OmniFocus and a Markdown Connection

One of the neat things about OmniFocus is how interconnected it can be with its links. You can Control-click just about anywhere and select the “Copy as Link” function:

A most handy-dandy note taking syntax is MultiMarkdown. MultiMarkdown lets you write in nearly plain English but still comes out with nice formatting, like headers, lists, and more. When it comes to creating a link, you can easily do so in the following format:

[ Visit Kourosh Dini’s main site ] ( https://www.kouroshdini.com )

Just remove the spaces to make it work.

Well, you also need a MultiMarkdown compatible writing app of which there are many to choose from. Ones that I have handy include DEVONthink, iA Writer, Byword, Typora, Folding Text, MultiMarkdown Composer, among others. Even WordPress, this blog, can translate Markdown into a webpage.

Sometimes, it is useful to reference an OmniFocus task or project in one of these programs.  Using this same syntax is a nice way to make things appear uniform and useful. Typing out “<a href=”http…” gets to be a chore.

Use Case

For example, I’ve been using DEVONthink for creating daily journal notes. I want to copy the day’s tasks in OmniFocus and paste them elsewhere efficiently. Writing out the title and URL of each individual item in a list, however, would take a long time. Rather than go through all the steps, we can use automations from the Omni Group to smooth out this process.

We’ll look at 2 plugins:

1. Clipboard Objects to Markdown
2. Copy as Markdown Link

Using “Clipboard Objects to Markdown”

• Go to the Omni Automation Actions page
• Download the Plug—In “Clipboard Objects to Markdown”¹
• Double-click to install it:

You should now have an option in your Menu > Automation > Clipboard Contents to Markdown Links.

To use it:

• Select the tasks, projects, tags, or folders
• Copy them (Command-c)
• Select “Menu > Automation > Clipboard Contents to Markdown Links”
• Select Ok:
  
• Paste wherever you like.

Here is an example using iA Writer:

Here’s an example using DEVONthink:

Using “Copy as Markdown Link”

One of the Support Humans over at The Omni Group shared an alternative version that doesn’t require copying first. While its scope is narrowed to tasks, it makes for a quicker workflow.

• Download it here ²
• Install it just as we did above

To use it:

• Select the tasks for transformation
• Select “Menu > Automation > Copy as Markdown Link”
• Paste wherever you like