Vault Connect — Bridge Two Topics

Routing

Use when:

• User says "connect X and Y", "how are X and Y related"
• User is stuck and needs a new angle
• Brainstorming session needs cross-pollination

Don't use when:

• General idea generation (use vault-ideas)
• Tracing single idea evolution (that's /trace, not implemented yet)

Vault Location

Default: ~/Documents/vault-notes

Before running: Check if the default path exists. If not, ask the user:

"I couldn't find your vault at ~/Documents/vault-notes. What's the path to your Obsidian vault?"

Store the path for the session once confirmed.

Workflow

1. Parse the two topics

   User provides: /connect [Topic A] [Topic B]

   If not provided, ask:

   "What two topics do you want to connect? Give me two ideas, domains, or concepts."

2. Search the vault for each topic

   For each topic, find:

   • Notes explicitly about that topic (filename or heading match)
   • Notes that mention it (grep for the term in note bodies)
   • Tags related to the topic (grep for #tag variations)

3. Follow the link graph (max 2 hops)

   From each note found in step 2, extract outgoing wikilinks:

   grep -oP '\[\[([^\]|]+)' note.md | sed 's/\[\[//'
   

   Resolve each link to a file in the vault (match by filename, case-insensitive). Read those linked notes and extract their wikilinks too (hop 2).

   Stop at 2 hops. Do not follow links beyond that — the vault can be large and deeper traversal rarely yields useful connections.

4. Trace connection paths

   Using the notes and links gathered above, look for:

   • Direct links: Note A links to Note B
   • One-hop: Note A → Note C → Note B
   • Two-hop: Note A → C → D → Note B
   • Shared tags or themes
   • Similar language or concepts across notes in both clusters

5. Analyze the bridges

   For each connection path found:

   • What's the bridging concept?
   • Why might this connection matter?
   • What new angle does it suggest?

6. Generate connection report

   ## Connecting: [Topic A] ↔ [Topic B]
   
   ### Direct Connections
   [If any notes directly link both topics]
   
   ### Bridge Paths
   
   **Path 1:** A → [Bridge] → B
   - [Topic A] relates to [Bridge] because: [reason from notes]
   - [Bridge] relates to [Topic B] because: [reason from notes]
   - **Insight:** [What this suggests]
   
   **Path 2:** A → [Bridge1] → [Bridge2] → B
   ...
   
   ### Shared Themes
   - Both topics touch on: [theme]
   - Both appear in context of: [situation]
   
   ### Synthesis
   [2-3 sentences on what connecting these topics reveals]
   
   ### Possible Actions
   - [ ] [Specific thing to explore based on connection]
   - [ ] [Another action]
   
   ### Notes Referenced
   - [[Note 1]]
   - [[Note 2]]
   

7. Offer to save

   Ask if the user wants to save the connection report to the vault:

   "Want me to save this to your vault?"

   If yes, save to: 03. Resources/Connections/{{Topic A}} ↔ {{Topic B}}.md Create the Connections/ folder if it doesn't exist.

Example

User: /connect filmmaking authentication

Output:

## Connecting: Filmmaking ↔ Authentication

### Direct Connections
None found (these seem unrelated at first glance)

### Bridge Paths

**Path 1:** Filmmaking → Storytelling → User Onboarding → Authentication
- Your filmmaking notes emphasize "showing not telling"
- Your onboarding notes cite this principle for UX
- Authentication is the first UX touchpoint
- **Insight:** Auth flows could use narrative structure — setup, tension (verification), resolution (access granted)

**Path 2:** Filmmaking → World Building → Mental Models → JWT Tokens
- You wrote about how films establish "rules of the world"
- Your JWT notes mention users not understanding token expiry
- **Insight:** What if auth errors explained the "rules" like a film establishes its world?

### Shared Themes
- Both involve **trust-building** (audience trust vs user trust)
- Both require **invisible complexity** (editing vs encryption)

### Synthesis
Your filmmaking knowledge about narrative structure and invisible craft could inform how you design auth UX. The "show don't tell" principle specifically applies to error messages and token expiry.

### Possible Actions
- [ ] Redesign auth error messages using storytelling principles
- [ ] Write blog post: "What Filmmaking Taught Me About Auth UX"

### Notes Referenced
- [[Filmmaking Notes]]
- [[Storytelling Principles]]  
- [[JWT Auth Pro]]
- [[Onboarding Flow Redesign]]

Rules

• Try hard to find connections — that's the challenge — but don't fabricate them
• Go beyond obvious connections — dig for insight
• Cite specific notes as evidence (no connection claim without a source note)
• End with actionable suggestions
• If no connection exists in the vault, say so honestly and suggest it as a new connection worth creating