Kasten - Zettelkasten Cards

Your thoughts, linked. Kasten brings Luhmann's slip-box method to iPhone — write cards, connect ideas, and follow chains of thought wherever they lead.

Kasten is a Zettelkasten note-taking app built around one idea: thoughts grow through connections, not collections.

Write a card. Link it to another. Follow the chain.

LUHMANN-STYLE CARD IDs Every card gets a unique ID based on where it fits in your thinking — 21/3b, 21/3b1, 21/3ba. Branch off in a new direction or continue a thread, and the ID reflects the relationship automatically.

THREE TYPES OF LINKS Sequence — continue the same line of thought Branch — explore a new angle from the same point Reference — connect ideas across different contexts

YOUR FILES, YOUR WAY Cards are stored as plain Markdown files in iCloud Drive. Open them in any text editor. No lock-in, no proprietary format.

WIKI-LINK SYNTAX Type [[ to link to any card by ID or title. Unresolved links are flagged so nothing gets lost.

DRAFT AND PERMANENT Mark cards as draft while thinking, permanent when the idea is settled. A simple toggle, no ceremony.

Kasten is for people who think by writing — researchers, writers, and anyone building a personal knowledge base over years, not weeks.