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RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

quackhandle1975 — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 09:17:12 GMT

Like many "oldies" on here I use pen and paper to make daily notes, basically because I don't have really have a memory :crazy: and I like to keep track of what I am doing, projects worked on, sql installs, etc. Not that anyone would be able to read my scribbles anyway. :ermm:I'm so fussy it's taken me over 10 years to find the pen and paper of my choice but finally nailed it: Pad: Oxford A4 spiral notepad Premium 90gsmPen: Uniball Mitsubishi gel impact.And if you like to write with a pencil as well: Tombow Mono 100[b]qh[i][/i][/b]

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Andy Warren — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:18:09 GMT

Thank you all for the many and varied responses! Glad to know Im not the only one that still uses paper too:-)I've got an idea for a follow up, should be interesting.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Jo Pattyn — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:50:37 GMT

Usually pen and paper unless the flow of information is controllable (reading a book). Especially leaving gaps to draw arrows to related items. Converted in spare time since the paper get lost sooner or later.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

ACXsasx — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:34:33 GMT

I have converted to the dark side. I use an iPad running iThoughtsHD mind mapping for notes. They get saved in a Dropbox folder on the iPad in Freemind format that syncs to my home PC, home Mac AND my work PC.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Evil Kraig F — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:28:42 GMT

Personally I usually end up having to write up trees, or get a little zany with bullets, or sketch a quick mental diagram, or...... I get tired trying to pull up the necessary softwares. I'll usually just grab my pad and paper, scribe out what I need, and when I get back to the computer translate it into the different documents if I need to share it. If I don't, it just stays in the notebook(s).

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

MdApache — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 14:49:53 GMT

If I'm in a meeting I prefer pen and paper. But then I usually consolidate those into OneNote. If you haven't tried OneNote you really should! I also have used EverNote but was not that impressed.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

OCTom — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 13:39:00 GMT

Since I can't read by own handwriting, I use electronic means almost exclusively. I use very little paper, anymore.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

tlockwood — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 09:51:32 GMT

Paper & Pen. Allows you to doodle as well as take notes.At the NM Museum of Natural History & Science, there is a permanent exhibit of the beginnings of Microsoft ([url=http://startup.nmnaturalhistory.org/]http://startup.nmnaturalhistory.org/[/url]). Bill Gates and Paul Allen’s notebooks are part of the exhibit. We need to keep the hard copies for when we all become famous.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

KWymore — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 09:24:11 GMT

[quote][b]Stephanie J Brown (1/31/2012)[/b][hr]For me, notes also serve a historical purpose; we often have clients coming back a year later asking "why did you do it THAT way?" It's nice to have something you can email that essentially says "because you told us to". :-D[/quote]+1

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Stephanie J Brown — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 09:19:33 GMT

Pencil and paper (or sometimes pen) - since I'm also virtual taking notes electronically while web-conferencing can be problematic. I prefer electronic if I can, because then I don't have to retype them, just flesh them out with details. And I can email them right away after the meeting if that's necessary. Easy to turn them into action item lists for the team, too.For me, notes also serve a historical purpose; we often have clients coming back a year later asking "why did you do it THAT way?" It's nice to have something you can email that essentially says "because you told us to". :-D

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Richard Warr — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 09:17:17 GMT

A decent notebook and a Parker Flighter 45 (fountain pen) have served me well for many years :-)

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Rich Weissler — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 09:14:24 GMT

Pencil and paper for me. I carry around a standard wire bound, five subject notebook (9" x 11") everywhere. It has hundreds of pages, and pouches for standard printouts and meeting agendas, or standard copy paper just sits between the pages, usually without sticking out much. I use these notebooks, 'cause I can get them cheap ($2-3) during back to school sales in August/September and usually last a year or more. When I fill a notebook, I put the date ranges on the cover, and file it in the cabinet. I have a stack of them that I refer back to, representing the last decade of boring daily work. (I just need to find the date of when I worked on something to find it in the notebooks, which I can usually figure out from email archive.) It's not a perfect system, but it doesn't require much in the way of overhead. My pencils are the cheap plastic 'stacking lead' type that I can get twelve for a dollar, 'cause I tend to lose pencils and pens easily, and I hate ballpoint pens. I've toyed with using the laptop during meetings and to keep notes during the day, but it seems the tool gets in the way of the task. I can type faster than I can write, but I can't easily diagram or sketch on the laptop. (Maybe I'll try again after another generation or two of tablet PCs.)For important meetings or when I need to share my notes, I generally type them up in my email program. I rely heavily on my email archive for any electronic copies.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

