What tool do you use to make / collect digital notes ?
So this is going to be a tough contest. One note VS Evernote !
SergioRamos,Handwittten people out there, can you suggest how to organise offline notes? A4 loose sheets or notebook? and how to systematise static notes which is one time work + current which is daily add on?, Should we leave blank pages for that? ( Organisation a difficult task, but I don't want to opt for online mode) Any suggestions to optimise it?Handwritten person here :) I never made notes for current affairs so I have no idea how to organise dynamic notes, but for static notes I used loose A4 sheets and plenty of files. Loose sheets are more flexible than notebooks. I would suggest leave a bit of a margin on the side to add points later if you come across any or to help summarize for revision. Get some highlighters or sketch pens in bulk, and use them to mark different types of things and for different rounds of revision. Occasionally you can try to read the source material and give yourself a time limit to note down points from memory - the skill required for mains.
How do you manage wear and tear of sheets from punching holes?
Yeah, personal satisfaction in making handwritten notes is immense. That's why took a middle path. Onenote for prelims stuff and A4 sheets for my mains notes.
What I do is draw margins on the left side of the paper(The right side when you draw margins on the backside). I staple in that margin. Further, I do not clutch up more than 10 sheets in one staple, topic wise and chapter wise.
For me, as soon as you staple the pages you've lost the flexibility of A4 sheets. You can't add any new topic to your notes in between.
Example, I was already done with economics notes, with both current and static into one. Now when bad bank discussion was going on and then finally budget provision for that, it was quite simple to just add another A4 sheet in the middle. Leftover space of that page can then by used for another topic.
Both Onenote and Evernote has pros and cons. But Onenote is slightly better in user experience and speed. We have data from our subscribers behaviour to back this up. We share our notes on both Onenote and Evernote ids. Over the time we see that user choose Onenote to read notes. Our subscriber base has a ratio of about 2:1 in favour of Onenote.
Onenote:
Pros
- Better UI :Notes can be arranged in section / subsections (Screenshot attached)
- Search :Search algo is super fast and brings all relevant notes if you type a keyword. (Screenshot attached)
- Lightweight :It can easily run on a 2GB ram laptop without an heat issues or hangs.
- Free :No data limits even for free version. (Needs Genuine Windows or Microsoft 365)
- Mobile App is good :Search, folder arrangement etc. is as good as it can be on mobile.
- Lots of features :Immersive reading, presentation, hand drawing etc which are rarely used.
Cons
- Sync issues :Onenote has sync issues. Notebooks / notes shared are not visible many times. Need to reshare multiple times. Many times notebooks asks for login and give Sync errors. This is a big drawback if one wants to share notes with many peers / students.
- Issues in Exporting notes or printing
Evernote:
Pros
- Instant Sync :Updates and sharing works instantly. Never faced any issue.
- Export works seamlessly.
Cons
- UI is not good :You can create a clean folder structure in Evernote if you want to share notes.
- Very heavy application :Even 8 GB heavy duty laptop heats up if Evernote kept open for few hours or if you are doing heavy addition of notes.
- Freemium :Though 60 MB data transfer is free which is sufficient most of the times. But we face issue with some subscribers as they have their own notes in Evernote. When we share our notes with them (Over 5000 notes), initial sync crosses this 60 MB limit.
- Search hangs. Mobile search is even mote slow.
So, our vote goes to Onenote :)
Onenote Folder Structure
Onenote Search Functionalit
Gonna just go ahead ahead and ask here - those who use iPad, which app do you use for taking notes. I'm using the default Notes app but it's not very feature-rich. Everyone's favorite is Goodnotes but I just wanted to know if there are any hidden gems. TIA!
I’ve been using GoodNotes with my iPad as well. If you want the pen and paper feel with the ease of digital notes taking then it’s a really good app. I’ve tried one note and Evernote and found GoodNotes to perform far better. Very customisable as well.
Handwittten people out there, can you suggest how to organise offline notes? A4 loose sheets or notebook? and how to systematise static notes which is one time work + current which is daily add on?, Should we leave blank pages for that? ( Organisation a difficult task, but I don't want to opt for online mode) Any suggestions to optimise it?Handwritten person here :) I never made notes for current affairs so I have no idea how to organise dynamic notes, but for static notes I used loose A4 sheets and plenty of files. Loose sheets are more flexible than notebooks. I would suggest leave a bit of a margin on the side to add points later if you come across any or to help summarize for revision. Get some highlighters or sketch pens in bulk, and use them to mark different types of things and for different rounds of revision. Occasionally you can try to read the source material and give yourself a time limit to note down points from memory - the skill required for mains.
