Mac Users: What Do You Use to Take Notes and Write Outlines? Forum

Judge Philip Banks · Post by **Judge Philip Banks** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 7:55 pm

I've already searched through the old threads regarding this topic, but most of them are out-dated and simply compare MS OneNote to a few Mac-equivalent programs. I am curious to hear from current Mac users (which comprise a large, and usually majority, percentage of law students in my experience) what software/program(s) they use to take class notes, write/update outlines, write case briefs, etc.

Post by **Helmholtz** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 7:57 pm

One Note

random5483 · Post by **random5483** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 7:59 pm

I use Boot Camp and OneNote. Works well for me since I am more used to Windows (desktop/previous computers are all windows based). Only reason I bought a mac laptop back in 2007 was the multitouch keypad (that alone is worth the investment imo). Granted in 2007 I was working and not a broke law student, so now I might be less willing to spend the extra money on a mac just to run windows on it.

Ok, maybe I don't count? :p

keg411 · Post by **keg411** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 7:59 pm

I use Word in Notebook format. Works fine.

JazzOne · Post by **JazzOne** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 8:01 pm

I use Pages or Word. There is no secret to taking notes and outlining. It's pretty easy if you stay on top of it. Actually, I take notes by hand, and then I compile them into my outlines every weekend.

TTH · Post by **TTH** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 8:01 pm

I use Circus Ponies and like it a lot. I didn't trust MS Word with my notes/outlines, but I've never used it for Mac or in Notebook mode.

JazzOne · Post by **JazzOne** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 8:03 pm

TTH wrote:I use Circus Ponies and like it a lot. I didn't trust MS Word with my notes/outlines, but I've never used it for Mac or in Notebook mode.

Actually, I almost lost a paper I was working on because of MS Word. That's why I switched to Pages. The Word file became corrupted somehow so that Word could not open it. To my surprise, Pages opened the corrupted file just fine. Plus, Pages has the ability to save as a Word document, so you can still share files with Word users.

Judge Philip Banks · Post by **Judge Philip Banks** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 8:08 pm

Hmm, sounds like there are some "horror stories" using Word... I would venture to say that those are atypical though, right?

To those that use bootcamp or something similar so that they are able to use OneNote: have you noticed your laptop slow down?

To those that are using Circus Ponies: I have heard both good and bad things about this program. What are the reasons you went to this program? Any advantages over simply using MS Word to take notes, outlines, etc.?

Edit: I've never heard of Pages. Any advantages to Pages over MS Word or Circus Ponies? Why'd you choose Pages?

thickfreakness · Post by **thickfreakness** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 8:10 pm

keg411 wrote:I use Word in Notebook format. Works fine.

+1

BlakcMajikc · Post by **BlakcMajikc** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 8:12 pm

0L here, but Word has been awful for me. I have been typing up documents for a nonprofit I have been working for, and on the three Macs we have in the office, Word crashes almost bi-weekly. Sometimes it won't recover the files we were working on. I save the file after every paragraph. I wouldn't trust it with my outlines.

(Comes from a Mac-lifer who got her first mac when she was nine).

TTH · Post by **TTH** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 8:13 pm

JazzOne wrote:
TTH wrote:I use Circus Ponies and like it a lot. I didn't trust MS Word with my notes/outlines, but I've never used it for Mac or in Notebook mode.
Actually, I almost lost a paper I was working on because of MS Word. That's why I switched to Pages. The Word file became corrupted somehow so that Word could not open it. To my surprise, Pages opened the corrupted file just fine. Plus, Pages has the ability to save as a Word document, so you can still share files with Word users.

Yeah, Circus Ponies will export as a .doc, docx, or rtf too. You can't really add white space in CP, so I usually export my outline to Word and do some final formatting there.

random5483 · Post by **random5483** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 8:18 pm

Judge Philip Banks wrote:Hmm, sounds like there are some "horror stories" using Word... I would venture to say that those are atypical though, right?

