First, happy holidays, everyone.

Second, my thanks. I check this site probably three times a day, and find it consistently cogent and on point. This is what an online community is supposed to look like. I appreciate your keeping it real.

Third, I wonder if I could ask members to reflect on how your software behavior changed over 2014. That is, while CRIMPing away, did you in fact make significant shifts in your outlinersoftware application tool chest or use of it?

For me:

- a longstanding Notecase Pro user, I still think it reigns supreme in its mix of features for me (a thinking, writing, and journal tool). Use it on Windows, Mac, Linux. But my desktop use has dropped; mobile use (Nexus 7 and iPad) has risen. The Android version just doesn't cut it. No iPad version.

- LOTS more use of Workflowy. A lot of my work is migrating here. Why? I think it's the deep but simple interface, plus speed. It doesn't get in the way.

- SimpleNote works for me in many ways: capturing short notes, and even writing short pieces (online journalism). Again, I love the stripped down, zenware UI. Tagging isn't outlining. But it's not bad. ResophNotes on Windows is pretty slick, which I sync to SimpleNote.

- a specialized (running for elected professional office) but intense use of TreePad on Windows and Outliner on Android. An odd coupling, but handy and effective. It doesn't seem to be growing beyond that particular life circumstance, though.

- moo.do really helped me crystalize the big picture. I was then able to move the results over to Worfklowy, but I find that I keep dipping into moo.do to fiddle with it. I think it will BECOME a keeper.

- WriteRoom pooped out on iOS. Plaintext is still a wonderful tool for writing, especially with Dropbox integration. But I don't live in it.

On the horizon for 2015:

- very intrigued by markdown with code folding.

- Google seems to be always more compelling as a platform. Workflowy, Simplenote, moo.doo, and maybe some markdown editors, plus Google Docs, starts to look pretty complete.

What about your own shifts?

Jaslar, et. al.,

Thank you for the holiday wishes. I totally agree with you about this forum. It is a shining example of how the Internet should work and seldom does. Like you, I truly value the friends who gather here!

How my "outliner" use has changed over the course of 2014?

It feels as if there hasn't been anything new which is all that system-rattling, at least on computers. There has been some great stuff on iPad that I've enjoyed, but nothing that has really changed the way I work. Consequently, I've been less "experimenty" than in the past. I'm leaning more heavily on TheBrain than ever. It's not a perfect app by any means, but I seem to click with its scheme, and that it is cross-platform is key.

I am looking forward to the releases of Scrivener and Ulysses for the iPad in 2015. And I am hoping Tinderbox 6 will continue to be refined (as of now, I just haven't warmed up to it).

Merry Christmas and happy holidays to all the folks on this forum.

Steve Z.

I agree with Stephen Zeoli's overall assessment -- I believe that on desktops in 2014 not much is new from a CRIMPing perspective.

On OS X, in 2015 I will be looking forward to a possible new version of DEVONthink (speculating on hints dropped on that forum). Also, perhaps better integration with iOS -- especially Ulysses for iOS (announced and expected "in a few weeks") and Scrivener.

In 2015 and beyond, purely because of the small footprint and portability, I would like to do more work on iPad -- but anything that involves sustained research and gathering a corpus of notes, annotations, and original sources is not yet as easy to manage on iPad as it is on the desktop.

Stephen Zeoli wrote

It feels as if there hasn’t been anything new which is all that system-rattling, at least on computers.

Season's greetings to all, but in particular to jaslar, Steve Z. and Paul Korm above.

I agree that there appear to be no great exciting seismic shifts in software on the horizon (although the force of the onward March of Markdown is in some ways quite remarkable - not particularly corporate in origin, not even especially mercantile in motivation, but apparently highly effective in making converts). Seen in the wider sweep, the recent past in terms of utility also seems unrevolutionary: Windows 8, though I probably use it too seldom to judge, seems to me to represent change for the sake of change, and Yosemite not to be a huge step forward.

Personally, I've recently taken more of an interest in how I write, not just in how I structure what I write (the motivation for my original interest in this forum). It seems to me that dictation to a Windows or Mac machine and voice-to-text are significantly less error-prone and much easier to use than they were, whether with Nuance's products or the Windows or Mac dictation features. Although users still often give the software-providers a hard time, my impression is that the complaints are fewer, and the praise more frequent; such are the improvements that have been made, it's hard to recall quite how frustrating using such software was, ten or fifteen years ago.

