
Ask HN: How do you take notes when reading a book? - Foe
For example, I&#x27;m currently reading Designing Data-Intesive Applications and am taking notes digitally on OneNote (one page per chapter).<p>How do you guys do it?
======
closed
This might sound nuts, but I have settled on a three step process that mostly
involves keeping most notes in my head.

 _Step 1_ is using the method of loci (MoL) to memorize up to 30 things
throughout the day. For context, MoL is a strategy where you visualize things
you want to remember in a room. I have one "room" for each day of the month,
with 10 spots in a room, and will often visualize up to 3 things in a spot (so
10 x 3 = 30 a day). I have 4 paths that each lead between 7 rooms, one path
per week.

 _Step 2_ is just keeping a page of notes per day in a planner. This is really
helpful for jotting miscellaneous things down (like future things to read,
possible connections).

 _Step 3_ is that often as I'm thinking back over notes from step 1, or
reading new things, I'll want to sort of "put it all together", or write up
something that cuts across multiple days. There, I'll often refer to my
planner, and might start a spreadsheet to keep references on.

I think the problem before was that I'd wanted to write useful longterm notes
when first learning / studying something. But that's probably when I'm least
qualified to take really insightful notes. It's been nice to let things
marinade, and focus on keeping the "building blocks" around!

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Method_of_loci](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Method_of_loci)

------
nikivi
I try to read books/papers on mac as it's faster to google and go deep into
things I don't get. Select text (a+space and it queries selected text on
google).

Then it's trivial to open any note (with alfred) from my wiki
([https://github.com/nikitavoloboev/knowledge](https://github.com/nikitavoloboev/knowledge))
& edit it under appropriate topic.

On the go, I usually note things down in Telegram saved messages and later
transfer it to wiki or turn it into articles. Have macro to open saved
messages instantly ([https://github.com/nikitavoloboev/my-
ios#widgets](https://github.com/nikitavoloboev/my-ios#widgets)). Or I just
pass it via share sheet.

[https://excalidraw.com](https://excalidraw.com) & Figma is also great for
visual thinking (tying concepts together).

After I read a book, I review it in goodreads and recently realized that more
useful reviews aren't just thoughts on the book but are summaries. So I try
summarize my learnings from a book there.

For fiction books, I usually listen to it & Audible has nice highlighting
feature but mostly the same applies. Important stuff gets noted in Telegram.

And as for apps I use PDF Expert to read PDFs on mac (love multi tab support),
the Files app to read PDFs on iOS. And epub I read via Books app on mac/ios.

I'm quite excited for [http://holloway.com](http://holloway.com) because all
books should be online by default. PDFs/Epub is archaic and lose ability to
link to specific parts of a book instantly. i.e. just looks at this
([https://www.holloway.com/g/alice-in-
wonderland](https://www.holloway.com/g/alice-in-wonderland)), so much nicer to
read.

What would be even more amazing is when you can take ability to note under any
line in a book (as Holloway already lets you), and see everyone's notes for
any line/chapter of the book/paper you are reading. Similar to what
[https://fermatslibrary.com](https://fermatslibrary.com) is doing.

~~~
kalendos
I have a similar workflow for adding content to my wiki
([https://github.com/davidgasquez/handbook](https://github.com/davidgasquez/handbook))
from the computer.

On the go I'll add a task to taskwarrior and get reminded when I sync it from
the PC.

>What would be even more amazing is when you can take ability to note under
any line in a book (as Holloway already lets you), and see everyone's notes
for any line/chapter of the book/paper you are reading.

I haven't used it but sounds similar to what
[https://web.hypothes.is/](https://web.hypothes.is/) is trying to do.

------
caymanjim
I don't take notes. I find it distracting. I end up absorbing less
information. The few times I did try taking notes, I rarely referred back to
them, and when I did, found that they weren't very valuable. I've got a good
memory, and I'm willing to reread something to absorb more, but notes have
never helped me.

Not criticizing note-taking; just offering another perspective.

~~~
coffeeling
If you just write notes down, that is what will happen. Your note pile ends up
being a graveyard of stuff you don't even know you forgot (but will never
rediscover or reread) and stuff that's still nicely in your mind.

