mjpost/nvalt-files

nvALT preview templates and image archiving service

nvALT configuration files

I use nvALT extensively for research notes. The files in this archive provide these functions:

• Bootstrap-based, MathJAX-enabled templates for previews
• An Automator workflow implementing a Finder service that archives image files to a canonical location and copies a Markdown-formatted image URL to that image, enabling each incorporation of images.

Here is an example of the nvALT window with a MathJAX-enabled preview:

These templates began with templates published by Brett Terpstra. I modified them to remove evidence of the "Lopash" them and to add support for MathJAX.

What you'll get

• Support for MathJAX in notes
• Automatic highlighting of code blocks with highlight.js
• A basic implementation of Widon't for headlines.
• Smooth scrolling when clicking footnotes and anchors.
• A "back to top" link that appears when scrolling down a note.

Installation

0. Download and install nvALT.

1. First, back up any custom files you've created previously. These files are located under $HOME/Library/Application Support/nvALT/.

    $ cd "$HOME/Library/Application Support/"
    $ mv nvALT nvALT.bak
   

2. Move or download this archive to that location:

    $ cd "$HOME/Library/Application Support/"
    $ git clone git@github.com:mjpost/nvALT-files nvALT
   

3. Download and install MathJAX to the directory mathjax in the nvALT directory above.

   You should now have the following files in your Support folder:

    custom.css
    highlight.pack.js
    jquery.min.js
    template.html
    mathjax/
      README.md
      MathJax.js
      ...
   

4. Install the Automator workflow by double-clicking on the file nvALT archive.workflow.

5. Install a keyboard shortcut for the workflow. Place it under System Preferences → Keyboard → Shortcuts → App Shortcuts → All Applications. The name should be "nvALT archive" (exactly). I use ^⌘a as my shortcut.

   Now, on any image file in Finder, you can click this shortcut (or select it from the Finder Services menu. The image will be copied to a directory within $HOME/Library/Application Support/nvALT/Media/{YEAR}/{MONTH}, and a Markdown-formatted relative path to this file will be placed on the clipboard, to be pasted into your nvALT document.