But because I've always believed - from experience long ago in churning out many thousands of words a week at work - that ideas forming words should best pass through the fingers and a pen or pencil in order to reach the page, and have this year had that prejudice semi-supported by brain research (see, for example, if you haven't already http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/03/science/whats-lost-as-handwriting-fades.html?_r=0 I've long hoped that handwriting recognition would move forward as quickly as voice recognition. But on my recent experience - no such luck. (I could - and do - handwrite and then dictate.)

Next year perhaps.


.

The major shift for me in the past year is that I have finally given up on Evernote. I was growing increasingly uneasy about its roadmap, but the last straw was that when I bought a Surface Pro 3 in October, Evernote would not sync to it. For two months now I've been corresponding with the Evernote support staff, but so far no one has come up with a solution. Because I'm in the midst of a large scholarly project (in collaboration with my wife), I finally pulled the plug and started shifting thousands of notes from Evernote over to OneNote earlier this month. It's the worst software crisis I've ever had in my life, and it will probably be several more weeks before I complete the transition.

I continue to hope that MyInfo (which I like very much) may eventually represent another solution. I am still keeping all my notes for another unfinished book in MyInfo, and I would prefer, if possible, to use it more in the future. The two things holding me back are that (a) at the moment it's not really a practical tool for collaboration, and (b) I can't find an easy way to move notes from Evernote to MyInfo. (For the Evernote-OneNote transfers, I am using an excellent utility app called Onetastic.)

- a longstanding Notecase Pro user, I still think it reigns supreme in
its mix of features for me (a thinking, writing, and journal tool). Use
it on Windows, Mac, Linux. But my desktop use has dropped; mobile use
(Nexus 7 and iPad) has risen. The Android version just doesn't cut it.
No iPad version.

The Android version is still very immature. Miro has said it's going to get many more features. On using NC Pro for a journal, I've written a "Journal" script that when executed opens or makes current a particular document, then creates a new note at the bottom of the doc with a date/time stamp as the note title in the form "2014-12-25 – 13:39 (Thursday)". The script is cross-platform, but requires insertion of a filepath for each platform you want to use it on. I have plans eventually to extend the script so that it automagically inserts years and months in nested form so that the hierarchies in the document would be in Year > Month > Note entry order.

That script is one of approximately 180 scripts (I've placed all of them in the public domain) that I am preparing to release as a "Cornucopia" plugin for NC Pro. The collection also includes all scripts that ship with NC Pro, embedded in a single document. All scripts are accessible through a pop-up menu script launcher, although some need to be assigned to event triggers. Nearly all of the scripts are done and debugged. I use the scripts every day in production. Each script embeds its own documentation, which can be displayed in the sysem default browser by selecting the script in the pop-up menu and then pressing the "Help" button. Only the pop-up script launcher needs to be assigned to a keyboard shortcut or toolbar icon, although any script in the collection can be similarly assigned.

If you or anyone else would like to test drive these scripts, just send me an email and I'll post the collection online and forward a download link (they're all in a single .ncz file). My address is marbux pine at maple gmail oak .com (subtract the trees). Any bug reports or other feedback would be deeply appreciated.

Reason's Greetings,

Paul

Although I spend most of my time lurking here I thoroughly enjoy this forum for the high quality of post with a laid back feel. Thanks to all who contribute and your posts often send me off in different directions as I look into new and old products that are introduced to me.

For my personal database soft I still haven't found what I am looking for but I do know Evernote is not the answer for me although it is a remarkable free service. I just feel my data is more and more trapped in it. It also has a "clunky" feel to me and just doesn't work for me.Hard to describe exactly what it is but I need to enjoy the feel of a product to use it

For my basic files storage I am using google drive, it is simple and it works

In 2014 I started using markdown and I am enjoying it. I mainly use it on android tablet and smartphone (Draft) and then clean up on my PC (Markdown Pad 2 ) and I have started writing basic reports for work. Linked to Dropbox it just works and the files are very small.

Although I spend most of my time lurking here I thoroughly enjoy this forum for the high quality of post with a laid back feel. Thanks to all who contribute and your posts often send me off in different directions as I look into new and old products that are introduced to me.

