Outerline Outerline

Outerline 1.0-32

Summary

Build 32 makes deep links a first-class feature. You can now copy a stable outerline:// link to any document from the Share menu, or to a specific position, heading, or highlight via the editor context menu. Deep links also surface in the Links panel alongside wiki links, with position-aware labels, highlight links now showing a clipped preview of the highlighted text, and inbound references now preserving distinct linked positions instead of collapsing to a single source-document row. Links are UUID-based and survive renames and moves.

This release also ships UUID-keyed storage for annotations, version history, and starred documents, a keyboard shortcuts reference page, a What's New modal for returning users, and a round of polish and navigation fixes.

Deep Links & Stable Identity

  • UUID identity at inception — Every document and folder gets a stable UUID assigned the moment it's created, written to .outerline-identity-registry.json. Links survive renames and moves.
  • UUID-keyed annotations — Annotation storage migrated from path-based keys to UUID keys, so highlights are never lost when a document is renamed or moved.
  • UUID-keyed version history — Version history snapshots now stored under the document's UUID, not its path. Existing history migrated automatically on first launch.
  • UUID-keyed starred documents — Starred document list migrated to UUID-based storage for the same rename/move safety.

Copy Link

  • Copy Link in Share menu — A new Copy Link item in the document Share menu copies a stable outerline:// deep link to the clipboard.
  • Copy Link in editor context menu — Right-click anywhere in the editor to copy a deep link to the current position, the nearest heading, or a selected highlight — giving you precise, stable links into any part of a document.
  • Removed Cmd+Click wiki link — The dead Cmd+Click wiki link navigation feature has been removed. Deep links are the canonical way to reference documents externally.

Deep Links in the Links Panel

  • outerline:// links surface in the Links panel — Position-aware deep links now appear in the Links panel alongside wiki links and external URLs, so you can see and navigate all outgoing links from one place.
  • Position labels as primary title — When a deep link targets a specific position, heading, or highlight, that position is shown as the primary label in the panel rather than the raw URL.
  • Highlight links show a text preview — Annotation deep links now show a clipped one-line preview of the highlighted text in quotes, instead of a generic "Highlight" label, so it's easier to tell similar highlight links apart at a glance.
  • Inbound links preserve exact source context — If one note links to multiple positions in another note, the inbound list now keeps those references as separate rows instead of collapsing them into one generic source-note entry.

Keyboard Shortcuts

  • Keyboard Shortcuts in Help menu — A new Keyboard Shortcuts item in the Help menu opens the full reference at outerline.so/support/keyboard-shortcuts/ directly in the browser.
  • Keyboard Shortcuts web page — Published a complete shortcuts reference at outerline.so/support/keyboard-shortcuts/ with individual key cap styling for every shortcut.

Navigation & Menu Changes

  • Version History moved to View menu — Version History is now in the View menu (below Advanced Search, above Sort By) where it fits more naturally alongside other document-level view controls.
  • "Contents" replaces "Outline" — The document outline inspector panel, tab, and menu item are now consistently called "Contents" throughout the app.
  • Version History in context menu — Right-click a document in the file list to access Version History directly, without opening the document first.

MCP

  • get_deep_link MCP tool — AI agents can now generate outerline:// deep links to documents, folders, headings, lines, and annotations. Links are created with stable UUIDs and can be embedded in external tools like Linear, Slack, or scripts.
  • MCP Guide in Help menu — A new MCP Guide item in the Help menu opens the full MCP setup and usage guide at outerline.so/support/mcp/ directly in the browser.

More

  • What's New modal — Returning users now see a version-gated "What's New" sheet on first launch after upgrading. Feature data is driven by bundled JSON so future releases don't require code changes. Includes an optional call-to-action link. Use --simulate-whats-new to test locally.

Fixes

  • Removed orange from annotation highlight colors.
  • Fixed outline heading scroll margin so tracked headings don't land behind the toolbar.
  • Fixed starred section flashing empty state during sidebar refresh.
  • Updated signup text and styling.
  • Improved MCP documentation with advanced workflow examples.
  • Polished shortcut docs to reflect current menu state.