The New Year is here, and I’m guessing most of you would have started it with a bunch of resolutions. Resolutions for a better tomorrow, a better you and a better perspective in general. But, who said resolutions are always meant to be forgotten? They say that writing down ideas, dreams, pointers and resolutions is a great way to follow through on them. And, in my case, it did happen. As I ushered in 2015, I wrote down a whole bunch of resolutions, and when I went back to the list halfway through the year, I realised I’d managed to strike off at least 50 per cent off it. The following year, I didn’t make a list. Guess what, I didn’t make any headway either. So, write it down.
Now, not everyone is going to grab a pen and paper every time he/she has a eureka moment. Here are a few note-taking apps that can substitute. So, even if it’s a wild idea that woke you up at midnight, simply key it in... Before it gets lost.
OneNote
OneNote has everything from to-do lists, sub tasks, highlights, labels to tags. Not to mention the several formatting options it allows the user. You can also attach images, videos, spreadsheets and links.
One of its highlights is the file revision history, which allows you to see the changes made to a file over time by various users. Quite useful for shared files. And if you thought that was it, then wait.
The app also automatically transcribes text from a PDF file or paper document that you upload. Nifty eh?
Wunderlist
One of the great features of this app is its natural language interpretation. Wunderlist has what is called the Smart Due Dates that automatically sets a reminder based on words like ‘tomorrow’ or ‘Monday’, without your having to specify the exact date. The app has templates for common tasks such as work, personal, bills and vacations to allow you to group tasks into folders and arrange them as per date and time or alphabetically. The premium version lets you add files of any size and share an unlimited number of tasks with other users.
Simplenote
As the name suggests, this is one of the simpler note-taking apps; perfect for those looking for a fuss-free note-taking experience. The app is free of a lot of features seen in other similar apps, making this one lighter and faster.
Yet, it lets you sync data across devices and is also a great way to organise notes using tags and pins, to let you sort and find notes with ease.
Zoho Notebook
From the stable of software company Zoho, this note-taking app organises your to-do lists and tasks in a card-like interface. The notes appear as coloured stickers stacked on top of each other, almost like post-its. You can choose to shuffle them around or swipe to see additional information.
The app also lets you attach audio, video and photo files to your notes and also set reminders. So, the next time there’s an interesting video you come across, here’s a quick way to save the file for later viewing.
The content also syncs to all your devices with Zoho on it, and there’s more — you can run a search for notes within the app, maybe even rustle up a long-forgotten one.
Google Keep
How can one miss out on Google Keep?
The note-taking app with a minimal interface from the Google stable is rather easy to use, while also offering some powerful tools to manage your tasks effectively.
The app lets you create collaborative to-do lists, save bookmarks and also transcribes voice notes. The app also syncs automatically to all your devices with Keep and lets you access notes on any of them or on the web.
One can also set location-based reminders, apart from the usual time-based ones. You can also filter and segregate notes as per colour for easier identification and searches.