For my personal database software I still haven't found what I am looking for but I do know Evernote is not the answer for me although it is a remarkable free service and there is much to admire in the free service. I just feel my data is more and more trapped in it. It also has a "clunky" feel to me and just doesn't work for me.Hard to describe exactly what it is but I need to enjoy the feel of a product to use it

For my basic files storage I am using google drive, it is simple and it works

In 2014 I started using markdown and I am enjoying it. I mainly use it on android tablet and smartphone (Draft) and then clean up on my PC (Markdown Pad 2 ) and I have started writing basic reports for work. Linked to Dropbox it just works and the files are very small. I have also started keeping a journal using draft and Markdown Pad 2

For my todo list todoist is working well for me. Mainly because the chrome and android app talk so well to each other and for its speed .Having seen the simplicity of text and the I am tempted to move towards using a combination of todotxt.net and android app simpletask but will keep that on hold or just experimenting in 2015

Workflowy is still a favourite of mine and I will probably use it more and more in 2015

all the best to everyone for 2015 Andrew

I would indeed be interested in looking at some of the scripts. But on Android, I'm not looking for lots of features. Just simple, reliable.

Check out the Halna outliner for Android. A nice, clean two pane outliner. So far Notecase Pro feels over engineered on that platform. But of course, I'm not keen to use two programs that don't talk to each other.

A happy and successful New Year to all.

My shifts:
the first was to Mac, earlier this year. That was a biggie! Fortunately not too traumatic, because much of my essential data was stored in cross-platform format (PDF files, OneNote).

So OneNote was an early keeper on the Mac, and I also use it on iOS/Android.

But the Mac has so many gorgeous information management apps! I played with lots of them: a whole slew of outliners, plus Yojimbo, Together and others.

The keepers are:
DEVONthink Pro + EagleFiler (I use EagleFiler to collect web pages, then transfer to DEVONthink)
Things for task management (also on iOS). I've played with so many task management apps. Things turns out to be the ideal compromise.
Simplenote. Absolutely brilliant. I also use it with MetaNota Pro.
Ulysses (used with a whole range of different iOS Markdown apps, but I'm looking forward to the native Ulysses app for iPad). LightPaper comes a close second.
ClipMenu. There are many more sophisticated clipboard managers, but ClipMenu is tiny and very efficient.

Other favourites include:
Notebooks (the Alfons Schmid cross-platform gem)
OutlineEdit (has overtaken Tree and others)

New goodies that are rapidly becoming favourites:
Quiver (sensational!)
TextWrangler (does anything you want with text files, including XML and other coded formats, plus has a great folder search function)
Keep Everything (mainly because of the way you can transform web archives into Markdown files)

Cheers!
Bill

jaslar wrote:

did you in
fact make significant shifts in your outlinersoftware application tool
chest or use of it?

Season's greetings to all!

The main changes in 2014 for me:

I've decided to gradually wean myself from iOS. I still use my iPad 1 for PDF reading and annotation, and my iPod Touch 4th gen. for accessing Google Calendar, Contacts, and WorkFlowy todos when out and about, but otherwise my HP Chromebook 14 has taken over for most things I used to use iOS for (and I might try Android when my iOS devices become completely unusable). This has led to an increased use of Google Sheets for keeping track of things, organising things, and so on. I use the Caret app for writing plain text notes and save them on Google Drive, and the WorkFlowy app for to-dos, outlining, and note-taking.

I've been using my Olympus digital voice recorder more often to take notes when on the move, and then transcribe them manually, when back home.

My system on the PC is fairly settled now. I use different tools for the different stages of the research and writing process, so not all the tools are used all of the time. ConnectedText remains the central database for most things, although I keep web page captures in Surfulater still. I write in WriteMonkey using basic Markdown for formatting, and then do the typesetting in MS Word at the very end. Outlining is done in CT, WorkFlowy, Freeplane, Gingko, and VUE, and for specialist jobs I do take out Bonsai. I also use Noteliner on and off.

A while ago I have also added handwriting to my workflow via the Boogie Board Sync, as discussed here:
https://drandus.wordpress.com/2014/12/22/latest-enhancements-to-my-connectedtext-ecosystem/

Recently I have found myself increasingly deciding not to upgrade to newer versions of some of my software, as older versions ran better on my ageing system and quite often the 'innovations' either broke some existing functionalities that I desperately need or have not offered anything new to my uses.

@jaslar,
Many thanks for sharing your thoughts!

My big shift this year was going from OneNote back to TheBrain. It wasn't a decision against OneNote because I consider it as one of best apps within the MS Office suite including many good ideas and approaches. But I am more visually oriented to grasp the context of an entry so TheBrain is my perfect tool. I am a long-term TheBrain user and have been using it for 16 years now. Another important feature for me is that I can use it on OSX and Windows 7/8.+ and sync it over the cloud.
The second shift was going back to MindManager after trying several other MindMapping apps, including browser-based version. But the same applies here: I am used to it and I am still more an old-fashioned desktop nerd and not a all-the-time-being-online-geek (yet).

