index

---
name: index
description: Use when maintaining a vault's navigation layer - Maps of Content (MOCs) and the Tree Index - so the knowledge graph stays browsable and new concepts are discoverable.
license: MIT
---

# Index

Notes connect; indexes navigate. Maps of Content (MOCs) and the Tree Index are
the vault's navigation layer - the difference between "the knowledge is in
there somewhere" and "I know where it is". This skill keeps that layer alive.

## When to Use

- Creating or updating a Map of Content (theme hub)
- Adding a new concept/entity to the Tree Index
- After a capture session that introduced new topics
- When retrieval starts failing because nothing is browsable

Don't use for: creating notes (see `capture`) or semantic search (see
`retrieval`).

## The two layers

### Maps of Content (MOCs)

A MOC is a hub page for a theme: links to all notes on that theme, ordered and
annotated. One MOC per significant theme.

- **Create** a MOC only when 3+ notes exist on the theme. Before that, the
  notes link to each other directly.
- **Update** the existing MOC whenever a note joins the theme.
- A MOC links down (to its notes) and up (to the Tree Index).

### Tree Index

The single page that mirrors the whole vault's structure - every concept,
entity, and theme in one tree. It is the map of the brain:

```
# Tree Index

## Knowledge areas
- AI & Technology
  - LLM Architecture
    - [[Attention]]
    - [[Scaling Laws]]
- Business
  - ...

## Entities
- People: [[Jane Doe]], [[John Smith]]
- Organizations: [[Org X]]
- Projects: [[Project Y]]
```

- **Add** new concepts/entities as they are captured.
- **Retitle** entries when notes are renamed (broken entries rot silently).
- **Remove** entries only when notes are archived.

## Rules

- **Index on capture, not later.** "Later" is a fiction. The capture pipeline
  includes an index step; do not skip it.
- **A MOC without 3 notes is premature.** Wait; premature MOCs become
  graveyards of one or two notes.
- **The Tree Index is the truth of the graph.** If it is stale, retrieval
  lies. The `consolidate` skill refreshes it nightly - keep it fed during the
  day.
- **Name consistency**: index entries must match note titles exactly or the
  links break. Renames require index updates in the same operation.
- **Browsability over completeness**: 90% of the navigation value comes from
  10% of the index discipline. Do not gold-plate.

## Common Pitfalls

1. **Stale Tree Index.** The single most common index disease - entries point
   to renamed or archived notes. Fix on rename, always.
2. **Premature MOCs.** One-note MOCs are noise. Wait for 3.
3. **MOC without up-link.** Every MOC must link to the Tree Index or it is
   off the map.
4. **Indexing during consolidation only.** Nightly repair works, but a
   browsable vault during the day is better. Index at capture.
5. **Exact-match drift** ("Attention" vs "attention mechanisms"). Keep
   entries matching note titles exactly.

## Verification Checklist

- [ ] New concepts/entities added to the Tree Index
- [ ] MOCs updated (existing) or created only with 3+ notes
- [ ] Every MOC links up to the Tree Index
- [ ] Renames reflected in the index in the same operation
- [ ] Index consistent with note titles (no broken entries)