Do you still write notes with pen and paper?

a notebook and pencil in my shirt pocket are faster to open than a phone app
handwriting is faster than thumb typing
I can sketch an electrical diagram on paper way faster than anyone can with a stylus on some janky phone screen.
3.1) Even if there was a stylus/screen combination with the same haptics, fidelity, and input recognition speed as pencil on paper, it wouldn't be 0.78€
I can toss the notebook and diagrams to anyone working on a project with me with zero worry that they'll drop it, forget it, or look around in the rest of it
I can tear out a page and hand it to anyone instantly, instead of finding out what messaging app we have in common, copying (or screenshotting) the note and pasting it in an app
I can insert a note into a physical book, stick it to the inside of a toolbox lid, a wall next to an electrical junction, inside a breaker box, or any other surface, and always have location-aware reminders waiting for me when I need them.
With minimal environmental control, my notes are effectively immortal. I have notebooks of measurements and diagrams of most rooms, wall cavities, pipe runs, electrical runs, cable pulls, and dimensions of various equipment that have outlasted hard drives, backup tapes, and a few cloud storage companies.
- This guy notebooks.
- This is the correct answer. I don't take many notes personally myself, but your comment made me think I really should carry around a small notebook in my pocket.
- And your notes don't suddenly increase the price of your storage.
  
  Digital text notes take up practically no storage space. You'll spend more on new notebooks to write in over a year than digital storage space for the exact same content
  
  Uh, except for buying more notebooks and writing utensils, which, if your text files are large enough to suddenly increase the price of storage (or even need to pay for text storage), you're going to need a whole lot of.
  
  No, it's more of a subtle, inflationary pressure.
  For me, it's the act of writing, the memory it helps solidify, and... being an FP nerd.
  Can I take notes on a phone? Sure, but I wouldn't use a personal device for work notes, ever. Between my privacy, customer privacy laws, and separation of concerns. I've no compunctions at all, though, about sharing an A5 notebook between journal, work notes, personal notes, and reminders.
- Also, notes taken with pen and paper never run out of battery, or need to be charged. They're powered by basically any light source.
  
  On the flip side, they don't come up in a mass search. I have so many notes. If it doesn't come up in a search it mine as well not exist, I'll never find it.
- This. Plus as a subjective thing: I personally remember stuff more easily when I write them down compared to typing. Also my written notes mix bullet points, regular writing, arrows and connections, without having to “switch mode” or install plugins.
  I still use note-taking apps, sometimes as primary, sometimes as secondary tool.
- I feel like you have to be exceptionally fast at handwriting or exceptionally slow at thumb typing for handwriting to be faster.

I remember it better when I write it out. Typing doesn't do the same.
- The reason is often that writing forces you to already process and abstract the information. Especially if you are taking notes real-time like in a lecture. You will naturally want to shorten the info to write less so you have to process and understand what is the important info, you have to take the info in context of previous knowledge etc. Typing is often much more mechanical, you just need to process the info as it is coming in and transform it into mechanical keypress.
  I also remember something about handwriting processing being a nuanced and very separate process from typing, although I am not certain on this. There was also some stuff about reading your handwritten notes triggering memories better than typed notes.
  
  Til, thanks!
  For anything I'll need to share or search, digital.
  But for everything else, I remember it better if I commit handwriting to it, and I use fountain pens, it's a nicer experience.
  Your explanation make sense
- For me it's other way around. If I have to write I only focus on writing itself, and not the content. This also often causes me to accidentally repeat words, mix up letters, erase it, repeatedly end up writing the wrong letter because I need to speed up, then I have to leave out a section because I already forgot what I wanted to write.
  And in the end I still can't decipher quarter of my handwriting.

- There’s research that backs you up.
  People tend to retain more of their written notes than typed. The act of writing forces you to assimilate and summarize new information on the fly. Typing allows you to take more complete notes closer to a verbatim transcript, but you engage less with what you’ve typed.
  https://gradepowerlearning.com/writing-vs-typing-notes-what-is-more-effective/#:~:text=The%20research%20is%20clear%3A%20the,Hard%20to%20believe%3F
- Oh yes. The actual craft of writing something down with a pencil does wonders for me to actually remembering stuff.
  