To those that use bootcamp or something similar so that they are able to use OneNote: have you noticed your laptop slow down?

To those that are using Circus Ponies: I have heard both good and bad things about this program. What are the reasons you went to this program? Any advantages over simply using MS Word to take notes, outlines, etc.?

Edit: I've never heard of Pages. Any advantages to Pages over MS Word or Circus Ponies? Why'd you choose Pages?

My 2007 Macbook pro runs Windows without any noticeable slow down. The boot up process is a tad slower than my desktop, but that is comparing apples to oranges since my desktop is considerably more powerful.

OneNote is a lifesaver for me. It allows me to keep my notes organized. In fact, I take notes in outline form. It took me almost no time to convert my notes to outlines for all my classes. Part of it might be my note-taking style; however, OneNote definitely helped (I spent maybe 2 hours total on making my notes into outlines.....ie. 2 hours for ALL outlines for fall semester).

Some people go overboard with OneNote and create fancy set ups. I keep my OneNote simple. It lets me keep my notes organized and allows me to consolidate everything (syllabus, handouts that I scan, etc) in one central location. I like the program, but it may not be universally right for everyone.

JazzOne · Post by **JazzOne** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 8:33 pm

Judge Philip Banks wrote:Hmm, sounds like there are some "horror stories" using Word... I would venture to say that those are atypical though, right?

To those that use bootcamp or something similar so that they are able to use OneNote: have you noticed your laptop slow down?

To those that are using Circus Ponies: I have heard both good and bad things about this program. What are the reasons you went to this program? Any advantages over simply using MS Word to take notes, outlines, etc.?

Edit: I've never heard of Pages. Any advantages to Pages over MS Word or Circus Ponies? Why'd you choose Pages?

Pages is Apple's word processing software. I used it because it was given to me for free, and I needed something quick to fix the mess made by Word.

Encyclopedia Brown · Post by **Encyclopedia Brown** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 12:33 am

Notes: Pen + Notebook Paper
Outlines: Word for Mac (Notebook View)

Holly Golightly · Post by **Holly Golightly** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 12:38 am

Word. Don't see why I would need anything else.

2807 · Post by **2807** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 12:41 am

I am an 0L, but a mac user too. I get confused on Word and find Pages to be so much more simple and consistent.

I used Pages for years and love the customization you can do for outline templates. I have "F" keys set for certain types of bullets, colors, hi-lite, etc... it is very easy and awesome. Many people do not know how much you can do! And, as an Apple, you can get lots of free help at the store and stuff...

Here is a great link for a law school note taking template. I intend to try this. I am also hoping that the new iWork will have a "notebook" feature. iWork rumors are all around us... should be out prior to the start of Fall 2011 for sure....

Check this out for now:

http://maclawstudents.com/blog/techniqu ... ork-pages/

The Stig · Post by **The Stig** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 12:54 am

helpful thread!

I typically use MS Word for notes (as a 0L) simply for the notebook view and Pages for everything else. That said, I just got the new '11 Office for Mac, and while it boots up way faster (within 5 seconds instead of 25), the find function seems to have degraded significantly from the last version.

I really want to upgrade to OneNote, but Parallels/VM Ware are somewhat laggy for me (on a MBP from '08). Looking at this thread: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 2&t=127496 made me drool over how organized it was!

BlakcMajikc · Post by **BlakcMajikc** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 1:33 am

The Stig wrote:helpful thread!
Looking at this thread: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 2&t=127496 made me drool over how organized it was!

Agreed. I drooled. I checked out CP, and it has similar functionality. Hopefully something will come out in the early summer that can really wow us mac-user/0Ls.

Judge Philip Banks · Post by **Judge Philip Banks** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 1:37 am

Wow. Thanks for all of your replies!

I don't see the use in using Notebook mode in MS Word for Mac in comparison to just using "normal mode" MS Word for Mac. Can anyone elaborate on the use/advantages of Notebook mode?

I never had a laptop in undergrad, so I always took notes by hand. Law school this upcoming fall will be my first experience taking notes on the computer during lecture... If it helps any, I have a 2009 MBPro.

