NoteBook 3.0
Reviewed by Daniel MacKenzie
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Creator: Circus Ponies
http://www.circusponies.com/
Cost: $49.95 USD
Academic and Family Pack
Licenses available
Strengths: Provides an organized way to take notes and do
research, ability to add notes anywhere on the page, sticky notes, voice
annotations, little to no learning curve.
Weaknesses: Would have liked the ability to have access to the
source of clipped information (explained later).
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Introduction
The first thing I thought when I looked at this software was
ÒI could definitely use this in universityÓ. A closer look at the software shows that it is ideal
software for any note-taking situation. NoteBook has many interesting features
that help aid the note-taking and research process such as voice annotations
when in lectures, ability to clip content from web pages and e-mail right into
the document and much more. However, this software, in my opinion, is not meant
to replace your word processor. NoteBook will help you to organize your ideas
and get all of the information in one location so you can write articles,
reviews, papers and more with ease.
So letÕs start from the top. When you launch NoteBook you
will see several templates for different projects. The templates range from
school related projects to planning trips or just making a simple to-do list.
The option is available to start with a blank notebook or one that has already
been set up; very simple. All notebooks come with a table of contents to easily
access different sections of the book and each section has its own table of
contents to access pages within the section. This navigation system makes it
very easy to get to the information that youÕre looking for.
All text entry on pages in the notebook is set to bullets by
default so the author can take down point-form notes. This isnÕt the only way
to enter text. Sticky notes can be added anywhere in the notebook and text
boxes can be placed by double-clicking anywhere on the page. Also, many other
types of content can be added into the notebook such as flow chart diagrams,
tables, images and even other documents such as PDFs or spreadsheet documents.
When added, these documents are saved as part of the NoteBook file to help keep
everything in one place. If you add images to the document, they can be
manipulated, rotated and resized to your liking and to help add depth to the
notes. Just simply drag the image into the document. Another type of content
that can be added is called voice annotations. NoteBook allows the user to
record audio from any connected microphone and save the MP3 file directly into
the document. This feature is perfect for recording lectures, speakers and
conferences for future reference.
An interesting component of NoteBook is called the Multidex.
This index at the back of the notebook collects similar data and data types and
puts them in one spot. For example, all of the To-Do items in the notebook are
gathered and placed in the To-Do section of the Multidex for quick reference.
This feature works text, numbers, URLs, stickers, due dates and more.
Another feature that should be looked at is the ability to
export the entire notebook as a functional website. Just choose Export as
Website and the notebook becomes a working website that can link to added
content, other pages and external links like normal websites. This feature can
be incredibly useful for those who are collaborating on a project. Not everyone
has a copy of NoteBook to view the work but a website is a universal way to
share the information. This feature could also be used by teachers to produce
class notes with interactive content or make the notes available for e-learning
and international students.
This program is full of useful features as mentioned above.
A few smaller features that are included in the program still add functionality
to the program but are not always used. For example, any NoteBook document can
be password-protected and encrypted for security purposes. This will help keep
your information safe if your computer is lost or stolen. NoteBook also has the
ability to synchronize due dates and high priority items with iCal. This will
help keep your project on track by reminding you of due dates. Also, if you
need to find specific information in a 200-page notebook, a full document
search feature will help you locate the information that you need to find.
Conclusion
Overall, I was impressed with this software. NoteBook has
the ability to help organize your thoughts and ideas without interrupting the
creative process because even if you throw random ideas on different pages, you
can keep everything under control and connected. I would recommend this
software to any student because of its capability to organize and take notes.
Without a doubt, I will be using it next year! Great work from Circus Ponies!
Recommendation
The only recommendation that I would like to see in a new
release of the software would be the ability to have information about the
source when information is clipped from a web page or document. This would make
it a lot easier when writing a school paper and you have to reference the
sources of your information. Having the web address (or even information such
as author of the article, date it was published, etc.) right inside the
notebook without having to retrieve it would be incredibly useful.