One key strategy to avoid this kind of note graveyard forming is to interlink
notes. That way seeing a note can essentially lead you to wiki-binging through
old ideas, trains of thought or re-stumbling on reference you thought was
interesting once upon a time.

The value of interlinked notes is showcased by the late German sociologist
Niklas Luhmann's notetaking system which he used to rediscover things he'd
forgotten. His knowledge base consisted of ~90,000 index cards that were
apparently worth referring to because of the wiki binge type effect his
hyperlinking system allowed.

[https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/NfdHG6oHBJ8Qxc26s/the-
zettel...](https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/NfdHG6oHBJ8Qxc26s/the-zettelkasten-
method-1)

[https://www.amazon.com/How-Take-Smart-Notes-Nonfiction-
ebook...](https://www.amazon.com/How-Take-Smart-Notes-Nonfiction-
ebook/dp/B06WVYW33Y/)

------
LancashireArrow
I use the excellent Ulysses writing app that allows me to take notes in
multimarkdown. I use it as a slide over app so I can just slide from the edge
of the screen while reading and never lose sight of the book. I create a sheet
for each chapter.

------
davidwparker
Honestly, reading a book and knowing How to Read a Book is a skill.

I highly recommend this book for that reason: [https://www.amazon.com/How-
Read-Book-Classic-Intelligent/dp/...](https://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Book-
Classic-Intelligent/dp/0671212095)

------
mishftw
I've been scriblling points on 3x5 in note cards which I use as a bookmark.
Might go through several notecards in a book. I then summarize/transfer over
to my Notion workspace.

Interesting in seeing what others do!

------
RocketSyntax
On the front inside cover, I write the page number of each thing I find
interesting/ useful. Especially the diagrams.

Then on the page to the right of that I jot down the things I want to learn
more about and the ideas I come up with.

------
sushshshsh
If it's important for me to memorize, the only way that works for me is
writing down what needs memorizing, like with a pen and paper.

------
cheriot
A project I want to build some day is a tool that pulls highlights from kindle
/ play books and turns them into a morning email to help recall. If you steal
the idea I'll be your first customer :)

~~~
jedieaston
Looks like this will be right up your alley, then:
[https://readwise.io/](https://readwise.io/)

~~~
cheriot
That looks perfect. Thanks!

------
gmoot
I use voice dictation on my phone to transcribe notes into a Google doc, along
with the page number or timestamp (for audiobooks)

My note taking process used to be either whatever I could fit in the margin
(not much) or require a separate note book.

Switching to my phone has been seriously transformative. Not only is voice
dictation way faster than my handwriting, but I can do it in many more
contexts because I always have my phone with me. I can also take much more
detailed notes in context where handwriting isn't ideal (like a jerky bus
ride).

~~~
iman453
Is there any way I could talk to you a bit more about your note taking
process? My email is ishan2 at gmail. Would really appreciate it!

------
xtiansimon
I believe strongly in continuing education. I have interests in literature,
philosophy, science, math, computing. I study and take notes differently
depending on my purpose and goals.

My tech research mostly collects snippets of information. Not terribly worried
about attribution of any given phrase, fact or passage as paraphrase or quote
from the author (though I am always careful to note the source, mostly so I
can find it again ;)

For academic and thought research I am extremely careful. I take notes, riff
on what I read [1], and take care to quote accurately.

Throughout all of this productivity, my reading is surprisingly the same. I
filter every text with a narrow set of categories [2], and if it doesn't fit
into one of these categories, then the text should be quoted (see?) or I'm not
interested in the text (yet).

[1]:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23476470](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23476470)

[2]: Marginalia: Sign-posting a text
[https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/139g4uFXFCL1ZYrcWKTShbPsw...](https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/139g4uFXFCL1ZYrcWKTShbPswnV6ti7ost_584pC9QmU/edit?usp=sharing)

------
k00b
Trello all day. Each book gets its own list. Each item in the list is
something I want to remember.

Yes you have to write it out but this cost:

1\. forces you to only save what matters 2\. encourages you to compress the
info which requires you to understand its essential parts

I record the notes as I encounter noteworthy things. At the end of a book the
trello list is effectively a compressed book and index to the actual text.

