Ipad for notetaking?

Divatologist, ADN · Dec 20, 2013

I have the iPad 3. I have the notability app for my notes. I type out my notes for class. I bought the keyboard for my iPad. You can write on the notability app too. Not sure how easy that will be on the mini though. I recommend you get a good storage app like google drive or drop box to store things in. Also, get a good document scanning app. I scan my study guide and all my handouts and transfer them into my notability app where I can take notes on them during class if need be. I also have all eBooks as well. I refuse to lug around those big books and a 1000 sheets of paper. I just use the calendar and the reminder app that came with the pad. The iPad calendar is synced to my google calendar. So, it shows up on my phone (note 2) and my pad. Should I forget one or both, I can easily pull my calendar up on a computer. Enjoy!

pmabraham, BSN, RN · Dec 20, 2013

Good day:

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-student/any-you-using-890262.html is a thread that might be of interest.

Based on the responses, my wife and I treated myself to an early Christmas present a few days ago with an iPad Air. I've been practicing on it here and there, and it looks like it will work out well for taking notes. I've found the amPen Hybrid stylus to work out very nicely; btw, that stylus should work well on the mini too.

This past fall semester, there was a young lady in my A&P I class that had the original mini with her in class. She had a keyboard sized to the mini; and she said the combination worked out well for her. She would use the mini in class typing to take notes or looking up histology slides on the Internet.

I'm still working through what note taking application I will use. I tried Notability, and it was just ok. I tried GoodNotes and was leaning in its direction until they upgraded the product yesterday (I got it on 12-13) and wanted to be paid again for the upgrade as if it were a new product. Right now I'm testing "Note Anytime" and that appears to be nifty as you can easily import web pages and web images in addition to pictures. If I could, I would combine the best of all three -- Notability, GoodNotes, and Note Anytime.

For other apps, the calendar IOS 7 uses appears to be very functional; you also have the reminder app. I strongly recommend Evernote (it's free; though I've the premium version for additional monthly transfer). iTunes University is great. Amazon Kindle for the iPad works well. Add in Medscape, YouTube, and DropBox.

I'm still testing out lecture recording apps... I'm open to suggestions if others see this and can recommend a good app along with why it is a good app.

Thank you.

TheNoviceNurse16 · Dec 20, 2013

Thanks for the responses! So I don't have to download a specific app to be able to download any power points? Or I can automatically save them to my iPad?

pmabraham, BSN, RN · Dec 20, 2013

Good day:

Yes on downloading apps. I'm using Amazon Kindle (free app) to read PDF files. There are several apps that work with PDF files -- Good Notes, Notability, Note Anytime, PDF Expert to name some.

For just reading PDF files, I like the Amazon Kindle app. As I shared, I'm still trying to determine what note taking app to use. Of note, the ipad does come with Pages, Notes, and other free apps that might do the trick depending on the input method (soft keyboard, Bluetooth keyboard, stylus).

Thank you.

TheNoviceNurse16 · Dec 21, 2013

thanks so much! i appreciate all the replies

WoundedBird · Dec 21, 2013

I use Moxtra (free app too!) because it allows me to write directly on PPT slides if I only need to hot one or two things down or highlight an important item.

ImKosher · Dec 22, 2013

For the iPad you can just view it off the browser which will pull it up so you can scroll up and down. If you want to create and edit, there are many free options, but if you want a thorough program get Keynote by Apple. I like the notability app, but I am growing fond of the note taking system of evernote. Evernote lets you tag the notes so you can search it later. Give there tutorial a try. I wish I would have tried this software sooner. Other then that, I'd recommend getting a wireless bluetooth keyboard so you can keep up with the notes.

pmabraham, BSN, RN · Dec 26, 2013

Good day:

So far I've been testing several apps geared for college:

* GoodNotes version 4 - So far this is my favorite note taking application. So far I've used it to take reading notes in preparation of the January semester start as well as for annotating PDF books. The stylus hand writing is amazing in this application.

* Notes Anytime - Almost a contender for Good Notes in how fast the hand writing recognition works; but lacks a number of GoodNotes features such as importing from DropBox within a note.

* Notability - I like the record feature and actually tested what it might be like to record a lecture (I played an iTunes University lecture and recorded it while note taking). For me the huge draw back is that even with the palm protector, it was far too easy to mess up with the stylus while taking notes. For whatever reason I don't have that problem in Good Notes or Notes Anytime.

* Keynote - at least one of the professors next semester doesn't use PowerPoints. So as a learning tool, I'm trying to create my own PowerPoints from reading the text book. Keynote seems to do a good job with it. One of the features I like is that iCloud allows you to download the presentations to your machine, work on it on your desktop and then upload it back. So I've been doing that more than the iPad. My big gripe with Keynote is that I store a lot of images on DropBox vs. the ipad Photo Gallery, and there's no option to import from DropBox.

Of the apps above, Notes Anytime does have a free version, and you get KeyNotes with the ipad.

For a stylus, I've found the amPen to work well.

Thank you.

ambitiousBSN · Dec 27, 2013

Notability is my life saver!

pmabraham, BSN, RN · Dec 27, 2013

Hi Corrine SN:

I really wanted Notability to work (slightly cheaper than Good Notes plus the recording feature). But for reasons I'm not able to explain, using the stylus was very difficult with Notability compared to Good Notes. Every so many minutes of note taking, I would find the stylus stopped working (it's a regular stylus, nothing fancy -- under $10), to find that the palm rest didn't catch right and there were palm splashes - little dots here and there. When that would happen, the zoom box would move off, and I would have to erase the splotches, reposition the zoom box, and start taking notes again. In a fast paced lecture, that would be yucky... granted I could clean up while listening to the recording again.

Good Notes stylus hand writing works very fast (almost as Notes Anytime which appears to be on steroids for a stylus), and has a lot more features less the recording feature (I was bringing a digital recorder anyway, but it would have been nice to have one less piece of equipment plus batteries to worry about).

Thank you!

ambitiousBSN · Dec 27, 2013

Hi Corrine SN: I really wanted Notability to work (slightly cheaper than Good Notes plus the recording feature). But for reasons I'm not able to explain using the stylus was very difficult with Notability compared to Good Notes. Every so many minutes of note taking, I would find the stylus stopped working (it's a regular stylus, nothing fancy -- under $10), to find that the palm rest didn't catch right and there were palm splashes - little dots here and there. When that would happen, the zoom box would move off, and I would have to erase the splotches, reposition the zoom box, and start taking notes again. In a fast paced lecture, that would be yucky... granted I could clean up while listening to the recording again. Good Notes stylus hand writing works very fast (almost as Notes Anytime which appears to be on steroids for a stylus), and has a lot more features less the recording feature (I was bringing a digital recorder anyway, but it would have been nice to have one less piece of equipment plus batteries to worry about). Thank you![/quote']
Thanks for your suggestion of Good Notes! I actually don't use my stylus as much with Notability for the same reasons you mentioned. I dislike how it catches every bit of my palm, not to mention it doesn't look as clean to read in the end. What I do like is being able to load my PowerPoints directly into Notability which I can then type right into them as I have a keyboard folio. I also type note documents and create documents to get a head start on assignments. I'll have to check out your app as I'm always looking for new apps to utilize during lecture and beyond. :-)
Pages is also a good app as it can transfer documents into Word.