9 ms·

Put a stack of 3x4 index cards in you back pocket, and write thing down as needed. In the evening, (eg when you pull keys/wallet out of the pocket) review the c

by DenisM 5y ago

Put a stack of 3x4 index cards in you back pocket, and write thing down as needed. In the evening, (eg when you pull keys/wallet out of the pocket) review the cards briefly and toss the used once into trash unless you really need to keep one. This is a low-commitment device that still achieves half the benefits of really writing things down.

nemosaltat 5y ago
When I was in the Navy I carried a little memoranda pad in my left breast pocket. I’d take notes each day, at the beginning of each new day, I’d carry any necessary information from the previous day to the next page and then fold the previous page along the diagonal, alternating the folds right and left each day. The effects of pulling out a notepad and jotting notes are markedly different than pulling out a phone or tablet- especially in a conversation or meeting. IME a phone signals disengagement, while a notepad signals the opposite. When I pulled out my pad, I could see body language and word choices change almost immediately. If it was a positive or neutral conversation, people tended to show appreciation for my interest in what was being said. If it was a negative interaction, people started to be much more careful about what they were saying. Now I carry an attaché case and use larger, more professional looking, notebooks. Even in the age of Zoom, I angle my camera to ensure it’s obvious I’m taking notes. Sure, it’s an extra step to digitize the important stuff, but I think it’s worth it.
- NikolaNovak 5y ago
  I've noticed that early on; 15 years ago, I was keeping notes on a "feature phone with sliding keyboard". I was pulled by my manager for being disrespectful after the meeting; I showed him the notes and demonstrated that I was by far the most attention / had the best retention / was most involved in the meeting, but still... the message was - it looks unprofessional, stop it. Thing is: * My handwriting sucks (I literally can't read my own; I'm 42yo - don't tell me to practice / it'll improve, just don't be that arrogant ignoramus ;). * I'll never be organized on paper. Ever. My circles are potatoes, my lines are squiggles, and everything is all over the place and disheartening to read (I love whiteboards but it's a whole other thing, somehow) * I love love love my typed notes. I can type fast and asynchronously while I listen and look at the speaker. I can search them, retain them, review them, summarize them. But I'm aware that I'll always look disengaged on my laptop compared to somebody with their notebook :-/
  - jagger27 5y ago
    I wonder if something like old school Graffiti (from Palm OS) would work for you. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graffiti_(Palm_OS) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graffiti_(Palm_OS)
    - MivLives 5y ago
      Does anything modern support this? Does the remarkable? Because this would be killer for me. I have terrible hand writing and being able to type without hauling out a keyboard would be great for notes.
      - eloisant 5y ago
        There is an Android keyboard called Graffiti Pro that does exactly that. I don't think there is anything equivalent on the Remarkable, I think the idea is handwriting then if you need you can OCR it.
    - NikolaNovak 5y ago
      I did use Palm devices extensively, and found Graffiti shockingly intuitive - it took me no time at all to be fully fluent in it. All the way up to Palm Treo, I loved them and couldn't figure out why people went Gaga over iPhone when it came out - I felt that I mostly had that same thing for years already (I recognize there are important differences in retrospective, not the least that iPhone was fashionable and cool to use;) I would definitely work better with Graffiti-style input rather than full writing recognition; but: a) I am a dorky minority - pretty much always a negative focus group for these things :P b) even for me it's not ideal and modern lightweight laptops are a better solution -- I type at speed of speech these days; I don't think I could ever write / squiggle that fast.
