Note taking Computer Setup

[FulfilledDeer]

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Hello Everybody!

Hi Dr. Nick!

I was wondering what you current med students would advise an incoming one to do about note taking. At this point I'm pretty much just looking at something computerized. In undergrad I used a HP tablet (which I'm using to type this at the moment) and just wrote completely with a stylus, but this sucker is bulky, overheats, and is nearly broken. I originally set out to find some sort of replacement, but besides the fact there are few actual tablets and even fewer decent ones, I realized I'm quicker typing and my handwriting is nigh illegible.

Anyway, my idea is this: an iPad with one of those...keyboard/case/stand thingies (some of my students use them and they seem to work okay), with a stylus for when I need to draw a chemical or a formula with odd symbols or a structure or something. I've heard the iPad and stylus does not equal happiness, but I'm not going to be using it exclusively, only when I can't type the notes.

I guess my question is: does anybody who has been through the classes, or done anything like this have an opinion on whether or not that seems doable? I'm worried both about the content (too much stylus use would be bad), and the technology (is there something I'm missing about an iPad that would make this a bad idea?). Thanks!

 

[WeekendWarrior]

I was skeptical about the iPad at first , but it's the best decision I've made as far as note taking. Do it. And get I annotate . Also, choose your stylus wisely.

 

[Dapado33]

I think most people just take notes in PowerPoint in the notes section under each slide. If you really want to be fancy, you can download Evernote (it syncs your notes so you can access them on all your computers, your phone, iPad, etc.).

 

[ManBroDude]

This guy uses Evernote in order to make all powerpoints searchable (after converting to pdf). Also, you can categorize and search interesting articles you'll want for research or 3rd/4th year rotations.

http://efficientmd.blogspot.com/2009/03/how-medical-student-uses-evernote-as.html

 

[HatWobble]

M0 here as well... Anybody have any experience using a Lenovo X220 Tablet + Microsoft OneNote? I used this in undergrad and it was great, although since med school is more PowerPoint-heavy compared to my undergrad engineering classes it might yield different results.

 

[kautionwirez]

M0 here as well... Anybody have any experience using a Lenovo X220 Tablet + Microsoft OneNote? I used this in undergrad and it was great, although since med school is more PowerPoint-heavy compared to my undergrad engineering classes it might yield different results.

was thinking of x220t but now I want a YOGA!

edit:

screw apple for not putting an A6 processor in the new iPad

 

[FulfilledDeer]

M0 here as well... Anybody have any experience using a Lenovo X220 Tablet + Microsoft OneNote? I used this in undergrad and it was great, although since med school is more PowerPoint-heavy compared to my undergrad engineering classes it might yield different results.

Heh, same basic thing I did. My guess is that if you liked that set-up you'd be fine since you can actually "print" the slides on OneNote and then write directly on them. That's what I did for a lot of my classes like physio.

I'm going to have to look at the Evernote video when I get home - won't work for me right now.

 

[QuizzicalApe]

I've always found paper and pen to be the best way to take notes. The nature of a touch screen requires a broad-tipped stylus that just makes writing feel crude and inefficient.

And frankly, who cares about trees anyway.

 

[Dapado33]

I've always found paper and pen to be the best way to take notes. The nature of a touch screen requires a broad-tipped stylus that just makes writing feel crude and inefficient.

And frankly, who cares about trees anyway.

This is actually what I do now. Trying to take notes on a laptop is impossible for me when I know that the whole Internet is out there just begging me to read it.

 

[investing101]

I just bought a Lenovo ThinkPad tablet with the stylus and am loving it. Looks professional too. Also check this product out it's a work in progress hopefully it comes out this year! NOTESLATE

 

[GraceEuphoria]

I've always found paper and pen to be the best way to take notes. The nature of a touch screen requires a broad-tipped stylus that just makes writing feel crude and inefficient.

And frankly, who cares about trees anyway.

I just bought a Lenovo ThinkPad tablet with the stylus and am loving it. Looks professional too. Also check this product out it's a work in progress hopefully it comes out this year! NOTESLATE

M0 here as well... Anybody have any experience using a Lenovo X220 Tablet + Microsoft OneNote? I used this in undergrad and it was great, although since med school is more PowerPoint-heavy compared to my undergrad engineering classes it might yield different results.

I can put a shout out for the Lenovo Thinkpad since that is the computer we are issued at my school. I have the x201, so I can't speak for the model that came out this past year, but I really like mine. My classmates will constantly dog on them, but for the most part, they seem pretty great (I mean, come on, if you had to run for the better part of 18 hours a day, you'd poop out now and again too, right? Oh wait....that is basically med school...lol)

But in response to the quotes above....my class is split about half and half. Some write directly on their tablets in powerpoint (which can then be printed out, btw) and others send the powerpoints to OneNote by "printing" them to the program (basically just click print on the ppt and choose OneNote instead of your school printer or home printer). It's really convenient for classes like histo, anatomy, even pathology, where you might want to doodle on certain pictures instead of type out notes. For my physio and pharm lectures, I tend to type more in the notes section. Also, as far as the broad tipped stylus thing, I felt the same way, especially in certain lectures and whatnot. I find that using the ballpoint pen alleviates some of that frustration 🙂

 

[MrBeauregard]

Old school pen and paper and I've never looked back.

