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First Look: SketchNotes for iPad

by Erica Sadun Mar 28th 2010 at 5:30PM



When I first heard the idea for SketchNotes, I wasn't really that intrigued -- until I watched this video. Combining a text editor and a drawing tool, SketchNotes brings a nicely conceived idea to the table. On a platform that supports both text entry (via a physical or onscreen keyboard) and touch-based drawing, unifying these two concepts comes more naturally than I would have thought.

Developed by Amanda Rosler of ZombieCatSoftware, SketchNotes looks like it will offer a simple but pleasant utility that will come in handy both when taking notes on the go and while sitting down at a desk or (more likely) table at Starbucks. It's yet another application that I look forward to trying out on a real device.

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When I first heard the idea for SketchNotes, I wasn't really that intrigued -- until I watched this video. Combining a text editor and a...
 

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Seth Burnett

Dang! I already had some screens mocked up for an app with a similar set of features and a better looking interface. Just needed a programmer for me to provide the graphics for...

March 30 2010 at 12:05 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Adam Gibson

Notice how slow the drawing is tracked? When making a circle even at medium speeds they end up looking like stop signs. I hope this is an implementation thing and not a performance limitation otherwise drawing programs are not going to work very well.

March 29 2010 at 5:38 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Yoshi1080

I would like to have this feature built into Pages or a similar word processor/layout program. I believe Microsoft Word has a similar feature for Tablet PCs. This Sketchnotes looks rather like a supercharged notes app.

March 29 2010 at 10:34 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Lancelot

How can you look forward to being forced to buy another $4 or $5 app.? Between this & an iPhone the total expense of apps will get ridiculous. Plus, how many apps, games, music & ebooks can you expect it to hold when you've only got 14.5 gigs of storage.? You'll spend more time than is reasonable syncing with your desktop just to add or remove something because you ran out of memory.

March 29 2010 at 2:25 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
2 replies to Lancelot's comment
Montana Leet

Umm... You are aware that there exists 32 & 64 GB models?

March 29 2010 at 5:26 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
JClark

I have a 16GB iPhone. Never really had any problem with space, and I've got a ton of apps. Music is occasionally a problem, but it's totally manageable. Also, no one is forced to buy anything. You can get by just fine without ever paying for an app. It's the increase in the capabilities of the device you're paying for, and only if you want to.

But then, there's no point in talking to the kind of irrational hater who makes up reasons for disliking something he's obviously never used at any length, is there?

April 29 2010 at 10:40 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Zane

I agree, http://schoolpadnotes.com SchoolPad is a much better application, and it will be free. It has all the same drawing and writing features, as well as some other built-in stuff (Wikipedia, Symbols, etc.). It can also insert photos from websites and share your notes using Facebook, or even backup notes.

March 28 2010 at 10:51 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
anlima

well, i think there many have been looking forward to something like this for the entire operating system. Im holding out for ipad version too, and im glad to share some ipad free stuffz and interesting resources, go to: http://www.ifunia.com/ipad-column/index.html

March 28 2010 at 10:19 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
rwzehr

"Finally I get to do what I once did on a Newton over 15 years ago."

Um, well, No, not actually - there's no handwriting recognition...

March 28 2010 at 8:19 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to rwzehr's comment
bP

Newton had not only handwriting recognition, but also recognition of geometric shapes, e.g., circles, lines, boxes, etc.

March 29 2010 at 8:19 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
azxplorer

I'm holding out for OmniOutliner iPad version.

March 28 2010 at 7:58 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
James

Finally I get to do what I once did on a Newton over 15 years ago.

March 28 2010 at 7:40 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to James's comment
ilkyone

exactly what I was thinking -- phew, about time we get the doodle feature back

March 29 2010 at 10:46 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
drunknbass

another example of something that could be totally done with a web app and html5

March 28 2010 at 7:28 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
4 replies to drunknbass's comment
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