~~~
SN76477
I do like Trello. Currently moving over to Notion to tag all bots and items so
that ideas naturally coalesce into something new.

------
chx
I write the problematic parts on a whiteboard (well, the wall because I have
whiteboard paint and it makes note taking a fun activity actually) and after a
chapter I read my notes again together with the book hoping now it's clear. If
necessary, I will jot down my notes into a Google doc. I found it
exceptionally helpful when learning frameworks to write a blog post even if
noone will ever read it on how I figured out things, it basically cements what
I learned.

One of the best univ classes I went to allowed a single handwritten page
"cheat sheet" at the exam -- in reality, the only one cheated was yourself
because if you actually put in the work of condensing the semester into a
single sheet then you usually learned the material during the process...
sneaky.

------
andrewf
I think this depends on: why are you taking notes?

Sometimes I'll take notes to help me process and remember things. These can
literally be throwaway, as in the piece of paper gets thrown away at the end
of the day, or the TextEdit window gets closed without saving. So I focus on
the material rather than organization on the page, or even legibility/grammar.

Sometimes I'll be very focused on one thing and whenever I encounter a
tangent/sidequest, I'll scribble it down so I can feel comfortable ignoring it
until I've finished reading.

Sometimes I'll take notes for my own future reference. Sometimes I'll take
notes I'd like to share with other people. Those are different goals and I'll
do different things.

------
hprotagonist
I argue in the margins, as we've done for millennia.

~~~
biswaroop
But what if "I have discovered a truly marvelous proof of this, which this
margin is too narrow to contain"?

~~~
WheelsAtLarge
Then you write that and wait until Andrew Wiles (version 2.0) figures out how
to prove it for himself.

------
ARandomerDude
I underline and write in the margin, using my own symbolic shorthand for
common words. I list all the symbols on the title page so I can decipher it in
5 years.

At the end of a chapter, I go back and make long-form notes in markdown, then
commit to a git repo.

------
pritambaral
Personal/private notes:

org-mode. With org-noter when the reading material is compatible (most PDFs
and EPUBs), otherwise manually written (copied, lightly edited if needed)
headings. Manual notes follow the same hierarchy as the material (part,
chapter, section etc.).

Shared notes:

If the notes are few and small, and the source material supports annotations
(PDFs and other documents), then in-document annotations. Otherwise I make a
separate document that can be rendered into its own PDF/HTML/EPUB forms and
edited and maintained by others. This can be in the form of an office
document, an org-mode file, a Sphinx or AsciiDoc project, whatever suits my
collaborators.

------
xrd
If anyone is interested in reading books in foreign languages, and then easily
adding notes that are automatically translated, I would be interested in
hearing from you.

Here is a demo, one of the most famous Japanese books ever: Kokoro, by Natsume
Soseki.

[https://public.do/kokoro-by-natsume-soseki/](https://public.do/kokoro-by-
natsume-soseki/)

You can select a word to capture it, it gets translated for you, and then you
can build Anki cards to review your notes.

It's still under development, but you can see the concept.

The goal is first and foremost: mobile-first so no browser plugins.

If you have thoughts, I would be happy to hear them: chris@public.do

------
sradman
I create a summary document for every new book that I start. I copy and paste
the title, authors, cover thumbnail, description, and table of contents if I
can find it inline. I print this 1-2 page document and use it as a starting
point to add hand written notes.

If I’m reading an eBook, I use the highlighter feature and review my previous
chapter highlights before starting a new chapter.

For paper books I usually have a stack of plain paper bookmarks that I cut
from blank index cards (1.5” x 5”). I write keywords on the bookmark as I read
so I normally have a tersely annotated bookmark for each finished book that I
staple to my printed summary page.

------
gauchojs
The idea is to write notes in my own words ([https://www.amazon.com/How-Take-
Smart-Notes-Nonfiction-ebook...](https://www.amazon.com/How-Take-Smart-Notes-
Nonfiction-ebook/dp/B06WVYW33Y)) on roamresearch.com, instead of just
highlighting the book/article like I do now.