Agree with this wholeheartedly. My prelims static notes are all handwritten and I have no intention of converting any of them to the digital format, and they still serve their purpose. I made my notes on A4 sheets and folders as well. An additional revision tool is to have a scratchpad/random notebook to jot out points to help with active recall in a time bound manner for mains
whatonly,
For all my handwritten pride I'm making them online for interview now :p
Nothing i can make with my sketchpens will ever look as good as those tabs!
Printing out feels like a nice deal though - almost the best of both.
I narrowed it down either buying an iPad to enhance online reading experience or printing the notes. First one was never an option as I realised later :P so had to print them.
Vaise bhi standing in front of the printer pushing pages has been a prominent theme of this prep period for me.
My plan B is getting a job in a stationery shop :p
Mai internship ke liye baat bhi kar chuka hu.
whatonly,
Such a shameless bunch of peeps we are. Going on and hijacking any thread and talking all kinds of stuff. :P
Yaar ab mujhe FOMO horra hai ki main jaldee kyu so gaya raat ko :p
Anyhow, talking about notes: totally handwritten or printed ones. Albeit I have been fine with Evernote for CAs or quotes etc, but uske bhi printouts nikalte hain shubh mahurat pe. :p
Yaar ab mujhe FOMO horra hai ki main jaldee kyu so gaya raat ko :p
Anyhow, talking about notes: totally handwritten or printed ones. Albeit I have been fine with Evernote for CAs or quotes etc, but uske bhi printouts nikalte hain shubh mahurat pe. :p
The feel which comes with reading handwritten notes doesn't come with digital notes. I sometimes feel if I am reading digitally nothing is going in my head and ultimately I have to read by taking print. Printer has become my companion in CSE prep. Sometimes I doubt am I even a millennial.
P.S. : Just got to know , I ain't a millennial , I belong to the times of Gen Z (but I didn't knew this so I am definitely not qualifying for it).
For all my handwritten pride I'm making them online for interview now :p
Nothing i can make with my sketchpens will ever look as good as those tabs!
Printing out feels like a nice deal though - almost the best of both.
I narrowed it down either buying an iPad to enhance online reading experience or printing the notes. First one was never an option as I realised later :P so had to print them.
Vaise bhi standing in front of the printer pushing pages has been a prominent theme of this prep period for me.
My plan B is getting a job in a stationery shop :p
Mam, resume bhejun? 2 Yrs of making notes , taking printouts-ekdum fine quality and nahin aaye toh wapas lena , but ekdum fine quality lena, have knowledge of every pen, tried each one of them - know bits of them ki kitna chalta , kaisi speed all. Which sketchpens are nice , how they work - har cheez madam.
And moreover a having senior(if you already work in someone else ki shop) orseth(if your own shop) would do wonders. :)
whatonly,
Me when I listen to my own voice
Handwittten people out there, can you suggest how to organise offline notes? A4 loose sheets or notebook? and how to systematise static notes which is one time work + current which is daily add on?, Should we leave blank pages for that? ( Organisation a difficult task, but I don't want to opt for online mode) Any suggestions to optimise it?Handwritten person here :) I never made notes for current affairs so I have no idea how to organise dynamic notes, but for static notes I used loose A4 sheets and plenty of files. Loose sheets are more flexible than notebooks. I would suggest leave a bit of a margin on the side to add points later if you come across any or to help summarize for revision. Get some highlighters or sketch pens in bulk, and use them to mark different types of things and for different rounds of revision. Occasionally you can try to read the source material and give yourself a time limit to note down points from memory - the skill required for mains.
How do you manage wear and tear of sheets from punching holes?
Yeah, personal satisfaction in making handwritten notes is immense. That's why took a middle path. Onenote for prelims stuff and A4 sheets for my mains notes.
What I do is draw margins on the left side of the paper(The right side when you draw margins on the backside). I staple in that margin. Further, I do not clutch up more than 10 sheets in one staple, topic wise and chapter wise.
For me, as soon as you staple the pages you've lost the flexibility of A4 sheets. You can't add any new topic to your notes in between.
Example, I was already done with economics notes, with both current and static into one. Now when bad bank discussion was going on and then finally budget provision for that, it was quite simple to just add another A4 sheet in the middle. Leftover space of that page can then by used for another topic.
It is a trade-off I feel. But a worthy one in Static portions. We can have margins on the other side too, or add an extra A4 to the 10, something for adding up later updates.
Purplesunbird,Both Onenote and Evernote has pros and cons. But Onenote is slightly better in user experience and speed. We have data from our subscribers behaviour to back this up. We share our notes on both Onenote and Evernote ids. Over the time we see that user choose Onenote to read notes. Our subscriber base has a ratio of about 2:1 in favour of Onenote.
Onenote:
Pros
- Better UI :Notes can be arranged in section / subsections (Screenshot attached)
- Search :Search algo is super fast and brings all relevant notes if you type a keyword. (Screenshot attached)
- Lightweight :It can easily run on a 2GB ram laptop without an heat issues or hangs.
