OneNote and Dragons

I’ve been trying out a couple of different digital options to organise my ideas. I started writing this post back in September and now I’m not so sure about using OneNote going forward.
However, here’s my current thoughts and feelings.

First of all, Microsoft OneNote was very easy to dip into and try out, unlike a lot of the Microsoft packages – because it’s free to use.
I understand the company’s move to their current business model, but I really miss being able to just buy a product once and use it until it’s too obsolete and I upgrade. It’s what I do with my smartphone and computer. This is why I moved toward alternatives like LibreOffice and Google Docs – they’re just there and they work. But then when people use Microsoft, proprietary formatting seems to be a thing?

Anyway…

I liked being able to use OneNote on my laptop, and I liked the fact I can add to it from my smartphone or tablet and it would sync.
Eventually. Though apparently not with all of my documents, and that lack of syncing has honestly been an issue building with it – but it’s supposed to work, so your mileage may vary.

Next, since I’m using this for writing and roleplaying purposes, it’s great that there’s people out there offering templates on their websites, that you can open and use and butcher. Though again, I ran into a few issues with formatting from time to time.

The best feature for OneNote is that I can use it on a device without having an internet signal, and it will sync up to the cloud later. Honestly, that’s great, but realistically I have signal at all times, and when I don’t I use a note-taking app on my phone and copy and paste stuff where I want it later.
I’ve already adapted to circumstances, and going back feels like hassle to me now. At least, until my circumstances change.

So, do I recommend OneNote for organising notes and stuff? I actually do – I think you should try out as many different tools as you can to find the one that works for you.
Currently, OneNote isnt for me. But that doesn’t mean it’s not for you.

I recommend checking out a few different places to form your opinion:
Icarus Games YouTube channel has some great resources explaining how to use OneNote, and produced a fantastic template too.
There’s a Pay What You Want OneNote template up on the DMsGuild. If you like it, go back and pay the dollar for it.
And I’m not the only blogger who’s written anything about it.