Even I still prefer the use of desktop software than rowser-based apps, I will use more online apps like Google Docs and Workflowy in 2015. Accessibility and collaboration are the reasons for this step as I am more and more involved in projects including people living and working in different places.

Happy outlining to you all in 2014 and 2015!

Best,
Dominik

Hi.

Best wishes to everyone here for 2015.

In 2014 ...

1) I was on a quest for for a digital, mobile, instant-on writing machine for writing down ideas and short snippets when not in my office. I.e. when traveling to the nearby city in a suburban train or the underground, when at home in bed or in the living room (I do not want to set up a computer in the living room).
I have tried a lot. But nothing really works for me:
- Pen and paper: Instant on but requires retyping the notes/snippets, which I often postpone, some notes even got lost.
- iPad: always with me when commuting because I read Kindle books on it, but the on-screen keyboard is a PITA.
- The Windows RT tablet/keyboard is a good notebook with the tablet safely fixed to the keyboard, but no real instant-on (unless I don't shut it down but then the batteries don't last for several days as in my iPad, Dropbox was unusable.
- Windows 8.1 tablet/keyboard: instant-on vs. quick battery drain, no way to safely combine tablet and keyboard.
- Windows/Mac notebooks: to large and heavy to always carry around, instant-on vs. quick battery drain.

Haven't found a viable solution so far (I am now even considering an "antique" Psion Netbook Pro as writing machine, but am afraid that I will end up with another piece of hardware that is not THE solution).

2) I switched part of my work to a Mac Mini (up to now mainly for running Windows in VirtualBox) and bought a used Macbook Pro for blog writing. And - guess what - I got a lot of apps for it (Scrivener and Scapple, Ulysses III, Devonthink Pro, Curio, Tree 2, Papyrus Autor), which I am slowly exploring now.

3) I lost my trust in Evernote. Which is bad because right now I use it as one of my 2 repositories for notes and saved web pages and because I have access to the repository from my Windows and Mac machines and my iPad. But twice I was not able to access notes I had downloaded to my iPad without internet connection (usually that works fine but there were 2 times that did not work when I was travelling "lite" and the iPad was the only machine I had with me). What is more: I find handling data in Evernote cumbersome. E.g. setting up "folders" within notebooks is a nuisance.

So, on my Macs I moved to Devonthink Pro where I imported the Evernote notebooks I need on the Mac; once a week I import new Evernote notes I entered on my Windows machines or saved from the web while on the Windows machines. On Windows I keep Evernote and OneNote (my second repository). Processing Evernote notes is mainly done on the Macs.

4) I do most of my writing and formatting in LibreOffice Writer on Windows, which I found the most convenient tool. Some writing (for my magazine) is done in Word because I have to preformat the articles in Word stylesheets. For spelling, grammar and style checking I use Papyrus Autor, which is unique in that field. So far Papyrus has not replaced Writer as the writing tool.
I do hardly any writing in Scrivener any more, I mainly use it to structure long manuscripts and to collect notes and snippets. For some weeks I used Scrivener to plan and structure my 2 blogs and kept the Scrivener project in my Dropbox. However, something got wrong (I guess the Scriv project was not completely closed on the Windows PC when I opened it on the Mac) - so I am no longer able to open the Scriv project on the Windows machine, only on the Macs.

5) There are so many interesting cloud apps (Workflowy and Gingko in particular) but I have been reluctant to make the move to a net-only solution without a viable business model. As soon as there will be a Windows or Mac app for Workflowy or Gingko I will immediately give it a try. I want to be able to access my data whether there is an internet connection or not (on German trains you often have no internet connection, the same with a place where I go every few weeks for a few days).


In 2015 ...

6) I plan to reduce cloud storage usage (Dropbox, OneDrive) and install a private cloud on a new NAS system.

7) I will give a few cloud apps a try: A colleague I plan to collaborate more with uses Nimble as her CRM system, so I will probably switch to Nimble.

8) I will do more work on my Macs (writing and planning for my 2 blogs, ebooks) and use my Macbook as a DJing machine for seminars. I just started exploring Curio and like what I have seen so far. The 13" display of the Macbook is a bit small for it, the 24" monitor on the Mac Mini is just right.

