Love the idea of Google Notebook, but not the lack of ownership.

March 31, 2009 5:29 PM

With Google Notebook no longer being actively developed, I am looking for something similar to run on one of my own servers. Anyone know of a similar app I can install to get a similar experience?

I find myself using Google Notebook a lot, and want to be proactive in case I log in one fine day and see a message saying that Google Notebook's shutting down in X days and get all your crap off it or lose it.

I found a previous AskMe from over a year and a half ago where someone was looking for much the same thing, and wondered if there had been any newer developments that anyone might be able to point me at. I run many Linux boxes, so anything that runs in a *NIX environment is preferred.

posted by barc0001 to Computers & Internet (9 answers total)

It isn't a direct answer to your question (it isn't a server, but a bunch of client software), but I've had good luck with evernote. I've used the web client everywhere, and the windows client runs under wine on linux.

If that doesn't work for you, maybe setting up a wiki would do the trick?
posted by jenkinsEar at 6:00 PM on March 31, 2009

Best answer: We use TWiki for collaborative documents at work, I'm not crazy about the interface, but it does allow for multiple users, track changes, and is running on our servers.

If you don't care about collaboration, I've been using Evernote for my personal and work related documents. I keep the work stuff as a local database. My personal stuff I sync over the web between work and home.

Evernote is free with a small advertisement in the corner, no ads if you register and they add more file support. (I'm using the free version!).
posted by wrnealis at 6:14 PM on March 31, 2009

I googled to see what Google Notebook was and found this article on replacement software.
posted by martinX's bellbottoms at 6:15 PM on March 31, 2009

Microsoft Onenote is apparently well thought of. A couple of people at work use it and like it.
posted by Confess, Fletch at 6:35 PM on March 31, 2009

I loved Google Notebook but when I heard they wouldn't be supported in the future I looked at all the alternatives and chose Evernote mainly because they have a big following (770,000 users Feb. 2009). I hope that means it will continued to be supported.

They now run a little ad space in the corner of my free copy which doesn't bother me and I hope brings in some revenue for them. And keeps them going.

I believe that when you download the software to your computer it will not matter if the company lives or dies because you will always have a copy. Unlike Google Notebook which I could not get to work offline on my computer. So I was dependent on Google's continued support.

I love the way Evernote works.
posted by cda at 6:37 PM on March 31, 2009

I have been using Zotero. It is a firefox extension that is open source. The beta version allows syncing between computers without running a server. I haven't tried the Windows or Mac version but the Linux version works for me.
posted by calumet43 at 7:12 PM on March 31, 2009

DevonThink, but OS X only.
posted by webhund at 7:28 PM on March 31, 2009

I'll second Evernote. They offer a great service and support is top notch.
posted by hummercash at 11:23 PM on March 31, 2009

I've used MS OneNote for about 3 years and I love it. Very intuitive. Easy to rearrange/add/delete pages. Good search, and searches text in pictures. Hyperlink to and from pages. Attach any file type to any page. Etc. Etc. Costs money, but comes alone or with an MS Office suite. I always look for free software first but I didn't want to settle for less.
posted by atm at 8:07 PM on April 2, 2009