Using KBM to keep a log

Questions & Suggestions
9

a very good point.
do you have a notebook or a tag called log ?
may I ask you to outline how you use evernote for logs, from log entry including date/time stamp to log organization.
thanks very much

10

and also avoids the problem of one huge log file, which had me worried

11

I have very few notebooks.

  • I use Notebooks to denote top-level status of my Notes:
  • Inbox
  • InWork
  • Active
  • Archive

I use tags to organize and categorize my Notes.

I don't have a specific tag for "Log", because I have many notes that I have clipped or created to record info about a specific subject.
But I do have a tag for "DailyNotes", and "templates" for "DailyNotes", "ToDo List" and more. I suppose you could describe my "DailyNotes" as a type of log.

So, I guess it depends on how you plan to use your "logs".
Can you describe how you want to use "logs"?
Then I can respond better.

You might also want to search Google for:
Evernote journal

1 Like
12

Not KM, but

Slogger by Brett Terpstra

or, also by Terpstra

doing – a simpler approach

KM could be used for data entry for either of these.

2 Likes
13

[quote="ronald, post:1, topic:5814, full:true"]
a simple way to keep a log, hopefully using KBM. [/quote]

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@ronald -

I'm encouraged to see a topic about keeping a log.
Thanks for bringing it up.
I've been doing that, using a date/time stamp provided by KM macros.

Macro consists of these three actions:

  1. open text application (the "secret sauce" is to use a stationary template in the Finder)
  2. enter date by typing
  3. enter time by typing

I learned from other posts on this forum how format date and time in ISO format.

I found it best to keep date macro separate from time macro, so you can time stamp multiple times as you make entries on the same day.

.

That is exactly the question I've asked myself, too.
At first, I tried using databases. (First, NeoOffice Base, and then DevonThink).
Those were a lot of aggravation.
So I switched to simple text files, one per day.
Much easier.

If you want to make your log look attractive (I did), but your text application does not have markdown (mine doesn't), a few KM macros can do that, too.

1 Like
14

Devon Think: what a nightmare ! I wasted a lot of time and never want to look at it again. I think that there is something about their marketing which lures naive people like me.
I think that I will go the evernote route: it is analogous to your solution (one text = one note), the date time stamp is automatic, and easy to create KBM macros.
Also easy to insert images, syncs across devices, have reminders, etc
thanks very much

15

thank you. To avoid adding an app, I will stick with evernote.

16

I am convinced, go with evernote, and write macros accordingly.
I will start working on it.
The Evernote Journal google search was a good idea, but the info is quite basic.
For the occasional encrypted note, would it be doable with KBM?
An irritant with Evernote is (IMO) that the title is separate from the note. I would have liked to have the title simply at the top of the note.

17

[quote=“ronald, post:16, topic:5814, full:true”]I will start working on … Evernote
[/quote]
.

@Ronald -

I suggest caution before you commit to Evernote.

Disclosure:

  1. I’ve never used Evernote.

  2. I’m well aware there are some happy Evernote users on this forum.

Before you invest time and effort creating macros for Evernote, there is a recent problem that I read about on another forum.
Nothing related to KM at all, so I won’t post details here.
If you are interested, PM to me with your email, and I will reply that way.

1 Like
18

Hi, I wrote the attached macro which does not work. The notebook is called Diary. thanks very much for your opinion.
EN Evernote Log Diary Entry.kmmacros (27.7 KB)

19

Can you please post:

  • Exactly how is it not working?
    • Getting an error?
    • Not doing what you want?
    • Which KM Action is it failing on?
      .
  • What exactly is your objective, in this case?
  • What is the expected outcome?

Thanks.

When I want to design and implement a new KM Macro that is complex, I usually do this:

  1. Go through the process manually, writing down each step
  2. If the process is very complex, first write separate test macros for each logical block of steps
  • Test and correct these macros until each does what you expect
  • Then put them all together in a macro, putting each into a separate KM Group Action
  • Make any needed adjustments until it is working as you expect.
  1. If at some point you want to try out a different approach, Duplicate the macro, and work on the copy.
    (select the macro, then goto menu Edit > Duplicate)

BTW, Evernote has over 200M users, but many of them have the Basic, Free, account. So, of course, some users will be more satisfied than others.
Recently there was a big controversy associated with privacy, but Evernote has now retracted their planned changes, and have re-committed to providing the best privacy on the Internet.

There will always be nay-sayers against any app. But don't let them put you off, especially those that have never used the product. IMO, it is always best to do your own research and get a variety of opinions from trusted sources before making a decision.

