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Ask HN: Where do you save your ideas?

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Every now and then we are struck by a sudden realisation or idea - a moment of clarity, if you will - which is exhilerating, but at the same time easy to forget, because we do not choose the time they happen (at least I usually don't).

My question is two-fold: Where do you save your ideas and when/how do you revisit them?

I've been using standard iOS Notes app, but I'm interested in hearing how other people do it.

I'm referring to ideas that can be put in a single sentence or two.

42 comments

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beshrkayali
Depends on what field the ideas are concerned with but my short answer would be: personal journal, evernote, or Google Docs (now switched that to Quip)
adzeds
I am interested to see some of the suggestions here.. I currently just leave things rattling around in my head...

I always tell myself I should document them on a Trello board then I can add notes to each idea when I think of things.

Trello: https://trello.com/

revx
I use a Trello board as well. I love how I can categorize ideas, add notes to them, and organize them easily.
ericzawo
Workflowy. I've yet to find a better jot-taking program, and have my entire life on there.
fosco
I like the concept of workflowy, but hate using cloud based apps. if I could host it locally on my own gnu/linux box I'd be much happier to use it.

I saw hackflowy awhile back and was not able to successfully install (potentially user error).

anyone know of a workflowy that can be hosted locally or run on a smartphone?

ddavidn
I use Evernote. There are better tools for organization and prioritization, but I find that I get distracted by those things. So, I take it down in Evernote (or a Field Notes book if I'm AFK) so that my thought doesn't get interrupted by shiny things, then I copy it to Asana if it's work-related or just leave it in Evernote if it's a personal thought.
curuinor
I used to save my ideas, quite rigorously. Now, I try not to. Ideas are nothing, execution is everything, and execution is very much composed of things that you will remember, because they are so specific.
giltleaf
I organize most of what I do outside of work, including starting my own business and running my website, in google folders so it's accessible straight from gmail. I setup filters to automatically sort emails into various folders (boost traffic, various swipe files, books to read) so, for example, if someone sends me a cool article on hydroponics (something applicable to my business) and it sparks an idea, I just forward the email to myself and add "uvf swipe" to the subject line.

Depending on the folders, I visit them once every month or so, or almost never. It just depends what I'm into at the time, but I can always get them later.

When it comes to afk, I usually use evernote, but just as a basic notetaker that I can type up later.

fitzwatermellow
Plain text files written using Vim in a Terminal. Then archived by folder to Google Drive or DropBox. I want them to be in a format I, and any machine, can read N years from now. I've been burned before by proprietary solutions ;)

I revisit old files at odd intervals. I have ~5 years worth of notes. What I love most is when I think I have a new idea, or stumbled upon original inspiration, and I find an almost exact sentiment mirrored years ago, albeit using different language. Then I know I've revealed some deep truth that will remain constant for me, and it is only my manner of expressing it that has evolved!

wcchandler
I have a 7"x4.375" notebook that's been lugged around for over a decade. Small, convenient and practical.
cableshaft
I use the developer diary Devarist nowadays, which lets you store things in Markdown, and I periodically export those entries to a single local markdown file. I prefer the searching and organization (and always online) aspect of Devarist, but I don't want to lose my files either.

I also include little icons that represent the category so I can visually browse and filter pretty quickly and easily as I scroll through it.

zo1
I use Trello. I have a board where I general store things, and happen to have a column just for ideas.

Also, have another column for things to read. Things to research/investigate.

[dead] TerryADavis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvL7T4gIJN8

I am waiting for Microsoft.

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supersan
Google drive: in a big folder named ideas with sub-folders like B2B, B2C, Fun, etc (doc files inside each sub-folder).

It's also easy to sync and access on all devices.

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bsnux
Emacs org-mode. Notes are plain text are they can be exported to HTML, PDF and LaTeX. Google Drive and Dropbox folders help me out to read my notes from anywhere.
tryitnow
Google keep. I've given up on any hope of organizing my ideas (at least in first draft form). The important for me is being able to enter them quickly and easily on any device and then being able to retrieve them quickly via search.

Organizing can come later once I refine the ideas.

