basicmachines-co/basic-memory/memory-comark

Memory Comark

Basic Memory notes can carry small, safe components written as Comark block directives (::bm-bars{...} … ::). Basic Memory Cloud draws them in Notes, the Wiki, and shared pages. Everywhere else (a local editor, GitHub, an agent's raw read) the same Markdown still reads as an ordinary list, table, or paragraph, so a component never hides content.

Use a component when its shape says more than a sentence or a list would. Keep prose primary: one figure per idea, at most two per section, with a sentence between them that says what the figure shows.

The full vocabulary, every prop, and every data grammar are in references/components.md. Read it before using a component you have not used before.

Pick a component

Most notes need only these. The reference has the rest (39 in total).

If nothing fits, write prose or a plain Markdown table. Never invent a component: an unknown name such as ::bm-pie is not drawn and shows as raw text.

Write a component

Every component opens with ::bm-name{attributes} on its own line and closes with :: on its own line.

The queue rewrite more than doubled steady-state throughput.
 
::bm-bars{title="Throughput" caption="Before and after the queue rewrite"}
-Before: 42/s
-**After: 96/s**
::

Rules that matter:

• Data goes in the body as Markdown, not in an attribute: - label: value

rows, a table for grids. Bold marks the current or chosen row, italic recedes, — note adds a side note.

• Attribute values are double-quoted and cannot contain `"`. There is no

escape. Inside a query, quote phrases with single quotes: query="search 'queue rewrite'".

• Task state stays in Markdown. Use - [ ] and - [x] inside bm-check and

bm-kanban; people can tick boxes from the rendered note.

• Never put HTML, scripts, styles, or classes in a note, and never wrap a

component in a code fence (a fenced block stays literal code).

• Use only registered props. An unknown attribute produces prop-unknown

in a warning frame with the original source and registered props; it is never silently dropped.

A checklist and a board:

::bm-check{title="Launch"}
-[x] Freeze the schema
-[ ] Write the migration note — due Friday
::
 
::bm-kanban{title="Roadmap"}
### Now
-**Billing page**
-[ ] Usage emails
 
### Next
-*Partner portal*
::

Live views over the knowledge base

A component with a query attribute shows current data from the project it lives in. Prefer a live view to a hand-copied number when the note describes its own knowledge base, because copied counts go stale.

::bm-stat{label="Open decisions" query="notes | where type == decision and status == open | count"}
::
 
::bm-bars{title="Open decisions by owner" query="notes | where type == decision and status != done | group owner | sort count desc"}
::
 
::bm-table{title="Due soon" query="notes | where tags contains infra and due < 2026-10-15 | fields title, owner, due | sort due"}
::
 
::bm-timeline{title="Recent edits" query="activity 7d"}
::
 
::bm-rank{title="Related notes" query="search 'checksum conflict' | limit 5"}
::

A pipeline reads left to right: a source (notes, search 'phrase', activity 7d|30d), then optional stages in order: where, group, count or sum field, fields, sort, limit (1–50). The reference lists every operator and which components accept which shapes.

Shapes that work:

• Charts, ranks, and bars need a number per row: add group field, count,

or sum field, or use a search source.

• Sparks, KPIs, and plots need several rows (group, daily, or search),

not a single count.

• `bm-table` takes `fields`; bm-timeline takes activity without daily;

bm-activity takes activity 30d | daily.

Semantics to state honestly in the surrounding prose:

• notes views are exact counts over indexed frontmatter. Search views are

ranked and bounded; call them matches, never "all".

• != keeps notes that lack the field. group puts notes without the field in

a none group.

• Frontmatter numbers are stored as text; comparisons and sums treat decimal text

as numbers and ignore everything else.

Check the rendered result before you quote it

In Basic Memory Cloud, bm_read(view="text") returns the note as a reader sees it: every component as plain Markdown, with live queries run now. Read it back after writing a live view and confirm the view has rows before you state a number in prose. A query over a field no note has renders an empty view.

Elsewhere, only the browser runs the query, so run the equivalent read yourself (for example bm_search with metadata filters; see the memory-metadata-search skill).

A live chart's body is its snapshot: the rows readers see when live data cannot load. A new live view can leave the body empty; people fill it with Freeze snapshot in the editor. If you add snapshot rows yourself, label them as a snapshot in prose and keep them in the chart's row grammar.

Edit a note that already has components

• Change one component with bm_edit (find_replace on its directive line or

rows). Do not rewrite the whole note to change one value.

• The rich editor normalizes formatting when a person edits the note: attribute

order changes and YAML blocks come back as JSON. Values survive; do not fight the formatting.

• Keep the closing :: lines. A block with a body but no close produces

directive-unclosed; the opener and YAML props appear in a warning while following Markdown stays visible. Add the close at the intended boundary in source; the editor never guesses it. Standalone leaves with no body remain valid, though new components should use explicit closes.

When a component shows an error

A broken component renders a coded problem and a fix inside its own frame; the rest of the note still renders. In Basic Memory Cloud, bm_write and bm_edit list these problems under Component problems in their result (they never block the write), so fix them right away with bm_edit. comark(7) in the manual (memory://man/comark(7)) is a quick reference to the syntax and codes. The codes you will meet most:

Unknown props preserve the original directive and data through nearby rich edits. Closed malformed components can use a reviewed agent replacement and undo; missing-close repairs require source editing. Canonical validation and strict export reject malformed source until repaired. Never author internal recovery nodes such as bm-problem. Check component names and props against the reference.

Checklist

1. Does a figure beat a sentence here? If not, write the sentence.
2. Is the component name and every prop in the reference?
3. Is data in the body as Markdown rows or a table, with no " inside values?
4. For a live view: does the pipeline give the shape this component needs, and

did you check the numbers with a read of your own?

1. Is there prose around the figure saying what it shows and whether a count is

exact or a ranking?