User Guide

Getting Started

Redstrings is a visual relationship mapping tool that helps you connect ideas, people, organizations, and concepts. Think of it as a digital investigation board where you can pin cards and connect them with red strings.

Creating Your First Project

When you launch Redstrings, you'll see an empty canvas. To create a new project:

1. Go to File → New Project (or press Ctrl+N)
2. Choose a folder location for your project
3. Your project files will be saved in a .redstrings folder

Opening Existing Projects

To open a project you've worked on before:

1. Go to File → Open Project (or press Ctrl+O)
2. Navigate to the folder containing your .redstrings directory
3. Select the folder and click Open

Interface Overview

The Redstrings interface is designed to stay out of your way while giving you quick access to everything you need.

Key Areas

• Menu Bar - Access all commands and see keyboard shortcuts
• File Browser - Browse and manage your project boards (toggle with Ctrl+B)
• Canvas - Your main workspace where nodes and edges live
• Node Inspector - Edit the selected node's details (appears when a node is selected)

Working with Nodes

Nodes are the building blocks of your board. Each node represents a person, place, thing, event, or concept you want to track.

Adding Nodes

There are several ways to add a new node:

• Press N to open the Add Node dialog
• Double-click on the canvas
• Go to Node → Add Node in the menu

Selecting Nodes

• Click a node to select it
• Shift+Click to add to selection
• Click and drag on empty canvas to box-select multiple nodes
• Press Escape to deselect all

Moving Nodes

Click and drag any node to move it. Selected nodes will snap to a grid for clean alignment. Hold Alt while dragging to disable grid snapping.

Resizing Nodes

Drag the edges or corners of a selected node to resize it. Nodes have a minimum size but can grow as large as you need.

Tilting Nodes

For that authentic investigation board feel, you can tilt nodes slightly. With a node selected, use the rotation handle or adjust the tilt in the Node Inspector panel.

Editing Nodes

Double-click a node or select it and look at the Inspector panel on the right to edit:

• Title - The main label shown on the card
• Type - Choose from Person, Team, Artifact, etc.
• Description - Add detailed notes (supports markdown)
• Image - Add a photo or icon to the card

Deleting Nodes

Select one or more nodes and press Delete or Backspace. You'll be asked to confirm before nodes with connections are removed.

Connecting with Strings

Edges (the red strings) represent relationships between nodes. They're the connections that turn a collection of cards into a meaningful investigation board.

Creating Connections

1. Select the source node
2. Press E to open the Edge dialog
3. Choose the target node from the dropdown
4. Optionally add a label to describe the relationship
5. Click Create

Quick method: You can also drag from one node's edge handle to another node to create a connection quickly.

Edge Labels

Labels appear along the string and describe the relationship. Examples:

• "reports to"
• "works with"
• "owns"
• "created"
• "mentioned in"

Deleting Edges

Click on an edge to select it, then press Delete. The nodes will remain; only the connection is removed.

Node Types

Each node has a type that determines its color. This helps you quickly identify what kind of entity you're looking at.

Custom Node Types (Pro)

With Redstrings Pro, you can create your own node types with custom colors and icons to match your specific workflow or investigation needs.

Canvas Navigation

The canvas is infinite - you can pan and zoom to work with boards of any size.

Panning

• Scroll - Pan up/down
• Shift+Scroll - Pan left/right
• Middle-click drag - Pan freely in any direction

Zooming

• Ctrl+Scroll - Zoom in/out
• Ctrl+= - Zoom in
• Ctrl+- - Zoom out
• Ctrl+0 - Zoom to fit all nodes

File Browser

The File Browser sidebar lets you manage multiple boards within a single project. Toggle it with Ctrl+B.

Creating New Boards

Right-click in the File Browser to create new boards within your project. Each board is saved as a separate file, letting you organize complex investigations into chapters.

Project Structure

Each board is saved as a .redstring file (JSON format). You can organize boards into folders however you like. Images attached to nodes are embedded directly in the board file.

Search

Press Ctrl+K to open the search palette. You can search for:

• Node titles
• Node descriptions
• Edge labels

Click a result to select and zoom to that node on the canvas.

Exporting

Redstrings offers several export options for sharing and backup:

Save As / Export Board

Go to File → Export Project to save the current board as a standalone .redstring file. This file contains:

• All nodes and their positions
• All edges (connections)
• AI analysis reports
• Board metadata and settings

You can share this file with others or use it as a backup. Recipients can open it directly in Redstrings.

Export Markdown Report

Go to File → Export Markdown Report to generate a text-based report of the current board. The report includes:

• Summary with node and relationship counts
• All nodes grouped by type with their details
• A table of all relationships

Great for sharing findings with people who don't have Redstrings, or for creating documentation.

AI Analysis (Pro)

Redstrings Pro includes AI-powered analysis using Google's Gemini API. This feature uses a Bring Your Own Key (BYOK) model - you provide your own API key.

Setting Up

1. Get a Gemini API key from Google AI Studio
2. Go to Settings in Redstrings
3. Enter your API key in the AI section

Using AI Analysis

Select one or more nodes and use the AI Analysis feature to:

• Summarize relationships
• Identify patterns
• Suggest missing connections
• Generate reports

Note: Your data is sent directly to Google's API. We never see your API key or your analysis content. Review Google's Gemini API Terms for how they handle data.

Keyboard Shortcuts