The most important thing I have to keep in mind here is to include terms that are good for search (not too generic, otherwise they bring up too many results).

schlagetown
I use nvAlt on Mac + Simplenote on iOS.

Easy to sync between the two using plaintext files in a Dropbox folder. About as lightweight and easy to search for simple notes (whie still working on both desktop and mobile) as I've found.

Caveats: not great for longer notes, and keeps things super simple…so mostly great for collecting ideas.

I keep stuff here that I add to frequently; other things I typically move elsewhere to organize / edit…I love Scrivener for this but also use Google Docs for certain things.

prjohnson
Been using both w/same setup for years. The speed, simplicity, and flexibility of nvALT is amazing. I'm always flipping in and out of my nvALT window throughout my work, where is save clippings, terminal commands, todos, links, troubleshooting fixes and how-tos, and so on.

With tagging and zero-lag search, it's great for archiving dozens or hundreds of disorganized notes, b/c finding exactly what you need takes 1 or 2 seconds (keyboard shortcut to window and just start typing to search… matching notes instantly appear. Or, for a new note, just keep typing to give it a title and hit enter).

The instant in/out ability (w/ near imperceptible lag) to work with nvALT makes it something I couldn't live without. It's always there, hidden in the background and available. Other windowed note tools require launching the app or opening new windows, often suffering from display refresh lag times or hogging resources (read: OneNote). Opening and using Notes.app (or even TextEdit.app), for example, and flipping between windows and other apps while working is annoyingly slow.

Oh, and might as well give credit to the background syncing with SimpleNote for web / iOS app availability, providing access to notes while on-the-go or at a second machine. Yes, the nvALT / SimpleNote combo is great. Love. Love. Love.

unimpressive
Combination of paper notebook, text files, and a program I wrote that acts as a probabilistic reminder list (https://github.com/JD-P/epiphanal). I found I was having trouble ever actually reading the giant project and ideas lists I'd write because you'd get to a certain number of items and there was no way you were actually going to read that entire list, even skimming it became a hassle. So I wrote this instead as an alternative where it feeds you a small number of items from a list at a time.
hanniabu
I used to save mine everywhere from emails, text files, to-do apps, Google keep, trello notebooks, and texting myself to random pieces of paper. What I use really depends on what's available to me at the time as well as the convenience.

Yesterday I just finished putting all my family cooking recipes into a single JSON file so they'll easier to digest. This morning I started on compiling all my notes to a single JSON file too, adding summaries, detailed explanations, tags, and categories. After I'm done I plan on making a nice Webapp to add, search, and view entries.

robodale
In a Google docs file called "UN-Validated Ideas". Unless I've presold an idea to other people (and have their money in-hand), those ideas never make it out of that file.
banterfoil
I am a student so I have access to private Github repos. I have a personal repo that contains stuff like this.
pattu777
I use Wunderlist. I have created a new list for ideas and save each one in that list. I have also added priority and reminder for some of those ideas.
MattoRochford
Mixture of Evernote, iOS Notes and physical moleskin notebooks.
rl3
A text file called ideas.txt, one idea per line. I try to aim for just a stream of consciousness; if anyone actually read it I'd be quite embarrassed. The fewer formalities or barriers that exist between a momentary idea and writing it down, the better.

Ideally, I should have placed the file under version control from the start so I could reference when a particular idea came to mind, but I didn't do that.

My actual project planning docs are all text files though, and those actually are under version control. I find using a blank commit message works best because it lowers the barrier to further editing or writing.

byg80
Same here. Nothing better than good old notepad.
DrScump
I used to use Notepad. Now I use Jota with the underlying file served from Dropbox so I have read/write access from my mobile and desktop alike.
gasparch
Evernote. It proved so far to be the most useful. Especially because you can easily add tags to the notes.

When using 'clip to Evernote' browser extensions to add research materials you add same tags and then you have nicely linked together idea + research material.

I used to use index cards for storing ideas, but if you move often or just away from them - they are not so useful.

Hassle of digitizing notes are compensated by better availability.

For quick notes on a move I may use voice memo or voice note and then type in when I'm at the computer.