Read this first

It is short. It covers what ResearchOS is, the few things that will save you a headache later, and how to find everything else when you need it.

What ResearchOS is, in one paragraph

It is a research project manager that runs entirely in your browser and reads and writes a folder on your own computer. No upload required. You point it at a folder, pick a username, and everything you make (projects, tasks, lab notes, methods, protocols, purchases, attachments) gets saved as plain JSON and image files inside that folder. Optional Free and Lab cloud accounts add sync, sharing, and real-time collaboration. Put the folder in OneDrive, Dropbox, or iCloud and your whole lab can work out of the same one.

A few things worth knowing up front

Get these and you can pick up the rest as you go.

How to find the rest of the wiki

There are a lot of pages because the app does a lot. Three ways to get around, fastest first.

• Search the bar at the top of the sidebar. If you know the word for the thing you want ("gradient," "calendar," "edit session"), this beats browsing every time.
• Browse the sidebar categories. Pages are grouped under Getting Started, Shared Lab Accounts, Features, Integrations, and Security. Good when you know roughly what area you are in.
• Hit the "?" button in the app. Drops you on the page for whatever you were just looking at. Best when you are mid-task and want context, not when you are browsing.

Every page leads with the concept. The top explains what the feature is and why it exists, and the screenshots and steps come after. Usually you can skim to the screenshot of the thing you need and stop there.

Brand new? Start here

Walk these in order. Each one is short.

1. Browser requirements. Chrome or Edge. The folder API does not work in Safari, Firefox, or Brave.
2. Connecting your folder. Pick the folder ResearchOS reads and writes.
3. Creating a user. A username, and an optional password.
4. Want a sandbox first? Try the demo. It runs in your browser on a fake yeast lab, and your edits vanish on reload.

Setting up a shared lab folder?

Read Shared Lab Accounts first. Putting the ResearchOS folder inside OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox, Box, or iCloud lets your whole lab work out of one folder. The catch is that you have to set the sync client to keep the folder downloaded locally instead of on-demand. Skip that and the app will fail to read or write at random, and you will hate it. The per-provider pages walk you through the exact setting.

One last thing

This is a local-first app built by one person, and the wiki tries to be honest about what works and what does not yet. If something is broken or confusing, the Feedback page in the app files a GitHub issue with the context already filled in. It is the fastest way to get it fixed.