Glacier help

Short answers to the questions people ask most. Glacier lives in your browser's sidebar.

How do I start a note?

Just start writing on the paper. On a website, the note belongs to that page and opens again when you come back. Click + at the top for a new one: "Note for" the page you're on, or a Blank note that belongs to no page.

Where are my notes?

Click ☰ Notes at the top left. Type to search the titles, or start with // to search inside the notes. Ctrl K opens the list from anywhere in Glacier. Below the search are your recent notes and your collections, each a folder you open with a click. ⤢ spreads the list over the whole sidebar.

How do I sort notes into collections?

In ☰ Notes, click + New next to Collections, type a name and press Enter. Then hover a note, click its ⋯ and choose Move to collection…. Hover a collection to rename it with the pen, or use its ⋯ to start a note in it, download it, archive it or delete it. Deleting a collection can keep its notes: they go to Not in a collection.

How do I follow a course with Glacier?

In Settings, How your notes look, pick the Course layout. Put the notes of a course in one collection, then open its ⋯ in ☰ Notes and choose Make it a course, or click the button on the card over one of its notes. Its notes become lessons, numbered by when you made them. The course and how many lessons are done show on top, a tab for each lesson sits on the right edge, and Previous, Mark as done and Next lesson wait at the bottom. + after the last tab makes a new lesson. Alt PageDown and Alt PageUp open the next and the previous lesson. Not a course any more, in the same ⋯, takes the numbers away and keeps the notes.

What is the Home layout?

In Settings, How your notes look, pick Home. Wherever the empty page would show (a page with no note yet, a new tab, after the last note you were on is deleted), Glacier shows Home instead: a big card to continue the note you edited last, a card for each course with how many lessons are done and the next one, your other collections with + New to make one, and the notes you opened lately. A page that has a note still opens it. ⌂ at the top left opens Home from any note. To write a note for a page from Home, use + and New note for this page.

How do I rename a note?

Hover the title at the top and click the small pen after it, or open ⋯ and choose Rename. Type the new name and press Enter. Links to the note change with it.

How do I jump to a part of a long note?

Click the note's title at the top: its headings show, and a click on one takes you there. A line that starts with # is a heading.

How do I link two notes?

Type [[ and the start of the other note's title, then pick it from the list. Click the link to open that note. A link to a title that doesn't exist yet makes that note when you click it.

How do I get a note back that I deleted or archived?

Right after a delete or an archive, click Undo in the notice at the bottom. An archived note stays in the Archive at the bottom of ☰ Notes; open it and choose Unarchive in ⋯. A deleted note is gone for good once the notice has gone.

How do I keep my notes safe?

Open Settings with the round glacier button (the one with the small gear), then Where your notes are saved. Choose In Google Drive, In a folder on this computer or On GitHub. Glacier then keeps a copy there by itself and brings in what you wrote on another computer.

How do I find a setting?

Open Settings with the round glacier button and type in "Search settings" on top, for example "font" or "passcode". Every part that matches opens. Each closed part shows what it is set to now, so you can see everything at a glance. When Settings open inside the sidebar, the parts sit in a narrow column of pictures on the left (Look, Pages, Tabs and so on), and Look shows a small piece of paper with your paper, font and text size. To make a copy of all your notes, open Back up and restore and choose Download all notes.

What does the word next to the title mean?

It shows only when syncing needs you. "Offline" means your changes are kept in this browser and sync when you are back online. "Sign in again", "Reconnect" and "Not synced" mean Glacier can't reach the place your notes live; click the word for the one button that fixes it. "2 versions" means a note was changed in two places; click it to see both.

Can I lock a note?

Yes. Open ⋯, choose Note details and click Secret. Its text is then locked with your Glacier passcode everywhere it is kept. Nobody can recover a forgotten passcode, so keep it somewhere safe.

Which keys can I use?

Open ⋯ and choose Keyboard shortcuts. It lists every key and every Markdown mark Glacier knows, like # for a heading or - for a bullet. Type / on an empty line for the commands, such as a sketch or a new page.

Can I take a break?

Type /break on an empty line and press Enter, or pick Take a break from the / menu, to play the little game of your paper. Esc takes you back to your note, just as you left it.

How can I support Glacier?

Glacier stays complete and free. If it helps you, open Settings with the round glacier button, then Support Glacier. Choose Once or Monthly, pick a drink or type an amount from 3 €, and click Support. The payment page opens in a new tab. Supporting brings the four Cities papers, Kyoto, New York, Marrakech and Hong Kong, each with its own game, and a small mark next to the Settings title.

Where do I type my code?

After paying, the thank-you page and the thank-you email show a code. Open Settings, then Support Glacier, type it under "Have a code? Type it here." and click Unlock. Capitals and spaces don't matter. Glacier has no server, so the code works offline, in this browser. Type it again in each browser you use.