But I have to say I feel like that is only worth doing if you're reseraching a
topic that is important to you. Little value to take notes on the articles we
read day to day here in HN and Reddit IMO.

------
sanabriarenato
There's a whole book on that ('How to Take Smart Notes'), which I highly
recommend: [https://www.amazon.com/-/pt/How-Take-Smart-Notes-
Nonfiction-...](https://www.amazon.com/-/pt/How-Take-Smart-Notes-Nonfiction-
ebook/dp/B06WVYW33Y/ref=sr_1_1?__mk_pt_BR=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&crid=2942CZ2BXWXQQ&dchild=1&keywords=how+to+take+smart+notes&qid=1592800313&sprefix=how+to+take+smart%2Caps%2C294&sr=8-1)

~~~
itsmemattchung
Hands down one of my favorite (non fiction) books I read this year. The book
is written by an academic, who I actually reached out to for a 1 on 1
consultation to help me with integrating Zettelkasten into my daily routine.

~~~
coffeeling
Ahrens' writing is amazingly dense. I don't think I've read a book that's that
heavy to read apart from Aristoteles.

------
mcrittenden
Step 1: make highlights and inline comments in my ebook app as I go.

Step 2: batch export all the highlights and comments out and paste them into
my notes app as a new note

Step 3: go through that note and highlight the ones that are the most valuable
(i.e., progressive summarization)

Step 4: summarize and re-state those points as notes in my zettelkasten

I find this process really helps me keep track of the things that I find
valuable without clogging up my notes with all the fluff. And the last step
helps me build connections to other unrelated thoughts.

------
egypturnash
Marginal notes. Occasional use of tiny Post-It flag thingies to mark stuff I
want to be able to find again.

Sometimes I will grab a highlighter and mark the edges of pages to make it
easier to find sections in a reference work. Possibly with short versions of
the section names written next to them, possibly with several colors denoting
different kinds of information and a color key written on the flyleaf.

------
maheshs
While reading I tried to come up with lots of questions which I am going to
encounter in real life scenario like while reading chapter 5 first para, I
come up with question "why replication is needed?" After finishing the
chapter, these questions can become an anchor to build up the notes in my own
language.

Notes also contains questions so that reviewing the content become
better(recalling).

------
3riverdev
Underline/circle directly in the book, write notes in the margins, etc. Then
when finished reading it, go back through to find all the highlights/notes and
write them in a permanent doc. That second phase has really helped my
retention.

For permanent storage, I almost always use a personal, public blog, just in
case someone else could find the notes useful...

~~~
bobbydreamer
Yep I do it in the same way. Mostly if I decide to read a book, I print it out
buy the book. Then I use (), [] underline and .x. symbols to make it important
and keep reading the book and after each chapter I reread the marked point and
scratch off if it feels unimportant after reading the whole chapter amd ghen
proceed on.

------
sonabinu
I’ve a book where I keep notes on the books I read. Most of the time, I re-
read the notes from the the last reading when I pick up the book again which
is a great memory refresher. It’s works as great notes for the whole book when
I need. I also make relationship maps to remember anything that has a lot of
relationships.

------
atlasunshrugged
I've experimented with a few different methods (keeping a notebook next to me,
Gdocs, etc.) but in the end I keep defaulting to just using notes on my phone
because I don't like to have my laptop open when I'm reading and when I want
to jot something down, I want to do it then and there

------
navaneethkn
I usually have a pencil with me while reading. I will add a 'N' letter next to
the paragraph that is the key takeaway in the page. Once I finish reading a
chapter, I will quickly skim through the markings and keep a note of it in
Evernote. This helps me to remember a book much better.

------
karlosmid
Hi!

I write a blog post. How?

I split the book by the headings section (not whole chapter), this is usually
one or two pages. Then I try to explain what I understood in my own words. If
the author used an example, then I come up with my example.

If the book is about programming, I put code on public GitHub.

After I finish a chapter, I reread my blog posts.

------
architek1
I use a couple of different Mac apps. First is the Calibre that converts ePub
to pdf so I can use the Highlights app for research. That I can then export to
DevonThink3 for organizing and writing of ideas. My favorite writing app is
Scrivener and usually the last in my workflow.

------
pbamotra
I don’t like to desecrate the book, I use small stickies notes to take notes
and put them near the margin.

------
digianarchist
I use these things to bookmark interesting things. Usually I end up with 10-20
in each book I read.
[https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000SHU86Q/](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000SHU86Q/)

------
thomk
I circle, underline and star things that I feel were noteworthy directly in a
book. One day when my son inherits my books I want him to know what I thought
was interesting. I also write in the margins (or wherever there is space) if I
must write something.

------
535188B17C93743
I annotate inside the book. Great if you own the book and really annoying if
you don't.

