Folders transform Ithy from a fire-hose of single answers into a structured library that scales with your ambitions.

Why Folders Matter

Organizing your research is crucial for productivity and easy retrieval of information. Ithy provides a robust folder management system that allows registered users to categorize, store, and manage their generated articles effectively. This feature helps you keep your workspace tidy and your projects well-structured.

Whether you're researching multiple aspects of a single topic or working on several unrelated projects, folders help keep your content organized and accessible. Folders act like project binders: they group related pieces, capture context for follow-up questions, and let you bulk-export everything in one click.

Pro users have enhanced capabilities related to folder management, such as publishing folders.

Creating Folders

To create a new folder:

Go to the "Folders" section on your Account page
Look for the "Create Folder" button or similar option
Enter a name for your new folder
Click "Create" or "Save"

The system will create a folder with a unique ID and add it to your list of folders. Folder names are sanitized to prevent display issues or security risks, so certain special characters may be removed or converted.

Organizing Articles in Folders

Once you've created folders, you can start organizing your articles.

Adding Articles to Folders

From your Account page (usually within the Article History) or from an article's view page, look for an "Add to Folder" option
Select this option for the desired article
Choose the folder where you want to add the article from the list of your existing folders
Confirm your selection

Limit: 50 articles per folder. If you’re running a year-long project, create quarterly sub-folders to stay within the cap.

Removing Articles from Folders

Open the folder containing the article you wish to remove
Find the article within that folder's list
Click the "Remove from Folder" option
Confirm the removal

Important notes about folder organization

A folder can contain a maximum of 50 articles
An article cannot be added to the same folder more than once
Removing an article from a folder does not delete the article itself from your history
You can add the same article to multiple different folders

Managing Your Folders

To keep your folder system effective, you may need to periodically update or reorganize the following:

Renaming Folders

In the "Folders" section of your Account page, find the folder you wish to rename
Click the "Edit" or "Rename" button next to the folder name
Enter the new name for the folder
Save your changes

Deleting Folders

Find the folder you want to delete in your Account page's "Folders" section
Select the option to delete the folder
Confirm the deletion when prompted

Remember that deleting a folder only removes the folder itself and its list of associated articles. The articles that were in the folder are not deleted from your overall article history but are merely unlinked from that specific folder.

Viewing and Sharing Folder Contents

Folders can be viewed and potentially shared:

Viewing Your Folders

On your Account page, click on a folder name to view its contents
Click the Export button to get a URL like https://ithy.com/page/<folder_id>

Sharing Folders

When you view one of your folders using its specific ID (/page/<folder_id>), that folder ID and your email are registered in your unlisted 'pages' collection
This makes the folder's content potentially viewable by anyone who has that specific /page/<folder_id> link. This is useful for sharing a curated list of research with colleagues or friends.
The folder page lists all articles within that folder, typically showing the question/title and a link to the full article

Using Folders as Context for New Questions

One advanced use of folders is to provide context for new questions:

Export the folder using the /export/<folder_id> URL (Pro only)
Include the folder URL (https://ithy.com/page/...) in your new questions
Ithy will analyze every article in the folder before answering your question, providing more contextually relevant responses

Large language models love context. After exporting, drop the folder URL into a new prompt. For example, “Using the research in https://ithy.com/page/abc123, write a 300-word executive summary.” Ithy will read every article in that folder before drafting its response.

Another example: "Based on the research in https://ithy.com/export/xyz123, what are the common themes?" The system is designed to analyze ithy.com/page or ithy.com/export URLs in your query, allowing it to process the folder content before answering.

This feature is particularly useful for building on previous research or creating interconnected content on related topics.

Bulk Export (`/export/<id>`)

Visit /page/<id> at least once to register the folder.
Click the "Export" link at the bottom, or swap page for export in the address bar.
Ithy stitches every article into one HTML document separated by horizontal lines. Print to PDF or save the page for an offline, searchable dossier.

Use Cases:

Creating an archive of a research project.
Offline reading of an entire collection of related articles.
Sharing a comprehensive set of curated research in a single file.

Troubleshooting

Problem	Fix
Folder won’t export	Make sure you’ve viewed `/page/<id>` while logged in at least once.
Duplicate article	An article can’t join the same folder twice; pick another folder if you need cross-filing.
Hit 50-article limit	Create a new folder and move overflow pieces there.