The Stig wrote:helpful thread!

I typically use MS Word for notes (as a 0L) simply for the notebook view and Pages for everything else. That said, I just got the new '11 Office for Mac, and while it boots up way faster (within 5 seconds instead of 25), the find function seems to have degraded significantly from the last version.

I really want to upgrade to OneNote, but Parallels/VM Ware are somewhat laggy for me (on a MBP from '08). Looking at this thread: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 2&t=127496 made me drool over how organized it was!

Thanks for this link. This does make me want OneNote, too. But I am hesitant to put bootcamp or something similar on my laptop to run Windows in parallel with Snow Leopard. As far as I know, there is no other way...

Judge Philip Banks · Post by **Judge Philip Banks** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 1:42 am

Also, maybe I am just dumb... But does Pages come with Macs? I can't seem to find it on my computer... :/

BlakcMajikc · Post by **BlakcMajikc** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 1:49 am

Comes with iWork
30 day demo comes on a mac, so I don't know why someone mentioned it like it was free.
It is definitely more of a dumbed-down graphic design software more than it is a note-taking/streamlined word processing software.
http://www.apple.com/iwork/download-trial/

luckyme · Post by **luckyme** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 1:51 am

The Stig wrote:helpful thread!

I typically use MS Word for notes (as a 0L) simply for the notebook view and Pages for everything else. That said, I just got the new '11 Office for Mac, and while it boots up way faster (within 5 seconds instead of 25), the find function seems to have degraded significantly from the last version.

I really want to upgrade to OneNote, but Parallels/VM Ware are somewhat laggy for me (on a MBP from '08). Looking at this thread: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 2&t=127496 made me drool over how organized it was!

An '08 MBP can't handle it? Specs?

2807 · Post by **2807** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 1:57 am

BlakcMajikc wrote:Comes with iWork
30 day demo comes on a mac, so I don't know why someone mentioned it like it was free.
It is definitely more of a dumbed-down graphic design software more than it is a note-taking/streamlined word processing software.
http://www.apple.com/iwork/download-trial/

Wrong.

Dumbed down? Graphic design? Huh?

Pages= Word
Numbers = Excel
Keynote = Power Point.

What do you mean by "graphic design"? I disagree. And Keynote DOMINATES powerpoint all day long.

And, iWork demo only on new Mac = yes.

iWork does cost extra. It is on the new App Store for Mac. "Pages" is $19.99 (great deal!)

The Stig · Post by **The Stig** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 2:02 am

luckyme wrote:
The Stig wrote:helpful thread!

I typically use MS Word for notes (as a 0L) simply for the notebook view and Pages for everything else. That said, I just got the new '11 Office for Mac, and while it boots up way faster (within 5 seconds instead of 25), the find function seems to have degraded significantly from the last version.

I really want to upgrade to OneNote, but Parallels/VM Ware are somewhat laggy for me (on a MBP from '08). Looking at this thread: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 2&t=127496 made me drool over how organized it was!
An '08 MBP can't handle it? Specs?

At the time, I had 2GB of RAM (2.4ghz, pre-unibody) and was at one of my previous jobs, with probably too many applications running at the same time. I can't remember what exact program I was using on the windows side, but I think it might have been more resource intensive? I'm sure that if I were just using OneNote it would be fine... (esp. now with 4gb)...

Also, Keynote makes powerpoints look like 5th grade presentations

luckyme · Post by **luckyme** » Fri Jan 28, 2011 2:06 am

The Stig wrote: At the time, I had 2GB of RAM (2.4ghz, pre-unibody) and was at one of my previous jobs, with probably too many applications running at the same time. I can't remember what exact program I was using on the windows side, but I think it might have been more resource intensive? I'm sure that if I were just using OneNote it would be fine... (esp. now with 4gb)...

Also, Keynote makes powerpoints look like 5th grade presentations

leaning towards mac for LS, but i definitely want to use onenote

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