9) I will give Notebooks by Alfons Schmid another try as a cross-plattform notetaking/web clipping tool (thanks to Bill's continuous recommendations).

Regards, Franz

Franz,

I enjoyed reading your reflections on 2014. One possible solution for your digital, mobile, instant-on writing quest:

I recently bought a ClamCase bluetooth keyboard for my iPad Air, and so far I've liked it a lot. It basically turns your iPad into a mini laptop.

Pros:
- Reasonable typing
- Can be bent behind so that it gets out of the way for more typical tablet use
- Good battery life (I've charged it once and haven't charged it again in almost a month)

Cons:
- Makes the iPad more bulky and a little heavier
- Even though it does have a long battery life, it does need to be charged
- Sometimes there seems to be a missing keystroke... not sure if it is my typing or a "hole" in the bluetooth

http://clamcase.com

Good luck with your 2015 goals.

Steve Z.

Franz Grieser wrote:

Hi.

Best wishes to everyone here for 2015.

In 2014 ...

1) I was on a quest for for a digital, mobile, instant-on writing
machine for writing down ideas and short snippets when not in my office.
I.e. when traveling to the nearby city in a suburban train or the
underground, when at home in bed or in the living room (I do not want to
set up a computer in the living room).
I have tried a lot. But nothing really works for me:
- Pen and paper: Instant on but requires retyping the notes/snippets,
which I often postpone, some notes even got lost.
- iPad: always with me when commuting because I read Kindle books on it,
but the on-screen keyboard is a PITA.
- The Windows RT tablet/keyboard is a good notebook with the tablet
safely fixed to the keyboard, but no real instant-on (unless I don't
shut it down but then the batteries don't last for several days as in my
iPad, Dropbox was unusable.
- Windows 8.1 tablet/keyboard: instant-on vs. quick battery drain, no
way to safely combine tablet and keyboard.
- Windows/Mac notebooks: to large and heavy to always carry around,
instant-on vs. quick battery drain.

Haven't found a viable solution so far (I am now even considering an
"antique" Psion Netbook Pro as writing machine, but am afraid that I
will end up with another piece of hardware that is not THE solution).

2) I switched part of my work to a Mac Mini (up to now mainly for
running Windows in VirtualBox) and bought a used Macbook Pro for blog
writing. And - guess what - I got a lot of apps for it (Scrivener and
Scapple, Ulysses III, Devonthink Pro, Curio, Tree 2, Papyrus Autor),
which I am slowly exploring now.

3) I lost my trust in Evernote. Which is bad because right now I use it
as one of my 2 repositories for notes and saved web pages and because I
have access to the repository from my Windows and Mac machines and my
iPad. But twice I was not able to access notes I had downloaded to my
iPad without internet connection (usually that works fine but there were
2 times that did not work when I was travelling "lite" and the iPad was
the only machine I had with me). What is more: I find handling data in
Evernote cumbersome. E.g. setting up "folders" within notebooks is a
nuisance.

So, on my Macs I moved to Devonthink Pro where I imported the Evernote
notebooks I need on the Mac; once a week I import new Evernote notes I
entered on my Windows machines or saved from the web while on the
Windows machines. On Windows I keep Evernote and OneNote (my second
repository). Processing Evernote notes is mainly done on the Macs.

4) I do most of my writing and formatting in LibreOffice Writer on
Windows, which I found the most convenient tool. Some writing (for my
magazine) is done in Word because I have to preformat the articles in
Word stylesheets. For spelling, grammar and style checking I use Papyrus
Autor, which is unique in that field. So far Papyrus has not replaced
Writer as the writing tool.
I do hardly any writing in Scrivener any more, I mainly use it to
structure long manuscripts and to collect notes and snippets. For some
weeks I used Scrivener to plan and structure my 2 blogs and kept the
Scrivener project in my Dropbox. However, something got wrong (I guess
the Scriv project was not completely closed on the Windows PC when I
opened it on the Mac) - so I am no longer able to open the Scriv project
on the Windows machine, only on the Macs.

5) There are so many interesting cloud apps (Workflowy and Gingko in
particular) but I have been reluctant to make the move to a net-only
solution without a viable business model. As soon as there will be a
Windows or Mac app for Workflowy or Gingko I will immediately give it a
try. I want to be able to access my data whether there is an internet
connection or not (on German trains you often have no internet
connection, the same with a place where I go every few weeks for a few
days).


In 2015 ...

6) I plan to reduce cloud storage usage (Dropbox, OneDrive) and install
a private cloud on a new NAS system.