cksid — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 09:10:56 GMT

Paper notes using any type of paper or notebook with any pen - I'm not picky. A computer has too many distractions if I get bored. The one thing I don't like about using notepads is the the next page has the imprint of what you just wrote, so I will cut a plastic folder to the size of my notebook and tuck it in between the page I am writing on and the rest of the notebook. If the notes are 'keep' notes then I will write on one side of the page, if the notes are temporary then I will write on both sides of the page.I might transfer my notes over to Ubernote online, but mainly the notes were to get the data so I could go get more information later or put it on my to do list.I'm trying to get away from having everything physically on my computer as if it crashes, everything is gone, so I started to use these online tools: Ubernote for webclippings and notes, Worflowly for my home lists (shopping lists), toodledo for my work to do lists, Pinboard for bookmarks, Google Doc for the bigger documents and my yahoo/google mail for capturing misc information. I was using TreePad as my information depot but like Ubernote for the ability to multi-tag information and have it available anywhere. When someone at work gives me a to do, I tell them to email it to me, then I will either write it down in my 'to do' steno notebook or email it to my toodledo account. Christy

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Carla Wilson-484785 — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 09:09:23 GMT

[quote][b]KWymore (1/31/2012)[/b][hr]. . . It also gives me a break from the computer for a bit. [/quote]+1

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

KWymore — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 09:04:13 GMT

Paper and Pen for me. I too tend to remember more when I am actually writing out notes versus typing them up. Plus i like the flexibility of just grabbing a pad of paper and meeting anywhere. It also gives me a break from the computer for a bit. :-)Once I have everything drawn out and written down, I will convert it to Word or Excel as needed. Usually I only transfer notes electronically once the concept is locked down. If it is still a work in progress and I am not yet ready to begin actual coding then it stays on paper so I can scratch stuff out, draw new diagrams, etc. Occasionally the diagrams will end up in Visio but only if development is about finished and I am creating documentation or if the project is so big that we need to share diagrams with others to get concepts across or management buy-in. I usally keep my notes and drawings for a couple of months or until they are totally irrelevant.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Mandeep Dulai — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 08:51:12 GMT

I use OneNote, Outlook and pen & paper. During meetings I take notes on paper. After meeting is over I type the important notes I want to keep into OneNote. If the notes on paper are a task, I enter them into Outlook as a task. Then of-course recycle the paper, keeping my desk clutter free :-)

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

NULLgarity — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 08:31:15 GMT

I am an Evernote junkie. OneNote used to be my favorite application, but once I understood how Evernote beat OneNote on tagging and sync'ing across platforms and devices, Evernote became my favorite application and I completely stopped using OneNote for personal use.I don't just use Evernote for notes. I use it for almost everything. I use it for GTD-style task tracking, a filing cabinet, picture albums, journaling, etc., etc.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Carla Wilson-484785 — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 08:12:06 GMT

[quote][b]cengland0 (1/31/2012)[/b][hr][quote][b]jay holovacs (1/31/2012)[/b][hr]There has been research demonstrating that people tend to remember better when taking hand notes over keyboard notes. It appears that the kinesthetics of the motion helps reinforce the memory.Personally my circles and arrows help me structure the concept on paper.[/quote]That might be true but what is the real purpose for taking notes? I take notes for bits of information I might need later on -- not to improve my memory.[/quote]I DO take notes to help me remember things: I work in the medical industry, and I sit in on a lot of institution open lectures, to learn more about the diseases that are the subjects of research which I support. Paper and pencil, I'll draw pictures, etc. I don't need to transfer the notes into an electronic document. But I do learn the topic better when I write physical notes.For me, To do lists, tasks, etc. do work better if they are transferred to an Outlook task, or electronic document to share.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