  - georgeecollins 5y ago
    That's so funny- that makes me think: 2007 (or so) a manager asked me not to use a Windows Pen Tablet in a meeting because it wasn't respectful. 2011 Every senior manager brings an iPad to meetings and seem to get distracted. 2015 (Tech co) Everybody brings an MacBook Air or a MacBook pro to every meeting 2018 (Entertainment Co) Any electronic device is considered disrespectful in a meeting, especially phones.
- the_af 5y ago
  > The effects of pulling out a notepad and jotting notes are markedly different than pulling out a phone or tablet- especially in a conversation or meeting. IME a phone signals disengagement This! It matters even if you are paying attention; in this day and age pulling a phone strongly signals disengagement. Even if you're actually the most attentive note taker, the rest of the attendees don't know this... and once one person signals disinterest, many will follow. It's like you're "giving them permission" to stop paying attention.
- redsummer 5y ago
  What’s the state of digitizing notes from an image? I mean, can you convert text and simple diagrams. And maybe just leave anything more complicated as an image. The next macOS can select text in images: https://appleinsider.com/articles/21/06/07/macos-montereys-live-text-allows-users-to-interact-with-text-in-any-image https://appleinsider.com/articles/21/06/07/macos-montereys-l... … but that’s not handwritten text
- rsanek 5y ago
  Good insight. I find that when I say "oh that's cool, let me write that down" as I pull out my phone, it results in similarly-positive reactions.
nofunsir 5y ago
Exactly what I do. Even made a simple 3x5 holder that is two pieces of leather riveted on one short edge. If needed, I pick up colored 3x5s to color code. For example, yellow = my Home Depot shopping list, or measurements notes.
fragmede 5y ago
Not to make it personal but: Do you do this? How do you find it? It's a simple and alluring solution plus I've been looking at the remarkable2, but this answer sounds like doing the dishes. I like a empty kitchen sink, but I honestly pay someone to come in twice week to have that, because the low-rent solution of just doing the dishes is beyond me. I'm never going to sit down and review the cards, and then the benefits of going digital. Globally instantly accessible by others, indexed, impossible to lose, etc.
- DenisM 5y ago
  Off and on. Started on it again just yesterday, hence my comment. >I'm never going to sit down and review the cards Well, don't sit down then. Standing up flip through the cards you filled during the day and toss them into garbage, unless one is really important. You're strictly better off than writing down nothing at all during the day, which is the default state for most people.
  - eloisant 5y ago
    But what kind of things to you write?
    - BlueDingo 5y ago
      I do this. Todo items that pop into my head, little notes about ongoing projects. Things I want to remember or process but aren't an immediate task. Later in the day when I pull them out, many do get trashed. Lots of Todo items never make it to my digital Todo list because my brain processed them mostly in the background during the day. I find the physical nature of the cards means I can't avoid that processing step. The times I revert back to digital first, my notes end up everywhere (I input them in the fastest way, rather than finding the right place) and immediately begin rotting because now I have remember and force myself to condense and organize rather than it occurring naturally.
- danohuiginn 5y ago
  I do something like this, though generally just in the situations where I don't have my notebook. For me, it's a bit more adhoc than the suggested above. Recent uses: jotting down measurements of some furniture; writing for somebody the name of a book I was recommending them; shopping and todo lists; doodles and sketches. notes tend to be odd phrases from conversations. The reviewing is minimal -- under 10% of what I write needs preserving, the cards mostly get a quick glance and then go straight into the recycling. I use the same index cards when I'm writing something, for paragraphs or ideas which I can visually arrange on a table. I've been doing this in some form for a couple of years, but just as a low-key background thing. For me it's just the minimal viable equipment for being able to write things. I could use my phone for almost all of this, but index cards are a lower risk of distraction.