7) I will give a few cloud apps a try: A colleague I plan to collaborate
more with uses Nimble as her CRM system, so I will probably switch to
Nimble.

8) I will do more work on my Macs (writing and planning for my 2 blogs,
ebooks) and use my Macbook as a DJing machine for seminars. I just
started exploring Curio and like what I have seen so far. The 13"
display of the Macbook is a bit small for it, the 24" monitor on the Mac
Mini is just right.

9) I will give Notebooks by Alfons Schmid another try as a
cross-plattform notetaking/web clipping tool (thanks to Bill's
continuous recommendations).

Regards, Franz

Franz Grieser wrote:

1) I was on a quest for for a digital, mobile, instant-on writing
machine for writing down ideas and short snippets when not in my office.
I.e. when traveling to the nearby city in a suburban train or the
underground, when at home in bed or in the living room (I do not want to
set up a computer in the living room).

Franz, have you considered a small (11in) Chromebook for this? This was exactly the problem it solved for me. It's instantly on, battery normally will last for an entire work day, it's generally lighter than a regular laptop (no fans, no moving parts), and you could use e.g. the WorkFlowy Chrome app for off-line writing, which sync painlessly when you're back online again.

5) As soon as there will be a
Windows or Mac app for Workflowy or Gingko I will immediately give it a
try.

As mentioned above, there is already an offline Windows etc. app for WorkFlowy, you can download it from here:

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/workflowy/koegeopamaoljbmhnfjbclbocehhgmkm

This means that whatever notes you might take with a Chromebook in WF while offline, those notes would be easily accessible on other machines with other OSs.

I'd entirely agree with Stephen that the most sensible solution to Franz's dilemma is an external keyboard. I've been using a Logitech keyboard with my iPad 2 for years, and it has revolutionised my writing life when I'm out and about. Santa has now given me a brand spanking-new iPad Mini Retina for Christmas, so I've turned to a Logitech K810 multi-device bluetooth keyboard, which allows me to use both my iPads simultaneously. The keyboard supports up to three devices, each with its own dedicated Bluetooth key, so I've got my iPads linked to keys one and two, and my iPhone linked to key three. Geek heaven! (Although now that, thanks to Apple, I can use my iPads to answer my phone and send SMS messages, I don't really need to connect the iPhone at all!) Two iPads together still weigh less than most notebook computers, and if you use a battery-powered portable server (e.g. a SanDisk Connect wireless drive, but there are many others out there), you can exchange data between the two devices very easily. Some apps also run their own WiFi servers: Notebooks, for example, has a very acceptable WebDAV server built in!

But exchanging data between iPads isn't really the point. I now use my very slow iPad 2 (stupidly, I upgraded it to iOS 8.1.2, which has slowed it down significantly) almost exclusively as a reference machine, on which my various dictionaries and document repositories (including my FoxTrot index) reside. The iPad Mini 2 is rapidly becoming my main writing machine - ridiculous, you will cry, it's only got an 8-inch screen! Yup, but it's such a good screen you honestly don't notice when you're typing away in one of the many extremely capable iOS writing apps (my current favourites are 1Write and Editorial, although there are various others like OmniOutliner that occasionally surge to the front of the field). And it's very quick, too. And I asked kind Santa to gimme a device with 32GB of memory, which IMHO is now the bare minimum for an iOS device.

I use rotating cases with both machines, allowing me to position them in either portrait or landscape positions. When I first saw these things, I thought they were ridiculously cumbersome and silly. But such is the competition for iPad accessories that there are now whole ranges of modern rotating cases that are extremely light, well-made and inexpensive. I put my Logitech keyboard in its own case, and carry the whole lot in an ultralight backpack (actually dating from the time I still used my beloved AlphaSmart Dana – a much better option for typing, incidentally, than a Psion Netbook, interesting though the latter are. You can still obtain AlphaSmart Danas on eBay – they run PalmOS and can host up to two SD cards; they also have WiFi). Many a happy hour has been spent in Starbucks, meetings and other venues typing away on my iPad 2. I'm looking forward to enhancing the experience with my iPad Mini 2!

There's a significant market niche here for somebody, incidentally. The first person/company to design a sleek, elegant iPad case that can house two iPads plus a Bluetooth keyboard will probably make a fortune, mainly from pretentious businesspeople like moi... It would probably have pockets for the very latest, state-of-the-art styluses and battery chargers, and possibly also for wireless servers, MiFi devices (which I also use, and in fact can be used as wireless servers with SD cards if you're not too fussy about security), etc. And still not weigh much more than a standard notebook!

