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Lecture note taking app

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Spanners

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Hi, I am considering buying an Android tablet- but I can only justify buying it if I can use for uni.
What I want is an app that can be used for taking notes in lectures. I have looked around- but nothing quite hits the nail on the head in terms of functionality. I am physics student, so I need to be able to easily put handwritten notes(equations, etc) into the typed notes. The features I would like are as follows:
-A fast keyboard like Swype for the typed notes. If this also had a quick way to insert greek letters and some mathamitical operators that would be great. If you could do handwriting recognition on the fly, that would also be awesome.
-A way to insert handwritten sections into the notes. I was thinking that the handwritten section could be made in a separate screen then dragged into the document and resized with two fingers as needed.
-Export to .doc (perhaps sync to google docs would be possible)
-A good filing system, so the notes can be organised by lecture course.
-Annotation ability for PDFs and slides would be a nice feature, but not essential.

For me, this would be a killer app. I will really be willing to pay around
 
I used to think about this a lot when I was taking courses and had a Palm Treo. I could still use it for scientific seminars.

The main thing that I was focused on was an online equation editor. Here is a web site which does what we want in a desktop environment:

LaTeX Equation Editor

I played with converting this into cascading menus, but the PalmOS CSS and Javascript support was too weak. OTOH, it's a little harder to implement this idea on a touchscreen phone because you don't have the precision data entry of a stylus.

So the above are some starting points for a would-be-developer. And yes, I too would pay $30 or so for such an app, especially if it was good.
 
rcline said:
There is a flawless app designed for the iPad that would be awesome if we could get it on the Android platform.

check out Software Garden Products: Dan Bricklin's Note Taker HD App
perhaps we all should start an email campaign to have the developer create for Android now that tablet are coming out to support it.
Click to expand...


It's really nice. But I would still want to be able to type text as well as draw figures. Being able to enter equations, and have them be represented internally using a math typesetting format (e.g., MATHML or LaTeX) is also key for me.
 
I am also interested in something like this for use at work. Does anyone know if anything more recent has been added?

In addition to the features listed in the original post, I would love to see an ability to associate keywords with a note. This would help me search for notes taken at different times on related topics. Although, that could be accomplished with the aforementioned features and keeping a keywords section in your note...
 
I personally recomend freenote. It is a little finicky but it is the only one I have found where it lets you layer type over diagrams. Now l I first looked at it it seemed a little restrictive but you can work around it.

For instance you can't arange notes into custom folders for you subjects but you can just use the existing ones as long as you don't mind heading into the business folder to access your physics notes.

This is also more than compensated for by the abitity to do everything you asked by
a- the ability to use a keyboard to type text
B- you are able to draw diagrams below the text then select them with a square and resize
C- the ability to flick it into hand write mode and cause whatever crazy scrible you think passes as a letter and have it shrink it down and put on the end of the text line (this is what I use to write+-= ect)

Its not perfect but it will do until someone who know enough code and has enough time to notice the truck full of demand for this.

Oh did I mention its free.
 
RSquaredSA said:
We're currently developing this app!

Watch this space :)
Click to expand...

I'm very excited for this. I'm a law student, so I'll ditto the OP's request for Greek character support. Other ideas: add photographs as well as text, stylus input, and evernote syncing.

Many thanks.
 
@RSquaredSA says they are developing such an app. I hope you aint kidding, bcus i'm looking forward to it being released soon. I know its gonna cost some money, i dont mind. Just get it done.:D
 
I would be really interested in an app like this - I'm heading into uni this fall, and if RSquaredSA comes out with the app soon, I would probably buy a tablet just so I could buy that app.
 
Again I second everything said here! I thought about an app that sorta acts like GMAIL on Honey comb but for notes? Again I feel I would need to be able to draw stuff, for example maths and physics. A way around this could be drawing it on paper and then just taking a photo with your tablet. However I would want to then be able to draw a line and create a text box sort thing that I can move around to annotate what I took. Another idea would be to create a sort of to so list inside. If any one wants to develop on these ideas and wants more (I have so many to tell but not much time (at work atm) please email me @ jpknegtel@gmail.com ) As I would be able to maybe help on the dev side. But I am unable to take it upon myself to dev it. Time :(
 
Sounds like others have similar needs, although as I am going back to school I have a slightly expanded wish list.
Over the past year I have successfully used Livescribe and been very pleased with its ability to capture my handwritten notes while simultaneously recording the lecture in the background. I love being able to go back and listen again and fill in notes that I missed or didn't emphasize as the instructor did.
I would really love an application which can do what Livescribe can as well as allow me to take an image of the chalkboard and occasionally switch to typing if that suites my needs at the time.
Does anyone know about an application (free or paid) which can do these things?
 
Well, i am also trying to find something that can take lecture notes.... something like UPAD for IPad..... looking at the rate Android is going... i may ops for IPad..... On the same note, i hope UPAD developer will create similar for Android...
 
Im looking for the same thing: an app that would work for engineering classes i.e. taking down formulas, diagrams and notes (even charts).
I have just got the transformer, but do you think there will be such an app soon? People have got to know there would be a HUGE payday for a developer who can create the perfect note taking app.
 
Check out notes plus!! if you can make something similar to that you would clean up, i personally would pay 10 20 bucks for something like that!!
 
I'd pay for well over $100+ for a comprehensive tablet app by stylis and over $10 for a basic phone app that was accurate in converting my handwritten by stylis ideas to text. Must be by stylis finger is way to slow and clumsy.
 
RSquaredSA said:
We're currently developing this app!

Watch this space :)
Click to expand...

Oh PLEase OH PLease do! Im holding off on buying a tablet till someone comes out with this app. Seems like a no brainer to me. Come out with a tablet and someone SHOULD make a Handwritten AND typing note taking app for it. Why on earth one dosent exits yet is beyond me!
 
The difficulty is in the translation of handwriting to text. The software need to have complicated algorithm to figure out the strokes and styles from what you draw to map to the correct text.

There are products of this nature already in the market but some are commercial. A lot of R&D cost is put into it so it is marketed for sales to recoup and make a profit. Unless there is one company willing to make available their API for Open Source and I am sure there will be more apps developed for such feature.
 
Wow, I thought this thread was dead. It's been over a year since I made it, then I found it again in google.
The writepad app looks awesome, but it is still not quite there. All it's features did look rather impressive though, especially the "Smart palm detection"
RSquaredSA - any news? I'm very exited about this and I hope it appears soon
 
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