Comments on: Laptop for taking Notes

By: Rich

Rich — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 15:02:59 +0000

Using multicolor pens and paper is the most efficient method of taking class notes that I have found.
I. Make your notes brief.
a. Never use a sentence where you can use a phrase. Never use a phrase where you can use a word.
b. Use abbreviations and symbols, but be consistent.
II. Take notes in your own words. However, the following should be noted exactly:
a. Formulas
b. Definitions
c. Specific facts
III. Use outline form
IV. d. use different color pens for different ideas, etc.
V. If you miss a statement, write key words, skip a few spaces, and get the information later.
VI. Don’t try to use every space on the page. I leave 2 –3 inches on the right hand side and 2 inches of margin on the bottom.
VII. Date your notes.
VIII. Review the note as soon as possible and generate a mindmap.
IX. Use a digital voice recorder if possible to capture all discussions., helps you fill in the blanks latter.
X. If allowed use a digital camera or camera phone to getting formula drawing etc. use the free http://www.qipit.com service that converts phone pictures to pdf documents.

Do not waste your time redoing your notes. Take them correctly the first time.

By: Claire Tompkins

Claire Tompkins — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 04:52:03 +0000

Anthony B.
Do you know about Jott.com? It’s a very handy service that allows you to phone in your notes which you then receive as an email. I used to use a pocket recorder, but would get backed up when it came to getting the notes out of the recorder and down onto paper or into the computer. Jott is a one step solution.

By: Anthony B.

Anthony B. — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 17:40:26 +0000

I think it’s hard to beat pen & paper when it comes to info. capture. As much as I love tech and gadgets, I think they very much get in the way of information capturing. Tech and gadgets can be helpful at organizing and reminding, but I find that even in those areas it still takes more time to set up than using pen & paper methods. You just have to weigh if what info. you are trying to retain or appointments/ reminders you are using the tech. gadgets for is worth that time investment to set it up.

But I think if you *REALLY* want to retain some info. and/or learn something that was presented to you, I find if you take your pen & paper notes and then go back after and make a structured outline from them, you’ll get *much* more retention either way. I would think that this obvious benefit would be mostly from the reprocessing of the information more so than a benefit inherent in either of the methods of capturing. When I take my notes, I’m scribbling the ideas down, line by line. I’m not distracting myself thinking about any outline format for it (Ex.: Should I sub list these?) or even concentrating so much on spelling. I’m just getting it down so I can be as engaged as possible in the meeting/seminar to get the most out of it. THEN I’ll go back later and then refine into an outline.

In the end, I prefer the least intrusive method for capturing, whether it is for meeting/seminar notes or daily GTD capture stuff. For me that’s *easily* pen and paper. Boot/loading times, OS/menu navigation, and keyboards/touchpads/etc. are just incredibly annoying hurdles to me when it comes to quick capture. My “boot time” for my devices is as quick as I can click my pen and tug the bookmark on my pocket Moleskine weekly calendar/diary. I haven’t seen any tech gadget yet that makes it simpler than that, giving me the least distraction from I’m trying to capture.

Actually, I’ll admit, there’s one tech gadget: a pocket digital recorder (like a microcassette recorder). I try to use that whenever possible so that I can minimize the notes I take to only write down the most essential ideas (and keep my mind from wandering) and yet I won’t be frantically trying to write down *everything*. Obvious side benefit: being able to have the whole thing in an audio file I can download & archive on my computer, and refer back to if I ever need to.

By: Mandar Vaze

Mandar Vaze — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 03:47:14 +0000

I think tablet PC may be better than laptop. On tablet PC one can actually write, and then it is saved on a computer, can be searched/edited/re-arranged easily, not something you can do with hand written notes in a notebook.

Personally, I can’t take note fast enough on a laptop, so I prefer pen and paper.

By: Mark Shead

Mark Shead — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 02:56:07 +0000

I think the differences in opinions may boil down to why you take notes. When I take notes (and I took notes for very few of my undergrad classes), I’m doing it to better interact with the information. My goal usually isn’t to try to capture every piece of data because it is probably written down in my book. Instead I’m trying to use the paper and pen to help me visualize and use the information in new ways.

I find that this is much more difficult to do with a computer.

By: Claire

Claire — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 20:20:25 +0000

The few times I took notes with a keyboard (one that attached to my PDA) I was really self conscious about the noise it made. Irritated glances in my direction made me even more aware. A classroom full of clacking keyboards would drive me nuts!

I also think there’s something about moving a pen across paper that helps me remember a lecture better, even if I never go back and read the notes.

By: Margaret

Margaret — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:57:35 +0000

Personally… I could never pay attention to the lecture when the computer was in front of me. I had to leave my laptop at home and pull out that old fashioned pen and paper.

By: Heather

Heather — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 12:40:08 +0000

I prefer pen and paper for note taking _because_ it is slower, and forces me to actually think about what I am listening to, what is important, and what questions I might have. Otherwise (lazy me) I turn into a mindless scribe. In fact, when attending meetings or presentations that I am required to attend but which do not directly impact my work, I force myself to take notes because that forces me to pay attention.

By: ProductivityScience

ProductivityScience — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 10:58:58 +0000

Really small UMPC like Samsung Q1Ultra (I have one) is far more convenient that any paper solution. It definitely worth to learn fast typing and with a stylus and touch screen you can make drawings or any other hard to type notes.

By: Andrew Godden

Andrew Godden — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 07:00:47 +0000

I think it comes down to how comfortable you are with either method. My handwriting has always been pretty poor and note taking brings out my worst habits. Some of us will be in a similar situation with keyboards due to lack of training in touch typing or injury.
I did change the way I take notes by switching to mindmaps of the main points. I found I could also replicate this using Freemind on a laptop.

By: Tom Truman

Tom Truman — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 01:42:13 +0000

I’m a few years past college now, but it’s a lot easier for me to take notes on paper, and then type a summary or action items into the computer.

Awfully hard to sketch an idea into a typical word-processing package.

By: Rob Commins

Rob Commins — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 01:36:38 +0000

I’m far from college age any more (grrrrrr), but certainly agree with your position. In the business world, an open laptop in a meeting is a sure sign of someone disengaged. The laptop user is either working on something else (browsing randomly), or concentrating on their input mechanism (Word, Evernote) more than the discussion at hand.

By: MikeTheActuary

MikeTheActuary — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 00:12:47 +0000

The answer, of course, is simple: a tablet PC plus decent note-taking software (e.g. OneNote) would be ideal.

You get the interactivity of working with pen and…er, screen, plus potentially the ability to record lectures, while maintaining the advantages of electronic storage of information.

By: Fiona Lam

Fiona Lam — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 22:46:26 +0000

It can be more effective for people who do not want to waste time typing up their notes again.

However I find that retyping up my notes forces me to actually read, revise and re-organise my notes. If something I’ve written (probably in a hurry) doesn’t make sense, then I KNOW and I figure it out before typing it up.

Often, I think we’re too focused on writing/typing as much important points as possible from lecturers that we don’t have time to really LISTEN and absorb what they are trying to say.

By: Neil Kelty

Neil Kelty — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 22:10:13 +0000

Some profs ban laptops due to the ability of students to get on the Internet.