I went back to thinking first, built a tool, and actually finished it

https://i.redd.it/bj6kyx95bv4h1.gif

before vibecoding I used to start projects by spending more time up front. thinking about the design and what I want it to acomplish. Plan mode is great for this but it still feels ephemeral. since the likes of cursor and then claudeCode came around I've found that it was often even easier to skip the decision making part and just jump in. In some ways thats good, its brainstorming, you get to build quick and see what you like an don't like... but that led to projects that never feeling finished, losing track of stuff I liked over time.

So I redesigned my workflow, and built a tool around it. I'm back to writing first. This feels like the "right way" it should be done. Brainstorm -> crystalize -> implement. Agents and chat interfaces make it too easy to ignore the formalizing of requirements and managing how they change overtime. 

Features
- WYSIWYG markdown editor w/ plugins
- completely local storage (like Obsidian)
- local network sharing. can share and collaborate without hitting the public web
- git based document history tracking
- lightweight built on electron so hackable
- Bring your own Agent, integrated with your CLI agents.

https://github.com/Canonical-AI/canonic

https://github.com/Canonical-AI/canonic/releases/tag/v0.1.2-alpha

full disclosure: I built a webapp along the same lines before. but it was really not the right tool. sat on the idea for a year and finally got around to something I think people will actually use where data stays entirely on your machine! (usage logging isnt even hooked up yet lol) theres no price, no signup, fully open source.