10 Reasons to Prefer Paper Sticky Notes to Online Note-Taking Services
20 April 2009
Read by 1800 persons
If you have lots of things to do and think about at the same time, you can't escape a minimum of organization, if only to avoid forgetting the most important things.
Everyone has their own method.
I personally use four ways to jot down my ideas and list things to do:
• SmartphoneNotes app on my mobile, automatically synchronizable with my PC
• The Outlook Tasks function, also on my smartphone, but much more episodically, also synchronizable with Outlook on PC
• The online service Ta-da-list, for collaborative tasks or simply to access it from anywhere
• And finally my good old paper notepad, which I will probably never be able to completely do without
Precisely, since we are talking about paper, the Web Worker Daily blog listed 11 reasons why electronic notepad applications will never replace a good old sticky note, and there are some real common sense points to consider in this list, which I have freely translated and adapted for you:
1. Writing with an old Bic pen on a notebook is good. And it's more satisfying to cross off a completed task on paper than to check a box on your PDA or online service. Hmm.
2. Nothing beats the mobility and accessibility of a paper note. Especially if you don't have access to the web, or even electricity. True.
3. No need to worry about trying to synchronize with multiple devices. You keep your notepad with you and you tidy it up once and for all when you get home.
4. No access blockage, no compatibility problems, no installation worries before use.
5. A pen and paper take you away from your computer. It seems silly but it's awfully true. Sometimes I find a certain pleasure in sitting at my other desk, empty, with just my spiral notebook and a pen, to take the time to think, note, scribble quietly, without distracting temptations.
6. You can draw diagrams, sketches, add color. It's even possible that this way of doing things engages your brain more and helps it better memorize the work done. Let's specify that a good notepad on a Smartphone or PDA with a touch screen can fulfill exactly the same function, with the added advantage of being able to synchronize the result with your PC, which will display the said diagram in .Gif format.
7. You arouse less suspicion from your entourage with a pen and paper. Indeed, if you are writing down something to do on your PDA during a family dinner or at a restaurant with friends, you will inevitably attract angry stares. It's silly, but if you do exactly the same thing with a notepad and your favorite Montblanc, no one will find anything to say...
8. It's so convenient to take notes by hand. No machine to start, no system to boot, no login, no password to find...
9. You can change your data model whenever and however you want. You don't depend on a scheme designed by someone else.
10. Handwritten notes force you to get to the essentials. It's very easy to add lines and lines in an electronic note application. Much more tedious with handwritten notes...
Of course, we could also make the same argument against paper notes and in favor of online list services, but I find that all this is rather relevant. I myself am a zero-paper idealist and I have to admit that I still use my notebook daily to quickly jot down an idea or something to do.
This naturally leads to a question: what if the killing-app was precisely the one that took all these elements into account (plus others, probably)? A mix of notepad on PDA synchronizable with Tadalist, for example?...
Posted on February 10, 2009
enviedentreprendre.com
Everyone has their own method.
I personally use four ways to jot down my ideas and list things to do:
• SmartphoneNotes app on my mobile, automatically synchronizable with my PC
• The Outlook Tasks function, also on my smartphone, but much more episodically, also synchronizable with Outlook on PC
• The online service Ta-da-list, for collaborative tasks or simply to access it from anywhere
• And finally my good old paper notepad, which I will probably never be able to completely do without
Precisely, since we are talking about paper, the Web Worker Daily blog listed 11 reasons why electronic notepad applications will never replace a good old sticky note, and there are some real common sense points to consider in this list, which I have freely translated and adapted for you:
1. Writing with an old Bic pen on a notebook is good. And it's more satisfying to cross off a completed task on paper than to check a box on your PDA or online service. Hmm.
2. Nothing beats the mobility and accessibility of a paper note. Especially if you don't have access to the web, or even electricity. True.
3. No need to worry about trying to synchronize with multiple devices. You keep your notepad with you and you tidy it up once and for all when you get home.
4. No access blockage, no compatibility problems, no installation worries before use.
5. A pen and paper take you away from your computer. It seems silly but it's awfully true. Sometimes I find a certain pleasure in sitting at my other desk, empty, with just my spiral notebook and a pen, to take the time to think, note, scribble quietly, without distracting temptations.
6. You can draw diagrams, sketches, add color. It's even possible that this way of doing things engages your brain more and helps it better memorize the work done. Let's specify that a good notepad on a Smartphone or PDA with a touch screen can fulfill exactly the same function, with the added advantage of being able to synchronize the result with your PC, which will display the said diagram in .Gif format.
7. You arouse less suspicion from your entourage with a pen and paper. Indeed, if you are writing down something to do on your PDA during a family dinner or at a restaurant with friends, you will inevitably attract angry stares. It's silly, but if you do exactly the same thing with a notepad and your favorite Montblanc, no one will find anything to say...
8. It's so convenient to take notes by hand. No machine to start, no system to boot, no login, no password to find...
9. You can change your data model whenever and however you want. You don't depend on a scheme designed by someone else.
10. Handwritten notes force you to get to the essentials. It's very easy to add lines and lines in an electronic note application. Much more tedious with handwritten notes...
Of course, we could also make the same argument against paper notes and in favor of online list services, but I find that all this is rather relevant. I myself am a zero-paper idealist and I have to admit that I still use my notebook daily to quickly jot down an idea or something to do.
This naturally leads to a question: what if the killing-app was precisely the one that took all these elements into account (plus others, probably)? A mix of notepad on PDA synchronizable with Tadalist, for example?...
Posted on February 10, 2009
enviedentreprendre.com
