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Split Memories

Turn a note with several thoughts into smaller Memories you choose to keep.

Make the useful parts easier to find

Meeting notes, a message to yourself, or an account of your day may contain several things you'd like to find separately. A decision could belong with a project, an idea with something you're exploring, and a to-do with the actions you need to take.

Split Memories suggests smaller Memories from a note like this, keeping related Thoughts together. You can review the suggestions or let Memory Currents save them for you by enabling Save split Memories automatically. Your original Memory is not deleted; automatic saves archive it unless you choose to keep it active.

Splitting is offered when a Memory appears to hold more than one thought. A long note about one thing may have nothing useful to separate. Split works on Memories up to 20,000 characters (about six pages). A longer Memory can't be split.

Get suggestions

You can ask Memory Currents to suggest smaller Memories for any active Memory.

Preferences offers two settings:

Find Memory splits and Thoughts automatically identifies the Thoughts within your Memories and suggests smaller Memories without you asking.
Save split Memories automatically saves those suggestions for you without individual review.

Checking Save split Memories automatically also checks Find Memory splits and Thoughts automatically. Under it, Archive the original Memory starts checked, so the original is archived when suggestions are saved for you. You can change it while Save split Memories automatically is checked.

Checking a setting or changing the archive choice saves nothing. A Configure Split Memories card opens beneath them, where you choose which Memories the settings apply to:

All Currents includes new Currents added later, and Memories that aren't in a Current.
Chosen Currents uses only Memories from the Currents you check.

Then choose Save Split configuration to turn the settings on and save your archive choice. That save is your approval for automatic saves. Checking a setting alone doesn't turn it on, so if you leave without saving, it stays off. To save Chosen Currents, check at least one Current. Cancel puts back what you last saved.

Turning a saved setting off keeps your choice of Currents and archive choice. Turning Find off also turns off automatic saving. Turning automatic saving off leaves finding and suggestions on. When you check a setting again, Configure Split Memories opens with your saved choices filled in, and the setting stays off until you save. Removing Currents from your choice removes neither Thoughts already found nor suggestions waiting for review.

To‑Dos use the Thoughts Split Memories finds. If you choose only some Currents, Memories outside them have those Thoughts found only when you split them yourself. Streams are built from whole Memories and need no split. A Memory waiting on a split, whether it's about to be split, being split, or waiting for your review, isn't added to Streams until the split is decided; then Streams can use the Memories the split leaves.

With automatic saving on, proposed splits are automatically accepted on your behalf. This includes splits that you initiated. Otherwise, the suggestions wait for your review. Turning automatic saving on doesn't save suggestions already waiting. Changing the archive choice affects future automatic saves only.

Open Split Memories to see suggestions awaiting review, Memories that may be useful to split, and the results of earlier splits. When offered, choose Split memory on a Memory to open its review screen and begin.

With Find Memory splits and Thoughts automatically on, a Memory your configuration is about to split shows the scissors and Splitting automatically instead of Split memory. This also applies when its Thoughts have been found but suggestions still need to be built, as long as no attempt has failed. On its split screen, This Memory will be split automatically. appears instead of the Split Memories button. It stays under Memories that could be split. Once the split starts, the card shows Splitting memories, then Review split memories if suggestions need your review, or no split label once saved automatically. If an automatic attempt fails, Split memory returns so you can try. Memories outside your configuration still offer Split memory.

For suggestions waiting for review, you can read what the smaller Memories could contain before saving. If a proposed Memory has a Thought count, choose it to read those Thoughts, or use Expand Memory to read long text. Back to Proposed returns to the proposal.

Choose what to keep

Select the suggestions you want, then choose Save selected. Only those suggestions become Memories. Each can then have its own types, tags, and connections to Currents.

If none of the suggestions help, choose Keep as one memory. The original remains as it was, and no smaller Memories are created.

Splitting identifies the individual Thoughts even when you save no smaller Memories. This lets features such as To-Dos use those Thoughts without changing your original.

Sometimes Memory Currents finds that the Thoughts all belong together and offers nothing to split. Your note remains one Memory, keeps its Thoughts, and isn't offered another split. You can find the outcome on the Split Memories page even if you left while the split was running.

Decide whether to archive the original

Keeping the original lets you return to the full account alongside the smaller Memories. If you'd prefer to remove it from your everyday lists, select Archive the original after splitting when saving suggestions.

For automatic saves, Archive the original Memory sits under Save split Memories automatically and starts checked. Uncheck it and save the configuration to keep the original active alongside the smaller Memories.

Archiving the original doesn't delete it. On the Memories page, choose Archived or All under Show to find and read it. Choose Unarchive and confirm to return it to active use. You can also include it in an export by selecting Include archived Memories.

The original and each smaller Memory have independent archive states. Unarchiving one doesn't affect the others or start another split.

A saved split can't be undone. To go back to the original, archive the smaller Memories and unarchive the original.

Their Thoughts remain readable. A to-do stays visible while at least one active Memory holds its Thought. If all holding Memories are archived, the to-do disappears from To-Dos. Unarchiving one makes it visible again with its previous status and history. This applies to originals archived after earlier splits, too.

If you archive while a split is waiting

You can still read split suggestions for an archived original, but you must unarchive it before starting or retrying a split, saving suggestions, or choosing Keep as one memory. Suggestions you haven't decided on become available for review again when you unarchive it.

Archiving doesn't cancel work already underway. Smaller Memories you've already approved may still be saved as active Memories while the original remains archived.

After you've decided

Thoughts kept during a split remain available to read. Choosing Back to Memory returns to the original text; reading a Thought doesn't start another split.

Activity and split history show Saved automatically when Save split Memories automatically saved a split for you.

Once you've decided what to keep, that original isn't offered another split, including when you kept it as one Memory. Smaller Memories created by splitting aren't offered for splitting again. If a split fails before you can decide, you can try again.

Thoughts explains the individual parts of a Memory. Export explains how to take a copy with you, including archived originals.