# Getting started

## Open your files

Three ways in:

- Open a single file (⇧⌘O) — edit any .md wherever it lives, saved right back in place. Nothing else added.
- Open a folder (⌘O) — browse and edit all its notes from the sidebar. It stays a plain folder: wander writes nothing extra to it.
- Turn a folder into a vault — flip on history & search (the chip at the bottom of the sidebar, or Settings ▸ This Folder) to keep every version and search full text. Only then does wander add a hidden `.wander` folder.

Any folder of markdown works: a plain notes directory, an Obsidian vault, a docs repo. wander reads and writes standard markdown, so nothing you open is locked to this app. Create a new note anywhere with New Document (⌥⌘N), then Save As… (⇧⌘S).

## Write

Click a note in the sidebar to open it, and just type. wander is WYSIWYG — you see bold as bold, headings as headings — but the file on disk stays clean markdown. Changes autosave a second after you stop typing.

## Move around

- Press ⌘K to search — full text in a vault, or jump to a file by name in a plain folder
- Click any note in the sidebar to open it
- Click a `wikilink` to jump to another note
- Use the breadcrumb at the top to see where you are

## Nothing leaves your Mac

wander runs locally. No account, no sync, no telemetry. If you want your notes on another device, put the folder wherever you already sync (iCloud Drive, Dropbox, git) — wander just edits the files.

Next: [Markdown Syntax](/docs/markdown-syntax) · [Keyboard Shortcuts](/docs/keyboard-shortcuts)