
The One Notebook Habit (2018) - ColinWright
https://medium.com/@shauntagrimes/the-one-notebook-habit-699af3480e7d
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xwowsersx
Serious question: what are people keeping so many notes about? I understand if
you're a writer, or seriously studying something or involved in some creative
pursuit. But I don't get why this resonates with so many everyday people.
Maybe I'm just dense. I bookmark a lot of things and clip some things here and
there and then, every once in a while, I just delete it all. If it mattered
that much, I'd have looked it over or otherwise retained it. I know this comes
across as a nihilistic viewpoint, but things just don't matter that much. I
think there's a fantasy of "storing up" knowledge and it gives people some
false sense of accomplishment. Just my 2c. Let the downvotes commence :P

~~~
burlesona
There’s a famous quote that I think is the best answer to this question: “I’m
not writing it down to remember it later, I’m writing it to remember it now.”

There’s a lot of research on this, but in short, most people develop much
stronger memories of the things they physically write (typing is less
effective IIRC), whether they ever refer back to the notes or not.

Your mileage may vary, but for most avid note takers, that’s the gist of it.

~~~
joegahona
> There’s a lot of research on this, but in short, most people develop much
> stronger memories of the things they physically write (typing is less
> effective IIRC), whether they ever refer back to the notes or not.

Do you remember why typing would be less effective? Is it something to do with
writing being much slower, therefore you have to think about it more while
recording it?

~~~
burlesona
If I remember right, the idea is that writing on paper has several kinesthetic
properties: the feel of the pen and the paper, the smell, the way the notebook
looks on the table, with the current location lighting, etc etc. There’s also
the relatively slower, more physical act of actually writing by hand.

Brains normally form memories with all that data wrapped in. Typing on a
screen it’s all kind of the same, compared to how different each physical
writing experience feels. Those differences give your brain more “texture” to
work with in forming a distinct memory and giving you hooks to recall it
later.

If you’re interested in this stuff, there’s a very entertaining book about
memory called “Moonwalking with Einstein,” which I highly recommend :)

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Shank
The biggest problems I have with paper notebooks are essentially:

1\. Privacy. Anyone who acquires the notebook can read anything in it. I'm not
discussing anything particularly important most times, but I'm reluctant to
write down things that are...embarrassing or otherwise private if I'm taking
that same notebook through airport security, for example.

2\. Integrity. Destruction of the notebook is easy, as this author can attest.
Spilling water or another substance on the notebook can immediately render it
unreadable, which would somewhat be counter to the idea of recording
information in the notebook.

3\. Perfectionism. I'm sure I'm not the only one who grows really agitated by
making errors in ink and then not being able to correct them without striking
them out. Pencil is better obviously, but you can tear the pages...

I'm sure that these factors don't affect everyone the same, but for
me...they're overwhelmingly influential in my choice not to use a paper
notebook. I get the upsides, but the downsides are...really meh.

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BooneJS
I have many empty notebooks. I put a title on the front with the subject and
then do nothing with it. Diary, a project name, etc. My notebook I keep on my
desk at work is a running log of everything I do. It’s easier to stick with it
when I don’t care about order. Maybe there’s something to it. Maybe an iPad
with many virtual notebooks would be easier, but damn if I don’t love paper.

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drunken-serval
I do this with my iPad. There’s an option in the settings to create a note
from the lock screen if you start writing on it with the pencil.

Now I’m not suggesting you go buy an iPad but if you already have it... it
works well for this.

I use Apple Notes but there are plenty of other apps out there.

And if this sounds a little absurd, her chosen notebook weighs more than my
iPad with its pencil and keyboard. My iPad is larger by one inch in height and
width but also significantly thinner.

~~~
andreilys
+1

You can also download an app like Notability, which can convert your
handwritten notes to text.

So many of my physical notes are lost in notebooks that I never bothered to
transpose into the digital realm.

With my iPad I get the benefit of handwriting, while also being able to index
and search my notes later.

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sachdevap
Non-medium link to read:
[https://outline.com/AvA2tz](https://outline.com/AvA2tz)

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kbutler
I hate writing by hand. I have since elementary school. When we ran out of
time for an "in class essay" in Junior High, and our teacher said finish it at
home and turn it in, I typed it and turned it in.

And the great thing is, even with my handwriting, I can read what I've typed.

So I take notes in apps - searchability, persistence, and no need to manually
copy data are the big wins of electronic data. That, and ease of writing (and
reading). But I've been feeling like I need to consolidate to a single-app
habit.

And I do keep a pen and notepad in a "planner"-style wallet, because 1)
sometimes it's faster for a quick note, and 2) it can be socially more
acceptable to write on paper than type into a device.

So I need to have one-app-to-rule-them-all, and it needs to easily incorporate
the occasional hand-written or other paper note.

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peter303
My notebook at work was a yellow legal pad: records of meetings, todo lists,
code outlines, debug lists, etc. Maybe a page or so a day, two 100 page pads a
year.

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jessmartin
I have an enduring fantasy of building an app that would bridge the physical
notebook with the digital world in an entirely seamless manner, giving up
neither the affordances of analog nor the data-driven features of digital.
I’ve taken several runs at it, but none serious. Thus, it remains a fantasy.

~~~
Multicomp
We almost had this with the Microsoft Courier. Digital notes first, but could
quickly copy/paste/undo/take a picture/record sound. It was all about seamless
data entry whether in written, audio or visual form. A shame it got cancelled.

I'm watching the Surface Neo very closely to see if they bring the same focus
of seamless data entry (and offline export hopefully) to it...if so then not
only will I buy it, I will issue it the only passport to my home ever to be
issued to a Windows 10-based device.

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m0zg
Trouble is, even if I write stuff down, I don't have the time to go back and
read it.

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sachdevap
While reviewing helps a lot, even without reviewing, the act of noting things
down in a place that you can refer to later is huge. A capture location for
all that you need to do later is a great idea - it frees up space in your
head, and you can go back to it whenever you feel like it.

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drunken-serval
I’ll second this. For me, it even works with typing on a phone keyboard. If I
type a note, I remember it better. I keep my phone next to my bed for
recording ideas I have in the middle of the night.

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codemac
This is what I use org-mode for largely, but I do miss hand written notes for
the flexibility and freedom.

If anyone is linux/unix minded and has used an eink tablet for writing and
loved it, please let me know!

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foundart
Sadly, Medium requires me to upgrade to read it.

~~~
sachdevap
[https://outline.com/AvA2tz](https://outline.com/AvA2tz)

