The Margins of a Developer’s Mind

One-off edits. Ephemeral information. Persistent wonder.

Ever have a quick note, or some throwaway text you need to jot → edit → move on — but nowhere that really fits?

This happens to me all the time. I additionally have a habit of writing while think. What I write here are not structured notes nor garbage. They are somewhere in between & need a home.

These are ephemeral information — thoughts too small for Notion, too messy for Obsidian, too fast for IDEs.

What kind of thoughts am I talking about?

Not long-form writing. Not journaling. Not even structured note-taking.

I’m talking about the fast, messy, throwaway stuff — the kind that needs a scratchpad with zero friction:

• Snippets of code, commands, or JSON you need to clean up quickly

• Notes you jot down during a call — not to save, but to visually anchor what you’re saying.

• A quick SQL query you’re rewriting for the third time

• Markdown bullets or raw ideas you’re not ready to polish

• Two YAML or JSON configs you want to diff, edit, and move on

• Copy-paste edits — like quoting every line or replacing commas with newlines

• Temporary text transformations: format, tweak, discard

• Quickly noting down sub task for urgent but small task

• Stuff you need to see, change, and use — not necessarily save

Sometimes searching later is useful. But in the moment, your only goal is to think fast, note down, and move on.

A Special Kind of Use Case: On-the-Go Text Editing

This one stands out:
Copy → Edit → Copy Again → Paste Somewhere Else

You don’t want to:

• Spin up an IDE

• Open Obsidian

• Deal with naming files

You just want:

• Multi-caret editing

• Keyboard speed

• Lightweight tools

• No mental tax

This isn’t “note-taking.” It’s scratchpad transformation — and it’s surprisingly underserved.

Mainstream Tools I’ve Tried

1. Mac Notes App

What works:

• Always available, iCloud synced

What doesn't:

• No multi-line or multi-caret editing

• Weak support for code, markdown, JSON

• Search slows with volume

2. JetBrains Scratch Files

What works:

• Handy while coding

• Use familiar IDE shortcuts

What doesn't:

• Poor for organising, managing & pruning info

3. Obsidian

What works:

• Markdown-based, powerful plugins

What doesn't:

• Learning curve

• Slower for fast input

• Lacks proper code editing feel

4. Sublime Text (Decent)

What works:

• Super lightweight

• Multi-caret editing is a breeze

• Search is limited by default but can be extended

What doesn't:

• Poor file management and organisation, but you can build a personal system

5. VS Code Project Folder (Best so far)

This one came closest to what I wanted.

My VS Code “Ephemeral Notes” Setup (On Mac)

• Create a folder like ~/Ephemeral

• Open it as a VS Code workspace

• Add a hotkey (Raycast/Alfred/Shortcut) to launch it instantly

• Drop in new files: .txt, .md, .json, .sql, .sh, etc.

• Use multi-caret editing, search, formatting, whatever

• Optional: sync via iCloud/Dropbox

What works:

• Fast

• Familiar

• Format-agnostic

• Low-commitment

What doesn’t:

• I still have to manually clean up old files every few days. No auto-expiry, no ephemeral mode — just clutter I need to prune.

It works — but still feels cobbled together. Like I’m abusing a code editor for a deeper mental workflow.

So what would be ideal?

If I had to design a tool for this problem, it would be:

• Instant-launching — frictionless like Spotlight

• Keyboard-first — capture without lifting hands

• Thinker-focused — doesn’t assume structure

• Format-agnostic — markdown, code, links, JSON, all welcome

• Fast search — available if you need it

• Multi-caret and multi-line editing — not optional

• No runtime baggage — no Java, Node, or setup

• Easy cleanup — delete junk and clutter easily. Keep what’s still relevant.

• Minimal by default, extendable later

So I’m curious:

• How do you handle your throwaway-but-important thoughts?

• What’s your go-to for quick edits, scratch ideas, or random notes?

• Is this not a real problem? Or is it just me?

• Or have you found something better?

Consider participating int the survey below if you relate (or leave a comment to tell me about your system).
I’m exploring this more seriously — and would love to hear what others are doing.

P.S. Exploring Heynote for this itch right now. It’s simple, effective… but I’m not sure she’s the one. Might write more about it soon.