from the card’s first line (headers, backticks, and illegal characters are stripped automatically)
  • Color-based folder placement — yellow cards land in Yellow/, grey in Default/, and so on
  • YAML frontmatter recording the originating node’s canvas_id and canvas_color
  • A Connected Nodes: section at the bottom listing every linked card as a clickable Obsidian backlink
When you drag a materialized file back onto the Canvas, the plugin reads canvas_color from its frontmatter and restores the original card color automatically.

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Key Features

Atomic Materialization

Convert one card or dozens in a single right-click — the Canvas layout stays intact as text nodes become file nodes.

Color Hierarchy

Seven color slots (Default through Purple) automatically route files into sub-folders, keeping your vault organized without extra effort.

Persistent Connections

Arrows on the Canvas become Connected Nodes: backlink lists in the generated files, so your knowledge graph survives the transition.

Visual Sync

Drop a materialized note back onto any Canvas and its color is restored from frontmatter — no manual re-coloring required.

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Get Started

1

Install the plugin

Open Obsidian Settings → Community Plugins, disable Restricted Mode, click Browse, and search for Canvas Card-Materializer. Click Install, then Enable.
2

Open a Canvas

Open any .canvas file in your vault. Create a few text cards if you don’t have any yet.
3

Select and materialize

Click one card (or drag-select several), right-click, and choose “Materialize cards to files”.
4

Find your notes

A folder named after your Canvas appears in the same directory, with sub-folders for each card color. Your new .md files are ready to edit.
Check the Color Workflow guide for a recommended color-to-role mapping that works well for research, engineering, and project management workflows.

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