Evernote: A Viable Writer's Notebook

There are many software applications available that cater to writers, the most common tool being the fully featured word processor. Although using such a tool is great for cohesively putting a project together and much more, it isn't necessarily a piece of software that is the most convenient for gathering our thoughts or taking notes, especially on the fly, or when we are out and about. By adding a product such as Evernote to a writing workflow, a project can become much easier to piece together.

Evernote is an online service that went into beta back in 2008, allowing its initial user base to put it to the test. Since then, the note taking software has matured quite a bit, by expanding its feature set and its user base. At its most basic, the note taking service is available in both free and paid versions on multiple platforms, and allows for synchronization between them.

Evernote free is available to all users and allows for 40 MB per month data to be uploaded; an ample amount if your work is strictly based on note taking. Some of the key benefits of becoming a premium member include 500 MB of uploads per month, the allowance of any file type to be attached to your notes, and collaboration. Premium membership can be purchased on a month-to-month basic or for the entire year.

The note taking process begins with creating a notebook, and in Evernote you can have many notebooks. Within a notebook you then create notes, which can be recorded by a number of different ways depending on the device you are taking notes on. A text note allows for a text entry with basic formatting, an ink note allows touch devices such as touch screen notebooks, PDAs, and smart phones to take advantage of the styles for direct handwritten input. Audio notes, a feature of the hand held devices, will record your thoughts via a microphone. Additional features include a separate Web Clipper component that saves web content to a notebook, or vendor provided access through APIs such as Lexmark's Scan to Evernote SmartSolution. Notes can even be sent directly to an Evernote account through Twitter, or an email address.

Although it is not designed or specifically intended to be a writers best friend, Evernote, a simple note taking and collecting application with powerful features, is a strong contender as an asset in any writer's toolbox. Evernote is available to access via a number of web browsers, and for the Windows based, and Mac OS X desktop operating systems. A mobile version of the Evernote application is available for Android, Blackberry, iPhone & iTouch, Palm Pre & Pixi, and Windows Mobile.

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