GSquared — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 08:01:26 GMT

Pen and paper, on a regular notepad.To-do items, I copy into a ticketing system.I periodically review the notepad and put a checkmark over items that require no further attention at all, and discard sheets where everything is marked that way.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Mike Bourgeois — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 07:30:44 GMT

At my desk I use Clipcache and Outlook and sometimes can't find half of what I write.In meetings I like a gel-type pen and a 5 x 9 (approx.) wirebound notebook.My biggest problem with pen & paper is that I get bored and start doodling.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

cengland0 — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 06:53:48 GMT

[quote][b]jay holovacs (1/31/2012)[/b][hr]There has been research demonstrating that people tend to remember better when taking hand notes over keyboard notes. It appears that the kinesthetics of the motion helps reinforce the memory.Personally my circles and arrows help me structure the concept on paper.[/quote]That might be true but what is the real purpose for taking notes? I take notes for bits of information I might need later on -- not to improve my memory.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

jay-h — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 06:41:19 GMT

There has been research demonstrating that people tend to remember better when taking hand notes over keyboard notes. It appears that the kinesthetics of the motion helps reinforce the memory.Personally my circles and arrows help me structure the concept on paper.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

SQLRNNR — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 06:24:01 GMT

It's a mix for me. I sometimes use paper and pen (not pencil) or I will type them electronically on laptop, phone or something - it depends on the meeting and location.I like the half page size notebooks. I am not picky on which one.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Cadavre — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 06:12:26 GMT

Pen and paper to create a mind map while the meeting/lecture/session is going on. Also, I record meetings/lectures/sessions with my usb dicatphone.When the meeting/lecture/session is over, I'll use a combination of my mind map, recording of the talk and several books to type up a decent document. Then create a better mind-map with more detail and keep document, mind-map and detailed mind-map together for future reference.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

jcrawf02 — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:59:15 GMT

[url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_map]Mind mapping[/url]. Blank piece of paper (unruled) and four different colored pens. I've only been trying it for a short while, but am finding it to be very effective. I do have some free software called MindJet on my Android, which isn't bad, but it's much easier to just draw on paper.I haven't started using OneNote or Evernote, although you can mind map within that too, and that may be more effective for organization.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Mike Good — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:23:59 GMT

I'm mostly same as you, Andy. Have had a 9" tablet notebook for years, have tried various electronic entry forms, including typing & ink. OneNote seemed to work best. But ultimately I have gone exclusively to paper notes. My notes also last only a day or two, and I move anything important to my desktop: OneNote for notes, Outlook for tasks and scheduling. I think process of reviewing and dispositioning these notes is worthwhile exercise, and is why paper wins for me--when I take electronic notes directly, I don't have to do this part (I can, but don't HAVE to).Never heard of the Arc before, looks good. I have been a diehard Levenger Circa fan ever since my brother gave me one about 5 years ago. Until Circa, I tried a new system out every year or two, always looking for the right tool. Have not looked since.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

cengland0 — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 03:11:11 GMT

Interesting question.If I'm at my computer and taking notes, I will use notepad so I can store it as a text file. I can organize those however I wish.If I'm in a classroom environment, I'll use my livescribe pen and paper because I'll know ahead of time about the training event.If I'm caught by surprise walking about without my computer and need to jot something down, pen and paper is the only way. When I get back to the computer, I'll either scan it in using Neatworks or retype it into notepad. Or, if it's a temporary thing like a to-do list, I'll dispose/shred it once I've accomplished all the tasks.I've been caught without any pen or paper so I've had to take notes with my android phone. I've taken pictures of white boards with the camera too. I use the camera all the time when shopping around for the best price on merchandise. Take a picture of the product and price tag so when you go to the next place, you can confirm the model number and pricing of the previous place. I've had stores match prices that way too.So, in summary, there's no easy answer except "it depends."

