Text files are always there
A plain text file (.txt) is a format that hasn’t changed in decades. Because it doesn’t depend on any particular app, you can still read it when apps change, when your PC changes, or ten years from now.
One thing to be aware of: text files have a concept called “character encoding.” TextTree supports UTF-8 and Shift-JIS, which covers the vast majority of text files you’ll encounter in everyday use.
Your folder structure becomes a map of your thinking
TextTree uses your PC’s actual folders as your workspace. No special database, no proprietary format needed.
Just name your folders and arrange your files inside them, and a map of your own thinking takes shape. The feeling of “that note should be in that folder” comes naturally — faster than learning how any tool works.
Simplicity creates focus
Having fewer features is not a disadvantage.
Tags, links, search, databases — a feature-rich tool comes with a learning cost to master it and an ongoing cost to maintain your organization. When you spend more mental energy on how to organize than on what to write, you’ve lost the point.
TextTree does just three things: write, think, and tidy. Open the editor and write. Move files around to organize. That’s it.
Your words stay with you
Everything you write stays in a folder on your own PC. Even if the app disappears, your data doesn’t.
TextTree is a web app, so it does require an internet connection to load — but your data lives in a local folder, so you can open it in any editor, copy it, or move it freely. If you’re worried about backups, simply put your workspace inside a cloud-sync folder like OneDrive or Dropbox — your files will be backed up automatically.
Last year’s notes, ideas from five years ago — with plain text files, they’re always within reach. Your record of thinking quietly accumulates inside a simple folder. That’s what TextTree is built around.