Nested tags for note type vs. "root tags" + properties to pin down note type

Knowledge management
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1

I’ve started with daily notes about a year ago and would like to use Obsidian now also for different note types.

Right from the start I decided to use tags for my note types (#daily, #reference, #core (my naming for permanent/evergreen notes), #person and #asset)

Now I would like to (have to) refine my structure for reference and asset notes with

A) Using nested tags → #reference/meeting, #reference/article, … #asset/ict/, #asset/ict/hardware, #asset/ict/software…

OR

B) Using tags “for the root” (e.g. #reference or #asset) and additional Property types
→ Property key: reference_type, Value: meeting
→ Property key: asset_type, Value: ict, hardware, software
(Unfortunately, properties can’t be nested as far as I’ve read here https://forum.obsidian.md/t/the-remaining-advantages-of-tags-over-properties-in-obsidian/69436)

I’ve tested it in the Obsidian Search and Dataview and it looks like it doesn’t matter a lot if I use A) or B), since I can search or query it with both options.

I can’t decide which Option I should choose (I thought about it for days now and I should choose a way).
I’m a bit afraid of choosing the “wrong” option which could lead to a lot more work if e.g. Datacore is ready(?).

Thank you for every hint / tip!

2

Does utility matter if the tools change, or are you using other tools on the same notes? E.g. if Obsidian goes away, or if you want to use a note in a text editor, would nested tags be better readable than properties?

3

Thank you for your great input! I don’t use another tool on the same notes besides Obsidian. At the moment I use still use Apple Notes sometimes, but I would like to have all (or at least the most) of my notes in Obsidian in the future.

Do you think about tools to import things like Readwise etc.? I’ve never used such tools before, however, I didn’t think about if this could have an impact, to be honest.

I’m trying to think about how my notes would look like in a text editor. Since the properties aren’t integrated in the note itself, I can’t see the properties nor the tags in it (I don’t use inline properties (yet?). I’m not sure, how other tools like Obsidian handle tags and properties.
I could imagine, that values from two sources (tags and properties) could maybe be more difficult to view in one place than nested tags(?).

PS: Sorry for my bad English, it isn’t my main language.

4

I’ve tried both, and settled on using nested tags - my vault for this is roughly 1,500 notes, with maybe a dozen types, with a few of the types having subtypes. I also use nested tags for other things too - things like theme, review/status, some other categorizations and process steps.

Main reasons I went with tags over properties is:

  • consistency across all the different other things ie. one mechanism for all my needs
  • future proofing; I can extend and nest as deeply as I need to as my vault grows and my needs develop
  • makes the tag navigator useful as a kind of alternative folder structure for each nested tag set, I can drill down by type, or by theme, and so on
  • tags are also visible on the graph if you use that (I do)
  • in a few places I wanted to apply the tags within a note, usually on my longform notes and usually to mark an area that needs some editing, or that I want to come back and think on (this is obviously hard to do with properties)
  • and probably some other hings that I’ve forgotten about :grin:

Obviously YMMV, but maybe my reasoning will help you figure out what works for you.

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5

Thank you very much @ShaneNZ !

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