I know I am random user no. 2653 with an opinion so nobody has to care, but I think the reasons why I switched back to Evernote (from Notion/Obsidian) is something that Anytype can learn from.
TL,DR
The more complex and freedom a note taking app gives me, the more I get lost in trying to create the perfect note taking setup and the less productive and organized I became. Evernote has simple yet powerful quick capture options, has simple organization and dedicated global tagging and has the most powerful search and filter options without being complicated to use.
The simplicity is something Anytype can learn from and take in consideration.
Note taking history (can be skipped)
In the past years I have been chasing the next shiny new note taking app, to become even more organized and productive! I went from Evernote/Onenote to Google Docs to task managers like Remember the Milk/Asana and Wunderlist from where I discovered the database-like tools such as Airtable/Zenkit and Monday.
Then Notion came and took the note taking world by storm! I loved the freedom to build my own system(s) but the more options it got, the more I was building new dashboards and linked systems and the less organized and productive I became.
After Notion came Roam research which revolutionized note taking for me with bi-directional links and block linking but after the free alpha it was too expensive for my use. Luckely Obsidian quickly filled the gap but again after a year I noticed I was again more busy building database system, playing with plugins and trying to code new and better dashboards. And again, I became less organized and productive.
Insert good old Evernote, which I re-discovered a few weeks ago and it was a breath of fresh air and provided features I never knew I needed until now!
The 3 Evernote Features I didn’t know I needed
These are the three features I didn’t know I needed:
- Quick and simple capture of information into Evernote
- A simple organisation structure with powerful global tagging
- The most powerful search and filter options I have seen in any app
1. Quick capture
Evernote supports many ways to quickly and easily capture information and add it to Evernote.
It has the best webclipper on the market, one of the only mobile app that has quick capture widgets for adding notes, photo’s, audio and task and even supports mail-to Evernote.
All these options are simple and fast, don’t require you to open Evernote and have default locations where to store these quick captured notes.
Quick capture and default storage locations for quick capture is something I think Anytype should be thinking about adding. It removes a huge barrier for using a note taking app since you don’t have to think in the moment where to store your information/note.
In comparison with almost any other app
- you need to open the app
- search your location to store your about to capture information
- make a new note/block
- then capture or add your information
- close the app
Step two and three are the ones that are the biggest barrier for quickly adding information that Evernote has solved very well.
2. Simple organization and powerful global tagging of notes
Evernote shines in simplicity, notes are stored in Notebooks and Notebooks can be stored in Stacks. Basically a two deep folder system and that’s it! No nested items, no notes within notes within notes getting lost. All visible in the sidebar.
Then Evernote has a dedicated global tagging feature. You can add any tag to any note and when you click on a tag, all notes with this tag are shown. Simple and fast.
This can be replicated in Anytype (and other apps) but require more effort and input from the used. You need to add a tag relation to every note/object and remember to add it as well. Then you need to make a set where you filter on this tag to get somewhat the same result.
Because this is a dedicated feature it also comes with a dedicated notes panel for an overview of all your tags. Again in Anytype you can recreate this with but it takes much more effort and input.
3. The most Powerful search and filter options I have seen in any app
Even with a simple organization structure you can lose notes when your system grows and grows. Evernote has the most powerful search and filter options I have ever seen in any app! Without being complicated to use or requiring a lot of input up front from the user.
You can global search by typing in the search bar, then you get a dropdown menu with suggestions to filter on tags, notebook, keywords and more. You can even filter on content in your notes like note contains images, PDF files, checkboxes (checked/unchecked), dates, names, tables, lists, calendar and more.
And you can save your search/filters for later use that you can add to your favorites.
It is so simple, yet so powerful.
Again, this is something Anytype could add to the search and will make it much more powerful and user friendly! Imagine being able to search your notes on a specific relation, then even filter on the used keyword/tag in this relation!
. I would be very happy to see the two worlds united in Anytype: a simple core to “just take notes” and a set of extensions and additional features for those who need/want to do or more. Your request reminded me of this request:
Especially for daily note-taking or as a task tracker. Otherwise the friction might be too big for the users.