  Yeah the note itself doesn't really matter in my experience, it's the note-taking itself that helps register stuff.
- Its your sense of proprioception, too. To write something with pen and paper you have to move your hand in three dimensional space, and this does a TON to engrain the information in your head

Because i can scrawl a note faster than opening an app and typing, and i can organise a notebook with a lot less fuss.

I’ll answer with a simple test. Do the following first on your phone and then on a piece of paper:
Design a thing, something physical; a box, a house, a chair, whatever. In addition to the diagram, this note must include a description of the item, the bill of materials, the dimensions and, if applicable, assembly instructions that you could confidently hand to someone else and have them follow. Ideally, you should include the dimensions of the object directly on the sketch itself.
Now give this to someone and see how accurately they can reproduce the item while you go off and make a phone call.
- In addition, the mere act of giving that information to somebody else.
  On a phone I can obviously text somebody, but what if I'm somewhere with bad signal (and yes, those places often exist), or the person doesn't have the phone in their pocket right that second (yes, this also happens in places with work where people don't want to risk the phone in their pocket breaking)?
  With a mini notepad, I can rip a sheet of notes off and hand that diagram to somebody else. If it's work that will take some time doing while following a diagram, having a phone screen locking up because it isn't being touched is a hassle and going into the settings to change it back and forth is annoying.

I can't rely on a piece of electronics that might run out of battery, bug out, etc. Note taking on paper is much faster, you can draw anything with any sort of layout, it's completely free form. Of course it depends on your needs. I know I sketch down a lot because of my line of work, that may not be the case for everyone.
- You know that tablets exist?
  It's way easier to lose a piece of paper than a backed up searchable note. Not a problem if you're super organized but I'm not.
  
  Last time I upgraded my phone, I looked at getting a Samsung Note: I've wanted pen input on a phone for so long. Then I considered the extra weight and bulk, and the poor condition of the second hand one I was looking at, and decided I can just just use pen and paper.
  I like to be able to scribble things on paper, though my handwriting is terrible. For anything to last long for me, I want it digital, but random thoughts, calculations and stuff, I like paper and pen.
  
  But have you considered the true reliability of paper? Really, even a tablet is a computer that can run out of battery, bug out, etc.
  Paper not only has that, but it is also an art form in itself! Writing on a tablet, which can zoom in and out is for me much more awkward compared to the set dimensions of paper and the size of a nib. It also is something that has no feel to it, it's glass.
  No scratch, no feedback and most importantly no feel. Have you ever held high quality pull and pulp paper? In Polish it's called "Papier czeprany" and I have. It's like nothing else. Standard copy paper be damned, that thing is a joy to hold, write on and read off of.
  Also, paper is different if you have different light. It really makes all the difference for me, and I love sitting under a warm light from a lamp and either writing with a pen or typing it out on a typewriter. Having light blasted onto my face by a screen annoys and tires me out a lot of the time.
  It's not just the practicality that can win out, even though paper does also win for me on that front, it has a charm to it if approached in a way different than just absolute practicality.

My handwriting is the perfect encryption. Nobody else can understand it. Lol.
- @nutbutter The algorithm is especially harder to decrypt if you don't write that often. I can tell it from my personal experience, lol.
  @techconsulnerd

Dont need to charge a piece of paper

my notepad/book/paper doesn’t run out of battery and doesn’t lose reception …
EDIT: and my book will last longer than your cloud service
EDIT: and you remember stuff better by writing it down

At work I do that exclusively. It’s faster to make punch lists for jobsites that way
- Same, so much quicker to make handwritten notes at work. I also just want to give my hands and eyes a break from using my phone.
  
  Also I don’t have to contend with auto complete

Yes, of course. How can I leave a note for somebody in the living room, or pin it to the fridge if it's on my PC?
How can I scribble my plans and measurements down quickly without endangering my fancy expensive phone while I'm woodworking? Not to mention I need two hands and need to unlock the phone and find the application etc etc, or I could just pick up the pencil.
And what about my shopping list? Am I going to absent mindedly carry my phone in one hand while I push the trolley and pick up food, basically BEGGING somebody to come and snatch it from my hand and run off with it? Hell no. I use a written shopping list.
These are just some random examples, and I do use my tech to note some things down, most notably if I'm sat at the pc and it's a tech thing I'll probably load Notepad++ and save a quick .txt note, I have a lot of those. But for little around the house/going out things, my notepaper is always best :-)
- Those are some really bad reasons tbh. A digital shared shopping list is the best invention btw. My wife adds stuff in it and I see it on my phone when I go shopping. Who the fuck is going to snatch a phone out of your hand when you shop? And isn't a phone a pretty useless item to steal anyway? Most of them can't be wiped these days.

