My issues with handwriting notes
I have a problem with note-taking. For as long as I can remember, by the time I reached the end of the semester, there are papers all over my desk; some useless, some useful. I also have a bad habit of using scrap paper for problem-solving, whether it be for MATH 200 or CPSC 320, but sometimes I do actually write down something insightful. But since it’s scrap, I end up either losing that piece of paper or throwing it away 😅.
For my note-heavy classes, like biochemistry or microbiology, I went through notebooks so fast that I would have to carry 3 notebooks per class in my backpack. And sometimes I’d need to remind myself of this concept from 4 months ago, which meant spending a few minutes flipping through several notebooks, in hopes of finding that half-page of notes in 300 pages.
And lastly, when I take notes in class there are a few other smaller and random issues:
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I sometimes bring quest ionable pens to write with.
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And then I make mistakes. I could use a pencil, but I don’t like how it rubs off. This means I use white-out to correct myself, or even worse, I rip off a piece of paper, and tape it over my mistake. Which then makes my notes ugly, which makes me not want to read them.
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I don’t want to ruin my notes by writing down in class problems to solve. In my computer science and math classes, it’s common that we solve some problems in class. But since I don’t know how much space I need to think and write out my solution, it results in some ugly notes, because if I leave myself not enough space, then I’m writing all over the margins of my notes. If I leave too much, it’s just unused space.
Ok, why did I decide to write these notes in orange? I don’t think I ever looked at these notes after I wrote them because they are kinda ugly.
White out and notes in margins because no room.
Again, why the orange??? Was this the only pen I had?
Taping paper over my mistakes.
Why not type up notes?
I’ve only typed out notes for two classes: History IBHL and MICB 201. But when I type up notes, I don’t feel like I retain anything. When I type notes, its more so that I can quickly search through them. This is useful for brute memorization courses in which I would search up a piece of information (like when the Sino-Soviet split occurred or the difference between gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria). For other courses like math, computer science, or chemistry, or less memory-intensive courses, typed up notes weren’t that useful because I liked to draw out things and drawing out things with a keyboard or mouse wasn’t appealing to me.
My Setup:
I use GoodNotes[1] as my main (and only) note-taking app.
What I’ve noticed since using the iPad
I read my notes more often, and it’s easier for me to find a concept I need to study. I also have stopped losing my notes.
Who is GoodNotes (and handwritten digital notes) for?
I think the iPad is great for people who handwrite their notes or like writing down their ideas. It is a must for me to write down my ideas, especially for chemistry and low-level computing, because I cannot just think there and think of a chemical reaction, I need to try different pathways.