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

DugyC — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:58:16 GMT

As most here, pen and paper for me, I tend to try to use a stack of recycled paper (old one-sided printouts no longer required, less so now as we print 2 sides) held together with a foldback clip. The Pen is very important, has to sit comfortably in my hand and write well and consistently... not that I can ever read my writing :ermm:Am always envious of those that can type quick bulleted notes in front of us into notepad while chairing a meeting presenting something on the same computer & projector. Very transparent and then shared.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

TimJL — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:46:54 GMT

I'm virtual so always at a keyboard, so on calls I just type into Notepad (any other simple text editor would do). Then I transfer into Toodledo.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Steph Locke — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:39:16 GMT

I use both paper and a tablet dependant on the circumstances.I take pen and paper to meetings as you never know when you need to sketch/doodle out a concept to elaborate. This usually gets carted around in my black folder. Actions arising and key decisions then get emailed out to all attendees so that nobody can argue after the fact.The tablet with evernotes comes out in a more structured setting where I'm taking notes and having ideas as somebody else is speaking. This is a great way of keeping things portable and being able to hop on to people's sites and stuff as they're talking. I've got an asus eeePAD Transformer which has it's own docking station/keyboard which makes it great for the intensive typing if it's needed.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

call.copse — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:38:45 GMT

Pen and paper all the way - like all good chicken scratch it usually expires after 24 hours, and has no hope of being deciphered ever again, so I'd best write it up quick if I'm going to.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Nakul Vachhrajani — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:31:40 GMT

It's pen & paper for me. I carry a notebook/diary that lists the day's tasks and on the adjacent page, I note down my own time log. During meetings, notes are taken and based on the action items (either I have to execute one or follow-up on one), an entry is made on the respective date. Detailed notes are little callouts.In case I need to E-mail the notes over to a group of people or in case a lot of the discussion is technical discussion over a phone, then I use the notepad application to take down notes. After the meeting, I translate them into my notebook/diary.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Ian Sandon — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:30:12 GMT

I use a Papermate non stop pencil (HB) & A5 lined spiral-bound pad (though I'm thinking of upgrading to A4 non-lined... go me!).I find pencil much smoother to write with and being able to cleanly edit my notes without losing page real estate to scribbling out is always a bonus. I also just write on the facing page; when I reach the back of the pad, I turn it over and work back to the front. If I use a biro/fountain pen, the ink bleeds through the paper, wasting perfectly viable space on the reverse of the page!

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Michael Lysons — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:42:00 GMT

Pen and paper. After a meeting - once I've woken from the coma the meeting no doubt induced - I like to type up the notes. Usually, I type them into Outlook tasks or a Word/Excel doc depending on the project. Then: DESTROY THE PAPER! I don't destroy the pen though, I might need that again later.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Kratos — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:35:59 GMT

I use pen and paper. Whenever I keep notes on a computer, I keep on forgetting where I saved them.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

P Jones — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:25:48 GMT

As an oldie from the pre-PC generation it's paper and pen every time as it's the way I came through school and university. I couldn't type notes and still watch and follow the lecturer.On courses I take lots of notes even when it's in a textbook, as I like it in my own words and all together. I keep an A4 hardback spiral bound notebook just for course notes and do refer back to it even after a couple of years.And I hate cheap scratchy biros that stop working as the ball jams so it has to be one that flows properly and is comfortable to hold.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

mohammed moinudheen — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:20:36 GMT

I thought the new Samsung Galaxy NOTE seems to be good. It comes with a stylus which we could use on its 5.3 inch display. Check this out: [url=http://www.samsung.com/global/microsite/galaxynote/note/benefit.html?type=find]NOTE[/url]We could take notes and save it.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

IceDread — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:58:52 GMT

A mix of paper and keyboard. I find it annoying to move around portable computers because they are not all that portable.. Writing on paper on the other hand is tricky and hard, sometimes I can not see what I've written and most of the time, it was of no use in the end. Short bullets are the way to go thou.

RE: Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

yazalpizar_ — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:27:40 GMT

I use too a mix of paper/keyboard when possible. If I need to pay attention to what is said then use paper and pencil, if we are more on a question/answer conversation then I will use the keyboard and take more elaborated notes. I use too bullet oriented notes with highlights, arrows and drawings to emphasize the main task/question/note.

Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?

Andy Warren — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 22:14:17 GMT

Comments posted to this topic are about the item [B]Taking Notes – Paper or Keyboard?[/B]