jrm4 5y ago
If you want something slightly more techy; the ONLY app that I absolutely cannot live without is Blitzmail on Android (I believe there's an Apple equivalent?) It's simply an an ultra-simplified one destination email client. One button on your homescreen opens up a little text input window. Hit send, and it emails yourself. That's it, and it has been absolutely life changing, I've retained so much and simplified so many things. Ideas, scheduling, notes, etc.
- hypertele-Xii 5y ago
  I use Telegram to take notes on my phone. You can "message yourself", they changed it to "saved messages" but it's essentially just you chatting with yourself. Each message is a note, beginning with "Topic :", e.g. "Game design :". Then about once a month I copy paste the whole chat into a text file on my workstation PC, date and archive it, and clear the chat. Telegram includes the exact time and date of each message in the paste, and my consistent "tagging" of the notes with the topic means that I can programmatically parse the text files later to organize them, maybe on my website. After years of note-taking in various forms, I find that I rarely actually need to peruse my notes archive. It's the act of taking notes itself which helps with retention of ideas.
- disruptthelaw 5y ago
  What is your workflow to process all the emails to yourself?
  - jrm4 5y ago
    Event scheduling I do in "remind calendar" for Linux with a little notify-send. Most everything else in my life organization-wise, I use http://zim-wiki.org http://zim-wiki.org for. I just go through them and file them in ideas or todos. I try to avoid using my phone as much as possible. The rule of thumb there is -- if it's not a real human communicating to me directly/individually or as part of a small group, I should try to just use the computer or not use it at all.
smusamashah 5y ago
There should be card size rugged reMarkable mini to put in pocket and take notes anywhere.
fastball 5y ago
Shameless plug, but if you like note-taking on index cards but are still looking for a slightly more digital solution to the problem, we've[1] built an online note-taking platform that is based around digital markdown note-cards, which is a bit different from most other digital solutions which are usually document or bullet-list based. I realize that many on HN want to "own" their data a little more than you typically expect of a cloud-platform, but you owning your notes is very important to us which is why we've spelled it out in our T&Cs[2] and why we have a publicly-accessible API[3] for maximum flexibility. [1] https://supernotes.app https://supernotes.app [2] https://supernotes.app/terms/ https://supernotes.app/terms/ [3] https://api.supernotes.app/docs/swagger https://api.supernotes.app/docs/swagger
- desireco42 5y ago
  Wonderful! I even like Basecamp inspired design. And then I get to referral scheme :). Eww. But everything else is pretty solid, I will give it a try, love the idea so far.
fencepost 5y ago
This got some discussion as the "Hipster PDA" some years back (originally 2004 from Merlin Mann), along with some low-cost options to simplify managing it - multicolor cards, bullet journal rules, cutting out card-sized pieces of plastic from a cheap folder to make a "cover" and of course various sizes of binder clips. I found a medium to large binder clip to work better than hole punching and a ring - you can't just open it up and use it while standing, but it holds together better and easier to add/remove cards. A big advantage of this over journals (Moleskine, Field Notes, etc) is that there's no mental block of "I don't want to write something stupid or trivial in my journal/notebook."

