Open your first document

In this tutorial you will open a folder, move through a document without losing your reading place, make one edit, and save it. You need zd installed; use the macOS installation guide first if command -v zd finds nothing.

1. Make a small workspace

mkdir zd-first-read
cd zd-first-read
printf '# Field notes\n\nA quiet first paragraph.\n\n## Next\n\nSomething to revise.\n' > notes.md
zd md .

The folder opens with notes.md in the file sidebar. Choose it if it is not already open. The Markdown is shaped as a document, but it is still the editable source.

2. Move your focus

Click in the first paragraph. It stays at full contrast while surrounding blocks recede. Press Option+Down Arrow to jump to the next focus block, then Option+Up Arrow to return.

Hold Cmd+. at any point. The shortcut reference remains visible only while the keys are held, so you return to exactly the same document context when you let go.

3. Edit in place

Put the caret after “Something to revise” and type:

 while the thought is fresh

There is no edit-mode switch. Syntax punctuation remains quiet, and the paragraph keeps the same reading measure while you type.

4. Save and check the file

Press Cmd+S, close the app, then inspect the source in the terminal:

cat notes.md

The sentence you added is in the ordinary Markdown file. zd does not convert it to another format.

You have now used the core loop: open a workspace, move attention by readable blocks, edit the rendered source, and save. See the CLI reference for the other launch forms.