Because I like small diagrams and schematics. Doing that in an app, especially on a phone, is tricky. And I find that structuring my thoughts on paper just works better than doing it digitally straight away.

Yep. My little Field Notes books don’t send me notifications about emails, and I can toss them around without breaking them. And use a lot of notation and drawing methods that are very slow when typing with my thumbs.

Equations are a shitload faster to write: this is the main reason.
No fucking spell correction.
Every piece of writing is visually unique and looking back at handwritten notes brings back an additional layer of memory (diaries/personal journals eg).
Paper notes can be permanently destroyed with a high level of confidence and low cost if desired.
Written notes can be easily left for/handed to another person (for flirtatious purposes e.g.), or placed semi-permanently in a useful spot.
Electronic notes are great too, I keep my grocery list and whatnot on my phone, but the reasons above are why I also write things by hand.

For those of you that do, join us at !fountainpens@wayfarershaven.eu :)
- Ooooooh, that looks nice. I think I'll join!

I do. Its much easier
- And is somewhat satisfying, especially with a nice pen/pad.

Scientifically speaking, writing with your hand helps a lot with memory and learning, while typing does not have nearly the same effect. Also, a lot of handwriting apps are still garbage. It's also nice for focusing to not be using a cell phone. Other than that, some people probably just like it

I always have a notepad next to me while working. The notes on paper somehow guide my workflow.

At home I take notes on the computer. Timestamps, instant sync across devices, whatever editor I like to use, et cetera. If I get a random call and someone starts talking at me, I'll settle for scribbling on a fast food receipt if it is close to hand. I use my phone sometimes, but I generally take notes when I'm on a phone call.
When I'm at an in-person meeting with a client, pen and paper is the best option because it conveys some degree of respect. People still seem to be put off by people pulling out a laptop and typing during an emotionally charged meeting. If I pull out my cellphone and start poking at it in a professional setting, people don't think that I'm listening or taking notes. They think that I'm bored.
- Seconded on the respect comment. It may not be fair, but I think people using their laptops in meetings are distracted by the myriad notifications constantly bombarding us, checking email, or otherwise not staying engaged. Harder to be present when your device keeps clamoring for your attention.

My laptop died in June, so I had to write my entire master's thesis in a notebook with a pen. Typing on a phone is terrible for writing more than a few sentences.
- Typing on a phone is terrible for writing more than a few sentences.
  A bluetooth keyboard might be helpful here.

With so much note taking apps nowadays, I can't understand why someone should waste time to find their smartphone, power it on, input the pin for the sim, unlock the screen, find the right app in the app jungle, open it, find the "new note" option, which is hidden in a sub menu instead of using a short cut on your keyboard to bring up a terminal, which opens Vim and automatically saves the file as a note with the correct file name.
- Ha ha, exactly! And all you did after that was add 'tomatoes' to a weekly shopping list. And then after turning it off and putting it down, remembered you forgot 'onions'.
  
  for the shopping list I have a similar hot key and after saving the list, it will be automatically send to my android (over local network, not over the internet, sharing it with dozens of companies) and I can open it with SimpleTask having it sorted by the shelves how they appear in the supermarket to not run like a psychopath back and forth.
- You have more people that know how to exit a note app tho, compared to vim.
  
  That's true and it's worrying!

Because you remember it better when you actually write it out instead of just using a keyboard. And you can draw diagrams with ease. Most styluses are inaccurate and one dimensional, and buying a phone with actual proper stylus support in both the display and stylus itself is expensive. You could buy a separate technical device just for note taking with proper stylus support and have it upload notes to the cloud so you can access it at all times, but that requires a constant internet connection and mobile data is expensive. And then you have to carry this seperate device with you in the same way you'd carry a much cheaper physical notepad anyways.