by DenisM 5y ago

nemosaltat 5y ago

When I was in the Navy I carried a little memoranda pad in my left breast pocket. I’d take notes each day, at the beginning of each new day, I’d carry any necessary information from the previous day to the next page and then fold the previous page along the diagonal, alternating the folds right and left each day. The effects of pulling out a notepad and jotting notes are markedly different than pulling out a phone or tablet- especially in a conversation or meeting. IME a phone signals disengagement, while a notepad signals the opposite. When I pulled out my pad, I could see body language and word choices change almost immediately. If it was a positive or neutral conversation, people tended to show appreciation for my interest in what was being said. If it was a negative interaction, people started to be much more careful about what they were saying. Now I carry an attaché case and use larger, more professional looking, notebooks. Even in the age of Zoom, I angle my camera to ensure it’s obvious I’m taking notes. Sure, it’s an extra step to digitize the important stuff, but I think it’s worth it.

NikolaNovak 5y ago
I've noticed that early on; 15 years ago, I was keeping notes on a "feature phone with sliding keyboard". I was pulled by my manager for being disrespectful after the meeting; I showed him the notes and demonstrated that I was by far the most attention / had the best retention / was most involved in the meeting, but still... the message was - it looks unprofessional, stop it. Thing is: * My handwriting sucks (I literally can't read my own; I'm 42yo - don't tell me to practice / it'll improve, just don't be that arrogant ignoramus ;). * I'll never be organized on paper. Ever. My circles are potatoes, my lines are squiggles, and everything is all over the place and disheartening to read (I love whiteboards but it's a whole other thing, somehow) * I love love love my typed notes. I can type fast and asynchronously while I listen and look at the speaker. I can search them, retain them, review them, summarize them. But I'm aware that I'll always look disengaged on my laptop compared to somebody with their notebook :-/
- jagger27 5y ago
  I wonder if something like old school Graffiti (from Palm OS) would work for you. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graffiti_(Palm_OS) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graffiti_(Palm_OS)
  - MivLives 5y ago
    Does anything modern support this? Does the remarkable? Because this would be killer for me. I have terrible hand writing and being able to type without hauling out a keyboard would be great for notes.
    - eloisant 5y ago
      There is an Android keyboard called Graffiti Pro that does exactly that. I don't think there is anything equivalent on the Remarkable, I think the idea is handwriting then if you need you can OCR it.
  - NikolaNovak 5y ago
    I did use Palm devices extensively, and found Graffiti shockingly intuitive - it took me no time at all to be fully fluent in it. All the way up to Palm Treo, I loved them and couldn't figure out why people went Gaga over iPhone when it came out - I felt that I mostly had that same thing for years already (I recognize there are important differences in retrospective, not the least that iPhone was fashionable and cool to use;) I would definitely work better with Graffiti-style input rather than full writing recognition; but: a) I am a dorky minority - pretty much always a negative focus group for these things :P b) even for me it's not ideal and modern lightweight laptops are a better solution -- I type at speed of speech these days; I don't think I could ever write / squiggle that fast.
- georgeecollins 5y ago
  That's so funny- that makes me think: 2007 (or so) a manager asked me not to use a Windows Pen Tablet in a meeting because it wasn't respectful. 2011 Every senior manager brings an iPad to meetings and seem to get distracted. 2015 (Tech co) Everybody brings an MacBook Air or a MacBook pro to every meeting 2018 (Entertainment Co) Any electronic device is considered disrespectful in a meeting, especially phones.
the_af 5y ago
> The effects of pulling out a notepad and jotting notes are markedly different than pulling out a phone or tablet- especially in a conversation or meeting. IME a phone signals disengagement This! It matters even if you are paying attention; in this day and age pulling a phone strongly signals disengagement. Even if you're actually the most attentive note taker, the rest of the attendees don't know this... and once one person signals disinterest, many will follow. It's like you're "giving them permission" to stop paying attention.
redsummer 5y ago
What’s the state of digitizing notes from an image? I mean, can you convert text and simple diagrams. And maybe just leave anything more complicated as an image. The next macOS can select text in images: https://appleinsider.com/articles/21/06/07/macos-montereys-live-text-allows-users-to-interact-with-text-in-any-image https://appleinsider.com/articles/21/06/07/macos-montereys-l... … but that’s not handwritten text
rsanek 5y ago
Good insight. I find that when I say "oh that's cool, let me write that down" as I pull out my phone, it results in similarly-positive reactions.

nofunsir 5y ago

Exactly what I do. Even made a simple 3x5 holder that is two pieces of leather riveted on one short edge. If needed, I pick up colored 3x5s to color code. For example, yellow = my Home Depot shopping list, or measurements notes.

fragmede 5y ago

Not to make it personal but: Do you do this? How do you find it? It's a simple and alluring solution plus I've been looking at the remarkable2, but this answer sounds like doing the dishes. I like a empty kitchen sink, but I honestly pay someone to come in twice week to have that, because the low-rent solution of just doing the dishes is beyond me. I'm never going to sit down and review the cards, and then the benefits of going digital. Globally instantly accessible by others, indexed, impossible to lose, etc.

