Evernote Buys Notebook App Penultimate

SOLID

I use both. Better integration wins the internets.

Potentially dream come true.

I sincerely tried to use Penultimate as my notebook for school on multiple occasions with multiple styluses. It just doesn't do the trick for me -- I'm doing lots of math equations and formulas. I want it to work and hope that a future version of the iPad will better support handwriting. Evernote is so-so. I gave up on it because the interface and syncing were kind of a pain. Honestly with Evernote you might as well just create an email address and send yourself anything you want to save because it's basically the same thing. I've ended up going with Workflowy for online organization and stuck to pen and paper for real notes. iPad is still fantastic for reading but the handwriting recognition just isn't there.

Yeah, I'm pretty juiced over this one. Evernote I love, and if this makes writing to notes even better, well sign me up!

Yet another Yay! Quite the OneNote enthusiast at work but the lack of an Office:mac version and the 'Ok but not great' iOS version lead me to check out Evernote a few months back. Great OSX version and the iOS version is was OneNote for iOS should have been. To late, I'm in the Evernote enclosure now.

I've not really looked to much at Penultimate before, but if natural handwriting with a stylus can marry up with Evernote's power and cross device syncing (and maybe handwriting recognition a la Evernote's text within images scanning?) sounds pretty compelling.

Looking forward on the updated apps mentioned in the video.

Now thats what Good news and awesome integration sound like

I want to like Evernote, but I just think it needs improved usability. For me, it just takes too long and too many "clicks" to edit an existing note. I find I barely use it.

although 'penultimate' is the perfect name for this app it does mean: 'all but the best'

I find I get very little out of these 'productivity tools'.

Penultimate is my go-to note taking app... Is has its annoyances but is good enough to replace my pen and paper.

I hope this is a good thing for it.

After many years of trying various augmented typing apps/programs (been trying since before there was an iPad to replace my notepad), I've come to the conclusion that I might as well just forget typing -- I just do too much diagramming, arrows, indicating meaning by drawing more boldly or by positioning, so use a typing app is just not going to cut it.

Penultimate had proven just good enough that I now prefer it to a notepad (well, actually, it's not as good as a notepad for taking notes, but it's good enough, has colors, and is easier to carry around in the long run.)

I would love:
* handwriting recognition -- just for searching, please.
* stop giving up so much of the screen to boarders and UI chrome. The iPad has plenty of bezel -- you do not need to add to that. I could be using all that space to write in.
* make wrist detection work -- as it is, I've learned to take notes with my wrist hovering above the iPad.

yay

nuckinfutz said:

SOLID

I use both. Better integration wins the internets.

Click to expand...

True dat!
The only thing is I don't use either one of these at the moment.

Wow

I love Penultimate more than I do Evernote. This is either going to be VERY good for Evernote, or VERY bad for Penultimate. Depending on whether EN starts diddling with the Penultimate writing engine. Hopefully I can now look forward to the awesome writing smoothness in my EN stuff. That would be good. So don't For Under Cool Kitchen it up!

charlieegan3 said:

although 'penultimate' is the perfect name for this app it does mean: 'all but the best'

Click to expand...

No it doesn't. It means next-to-last. (where last means final, not worst)

Good news! But ....

Like someone else said, even a really well done app like Penultimate seems to fall short in real world usability. I mean, despite the glowing reviews and initially being impressed with the program when trying it out -- the lack of accuracy of iPad compatible styluses makes it second rate.

charlieegan3 said:

although 'penultimate' is the perfect name for this app it does mean: 'all but the best'

I find I get very little out of these 'productivity tools'.

Click to expand...

I tried PenUltimate before I sent my first generation iPad back to Apple. While in theory this could have been a useful application, it had one major problem: The iPad does not have a pen. So basically this app was just another toy application - and that was not the software's fault, but Apple's.

There's a reason why the Galaxy Note comes with a pen. So that you can actually take notes and not just smudge around with your fingers.

Wow, that's good to see. Ben Zotto and I trained for the SF Marathon together in 2010. Good guy.

I used penultimate for some time & appreciated the organizational concept.

...before discovering Inkpad. Best drawing app in the store hands down.

Until Apple includes a wacom digitizer layer, I can't imagine a drawing app improving.

Winni said:

...The iPad does not have a pen...

Click to expand...

No. The iPad does not come with a pen.
That's not the same thing.

Personally, I bought two three-packs of styluses off Amazon for < $1/pen. Somewhat surprisingly, they work great. I use the pens for writing and tend to use my finger or pen for diagramming and drawing, depending on exactly what I'm doing.

I like Penultimate. I think it is ironic that a handwriting notetaking app is in the top 4 for downloads for a device not designed for use with a stylus.

Tradition note taking style still the best.

Hmm,..it's pretty interesting to hear for the take over. But, from my experience traditional note taking still the best. In basic, our hand is loaded with millions of sensors which could detect the presence of some objects when get in touch. These sensors will generate what we call "feel" as you may notice writing on paper with pen or pencil is more pleasure that on digital device using one finger. The worst case, the devices is totally useless when you run out of battery but traditional "Moleskine" never.

That's amazing! Wonder how it will change the working of the apps and their sync, but its definitely for the better.