Note tags vs Labels in Logos 8

Joshua Briscoe
Joshua Briscoe Member Posts: 18
edited November 2024 in English Forum

I recently discovered that note tags are now searchable using the general search function as labels are. I had annotated my Bible with a system of labels so that I could find passages pertaining to a particular self-categorized topic. I also tag notes so that I can find them based on topic too. However, now that everything is truly searchable using one function, and highlighted text is functionally a "note," I wonder if it's necessary to use labels at all anymore? I don't particularly care if the in-line text has a graphic associated with it. I use this all mainly for search functionality.

So, I guess what I'm asking is: is there any disadvantage to switching all my tagging over to the note system entirely? The next time I read the Bible through, I'll convert my labels over to emphasis mark-up notes and tag those individual notes appropriately, then get rid of the labels. At the end of the day, then, whenever I need to mark up a new text, I use one hot key, rather than the dozen or so that I have for labels.

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Comments

  • Dave Hooton
    Dave Hooton MVP Posts: 35,857

    At the end of the day, then, whenever I need to mark up a new text, I use one hot key, rather than the dozen or so that I have for labels.

    If your system suits one highlight style + tags, it could equally suit one (unique) highlight style with a label. The Label could have one or more attributes, depending on what you are tagging. If the Notes tool is open, there is not much difference in time taken. If not open, then tagging requires an extra step (provided you tick Prompt to enter attributes on your label).

    When searching for tags, you are searching for values that can belong to many categories. With Labels, those categories can be explicit Attributes, which may not always have a value, but you can search for those categories e.g. {Label labelname WHERE NOT Category1}.

    So Labels are more flexible and don't require any extra effort over simple tagging.

    Dave
    ===

    Windows 11 & Android 13

  • Joshua Briscoe
    Joshua Briscoe Member Posts: 18

    I see what you're saying.

    The dilemma I have is that I have two major ways of managing information in Logos:

    One way is via taking notes. I might take notes on sermons, for my Bible study, to teach a Sunday school class, etc. I want to tag these notes so that they're searchable later. What sermons have our pastors preached on, say, fasting? Or within the gospel of Luke? I'd go to the Notes tab for that. You can't use Labels on Notes, as far as I know.

    However, I also do a lot of reading within Logos. Not only do I read commentaries, but I also transcribe pertinent excerpts into a document that I then turn into a "personal book" for easy referencing too. I had used Labels to mark those quotes. I also Labeled the Bible. I'd then use the search function to find all the Labels in my personal books, library books, and the Bible.

    Unfortunately, these two systems don't talk to one another. I can't do a "one stop shop" search. If I want to know everything I've seen in Logos on ecclesiology, I need to search for it in Notes, and then do a separate search under "Everything" for the appropriate Label. This also means I need to curate two filing systems: essentially tagging all notes, but labeling everything else. Two searches isn't incredibly onerous, except when I'm doing many of them for a project or teaching a class.

    Now, it seems that searching "Everything" for a Note's tag will, indeed, find that Note, but it's not organized very well. And I can't narrow the search with two tags ("X" AND "Y", where both X and Y are tags). Bummer.

  • Reuben Helmuth
    Reuben Helmuth MVP Posts: 2,485

    You can't use Labels on Notes, as far as I know.

    Sure you can:

    The biggest current disadvantage to labels is the lack of faceted filtering on them. Also, the current inability to add/modify labels in the Notes Bulk actions pane.

  • Joshua Briscoe
    Joshua Briscoe Member Posts: 18

    Oh wow, thanks. I hadn't seen this! A preliminary test, though, reveals that even when I label a note, it's not showing up under "Your Documents" in an "Everything" search for that label. Unless it takes a while for things to process after I've labeled a note?

    This still means that I need to curate two organizing systems: tags for sifting through things in Notes, and Labels for allowing Notes to participate in bigger searches. Unless Labels aren't detected in those bigger searches, in which case it's not useful for me to label notes.

    Thanks for pointing this out!

  • Graham Criddle
    Graham Criddle MVP Posts: 32,781

    Oh wow, thanks. I hadn't seen this! A preliminary test, though, reveals that even when I label a note, it's not showing up under "Your Documents" in an "Everything" search for that label. Unless it takes a while for things to process after I've labeled a note?

    It doesn't show up in Your Documents but it does show up in appropriate resources. Does that give you what you need?

  • Joshua Briscoe
    Joshua Briscoe Member Posts: 18

    Texts I've labeled outside of Notes show up there, but not Notes. Here's the Note (actually a Highlight, but within the Notes view) labeled with a couple things:

    Here's a search for the associated Label - notice under "Your Documents" (where Notes should be if the search picks up anything there) is empty.

    However, if I do a more general search, it finds all sorts of Notes and places them under "Your Documents" (including the Note in question). It's just not organized very well:

  • Dave Hooton
    Dave Hooton MVP Posts: 35,857

    Here's a search for the associated Label - notice under "Your Documents" (where Notes should be if the search picks up anything there) is empty.

     {Label ... "Pride"} only searches resources

    However, if I do a more general search, it finds all sorts of Notes and places them under "Your Documents" (including the Note in question). It's just not organized very well:

    An Everything search for pride will get results from Notes, but it won't pick up values from Labels. More importantly, it picks up results coming from content as well as tags.

    A search for mytag:pride will only search for "pride" in your tags, but there is a bug that prevents mytag: from being recognised. Under Basic > "All Text", check the Search Fields list for "My Tag". If not present you can compile a Personal Book with a mytag field e.g.

    {{field-on:mytag}}Verse not in many bibles{{field-off:mytag}}

    and this will allow a mytag: search of your documents.

    Dave
    ===

    Windows 11 & Android 13