We all have ideas/thoughts that come to us throughout the day. Or maybe searching for new information (a.k.a Googling). Where do you keep all of this information? Writing it on a pad? On your phone? What about taking digital notes? Perhaps OneNote?
I’ll be honest. I’ve been asking myself this question for a few days now. See, I’ve been using OneNote so much (and quite a while) I wondered what you really need to know.
Fingers crossed, I’ve got somethings right…
Digital Notetaking
We’re all used to taking notes, whether that’s from school, work, hobbies or just for fun.
If you’re anything like me, paper sits around your home, creating piles of information that you’ll probably never look at again.
I’ll be honest, there’s so much in and around my home that paper has been known to be put ‘somewhere safe’ – to the point that we can’t find again, if I even remember that I wrote it down (somewhere).
(OK, OK – that WAS me – and yes there is still an amount of paper around the house, but wherever I can I’ve gone digital!)
Now digital – I love that it takes no additional (physical) space!
As I’ve always got a device to hand (or within reach) that will let me look at my notes, I know that I can access them whenever I want/need to.
And if you’ve got cloud storage, then your notes and thoughts really are with you everywhere.
I’ll share a small advantage that I know I have – I’m a touch typist! No, not a professional one, and not speedy. But it does mean that I can type faster than I write.
Psst – with all of today’s tech, it’s not a problem, you can hand write notes as well as type!
As a OneNote Beginners – let’s take a look at it.
Structure
One of my fav things, is that you get to create the structure that your notes live in.
With OneNote, you have a three level structure to play with.
(And I do mean play with)
- Notebook = folder
- Sections = dividers
- Pages = paper
You know how you’ve always organised your notes – just recreate it digitally!
And the great thing?
If it doesn’t work, then you can quickly and easily change it.
It’s not like you will need to take everything out of the folder, rearrange it, and put it back in!
Decide on the next structure to try – click and drag to move things around.
For every structure that you try, you learn a bit more about what doesn’t work, and that gets you a step (or two) closer to what will.
You might get lucky and hit on the perfect structure first time…
You can be as organised as you want (with a range of notebooks and sections) or as free flow as you prefer (use a single notebook with a couple of sections and lots of pages).
It’s completely up to you – and how you think!
Searchable
This is my absolutely number one thing about digital notes and OneNote – it’s fully / quickly / easily SEARCHABLE!
That thing that you wrote down, so long ago, it’s a vague memory…
Well as long as you can remember something – you can search for it!
I can’t tell you how often I’ve used this feature. It’s been a serious help and a massive time saver!
I’ll be going further into this in an upcoming post – so I don’t want to spoil things here 😁
Next Steps
Have I convinced you yet?
Interested in learning more about using OneNote? As it really is my favourite program – sign up to be notified when my OneNote course is available and perhaps get an early-bird price…
Related Posts
- OneNote content is for more than just text…
MS OneNote can store all sorts of content. Check out this post to see all the different types of content you can include in your notebooks! - OneNote: What do you need to know to start?
Discover how taking digital notes with MS OneNote can help organize your thoughts and improve productivity. - There Are Times You Need To Delete In OneNote
Deleting items from OneNote can be tricky, but with these tips you’ll be able to clear out the clutter in no time. - What if I want to add handwriting in OneNote?
While most of us may be used to typing on a keyboard, you might not know that you can also take handwritten notes in OneNote. - Which version of OneNote is best for you?
Unsure which OneNote version is right for you? Comparing the App, Windows 10 and Desktop to find the perfect fit for your needs.
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1 thought on “OneNote: What do you need to know to start?”
What you might have considered covering here is the multiple versions of OneNote that exist, each of which has different features and functionality. When I last counted about a year ago, there were six different versions. Furthermore, OneNote for Windows (previously “OneNote 2016” and also known as the “Desktop app”) was free but had premium features that were unlocked for users with a Microsoft Office 2019 or Microsoft 365 subscription.
You mention searches. Following in the footsteps of
Evernote, I believe that OneNote now has OCR capability, making scanned text capable of being searched. But that seems only to be available in one version and when you are logged in as a Microsoft subscriber.
Of course, you might be able to update us if the aforementioned has changed !
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