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Ask HN: What feature does your dream note taking app have?

6 points by ZaninAndrea ↗ HN
I am creating a note taking app based on markdown with live preview. I already implemented all the basic features and would like new ideas for cool features.

If you want to check it out, the repo is https://github.com/ZaninAndrea/mdeditor If you want to contribute the code is thoroughly documented and you can always write me if you have any doubts

19 comments

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abawany
I use OneNote. The features that make it indispensable for me are as follows:

* Excellent synchronization across devices

* Support for handwriting

* Web viewer

ZaninAndrea
I'd like to use git in order to ensure a good reconciliation between edits made on multiple devices. Handwriting is not really the goal for my application, since it's a markdown editor.

As far as the web viewer is concerned would you like most a web editor or a static site generator (with hosting included). The web editor is more useful for personal use, but the static site allows everyone to access (I'm thinking about implementing both)

abawany
I think a static site generator sounds useful. Not only for viewing when one is without one's apps, but also for sharing as you say.
tbirrell
Pagedown integration. I use Stack Overflow on a daily basis, so if I could write and save my questions and answers in an editor while preserving the syntax (especially the key commands I'm use to), I'd get behind that.
fairpx
Auto calculate writte equations
ZaninAndrea
I was thinking about a function grapher (like geogebra function plotting), is that what you meant or something like a calculator?
fairpx
A simple calculator. When brainstorming ideas and potential financial outcomes its handy to have basic mah built in.
kerrsclyde
Search by image, so show notes containing similar images.

I am a very heavy Evernote user but it has nothing like this.

agitator
I use Evernote a lot, for all sorts of things. Here are some improvements I would love and frustrations I've experienced.

- A clever and clean way for tracking changes and additions for hand written notes.

- Evernote allows adding hand written notes, but they go page by page, which is frustrating when notes or designs span longer lengths. Allowing a continuous stream of hand writing would be great.

- Better merge resolution. When you happen to make a change on the web (clip a web page for example) while writing notes on the iPad, I often lose notes.

fosco
I want to merge org-mode with workflowy in a gnu free locally hosted instance. That is my dream.

For now I settle with org-mode in terminal because I avoid the cloud.

chauhankiran
Following I like to see ( If possible ):

Many app are stop, if issue with net connection or send a big notification about my internet connection issue. Why I have to see it? Can app not manage sync & net issue with local storage or something. I mean I am just taking a note and for taking a note, a real time internet connection is not needed., Right? it's not email app where connection is more important.

sjs382
Ability to take photos on a mobile, mark them up (with a pen), and have full-text search of the contents of the photos and the notes.
scalesolved
I'd love to see a timeline feature where I can play back a session of note taking from a day or plot it out into a nice JS timelined graph automatically based on journal entries.
twobyfour
1) Merge resolution is a big one. I often muse that a note-taking app with a Git backend and three-way merge facility would be kind of awesome.

2) Combine that with offline note taking that auto-syncs when you have a network connection again (even if the note-taking app is backgrounded on your phone), and you'd have a winner. Give me that and I wouldn't even care about support for any formats other than plain text.

3) The ability to organize notes into folders and subfolders with no limit to levels of nesting.

OK, yeah, I really just want an auto-syncing Git client on my phone.

ZaninAndrea
That's why I started the project in the first place, glad to hear that I'm not the only one wanting this! ;)
twobyfour
What platforms are you planning to support, or will this be web-only?
ZaninAndrea
I am building the app with electron, so all desktop platforms will be supported right away, I am considering mobile apps porting most of my React code to React Native and web replacing the filesystem interactions with a cloud server
fiftyacorn
ive tried lots of note taking apps and ended up blogging my tech notes