DenisM 5y ago
Off and on. Started on it again just yesterday, hence my comment. >I'm never going to sit down and review the cards Well, don't sit down then. Standing up flip through the cards you filled during the day and toss them into garbage, unless one is really important. You're strictly better off than writing down nothing at all during the day, which is the default state for most people.
- eloisant 5y ago
  But what kind of things to you write?
  - BlueDingo 5y ago
    I do this. Todo items that pop into my head, little notes about ongoing projects. Things I want to remember or process but aren't an immediate task. Later in the day when I pull them out, many do get trashed. Lots of Todo items never make it to my digital Todo list because my brain processed them mostly in the background during the day. I find the physical nature of the cards means I can't avoid that processing step. The times I revert back to digital first, my notes end up everywhere (I input them in the fastest way, rather than finding the right place) and immediately begin rotting because now I have remember and force myself to condense and organize rather than it occurring naturally.
danohuiginn 5y ago
I do something like this, though generally just in the situations where I don't have my notebook. For me, it's a bit more adhoc than the suggested above. Recent uses: jotting down measurements of some furniture; writing for somebody the name of a book I was recommending them; shopping and todo lists; doodles and sketches. notes tend to be odd phrases from conversations. The reviewing is minimal -- under 10% of what I write needs preserving, the cards mostly get a quick glance and then go straight into the recycling. I use the same index cards when I'm writing something, for paragraphs or ideas which I can visually arrange on a table. I've been doing this in some form for a couple of years, but just as a low-key background thing. For me it's just the minimal viable equipment for being able to write things. I could use my phone for almost all of this, but index cards are a lower risk of distraction.

jrm4 5y ago

If you want something slightly more techy; the ONLY app that I absolutely cannot live without is Blitzmail on Android (I believe there's an Apple equivalent?) It's simply an an ultra-simplified one destination email client. One button on your homescreen opens up a little text input window. Hit send, and it emails yourself. That's it, and it has been absolutely life changing, I've retained so much and simplified so many things. Ideas, scheduling, notes, etc.

hypertele-Xii 5y ago
I use Telegram to take notes on my phone. You can "message yourself", they changed it to "saved messages" but it's essentially just you chatting with yourself. Each message is a note, beginning with "Topic :", e.g. "Game design :". Then about once a month I copy paste the whole chat into a text file on my workstation PC, date and archive it, and clear the chat. Telegram includes the exact time and date of each message in the paste, and my consistent "tagging" of the notes with the topic means that I can programmatically parse the text files later to organize them, maybe on my website. After years of note-taking in various forms, I find that I rarely actually need to peruse my notes archive. It's the act of taking notes itself which helps with retention of ideas.
disruptthelaw 5y ago
What is your workflow to process all the emails to yourself?
- jrm4 5y ago
  Event scheduling I do in "remind calendar" for Linux with a little notify-send. Most everything else in my life organization-wise, I use http://zim-wiki.org http://zim-wiki.org for. I just go through them and file them in ideas or todos. I try to avoid using my phone as much as possible. The rule of thumb there is -- if it's not a real human communicating to me directly/individually or as part of a small group, I should try to just use the computer or not use it at all.

smusamashah 5y ago

There should be card size rugged reMarkable mini to put in pocket and take notes anywhere.

fastball 5y ago

Shameless plug, but if you like note-taking on index cards but are still looking for a slightly more digital solution to the problem, we've[1] built an online note-taking platform that is based around digital markdown note-cards, which is a bit different from most other digital solutions which are usually document or bullet-list based. I realize that many on HN want to "own" their data a little more than you typically expect of a cloud-platform, but you owning your notes is very important to us which is why we've spelled it out in our T&Cs[2] and why we have a publicly-accessible API[3] for maximum flexibility. [1] https://supernotes.app https://supernotes.app [2] https://supernotes.app/terms/ https://supernotes.app/terms/ [3] https://api.supernotes.app/docs/swagger https://api.supernotes.app/docs/swagger

desireco42 5y ago
Wonderful! I even like Basecamp inspired design. And then I get to referral scheme :). Eww. But everything else is pretty solid, I will give it a try, love the idea so far.

fencepost 5y ago

This got some discussion as the "Hipster PDA" some years back (originally 2004 from Merlin Mann), along with some low-cost options to simplify managing it - multicolor cards, bullet journal rules, cutting out card-sized pieces of plastic from a cheap folder to make a "cover" and of course various sizes of binder clips. I found a medium to large binder clip to work better than hole punching and a ring - you can't just open it up and use it while standing, but it holds together better and easier to add/remove cards. A big advantage of this over journals (Moleskine, Field Notes, etc) is that there's no mental block of "I don't want to write something stupid or trivial in my journal/notebook."