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Microsoft OneNote - some experiential Tips & Tricks
Angry Thinker:
Have a look at this post: OneNote Review, which talks about the use of OneNote as a Zettelkasten.
Update 2015-12-17: sorry I just noticed that above this there is Dr Andus' reference to the OneNote article. My apologies.
IainB:
Here is one implementation of the Zettelkasten method using OneNote:
OneNote Review • Zettelkasten Method
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-dr_andus (December 16, 2015, 11:41 AM)
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Yes, there's probably very little new under the sun. There may even be thousands of us who have spent years experimenting with OneNote as a Zettelkasten without broadcasting the fact.
The one that you link to is very interesting, though it is a "purist" approach - i.e., does not conform to my singularly expanded working definition of "information" (data types). That is why I deliberately called the OneNote approach that I tooK Microsoft OneNote - how to make it your 21st century Zettelkasten PIM.
However, what makes me scratch my head a bit is the use of a formal numbering/indexing system - which would seem to be redundant in the experiment I undertook with its more recently-discovered "mandatory requirements".
Angry Thinker:
Here is one implementation of the Zettelkasten method using OneNote:
OneNote Review • Zettelkasten Method
__________________________
-dr_andus (December 16, 2015, 11:41 AM)
--- End quote ---
Yes, there's probably very little new under the sun. There may even be thousands of us who have spent years experimenting with OneNote as a Zettelkasten without broadcasting the fact.
The one that you link to is very interesting, though it is a "purist" approach - i.e., does not conform to my singularly expanded working definition of "information" (data types). That is why I deliberately called the OneNote approach that I tooK Microsoft OneNote - how to make it your 21st century Zettelkasten PIM.
However, what makes me scratch my head a bit is the use of a formal numbering/indexing system - which would seem to be redundant in the experiment I undertook with its more recently-discovered "mandatory requirements".
-IainB (December 17, 2015, 07:02 AM)
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Can you explain what you mean by my singularly expanded working definition of "information"? Do you mean that you use OneNote for more than just as a Zettelkasten? The author of the post seems to have focused his article to the use as a Zettelkasten, but does not rule out other uses too, in fact 1 of the screenshots shows other types of notebooks.
Also, how/why is a numbering system redundant in a Zettelkasten use?
It seems to me that the author's Zettelkasten notebook is for specific types notes, whereas you seem to collectively call any and all your notes stored in OneNote a Zettelkasten. Am I right?
dr_andus:
It seems to me that the author's Zettelkasten notebook is for specific types notes, whereas you seem to collectively call any and all your notes stored in OneNote a Zettelkasten. Am I right?
-Angry Thinker (December 17, 2015, 07:39 AM)
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I think there is a bit of a terminological confusion here. IainB seems to use "Zettelkasten" to denote a database where you can store any type of digital data in variety of formats and states of processing (including raw captured data), while DutchPete's post is showing the use of OneNote for one possible implementation of Luhmann's Zettelkasten method specifically.
One big difference is that the latter is not really for the capture of unprocessed raw data (such as the videos, spreadsheets etc. that IainB includes) but for the capture, storage, recall and analysis of processed information, i.e. one's own notes and thoughts about some underlying data (which itself does not need to be included), such as one's reading notes or thoughts triggered by a movie or a piece of music (but not the underlying book, movie, or music).
IainB:
Can you explain what you mean by my singularly expanded working definition of "information"? Do you mean that you use OneNote for more than just as a Zettelkasten? The author of the post seems to have focused his article to the use as a Zettelkasten, but does not rule out other uses too, in fact 1 of the screenshots shows other types of notebooks.
Also, how/why is a numbering system redundant in a Zettelkasten use?
It seems to me that the author's Zettelkasten notebook is for specific types notes, whereas you seem to collectively call any and all your notes stored in OneNote a Zettelkasten. Am I right?
-Angry Thinker (December 17, 2015, 07:39 AM)
--- End quote ---
1. Definition of information data types: My working definition includes all of those data types I listed in the post about "Zettelkasten" (for which, I gather, the English is "card index"). The card index is the physical filing system. Yes, you are right in that I "...collectively call any and all your notes stored in OneNote..." information and it is all able to be treated as such, to a greater or lesser extent. I don't recall whether the author of that interesting post necessarily defines all the information data types he is using, but it seemed to me - and I could be wrong, of course - that there was a focus on text, and I was unsure whether that included (say) image OCRed text, voice text searching, etc.
2. Uses for OneNote: Certainly, as you suggest, my use of OneNote is for more than just as a Zettelkasten (card index) and always has been. I mean, of what use would a card index be to anyone in this day and age? That's why I referred to it as a 21st century Zettelkasten PIM. I do not think of it as being a "Zettelkasten" now, but as an integrated PIM and KM (Knowledge Management) system - though the KM component still needs development as it is arguably a bit rudimentary at present, and I would like to employ a taxonomy more aligned with KM use (see below).
3. Numbering system: The article referred to includes the use of a numbering system and I presume that it has use and applicability for the author's purposes. He refers to being able to continue it to infinity. The OneNote system employs the use of hyperlinks (a sort of computerised card index referencing/indexing system), so, for me, I see no need for anything other than the alphameric wiki-like hyperlinking - using meaningful (to a human) alphameric terms rather than an artificial numbering scheme - which linking can even be used to link to a Note Page Title or a sub-section within a Note, anywhere in the database.
4. Taxonomy: OneNote does not force an artificial framework of reference on the user, and is thus flexible in that regard. As things currently stand, there is no specific taxonomy for my PIM/KM, but I am working towards the idea of aligning it with the Topic Maps standard (ISO-13250), which defines a method to organise information in a way that enhances navigation and learning. It may be that this becomes a mandatory requirement for my PIM/KM. but yet is infeasible (i.e., cannot be implemented) with OneNote, in which case my newly-discovered requirements might have outgrown the extent of OneNote's usefulness.
So I shall probably remain a CRIMPer. :o
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