How the pieces fit

Eidos File is an open, SQLite-backed format for structured data. Each .eidos file stores its own data and structure, and can be opened directly with compatible tools.

Eidos Lite is the desktop app that opens a local folder as a Space. The folder contains .eidos files alongside Markdown notes, images, and other ordinary files. Lite adds local Graft history and optional Sync; local editing works offline and without signing in.

Follow one example

You want to track books and keep reading notes. Create a Space called Research. Put the book list in books.eidos and your notes in notes.md.

One Space. Ordinary files.

• DirectoryResearch/ Space · a local folder

  • books.eidos Tables, fields, records, and views
  • notes.md Markdown notes
  • Directoryassets/

    • cover.jpg A cover image referenced by the book list

Inside books.eidos, the Books table has fields such as Title and Status. Each record represents a book. The Reading view saves its filter and layout.

When you move the data, include its referenced local files.

The folder remains accessible in your file manager. Opening it in Eidos Lite does not convert your other documents into database records.

Inside an Eidos File

A table groups records. Fields describe their values, and a saved view selects and displays records from the table.

Part	What it does	Books example
Table	Groups one kind of item	Books
Field	Describes a property	Title, Status
Record	Stores one item	One book
Record Label Field	Supplies the record’s displayed title	Title
Saved view	Stores query and display settings	Books with Status = Reading

The file stores the table structure, records, and saved views. A File field can reference an external attachment. Include that attachment when moving the file. See data storage.

One table, several views

A Grid displays rows. A Gallery displays cards. A Kanban groups records. These are ways to display table data. Creating another view does not copy the records.

Try it: same records, different viewsLearning example · does not change your files

• 01The Little PrinceAntoine de Saint-Exupéry
  Finished: The Little Prince
• 02A Room of One’s OwnVirginia Woolf
  Finished: A Room of One’s Own
• 03WaldenHenry David Thoreau
  Finished: Walden

Showing 3 of 3 records. Switching layouts does not copy data.

Filtering changes which records you see. Editing a record changes its values. If an edit stops a record from matching a filter, it disappears from that view but remains in the table.

Choose a way to open the file

• Eidos Lite: work with a local folder of .eidos and ordinary files, local Graft history, and optional Sync.
• Web Editor: open one Eidos File in a browser. Check its save state before closing.
• CLI: create, inspect, query, and change files from scripts or agents. Use eidos serve for a local editor.

Eidos File provides the portable Runtime behind these tools. Lite, the Web Editor, and CLI Serve share the editor UI, so the file’s data and editing rules stay consistent across them.

Local work and LAN sync do not require an account. Cloud sync and Publish are separate, optional services. Compare saving, history, Sync, and backups.

Next: create a book table.