I get a lot of scratch paper as part of my job entails troubleshooting printers (kill me) and so I have stacks of printer test pages, pages printed out with PCL and PS errors and what not. These make good canvases for sketching up quick network designs or diagraming things such as work flows. I usually scan them in a note taking app before shredding them to keep my desk clear but it’s much more convenient that having to use Visio or something on things that just need to be sketched out

Yes, usually when in meetings. It's 99% a society/conventional thing, but looking and typing on your phone while talking to someone will often be perceived as rude. Taking notes in your paper notebook though usually will come off as being attentive and interested.
- 100% agreed, especially true with clients.
  IDK why exactly but typing notes during a consult is impersonal.
  I do consults with my notepad flat on the desk so clients can see what I'm writing. I often draw diagrams for them.

Pen and paper don't need batteries. I'm pretty sure I can whip out my notepad faster than you can unlock your phone and open the notes widget.
- Is it your cakeday?
- Pens need ink. Notepads need empty pages.
  
  How often are you buying ink for your pen? Just buy a notepad? Regardless, both are cheap.

Yes, when i need to concentrate

Writing with a pen is still more intuitive for me than typing, so I automatically grab a piece of paper and jot it down. Especially while talking to someone.
But I do use note taking apps a lot for more permanent things.

Always pen/paper
A note on my phone is about as useful as no note at all. The physical presence of the note is much more important.

Yes, I do.
I enjoy handwriting and it is much faster for me. I like to have a couple of different coloured pens and have it organised. Usually I just end up with a scribbled mess but that is okay. At least only I can read it. If I need to I will type it up afterwards - I love typing as well.

I prefer pencil, but yes, I find it faster and more freeform, and more portable to take initial notes on paper.

I used to have my shopping list on my phone. Replaced that by a whiteboard on the fridge, which is much less cumbersome to use (seriously, typing on a phone nowadays is almost worse than back in the T9 days). Before I go shopping, I just snap a picture with my phone.
- This is brilliant and I am going to use it.
- A home assistant is great for that too.
  But pen and paper work fine if you dont need your shoping list to connect to wifi

A note that's pinned to the wall is harder to overlook and forget.
That being said, my note-taking app is set to start automatically when logging in, so I'm always aware of its existence. Wouldn't work otherwise.

Much harder to get distracted with a pen and paper. Main reason I use it.

flowchart, brainstorming and drawing is always good with p&p

I use many methods to collect and organize information. I take pics on my.phone, write notes on my phone, write outlines on my laptop, write notes in a notebook, and write post it notes for me or others. All are appropriate at various times.

Because writing it helps me remember. I'm never going to look at those notes again, because I'll remember, because the act of writing helps me remember.

For anything I'll need to share or search, digital.
Everything else, I remember it better if I commit handwriting to it, and I use fountain pens, it's a nicer experience.

I use paper for all my "at the moment notes" it's just easier because actually unlocking my phone and opening a note app then starting a note takes too long and a lot of the time I need to draw a diagram or something to go along with it. Anything important gets transferred into my onenote from the paper later on. I would like to find a good app to go completely digital but so far nothing I've found meets that need as well as just carrying a notebook around.

I do a mix -- paper is for thinking, digital is for long-term saving.
I'll use paper (nice paper and a fountain pen, ideally) for a quick brain-dump, mind-mapping, planning out my week, figuring out the shape of a solution. There's something about working on paper that spatially makes more sense to me. I keep it all in a single notebook *usually A5 grid or dots like Leuchtterm 1917 or Rhodia webbie) so that I don't have loose pieces of paper. If I'm working or traveling, that notebook is in my bag.
Things that I need to remember land in Obsidian in cross-linked notes, usually tied together with a daily note. Some paper notes do land in Obsidian - that can be a photo/scan, but more likely a cleaned up, summarized version of my thoughts.

Taking notes with pen and paper is more effective for information retention. I frequently keep a bullet journal to help me stay in the moment and on task. I don't digitize it because I find it to be a waste of time. I want to take my notes and then turn them into action. Turning them into a digital blip in a database is me faffing about not taking the action

Yes, at work. Healthcare --> HIPAA All notes shredded at the end of the shift or whenever the patient no longer is on your unit.

Writing by hand requires me to condense whatever I'm trying to grok. That helps in my understanding of it.

