Sets

A live search of all Objects which share a common Type or Relation

🌟Deep dive: Sets

Understanding Sets

Lots of people compare Sets with databases, but there's a key difference: Sets don't store Objects like regular databases.

Sets are a way to see a portion of your Graph, and Objects you've created, based on your filtered criteria, and several secondary filters which you can customize. You can think of them as a live filter or query for Objects which share certain criteria - specifically, a Type or a Relation.

Sets serve two primary functions:

1. Organizing and Accessing Objects We often get requests along the lines of: How do I find all of the Notes I've created? One easy way is to create a Set based on Type. For example; Note, which will display every Note you've created in Anytype. If you have specific notes you'd like to frequently access, you can filter them based on Relations you've added to these notes. For instance: Creation Date, Tags, or Priority. (In this sense, Relations behave like attributes). You can then pin your Set to your Favorites menu, where it will sit on your Sidebar, acting like a folder for all Objects that meet certain criteria.

2. Editing Objects

   

   Sets also provide a way to quickly edit Objects in a list View. You can use multi-select in Sets to delete multiple Objects at once, or to batch update Relations / the Object Type of Objects. Any Relations added to a Set in the Relation Menu (top right), will be adopted by all new Objects created with the "+ New Object" button.

Creating Sets

You can create a Set with the + in the bottom-left corner or using the / shortcut menu in the editor.

You'll then need to choose if you want a Set by Type which lets you list all of your Objects of a certain Type, or a Set by Relation which will list all Objects that contain the Relation of your choosing.

You can also create a Set by Type from the Object type toggle on a new document.

Next, you need to decide on the purpose of your Set.

For example, project management may require Type: Project, for reading list — Book. From the Library, choose an Object Type, click "Create," and choose "Create a set."

This will then create a set of all the Objects with the Type: Books.

Now you have an organized selection of all your book objects entered into Anytype.

Customizing Your Set

Toggle & Add Relations to Objects via Sets

Instead of adding Relations one-by-one to Objects, you can batch-add them to your Set by clicking the filters on the right side.

Here you can toggle on/off any Relations that you would like to see, add another Relation or new relation, and edit the View of the Set here.

You can add any Relations to be automatically added to your Objects, by adding them in the creation process of your Type.

See more about how to Create a New Type here. Underneath the title & Template section of the new Type process you'll have the Relation options.

Sorts & Filters

You are also able to sort or filter your set by any relation that you've previously added to the Set.