IAC, while you are testing Evernote, you can limit your Notes to non-sensitive info.

1 Like
20

.

If @JMichaelTX's comment is about my warning post above, then he didn't read it carefully.

The warning comes from experienced users of Evernote on a different forum -- not my opinion.
Those experienced users are discussing problems they see.

IMO, it is always best to do your own research.
Get a variety of opinions from trusted sources before making a decision.

Good to get that out of the way so we can all "tread lightly" here.

21

Just posted:

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22

@Mark @JMichaelTX
In response to Mark’s comment.
First of all, I think that Mark makes great contributions and it is a pleasure to have him as a forum member.
I think that there is no point being secretive about these issues or too concerned that it may be slightly off topic (KBM). I am certain that one link about Evernote does not bother Peter.
A few months ago, I made a critical statement about Evernote after reading about Evernote’s financial problems.
I wrote it in this forum, MichaelTX wrote a kind and informative reply, explaining to me that things had changed at Evernote, that there is a new CEO with new plans, etc.
I was very interested in reading MichaelTX’s reply. He was right, and we remain in the best of terms.
So, Mark, if you have an issue with Evernote, we are all interested. Let us know what it is, and let’s see what MTX has to say, and all learn from it.

23

I found the solution. I had not deactivated the macro group after the first command, and when I entered (text type) the notebook name, each letter in the notebook name triggered a different macro in the still active macro group !
thanks again for your suggestion.

24

[quote="ronald, post:22, topic:5814"]
Mark makes great contributions and it is a pleasure to have him as a forum member.[/quote]

.
@Ronald -

Your recent post (#22) shows you are confused on some points.
I'll take a few moments to clarify.

.

[quote="ronald, post:22, topic:5814"]
So, Mark, if you have an issue with Evernote, we are all interested. Let us know what it is[/quote]

.

@Ronald -

  1. Confusion: You haven't been appointed to speak for "we all" or "us".
    You speak only for @ronald .
    I'm happy to reply to your individual request for more information.

  2. You are also confused about who has "issues" with what.
    I've never used Evernote. (Repeating that again.)
    To clarify even more, here is a repeat of my post above (#17):

You are not the only one confused about this.
For @JMichaelTX , if Evernote is ever mentioned in other than flattering terms, his replies show clearly that he is upset.
In that situation (Evernote), his upset is clear in the tone of his posts.
So someone else might think that I "have an issue".
.
But I don't.
About Evernote, I'm indifferent.

I did notice -- on a different forum -- that some Evernote customers are very angry with the company's revised privacy policy.
I took my time to let you know about it here, to be helpful before you spent a lot of your time writing KM macros for log keeping in Evernote.

@ronald missed that attempt to be helpful.
@JMichaelTX missed it, too.
.

Now I will attempt to steer this conversation back to the original topic.

The OP could also ask what other kinds of macros can help him with log keeping.
(Other than just date/time stamp).

I wrote KM macros to do markdown, because my text editor does not do that.
And then I discovered that KM macros can add color highlighting.
Makes it easy to spot important topics for review later.

Macros for color highlighting may be worth your time to prepare.
Here is an example:

1 Like
25

Thank you Mark for your detailed response. You make a number of valid points.
I always greatly appreciate your posts.

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26

[quote="Mark, post:24, topic:5814"]
Macros for color highlighting may be worth your time to prepare.[/quote]

.
For the OP, and others interested in log keeping, I will explain a bit more, because it may not be obvious from my post just above.

With KM, just one markdown trigger can many things at once in your log:

  1. change font/type face (such as bold, italic, large header)
  2. do text expansion
  3. add color highlighting

All at the same time.

Plus, the markdown triggers are up to you, not hard-coded in software.
The three examples above could be triggered by:

" ag " (accomplished + green)
" po " (problem + orange)
" zz " (Kaizen, always blue)

No markdown program I've seen offers that kind of flexibility.

So, by using KM, you may select from a wide variety of programs to keep a log.
And, if you ever change that program, you can still use all the same macro triggers in your "muscle memory".
.

(Note for beginners:
In examples above, spaces before and after are to avoid triggering by "agriculture", "snag", "potential", or "hippo".
Instead, you might prefer something like, "1ag", or ";po".)

1 Like
27

Have you tried Agenda before? I use Evernote and Agenda and Agenda is my go-to app for journalling or chronicling events with complex notes.

2 Likes
28

I will have a look. Thanks for the suggestion