Hi,

I was just wondering what sort of software you guys use for your notes/homework. I will be taking both science/math and arts courses, and I am wondering if it is common to take handwritten notes for these, or take notes on a laptop (and if the laptop option, which software?)

Thanks!

Most people tend to take down written notes on their laptop probably using Microsoft Word.
Also, taking down notes on your laptop or handwriting them is completely dependent on which you prefer.

Use whichever you prefer. Most likely you'll use a combination of the two.

For me, whenever there were diagrams or equations, I wouldn't use my laptop.

This is how I did it:
Chem: Wrote directly on the skeleton notes
Bio: Typed
Math: Handwritten
Econ: Typed
Physics: Handwritten

I remember going throgh this in grade 12; I prefer to take handwritten notes and I was really anxious that I would be the only one doing so because I thought everyone else would use their laptop. Not the case, though!

I find that for math courses especially, its impossible to take notes on the laptop and it is a lot easier/makes more sense to do handwritten notes (because of numbers, symbols, etc.). for arts courses, if the note-taking is based a lot on what the prof is saying, laptops are great for keeping up with how fast they may talk

Originally Posted by RememberTwce

Use whichever you prefer. Most likely you'll use a combination of the two.

For me, whenever there were diagrams or equations, I wouldn't use my laptop.

This is how I did it:
Chem: Wrote directly on the skeleton notes
Bio: Typed
Math: Handwritten
Econ: Typed
Physics: Handwritten

I did the same thing, except instead of Econ, I had Latin, and for Chem, I just edited the skeleton pdf file to get the full notes (bad idea, because it made me very lazy in Chem :( ).

Originally Posted by justinsftw

I did the same thing, except instead of Econ, I had Latin, and for Chem, I just edited the skeleton pdf file to get the full notes (bad idea, because it made me very lazy in Chem :( ).

Slightly off topic OP, sorry
Couple questions if you don't mind answering about Latin
How are the latin classes? How much do you learn about the language by the end of the semester? How is the workload?

If you do end up typing up your notes, I recommended using Microsoft OneNote. It was designed with the student in mind and does its job very well.

Usually, instructors may post skeleton notes as a PDF or ppt or the like. Download these and put them right inside OneNote (you're essentially 'printing to onenote' here), you can ask me for details if you'd like. So basically what this does is put in every slide into OneNote as a picture, and then you can type, drawing, and record sound all in one place. Aka you don't have to print them on paper. This was actually the main reason I didn't buy a printer.

I did this for my enviro sc 1A03 course, since it had blanks I had to fill in. What's really nice about OneNote is that it tries to simulate a real notebook with sections and tabs, keeping you organized all in one place. I suggest playing with it, if you're seriously considering using it so you're not scrambling about all its features during the year. I ended up buying my laptop early in grade 12 so I did a test run with my exercise science course and it worked really well.

Like everyone has mentioned already, it may be hard to type formulas in math, chem, physics, so you might not need this for every course. Though, you can opt to buy a more expensive computer with a touchscreen and use OneNote as your notebook. I imagine this works very well if you get used to it. And I have seen someone do this in physics.

To top it off, you can easily back up your notes by using dropbox. All you do is save your 'notebook' in the dropbox folder and it will back it up every time you made a change to your notes. Oh btw, you don't have to remember to save in OneNote, it does that for you pretty much every time you make a change.

I do not suggest using microsoft word because it's not very efficient. You have to remember to save it and you end up using a folder system instead of the much better notebook system in OneNote.

Originally Posted by lizziepizzie

I remember going throgh this in grade 12; I prefer to take handwritten notes and I was really anxious that I would be the only one doing so because I thought everyone else would use their laptop. Not the case, though!

I take hand-written notes because I find I retain a lot more information if I'm actually writing it by hand. When I'm typing, at the end of the class I remember typing a lot of stuff but don't remember what I typed as well. I bring my laptop to classes where the professor talks too quickly to write by hand, though.

notepad/texteditor

math/chem = its better to do it handwritten since its time consuming to draw structures or find certain symbols on a computer... then u miss things that are said

for most courses though the notes are posted as PDF... and i use a program calles Foxit because it allows you to type directly on top of the notes.. whereas adobe reader would only let u do a note type thign

Even though I hate wasting ink/taking time to print 50 slides out, I still end up printing my notes out because I learn better by writing on them.

Cons - Taking Notes on Laptop:
-only had a 2 hour battery life (need to find a good seat with a plug socket nearby)
-tried to type everything rather than listening for the main message
-hard to circle something or point to something - faster to do it by hand
-sometimes the computer freezes, and you miss a bit of what the prof said
-annoying to carry laptop/power cord from class to class

Pros - Taking Notes on Laptops
-save ink!
-don't have to deal with lots of sheets of paper
-organized; all your notes are in one place
-can zoom in (whereas with printing out notes - tiny font for diagrams sometimes)

I think it just depends on the person. If you're with your computer 24/7, might as well bring your laptop to class. If you have a Mac/another laptop with a really long battery life, that would help too!

i honestly dont like taking notes on pc for most courses. with that said, the only necessary programs to survive for school are microsoft office (or openoffice) and adobe acrobat reader (nitrofox??). Doubt u will need to use maple 14, and if ur artsy maybe its nice to get adobe cs5

To answer software questions, what program are you in?

Pencil and paper, best method ever.