- Free :No data limits even for free version. (Needs Genuine Windows or Microsoft 365)
- Mobile App is good :Search, folder arrangement etc. is as good as it can be on mobile.
- Lots of features :Immersive reading, presentation, hand drawing etc which are rarely used.
Cons
- Sync issues :Onenote has sync issues. Notebooks / notes shared are not visible many times. Need to reshare multiple times. Many times notebooks asks for login and give Sync errors. This is a big drawback if one wants to share notes with many peers / students.
- Issues in Exporting notes or printing
Evernote:
Pros
- Instant Sync :Updates and sharing works instantly. Never faced any issue.
- Export works seamlessly.
Cons
- UI is not good :You can create a clean folder structure in Evernote if you want to share notes.
- Very heavy application :Even 8 GB heavy duty laptop heats up if Evernote kept open for few hours or if you are doing heavy addition of notes.
- Freemium :Though 60 MB data transfer is free which is sufficient most of the times. But we face issue with some subscribers as they have their own notes in Evernote. When we share our notes with them (Over 5000 notes), initial sync crosses this 60 MB limit.
- Search hangs. Mobile search is even mote slow.
So, our vote goes to Onenote :)
Onenote Folder Structure
Onenote Search Functionalit
Well, there is a hack for the sync issue.
As someone shares the notebook, open it in browser. You'll find a option 'Show notebook in app' or something similar to this. Once you open the notebook in your app through procedure, it'll always show up in your notebook section.
Both Onenote and Evernote has pros and cons. But Onenote is slightly better in user experience and speed. We have data from our subscribers behaviour to back this up. We share our notes on both Onenote and Evernote ids. Over the time we see that user choose Onenote to read notes. Our subscriber base has a ratio of about 2:1 in favour of Onenote.
Onenote:
Pros
- Better UI :Notes can be arranged in section / subsections (Screenshot attached)
- Search :Search algo is super fast and brings all relevant notes if you type a keyword. (Screenshot attached)
- Lightweight :It can easily run on a 2GB ram laptop without an heat issues or hangs.
- Free :No data limits even for free version. (Needs Genuine Windows or Microsoft 365)
- Mobile App is good :Search, folder arrangement etc. is as good as it can be on mobile.
- Lots of features :Immersive reading, presentation, hand drawing etc which are rarely used.
Cons
- Sync issues :Onenote has sync issues. Notebooks / notes shared are not visible many times. Need to reshare multiple times. Many times notebooks asks for login and give Sync errors. This is a big drawback if one wants to share notes with many peers / students.
- Issues in Exporting notes or printing
Evernote:
Pros
- Instant Sync :Updates and sharing works instantly. Never faced any issue.
- Export works seamlessly.
Cons
- UI is not good :You can create a clean folder structure in Evernote if you want to share notes.
- Very heavy application :Even 8 GB heavy duty laptop heats up if Evernote kept open for few hours or if you are doing heavy addition of notes.
- Freemium :Though 60 MB data transfer is free which is sufficient most of the times. But we face issue with some subscribers as they have their own notes in Evernote. When we share our notes with them (Over 5000 notes), initial sync crosses this 60 MB limit.
- Search hangs. Mobile search is even mote slow.
So, our vote goes to Onenote :)
Onenote Folder Structure
Onenote Search Functionalit
Well, there is a hack for the sync issue.
As someone shares the notebook, open it in browser. You'll find a option 'Show notebook in app' or something similar to this. Once you open the notebook in your app through procedure, it'll always show up in your notebook section.
It intimidated me when i saw those guys with paper micro notes at the centre that's the type of notes i want in my hands for mains. While i was frantically switching between my thicc registers for optional and laptop for GS , these guys were doing multiple revisions
For all my handwritten pride I'm making them online for interview now :p
Nothing i can make with my sketchpens will ever look as good as those tabs!
Printing out feels like a nice deal though - almost the best of both.
I narrowed it down either buying an iPad to enhance online reading experience or printing the notes. First one was never an option as I realised later :P so had to print them.
Vaise bhi standing in front of the printer pushing pages has been a prominent theme of this prep period for me.
My plan B is getting a job in a stationery shop :p
Mam, resume bhejun? 2 Yrs of making notes , taking printouts-ekdum fine quality and nahin aaye toh wapas lena , but ekdum fine quality lena, have knowledge of every pen, tried each one of them - know bits of them ki kitna chalta , kaisi speed all. Which sketchpens are nice , how they work - har cheez madam.
And moreover a having senior(if you already work in someone else ki shop) orseth(if your own shop) would do wonders. :)
With such a wonderful notemaking journey, plan B ki aapko kya zarurat :D
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