Using the Memex Knowledge Base

Memex is a knowledge base for documenting patterns, infrastructure, troubleshooting guides, and operational knowledge. This skill teaches how to search, contribute, and maintain the KB effectively.

Project vs User KB

Memex supports two knowledge base locations:

project

./kb/

user

~/.memex/kb/

By default, searches include both KBs. Use

--scope

mx search "query" --scope=project   # Project KB only
mx add --title="Note" --scope=user  # Add to personal KB
mx list --scope=project             # List project entries only

When to Search the KB

Search the knowledge base BEFORE asking questions about:

• Infrastructure (DNS, cloud, networking, servers)
• Development conventions and patterns
• CI/CD pipelines and deployment procedures
• Known issues and their solutions
• Architectural decisions and trade-offs

mx search "kubernetes deployment"
mx search "cloudflare" --mode=semantic    # Semantic search only
mx search "dns" --tags=infrastructure     # Filter by tag

If no relevant entries are found, that's valuable information - consider contributing what you learn.

When to Contribute

Add new entries when you discover:

• Solutions to problems that took significant debugging
• Patterns that should be reused across projects
• Infrastructure configurations worth documenting
• Operational procedures that aren't obvious
• Architectural decisions with their rationale

Do NOT create entries for:

• Project-specific details (use project docs instead)
• Temporary workarounds (unless they're long-term)
• Information already in upstream documentation

Entry Format

Every KB entry requires YAML frontmatter:

---
title: Clear, Descriptive Title
tags: [infrastructure, kubernetes, networking]
created: 2024-01-15
---

# Title

Content goes here...

See [[references/entry-format]] for the complete specification.

Modifying Entries

Three commands for different modification needs:

mx patch - Surgical edits (preferred)

Find and replace specific text while preserving everything else:

mx patch devops/deploy.md --find "old text" --replace "new text"
mx patch devops/deploy.md --find "TODO" --replace "DONE" --replace-all
mx patch devops/deploy.md --find "..." --replace "..." --dry-run  # Preview

Use

--dry-run

mx append - Add content to existing entry

Append content to the end of an entry (or create if not found):

mx append "Daily Log" --content="Session summary here"
mx append "API Docs" --file=new-section.md

mx replace - Full replacement

Overwrite entire content or tags (use sparingly):

mx replace path/entry.md --tags="new,tags"
mx replace path/entry.md --content="Completely new content"
mx replace path/entry.md --file=rewritten.md

When to use each:

mx patch

mx append

mx replace

Linking Best Practices

Bidirectional links help readers discover related knowledge:

See also [[devops/kubernetes-basics]] for cluster setup.
Related: [[troubleshooting/dns-issues]]

Guidelines for linking:

• Link when entries genuinely relate (encouraged, not required)
• Think about what a reader might want to explore next
• Don't force links just to have them
• Update existing entries to link to new content when relevant

Tag Taxonomy

Use existing tags when possible. Check what tags exist before inventing new ones:

mx tags  # List all tags with usage counts

Common tags by category:

• infrastructure:

  cloud

  ,

  dns

  ,

  networking

  ,

  servers

  ,

  storage

• devops:

  ci

  ,

  cd

  ,

  monitoring

  ,

  deployment

  ,

  docker

  ,

  kubernetes

• development:

  python

  ,

  rust

  ,

  go

  ,

  testing

  ,

  tooling

• troubleshooting:

  debugging

  ,

  performance

  ,

  errors

See [[references/categories]] for the full category taxonomy.

Quality Guidelines

Titles: Be specific. "Kubernetes Pod Networking" not "K8s Stuff".

Content:

• Keep entries focused on one topic
• Include actionable information (commands, configs, steps)
• Add examples when they clarify usage
• Explain the "why" not just the "what"

Maintenance:

• Update existing entries rather than creating duplicates
• Mark outdated information clearly
• Remove entries that are no longer relevant

Quick Reference

mx search

mx search "cloudflare dns"

mx add

mx add --title="DNS Setup" --tags=infra --content="..."

mx get

mx get infrastructure/dns.md

mx patch

mx patch path.md --find="X" --replace="Y"

mx append

mx append "Title" --content="..."

mx replace

mx replace path.md --tags="new,tags"

mx tree

mx tree

mx list

mx list --tags=devops

mx tags

mx tags

mx health

mx health

Useful flags:

• --scope=project|user

  - Target specific KB (works with search, add, list)

• --mode=semantic|keyword|hybrid

  - Search mode (default: hybrid)

• --json

  - Machine-readable output (most commands)

• --dry-run

  - Preview changes without applying (patch)

Anti-patterns

• Creating an entry without searching first (may duplicate)
• Using

  mx replace

  when

  mx patch

  would preserve context
• Linking everything to everything (dilutes link value)
• Using project-specific tags in org-wide KB
• Leaving entries without tags or with wrong category