Ever since I read the article on Notational Velocity syncing with Simplenote by Merlin Mann combined with the wonder of Markdown, I’ve re-discovered the joy of working with text files. So now I’m using either Simplenote (when traveling with my iPhone) or Notational Velocity when I’m on my Laptop in most cases for taking notes. The following simple tip will give you an idea of how you can use these program’s powerful search mechanism to help you get things done.
Whenever I am taking notes and I realize that the item I’m writing down will end up being an action item, I add [A] to the beginning of the text. Then when I do inbox processing, I open up Notational Velocity and type [A] into the search box and then all notes that have pending action items appear. When I click on the note, all the instances of [A] are conveniently highlighted. Then I take each item and process through my GTD system (OmniFocus) deleting the [A] as I go along. For those with less complex task management needs, this could be the only system you ever need. Very simple, scalable, programmable and no vendor lock.
Do you manage notes using simple text files? What is your method?
I use a similar system. In Notational Velocity I use tags prepended by @. All tags are on the first line, and might look something like this:
@todo @writing @article @blog
or
@todo @photography
Then, for sorting I have a few options depending on which way the mood strikes me: Smart folders in finder that search the NV repository of notes, or Together for more complex sorting and classification.
I usually write down ideas in Notational Velocity, and continue them in Together, when the editor in NV is no longer enough.
Currently I am struggling a bit with how to choose what goes into Omnifocus and what goes into NV, though.
I like using "td" to prepend – it is easier to type, and doesn't (usually) show up in other words in a search.
The recent update to Simplenote on the web app, API, (and iPhone app) adds tags, yet another way to mark items as "Todo". You could also use tagging to set @contexts, but typing these out inline with the note still seems faster.
Hint for Windows users: try Resophnotes. It's a free client for Simplenote that syncs seamlessly (incl through a proxy) to the SN server. They add some key capabilities to Simplenotes when running it on your desktop:
- Can optionally store each note as a .txt file. RN synchronizes both ways seamlessly, and even automatically imports new .txt files created by other Windows apps!
- Can drag & drop URLs from your Firefox address bar into a note (web URLs and file:///C:/ links are clickable!)
- (new) can create a simple wiki. Words surrounded by [single square brackets], automatically turn into clickable links, taking you to a note with that title or creating a new note if it doesn't exist.
- Supports Markdown view through Ctrl-M accelerator, bringing up a dialog that shows your note parsed with simple formatting. This dialog can stay up as you surf through various notes
RN doesn't support tagging (but this was just added yesterday, and they'll probably catch up soon).
I also recommend viewing the Simplenotes web view through the Firefox sidebar, with an additional Greasemonkey script:
http://lab.mightydream.com/simplenote-restyled/
The author says that the Simplenote web site now uses most elements of the script, but I still think it works better (resizing) with the added script active.
P.S. I'm not the author of either of these, just excited about all that RN allows you to do on a Windows machine.
Evidently, the latest web view at Simplenote no longer needs the script I mentioned above, and works well with the new tagging and 2-column view and resizing the sidebar as well:
https://simple-note.appspot.com/
@rmg2768
Thanks for your comments and suggestions!
When I tag action items with [A], I don't actually type that out. I use TextExpander to do that for me with the shortcut dA.
Now I'm tapping my fingers waiting for NV to sync tags with SimpleNotes.
Some great advice on setting up a GTD dashboard from @rmg2768:
http://simplenote.squarespace.com/news/2010/8/24/…
My only simple tip is to always include the people present at a meeting, saved me some trouble when I forgot where the meeting was, what it was about and what I promised to do. Actually helps me
Great point @Patrik! I also forgot to mention that I use Text Expander to easily include a timestamp at the top of each note.
I setup one shortcut that gives me the month, day, year and time. This method also works on the iPhone if you use SimpleNote in conjunction with Text Expander iPhone edition.
This is quite similar to my own workflow: notes go into Simplenote via the iPad or Notational Velocity on the Mac, but I'm experiencing the same kind of disconnect between that and OmniFocus.
I'm kicking around some ideas about how to automate the transfer, based on some kind of keyword at the start of the line. The basic idea would be something that runs periodically, checking for td or [a] or whatever, and throwing the line into the OmniFocus's inbox so I can pretty it up later on. AppleScript here I come…