Brink

User Guide

Using Brink

Brink is a notes panel that lives in your Mac’s menu bar. Double-tap ⌘ in any app and it slides in from the edge of the screen; press Escape and it slides away. This guide covers all of it, from the first launch on.

The short version

  • Open and hide: double-tap ⌘ (after allowing Input Monitoring), or turn on a keyboard shortcut such as ⇧⌘N. Escape or a click outside hides the panel.
  • Write: notes are Markdown and save as you type. ⌘T makes a note, ⇧⌘T a task list, and ⌘E shows a note formatted.
  • Organize: tabs, up to four panes (⌘D), and workspaces to switch between (⌃⌘N).
  • Find: ⇧⌘F searches every note, ⌘O opens one by name, and Spotlight finds them too.
  • More kinds of tabs with Brink Pro, marked Pro in this guide: folders, calendars, reminders, a terminal, a shelf, a clipboard, a log file, and plugins. Try them free for 14 days.

Your notes stay on your Mac. Brink has no account and collects nothing; see the privacy policy. This guide describes Brink 0.2.0.

Start here

  • Getting started

    Install, allow double-tap, the menu bar icon, and showing, hiding, pinning and resizing the panel.

Writing

  • Notes

    Markdown, Editor, Both and Rendered, links between notes, list typing, search, renaming, Recently Deleted, Spotlight, export and import.

  • Task lists

    Adding, nesting, checking off and reordering tasks, the Done section, and the keys.

Organizing

  • Tabs, panes and workspaces

    The “+” menu and New Tab page, splitting by dragging or ⌘D, moving tabs, closing panes, and workspaces.

Brink Pro

  • Brink Pro

    What’s free and what’s Pro, locked tabs, the free trial, buying and restoring.

  • Folder tabsPro

    A folder as a Finder-style list: columns, sorting, Quick Look, and folder access.

  • Calendar tabsPro

    Agenda and week, Join links, meeting notes, invitations and weekends.

  • Reminders tabsPro

    Lists, Today and Scheduled; add, edit and check off; due dates; Clear Completed.

  • Terminal tabsPro

    A shell in a tab, Brink Terminal Helper, keys, and the terminal’s settings.

  • Shelf tabsPro

    Park files, text, links and pictures, and drag them out later.

  • Clipboard tabsPro

    ⌘C ⌘C and ⌘V, what’s kept and what isn’t, pins, search and filters.

  • Tail tabsPro

    A log’s last lines as they’re added; Stop, Start and Clear.

  • PluginsPro

    Get, use, update, report and remove plugins.

Reference

  • Settings

    Every section and setting, with its default.

  • Keyboard shortcuts

    Every key, grouped: panel, tabs, panes, workspaces, notes, task lists and more.

  • Troubleshooting

    Double-tap and permissions, ⌘C ⌘C, the terminal helper, access, plugins, and getting notes back.

Need a hand?

See Troubleshooting and Support, or write to brinkbar@cynaptic.tech.