~~~
I_complete_me
I agree. My solution FWIW is to use a pencil to put a small dot adjacent to
the paragraph or sentence of interest and write the number of that page on the
back inside cover. It allows other people to read my books without disfiguring
them. The books that is.

------
AndrewKemendo
I write in the margins and anywhere there is white-space.

From Sutton and Barton - Reinforcement Learning:

[https://imgur.com/a/wh6p8BP](https://imgur.com/a/wh6p8BP)

------
Havoc
I stopped this because it was just slowing me down too much. Takes both the
fun and pace out of reading. There are way to many interesting books out there
for that

------
monkeycantype
I don't take notes, but I put little colored arrow bookmark stickers pointing
at the text on the page to come back to after I've finished reading.

------
meagher
Taking a step back: Why take notes when reading a book?

Do you take notes for every book you read or just some?

------
asdev
digitally doesn't work well, it'll stick more in your head if you use pencil
and paper. my process is read something, try to summarize in plain english in
my own words, repeat.

------
muzani
As said in other comments, Mortimer Adler's How to Read a Book is great for
this.

I'll split it into three parts. First, you want to know what the book is about
and whether it's worth reading. Second, your notes should summarize the core
of it, so that as soon as you glance your notes, you understand what it's
about. Third, and optionally, you want to criticize the book and compare it to
similar books on the topic.

Before reading: Outline the book

Find out what kind of book it is - scientific, practical, philosophical, or
historical. Some books, like Flow, are usually read by people for practical
reasons, but it's philosophical in writing. The difference between scientific
and philosophical is that philosophy expects no prerequisite knowledge,
whereas scientific is unreadable without knowledge.

If it's a practical book, your notes should be focused around what to do. If
it hasn't clearly explained what to do, then it's useless.

Get an overview of the book. Reading reviews or online summaries helps. Intro
is great. Simplify it into one line what it really teaches you.

Skim the table of contents. Most books summarize a chapter at the end of each
chapter or beginning. Get a feel of the skeleton of the book.

By now, you've skimmed the whole book, congratulations.

If it's a good book, it will tempt you read it in detail. If it's not, don't
waste any more time on it. There are lots of books worth reading.

While reading: Terms and propositions

Put aside a section of your notes as a glossary of terms. This is extra useful
for scientific books, where a term is often repeated, and philosophy, where
different books use the same term to mean different things. Business books can
be especially frustrating without defining terms.

Every time you see a new term, write it down in the glossary. You'll know a
term is important when several paragraphs and figures are written to define
it. The term might act as a pillar, supporting a whole chapter at times.

Next, write down propositions. What is the book trying to explain? A good book
will be extremely dense - several propositions in just a few paragraphs. Some
bad self-help books might only have one per chapter. The harder books will
usually be most information dense and hardest to read, and this identifies
them. Read them slowly.

After reading: What's the point of the book?

If you have properly read the book, it should elevate your knowledge to the
same level as the author. Now you should criticize the book. If you have
nothing to criticize, it either said little, or your understanding is not good
enough.

Is the book true?

Check if the book is understood properly and dispute is not contentious. If
criticizing, show where the author is uninformed, misinformed, or illogical.
Otherwise what she says is not false, but incomplete.

What now? How does this change you? What do you do? If the book is practical,
it must be acted upon. Otherwise, it is incorrect. Ask yourself why you don't
act upon it.

This last part is actually quite exhausting to do and I recommend you skip it
if you're still new or if the book just wasn't that good.

------
elijahbit
i love Workflowy! but find it takes me out of the moment a bit.

