A cross-platform, cross-life notepad

August 24, 2023 12:13 PM

I just want to turn on a device, let a sync happen (if it's online) and take more notes! I'd like a running, editable, digital scratch pad for keeping the day's random notes that works offline and across devices.

A google doc could work, but there doesn't seem to be a convenient way to just keep it open at all times.

I have an Android phone, a Windows PC, and (and this would be amazing!) a Boox e-ink device.

Ideas?

posted by jander03 to Work & Money (15 answers total)

Google Keep is my ride or die
posted by phunniemee at 12:16 PM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]

I use OneNote for this. Works on my Android phone and both my PCs. Images and notes both easy to add. (Won't work on the e-reader.)
posted by mark k at 12:17 PM on August 24, 2023

I use Google Keep for my notes, but it's just basic notes and lists. If you need any kind of formatting or editing, it won't do it for you.

The cross-platform, open all of the time, and works offline functionality is excellent for my needs, and I used it throughout my day as a personal and professional catch-all.
posted by wile e at 12:17 PM on August 24, 2023

Google Keep, especially since the Boox devices are running Android. And Keep is getting text formatting very soon, so there's that to look forward to.
posted by deezil at 12:20 PM on August 24, 2023 [5 favorites]

I use Simplenote and I'm very happy with it.
posted by Gerald Bostock at 1:52 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]

There are many products for this! I like Obsidian, which is the power-user version of this kind of thing. It's free but the sync between devices service is $8/mo. There are other ways to sync that don't cost anything but none are nearly as simple or convenient.

Simplenote is a great simpler alternative.

The Boox runs Android so in theory some or all Android apps will work on it. Here's someone using Obsidian with a Boox Tab Ultra.
posted by Nelson at 2:02 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Thirding SimpleNote if all you care about is plain text, which is what I want. Everything just works. Syncing is instantaneous since it's all lightweight text.

This guy mentions running it on a Boox device.
posted by intermod at 3:05 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]

The suggestions so far look good. If you're not OK with your notes ever touching a cloud provider, and are willing to tinker a little (okay, a lot), you could also use Syncthing to wirelessly sync files between Android and a server running on your computer. I use that to sync text files between my phone and computer and it works great. You could do the same thing on the Boox.
posted by edlinfan at 5:22 PM on August 24, 2023 [1 favorite]

Heresy I know but I vote workflowy because it hyperlinks and does bullets abd sub-bullets, etc.

Super lightweight, yes android app, free and zero drama. If it matters they also went hard on keyboard shortcuts if that helps you with note-taking (it does for me).

Re: using WF for note-taking https://workflowy.com/skills/collect-and-organize-notes/
posted by esoteric things at 5:47 PM on August 24, 2023 [3 favorites]

The part about "just turn on a device and take notes" (paraphrasing) - do you want to run the app in "kiosk mode" where that app is the only app visible to the user of the device? It might make a difference. WiFi-only or should it work when you only have cellular coverage?
posted by TimHare at 9:11 PM on August 24, 2023

I use Obsidian - previously. Here are some tips on using Obsidian with a Boox device.
posted by gakiko at 12:18 AM on August 25, 2023

I use Joplin. It's open source and runs on Linux/Mac/PC/iOS/Android.There's tons of different sync methods available (Dropbox, S3, OneDrive, among others). You can also pay for their cloud service for $5/month. If the Boox is Android, then it will run. I've read about drawing support through various plugins, but I've never used them

It is extremely extensible on desktop environments. Almost too much. You can figure almost every aspect of it. There are tons and tons of plugins.

It took me a while to get it "perfect". But now it's my daily driver.
posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 4:23 AM on August 25, 2023

Response by poster: These are all great! I'm going to start with Workflowy as it seems to match the way I think already. Exciting!!!

(I've tried Google Keep before, and for some reason just didn't vibe)
posted by jander03 at 7:50 AM on August 25, 2023

Well then mark esoteric things' answer as another "best" :)
posted by intermod at 8:07 PM on August 25, 2023

Workflowy is great, to add a datapoint - I do this with Dropbox Paper (their built in notes app), arriving there after originally being a _huge_ workflowy fan but finding it's much easier to manage binary content (like photos, videos, docs) with Dropbox in general.
posted by muppetkarma at 11:26 PM on August 26, 2023