Ask HN: What note taking app do you use and why? I have been paying for evernote, and recently read BASB which has inspired me to take more notes. Before I commit to evernote, I'm taking a look at other note taking apps, such as Obsidian, Apple Notes, Roam. Curious which app you use to take notes and why? |
Obsidian for technical things in my work computer.
It has same defaults for all of this, which can be overridden on a per note or per line level with a quick hotkey on desktop
Along with search that properly ignores Arabic diacritics, unless I search with diacritics where it also matches diacritics
With a very clear, nicest looking modern Arabic font I’ve seen anywhere
While I do wish it was open source, since it doesn't use a proprietary format or alter the folder structure where I keep my notes it's pretty trivial to switch to a different notetaking tool in the future.
Pros
- doesn't mess with your notes or migrate it into a database (looking at you Joplin)
- extensible via JS plug-ins
Cons
- I'm not enamored with the mobile experience
- Syncs across multiple platforms.
- Plaintext based (with MD support).
- Search + edit UI similar to https://notational.net and https://brettterpstra.com/projects/nvalt
- Simple to publish/share notes
- Free (as in beer and speech)
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If I used MacOS or there were web versions, I would love to use the following (they are all better at plaintext than SimpleNote):
- https://getdrafts.com (best text manipulation + actions)
- https://www.taskpaper.com (best tagging/querying system!)
- https://www.hogbaysoftware.com/bike (supposedly best plaintext editing experience)
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Some day I will build my own plaintext notes/bookmarks/tasks app that is a mashup of:
- TaskPaper
- Drafts
- nvAlt
- SimpleNote
Additionally the app Joplin, which syncs via WebDAV to my server and is used by both me and my wife on both desktop and mobile to share notes, shopping list, web clips etc.
Joplin is excellent for sharing but its editing capabilities leave a bit to wish for. That's where Markor comes into play. Both support Markdown, so its easy to use both.
The one thing I don't have is a general "reference" system. Once I've finished with a task / project / etc. I want to be able to archive it into a wiki-type system. But I also want to be able to query structured data out of it too.
The closest thing I can think of is writing mini-wiki pages. Because they're mini wiki pages, a screen should be able to show multiple pages at once. There's something there, I'm just not sure what.
I've tried a ton of different methods of note-taking, including the ones you name as well as dedicated note-taking appliances. None of them work well for me, because they all complicate the note-taking such that the act of taking notes becomes disruptive to whatever it is I'm really doing.
So I use Google Keep. Largely because it loads so fast, so I don't forget what I'm writing before I write it. And it has good search and tagging, so I don't need any other means of organization.
I always hear I should be using pen and paper at least some of the time , but I only do it in place where screens aren't appropriate, as a sign of respect that shows im paying attention, or to not break immersion in tabletop games.
Notepad++ for quick, disposable notes, drafts, etc. I just open a new tab and start writing. Tabs are automatically saved somewhere and will reopen with the app (I have a personal goal to hit the max).
I don't often refer back to notes nor can I stick to any sort of "system", so this approach works well for me.
I chose this method because VS Code is highly customizable (I make my own extensions) and because there are tons of other tools to work with Markdown and Git. I use those other tools as needed.
Being able to trust the longevity of my note-taking system is pretty important to me.
I’ve got certain scripts that iterate these folders and merge the notes into a single huge document that is automatically sent to Pandoc (to make EPUBs and PDFs) and to Calibre (to make Kindle-compatible ebooks). In some cases, separate documents are generated for specific folders.
These scripts also validate the notes with markdown-lint, proofread them with a custom extension, and remove all footnotes from them. By convention, my notes do not have any duplicated content, and all footnotes in them are secondary stuff that can be removed from the ebooks to maximize readability.
To use within VS Code itself, I’ve created some extensions. They enable things like reformatting text before pasting, clicking a single button to send a note to the printer, and validating that certain concepts and names are written in a consistent manner, to facilitate search.
I used to generate websites from the notes, but decided to stop doing that for the moment. It was like a rudimentary static site generator, lacking in features, so I decided it was best to integrate a proper SSG into my system in the future.
My goal is to automate anything that can be automated in terms of note-taking, so that I focus on actually writing notes and reviewing them periodically.
Hope this helps :)
I finally bit the bullet and just went with Obsidian, as that's where all the community activity is. If there's a way to connect something with notes, or some cool functionality in a plugin, you'll find it with Obsidian.
I'm open to alternatives, maybe even Emacs Org mode? I'm a TECO fan... not sure if I can deal with it, though.
I’m also grandmothered into the cheaper sync plan which is nice because the sync has always felt rock solid.
The plugins are so numerous that I’ve lost track of what else is available, and the fact that a vast majority work on iOS and iPadOS is a huge win.
What do I consider Notes? Documentation, reference materials, ideas, journaling, and task management.
For documentation I use a programmers text editor. Mostly VSCode, but I still use BBEdit, Sublime and others
For the past couple of years the primary application I use for everything else is NotePlan
NotePlan stores its data as markdown files, offers a very polished GUI for Mac, iPhone and iPad and is tailored to each. A web version was recently released and is still feature incomplete but very usable.
The developer has created an app that appears deceptively simple, but has a great deal of depth and flexibility for you to create your own systems.
If you want Tasks and Calendars as part of your note system, NotePlan is well worth a deep review. Check out the videos on their site to get an understanding. NotePlan also integrated with Apple’s Reminders and Calendar. It also can sync with Google Calendar.
Hashtags and @Mentions are available. Templates for meetings, journaling and more are provided or you can make your own.
Sync works flawlessly via Apple’s ICloud and the developer never sees your data. (I was skeptical of this but found it to be true). It is not recommended, but you can also sync via Dropbox or git.
NotePlan is extendable via JavaScript plugins many of which are provided by the community. These include simple shortcuts to complex new dashboard views.
Do you have your own additions to Markdown syntax? NotePlan made it easy for me to add my own syntax.
Since this is Markdown, you can use other tools. The NotePlan documentation explains how to use Obsidian
I mention the Web version is not yet full featured. However, it is VERY functional. My primary workstation is KDE/Ubuntu, and I use the web version all day long.
Finally, yes NotePlan is a subscription. I am hesitant to recommend subscriptions. But let me strongly state, I feel it is a fair deal. The subscription covers 4 native platforms. This is a highly responsive Developer on Discord and elsewhere, new features arrive constantly. I am on the BETA and get updated several times per month. The Developer has gone out of their way to not lockup your data in a proprietary format. The only lock in they have is providing an excellent UI and nurturing a great community.
Yes I use Apple to sync the files between the NotePlan apps.
And I use my own tools to keep my NotePlan text files sync'ed to my KDE Linux Workstation where I can edit them in VSCode.
I won't say $100 is cheep, but then again I paid over $150 a year (more like $400 today)for a MSDOS Word Process in the 1980s.