Naturalist Notebook

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Posted by Scott W
Dec 1, 2010 at 02:22 PM

I’m a professional naturalist, and I’m looking for a way to collect data in a notebook form. Specifically, I’d like to be able to create a digital notebook, segmented into pages for each species I work with, which allows me to paste photos, videos, sound clips and text notes, as well as allowing me to caption and notate those objects. I’ve started exploring programs like Notebook, DevonThink and so forth, but I’m wondering if folks on this forum have any suggestions for a program that fits this task best? I’m working on a new Mac system 10.6.5. Thanks for any and all help!

Posted by Stephen Zeoli
Dec 1, 2010 at 06:13 PM

You’ve got to check out Curio—I think it will prove to be perfect for your needs, as long as you don’t need it to handle any real database needs (i.e. printing reports, that kind of thing).

I wrote a review of Curio for mac.appstorm.com, which you can find here:

http://mac.appstorm.net/reviews/office-review/curio-a-workshop-for-your-creative-projects/

It’s a terrific application.

Steve

Posted by JasonE
Dec 6, 2010 at 02:43 AM

I use both OneNote and Mathematica for this sort of thing.
Both are powerful, but generally, no broad use tool is better than a tool made specifically for the job.

I have been thinking a lot lately about the best application or file format for this kind of thing. I have actually been day-dreaming about what I would make if I was developing the application.

This kind of program seems so obvious and intuitive to me. I am surprised that there are not dozens of options. I am in the the windows world. I don’t know of anything like Curio for windows. I wish I did though.

JasonE

Posted by NewZRoom
Dec 6, 2010 at 12:05 PM

I have been using David RM’s The Journal for several years ... it’s simple to get started, but it also offers sophisticated features you can use as your needs get more complex. It’s a great program for entering text and pictures.

http://www.davidrm.com/

Surfulater is also a great option for the type of catalog you’re talking about, but it’s a little harder for me to use for text based information.

http://www.surfulater.com/

Both programs have “demos” you can try before you buy.

Posted by NewZRoom
Dec 6, 2010 at 12:06 PM

I’m sorry, I didn’t notice you’re using a Mac ...

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