Cheers!
Bill

More on SanDisk wireless drives, for anybody who's interested:

http://www.sandisk.co.uk/products/wireless/

As a solution to the iPad keyboard problem I've been gaining proficiency with Nuance's Swype keyboard. iOS 8 supports custom keyboards, and Swype has been ported to iOS -- many smartphones have supported the feature for years. It appears as a standard keyboard, and can be used that way, but its main feature is text entry by swiping one finger around the keyboard. The software interprets the gestures and is fairly accurate with interpeting the gesture and entering the text. So, if I swipe my finger from t to e to x to t I'll get "text". The Swype keyboard adapts itself to your vocabulary and gesture "style" and improves with use.

See swype.com for info.

The learning curve is not steep -- regular use is recommended to maintain proficiency -- if you relax and ignore the impulse to "type" there is a good flow. I wouldn't use Swype to write a novel, but emails, long notes, etc. are pretty simple. For some reason, Swype doesn't not work well with web page forms.

Thanks Stephen, DrAndus and Bill.

First: I have a Logitech Tablet Keyboard for the iPad. It is fine - but it does not attach to the iPad so it's not suited for working in the suburban train.

Re Chromebooks: I considered such a machine in summer, but decided to not invest in another ecosystem. The cons: price (starting at 200 Euro), cloud (yes, I know you can keep data local), Google.
Re ClamCase: This seems to be a great keyboard+case. The cons: a ridiculous price (getting a Pro from Great Britain would cost 180 Euro incl. shipping, getting one from the USA would be about >210 Euro incl. shipping and customs duty), QWERTY keyboard layout (but I could live with that as I type without looking to the keys).

But: Searching for the ClamCase on Amazon brought up the Cooper Kai Skel, which is almost identical to the ClamCase (as far as the descriptions are concerned). Only the viewing angle seems to be less. However, it only costs 45 Euro. I just ordered one.

@Bill: I installed Notebooks for Windows and find the "New from pastboard" command quite useful for importing web pages incl. links, formatting and images. However, the original URL does not get copied. Did I miss something? Or would I have to live with that shortcoming?

Thanks, Franz

MadaboutDana wrote:

the most sensible solution to
Franz's dilemma is an external keyboard. I've been using a Logitech
keyboard with my iPad 2 for years, and it has revolutionised my writing
life when I'm out and about.

I can't speak for Franz's specific requirements, but for my own ad hoc note-taking needs iPad + external keyboard couldn't compete with the Chromebook because it still took several steps to turn on the iPad, grab the keyboard, launch a writing app, and then the need to prop up the iPad somehow, especially if on an unstable surface (balancing it on the knee while sitting up in bed). I know there are stands etc., but it still takes the time and effort to set it up, by which time I might forget what I wanted to write down...

With a Chromebook, it's 1) open the lid, 2) start typing, 3) close the lid.

If the speed of note-taking is key, another option would be to take handwritten notes on the BB Sync, and then sync the resulting PDFs via Bluetooth with iPad, PC, Evernote etc. But this leaves the notes in handwritten form, which may not be ideal if one needs to be able to search that text etc.

MadaboutDana wrote:

I now use my
very slow iPad 2 (stupidly, I upgraded it to iOS 8.1.2, which has slowed
it down significantly)

This is one of the main reasons I've decided to abandon iOS in favour of ChromeOS. I haven't had my Chromebook long enough to confirm this, but I've read that ChromeOS updates can even make your older hardware run faster due to improvements, as opposed to degrade it, as is the case with iOS, Windows etc. updates. But it certainly hasn't slowed a bit since January, when I bought it.

Franz Grieser wrote:

Re Chromebooks: I considered such a machine in summer, but decided to
not invest in another ecosystem. The cons: price (starting at 200 Euro),
cloud (yes, I know you can keep data local), Google.

Sorry, Franz, didn't see your message before I posted mine. If you don't like Google, there's no way around that problem with a Chromebook :-)

As for the price, it still seems to me a lot cheaper option than getting an iPad in general, especially if spread over the years of expected life time. Presumably even a 2 or 3-year old Chromebook could be passed on to a child or an elderly relative, while it would be an insult if I'd try to give my iPad 1 to someone, as you can't even surf with it without Safari crashing all the time.

Thanks Paul.