 

[FulfilledDeer]

Old school pen and paper and I've never looked back.

Correction: You've never looked forward.




Sorry, I had to. 😉

I'll check out the Lenovo - good battery life?

Also, NoteSlate isn't going to happen - major vaporware.

 

[investing101]

When I mention the Lenovo Tablet I am talking about the one that costs around $ 480. It's running on Android OS, affordable and looks professional. I am liberally writing this post with the stylus and not the touch keyboard!!! 😉

 

[TAWS]

Once they start making these touchscreens with 1ms response rate, I will switch to take notes on a touchpad. I can't stand the delay when you write on a touchpad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=vOvQCPLkPt4

 

[NickNaylor]

I don't remember the last time I actually wrote down a note in a lecture.

 

[JackShephard MD]

I don't remember the last time I actually wrote down a note in a lecture.

It took me a semester to realize you don't need to take notes, obviously the lectures have to be decent.

 

[Morsetlis]

3 viable choices:

-iPad/Android tablet with a ****ty stylus but amazing battery life
-Windows slate with a good digitizer but crap battery life
-Laptop + paper notes

Since I absolutely hate "writing" on glass, and I have tried it on every tablet I could borrow/get my hands on, I stuck with paper notes.

 

[FulfilledDeer]

A) Thanks for the responses everyone!

B) I feel just as lost as before, just in a different way. I guess there's no substitute for experience....if only there were no pricetag on the experience.

 

[Morsetlis]

A) Thanks for the responses everyone!

B) I feel just as lost as before, just in a different way. I guess there's no substitute for experience....if only there were no pricetag on the experience.

Find friends and borrow their stuff for a day. That's what I do...

Also, I believe the Microsoft Store has a refund policy, and so does Fry's (for the Android tablets). Not sure about Apple.

 

[Alvarez13]

Only window's slate with wacom pen: http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-XE700T1A-A03US-11-6-Inch-Slate-128/dp/B005OUQ9WO

I use this with MS OneNote and love it.

 

[dillydally]

Onenote is absolutely fantastic. It's a piece of heaven. I'd be lost without it. I can search every note I've ever written from the first day of medical school and every word from every professor's lecture in a matter of seconds. And this is not a joke.

I actually wrote a blog post about this you can read if you want.

 

[CODrummer]

I was skeptical about the iPad at first , but it's the best decision I've made as far as note taking. Do it. And get I annotate . Also, choose your stylus wisely.

Which stylus do you use?

 

[Morsetlis]

Only window's slate with wacom pen: http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-XE700T1A-A03US-11-6-Inch-Slate-128/dp/B005OUQ9WO

I use this with MS OneNote and love it.

I got that bundle for $1299 + tax - 25% for physically walking into the MS Store in the mall. There's a probably a promotion still going on if they haven't run out of stock. It's a pretty awesome tablet, but it's severely lacking in the gaming department once you realize that Windows games are NOT made for touch... and Windows 7 in general is a pain in the ass for touch.

The i5 CPU in it is the low-voltage version... so about an order of magnitude slower than the desktop i5, or i5's in full-voltage laptops.

OneNote works well, though, but like I said I hate writing on glass. The thing is good for watching lecture recordings and looking at powerpoints and surfing the net, but once I realize that, it becomes $800 extra for the Wacom technology that I don't use, and a hot, heavy tablet that has half the battery life of an iPad/Transformer.

 

[Alvarez13]

I got that bundle for $1299 + tax - 25% for physically walking into the MS Store in the mall. There's a probably a promotion still going on if they haven't run out of stock. It's a pretty awesome tablet, but it's severely lacking in the gaming department once you realize that Windows games are NOT made for touch... and Windows 7 in general is a pain in the ass for touch.

The i5 CPU in it is the low-voltage version... so about an order of magnitude slower than the desktop i5, or i5's in full-voltage laptops.

OneNote works well, though, but like I said I hate writing on glass. The thing is good for watching lecture recordings and looking at powerpoints and surfing the net, but once I realize that, it becomes $800 extra for the Wacom technology that I don't use, and a hot, heavy tablet that has half the battery life of an iPad/Transformer.

Yah, ended up at $950 for cpu, dock, and case.

I don't have time to game, so this isn't a factor for me. The i5 runs OneNote flawlessly and I can have all my stock stuff, internet, email going on at the same time while watching a lecture video.

The felt nibs are great for the glass and upgrading to the Axitron pen was a good purchase. Wacom is worth it coming from a dell with n-trig. I do a lot of writing on ppts during lecture and annotate board stuff. Also nice to highlight/write on research papers.

I have my brightness down to like 15% most of the time and it looks great, so rarely does it get hot and I get about 5-6 hrs of battery which is plenty for me.

Not sure how practical it will be for wards next year (may not be able to charge, may struggle with keyboard addition, germs, dropping/losing it in all the chaos, etc.).

Still, it's the smallest slate I can find that can offer wacom and OneNote. Keep your eyes on android coming out with MSOffice apps and better digitizers.