Yes. It's faster and it doesn't end up getting lost on my phone or PC somewhere. I can also leave a page open on my desk if it's something I tend to forget (currently German prepositions).

Do you still write notes with pen an paper?
Yep.
So, if you still write notes with pen and paper, why?
I just like having something physical as opposed to something on a computer screen or phone or something. I suppose I could just type them up and print them out but eh. 🤷‍♀️

I do both, and it’s heavily dependent on what the purpose of the note is for.
I keep a yellow legal pad and mechanical pen. Stuff that goes on the pad are usually the ultimate in throwaway notes. Scribbles that are wholly transitory.
Then I have a digital note management system (Obsidian.md) and use it to maintain a personal journal and Zettelkasten.
Some yellow pad notes might flow into Obsidian, but not always.

I'm 53. Never got the hang of typing fast on the phone, so whenever I'm in a meeting and not having my laptop with me, it's pen and paper for me. 🙃
- It also gets painful real quick, I find needing to type out long texts on a smartphone frustrating and I quickly get needlessly angry 😅

Both, for different reasons. I use paper notes to stick them on my fridge so I won't forget about them.

I'm a zoomer and my middle & high school had us do a large majority of stuff on a computer, so my handwriting kinda sucks now
whenever I use pen & paper now, I look at what I wrote and realize I still have the handwriting of a fucking 12 y/o. I also type a lot faster than I write
- Ive been writing my whole life and my notes still look like the scribblings of a madman.
- I hope you decide to train your handwriting someday, being able to quickly write up a note or something is useful. But seeing how each person has unique hand writing it's also something one can be rather proud of. And then you have the calligraphy guys, I'll never be as good as them xd

Yes, typed notes don't stick as well as written ones

I'm a millennial and I still write notes with pen and paper simply because I can't be bothered to learn how to format in a notes app of any kind.
All of my notes are formatted in a bizarre way that makes sense to me. Applying that format in a digital space is always a giant headache.
I am switching to using Obsidian. Skipping the formatting all together and instead linking all my disjointed ideas to each other seems to be working pretty well.
- I’m a millennial and I still write notes with pen and paper simply because I can’t be bothered to learn how to format in a notes app of any kind.
  I'm an older millennial, and I'll tell you how I format my notes: in text files. Markdown if I'm feeling fancy.

Yes. There's something about putting it in paper that makes me grasp the concept in a more personal manner.

During meetings, I find it easier to follow the discussion if I'm making notes on post-its or a notepad rather than digitally.
For longform notes, research etc I prefer to use a wiki program like Obsidian and a mindmap or diagramming tool. I will rarely sketch ideas on paper but being able to rearrange the shapes on digital canvas makes it great for whiteboarding as a software engineer.

Hell yeah i do, i’ve been keeping a notebook for scheduling and journaling for the last 5 years and it helps my thought process so much.
The biggest thing for me, i dont control the apps, so if an update breaks my apps, i’d be out of luck, but that cant happen with a notebook. My notes will always been as i wrote them.
I’ve even gone through writing with gel pens, to fountain pens, and now i just use pencils cause it’s just better over all.
I could get philosophical about it too. I remember what i write, my mind paces itself better as i commit to paper vs typing on a keyboard or screen. We have that primordial need to scribble on something, and i get to indulge it when i write:
coffee
milk
rice (big bag)
Everyone should try it, with a simple caveat: keep it cheap. Write in cheap books with cheap pens and paper, then buy better as the cheap shit starts to fail on you. Some paper is really bad for ink, some are bad for pencil, somehow there’s some that worse for both. Some pencils have terrible erasers, but dont dwell on those choices.
- +1 for pencils, I'm a Dixon Ticonderoga man for life
  
  They used to be so good. I think the Sanford people bought them. Cant say how it affected quality tho as I’ve moved to metal barreled mechanical pencils and am in love with the Pentel Kura Toga rn
- Unfortunately nobody makes a cheap spiral bound, square ruled notebook. Certainly not one which stands up to 0.5mm pencils well.
  
  I spent the money on the Leuchtturm 1917 notebooks after trying to make moleskines work. I do not regret it, nor the work that brought me there.
  I’m left handed so spiral bound is out for the most part

I use a mechanical pencil. Pentel 205 for life baby.