I haven't tried the Swype on my iPad. I had an early version on a PocketPC about a decade ago. You could "write" using a stylus (instead of tapping the mini on-screen keyboard keys), which was quite comfortable. But I prefer real typing on real keys :-)

Dottore.

My iPad 2 works like a charm, I have no problems using the latest iOS (my system did not slow down). And I invested a in a number of iOS apps. So getting a better keyboard seems to be the best solution in my case.

Regards, Franz

Dr Andus wrote:

If the speed of note-taking is key, another option would be to take
handwritten notes on the BB Sync, and then sync the resulting PDFs via
Bluetooth with iPad, PC, Evernote etc. But this leaves the notes in
handwritten form, which may not be ideal if one needs to be able to
search that text etc.

In my quest to find handwriting input that works, I'm hoping that the makers of the BB Sync enable its output to work with MyScript, a single firm that is the equivalent of Nuance voice-recognition in the handwriting-recognition market. I can't remember who - but it was possibly you Dr A on this forum - pointed out that somewhere in their online promotional material BB had not discounted that possibility. I think the BB Sync's predecessor, called the BB Rip (?), now withdrawn, did create files that could be converted into digital text with a MyScript application. But of course, much continues to hang on MyScript's software really cracking the job of reducing the error rate for handwriting conversion.

faster due to improvements, as opposed to degrade it, as is the case
with iOS, Windows etc. updates. But it certainly hasn't slowed a bit
since January, when I bought it.

I wanted to add something about iPad keyboard cases (which is why there's a second piece of Dr A's post in my post above).

To judge from amazon.co.uk, there's increasing competition in the iPad keyboard case market. Father Christmas brought me a "mid-market" example, the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard for my iPad Mini. Not much time so far to really sweat it out - and certainly no time to test its longevity - but up to this point I've found it to be an addition that should encourage me to use my Mini as input device more often - I hope with iOS Scrivener and iOS Ulysses III in 2015. One criticism others have made of the keyboard is that it's too small for typing - a criticism that presumably would apply to its competitors also - but so far I've not found this (although I'm not a key-butcher - I reserve that for pencils!).

The very clever design of the Logitech ultrathin keyboard (which basically does away with the 'Tab' and 'Caps Lock' keys, or rather conflates them with letter keys) means that the main keyboard isn't much smaller than a standard keyboard – certainly okay for touch typing.

Sadly, Santa didn't bring me one, but then I already have a Logitech K810.

While the Logitech K810 doesn't act as a baseboard for iPads or any other device, being a completely separate keyboard, it's worth mentioning that many of the aluminium, ultrathin keyboards available for iPads act as perfectly stable platforms that turn the iPad into an acceptable notebook alternative. That's the case for my iPad 2 keyboard, for example, which was originally designed by Zagg (and then appropriated by Logitech). And as others have mentioned, there are growing numbers of 'folio' or 'clamshell' keyboards available, too, which turn iPads into fully fledged laptops.

For those anxious about multitasking: many two-pane apps are already available for iPads. Some of them are very basic, simply consisting of two side-by-side web browser panes (that's already quite useful, of course). Others allow you to take notes in one pane while browsing in the other. Still others support multiple functions – Tapose is a good example (and it's much more stable than it used to be!) What's more, many people forget or don't realise that you can swipe from one app to another on an iPad, using a four-finger gesture. It's a bit clumsy, but it works perfectly well.

Other apps, such as OneNote, Outline, MagicalPad or Notability, allow you to write on a whiteboard-like page, meaning you can place your text anywhere on the page. That means you can also place it in two columns, if you wish, or write your main text in one column and put notes and references in text boxes alongside it.

Finally, there are a number of writing tools that allow you to swipe or tap quickly into an accompanying browser pane: Editorial, for one. The latter also allows you to automate the whole process of copying browser references into the document you are writing, and indeed, supports complex workflows involving multiple apps (for more on this, visit Federico Viticci's website MacStories.net: he is an inspiring example of somebody who does almost all of his serious work on an iPad Mini). Another valuable app for multitasking is the recently released Workflow, which allows you to chain together multiple complex actions.

So despite the iPad's reputation for single-tasking only, there are plenty of options for alternative ways of working! And iOS 8 is already capable of multitasking, although this functionality hasn't yet been released to the public (it was recently unearthed by a researcher, who posted up a working example, but I can't find or remember the reference). Meaning that iOS 8.5 or 9.0 will probably allow users to work in multiple apps simultaneously. I'm looking forward to it!

Cheers,
Bill