#Prerequisites

Before you start using Aino LifeOS, you need to understand some foundational knowledge. You don't need to master these -- just having a basic understanding is enough.

#Markdown Basics

All notes in Aino LifeOS are Markdown files (.md). Markdown is a lightweight markup language that uses simple symbols to represent formatting.

#Common Syntax

# Heading 1

## Heading 2

### Heading 3

**Bold text**
_Italic text_
~~Strikethrough~~

- Unordered list item
- Unordered list item

1. Ordered list item
2. Ordered list item

- [ ] Incomplete task
- [x] Completed task

[Link text](https://example.com)

![Image description](image.png)

> Blockquote

`Inline code`

Code blocks are wrapped in triple backticks, and you can specify the language:

```javascript
console.log('hello');
```

#Obsidian Flavored Markdown

Aino LifeOS is compatible with Obsidian Flavored Markdown (OFM), which extends standard Markdown with additional syntax.

#Wikilinks (Bidirectional Links)

Use double square brackets to create links between notes:

[[Note name]]
[[Note name|Display text]]
[[Note name#Heading]]

This is one of the most commonly used syntaxes in LifeOS, used to establish connections between notes.

#Embeds

Adding ! before a link embeds the content of another note into the current note:

![[Note name]]
![[Note name#Heading]]
![[Note name#^block-id]]

#Block References

Each paragraph or list item can be given a unique identifier with ^id, and then referenced in other notes:

This is a paragraph. ^my-block-id

Reference in another note:
![[Note name#^my-block-id]]

#Callout

Callouts are styled hint blocks used to highlight important information:

> [!info] Title
> This is an informational tip.

> [!warning] Warning
> This is a warning.

> [!tip] Tip
> This is a useful tip.

#Tags

Use the # prefix to create tags for categorization and retrieval:

#tagname
#parent-tag/child-tag

Tags have special purposes in LifeOS, especially Theme Tags. See Core Concepts for details.

#What is a Vault

A Vault is the most fundamental concept in Aino LifeOS -- it is simply a folder on your disk.

This folder contains all your notes (Markdown files), attachments (images, PDFs, etc.), and configuration information. After Aino LifeOS opens a Vault, it indexes all files within it, providing search, linking, AI conversation, and other features.

Characteristics of a Vault:

• It is just an ordinary folder that you can view with any file manager
• Notes are stored as .md files and can be opened with any text editor
• It can be placed anywhere -- local disk, external drive, cloud sync directory
• If you have an Obsidian Vault, you can open it directly with Aino LifeOS; both share the same folder

#Next Steps

• Core Concepts -- Learn about theme tags, note templates, and other concepts in LifeOS
• Primary and Sub-systems -- Understand the system architecture of Periodic Notes and Theme Notes