Calc Sheets

Calc Sheets are markdown documents that end in .calc.md. They combine spreadsheet-style calculated results with plain-text editing, so you can keep assumptions, formulas, notes, and outputs together in one versionable file.

Unlike a CSV grid, a Calc Sheet reads like a working document. You write inputs and formulas as text on the left, and Nimbalyst renders the evaluated results alongside them.

What Calc Sheets Are Good For

• Quick estimates, budgets, and pricing models

• Unit-aware calculations inside planning docs

• Financial notes where currency formatting matters

• AI-assisted calculation files that should still stay readable in plain text

• Scenario analysis where the assumptions matter as much as the final result

Example

# Inputs

price = 100 USD
quantity = 1

# Results

total = price * quantity -> currency(USD, 2)

In Nimbalyst, the source stays editable as markdown while the computed values appear beside it in a spreadsheet-like results column.

Built-In Capabilities

• Text-first calculations in plain .calc.md files

• Units and currency-aware formatting

• Live result gutter beside the source

• Assertions so a sheet can catch invalid assumptions early

• Natural fit with Git, diffs, and agent-driven edits

• Source mode that stays readable in any text editor

Calc Sheets vs CSV

Use Calc Sheets when the file is mostly a human-readable calculation document with a few important formulas.

Use CSV when the file is primarily tabular data with many rows and columns.

See also CSV.

Working with AI

Your coding agent can edit .calc.md files the same way it edits markdown or code. Good prompts include:

• "Turn this pricing note into a calc sheet with subtotals and a final total."

• "Add a margin assumption and recompute the quoted price."

• "Convert these hard-coded numbers into named inputs."

• "Add assertions so the total fails if quantity is negative."

• "Adjust the payload assumption and explain which checks changed."