Introducing the New Logos Notes

Hey Phil!

I love using Logos, and really appreciate the work put into keeping this tool so productive! Thank you!

I have two requests.

The new format for notes only seems to sort based upon date created or date modified. Is there a plan to allow us to sort alphabetically? This is a big deal for the way I use the notes.

Also, the desktop version used to have an export feature where I could choose the "expand" option, and then export all my notes at once into an editable text file. I used that feature quite a bit, and would love to have it in the online and/or iOS applications. Any plans to add that feature?

Blessings!

Graham Criddle said:

If you use mobile devices - then upgrading to Logos 8 will, by default, cause the L8 mobile apps to be installed and these only use the new system. So that could be another reason to hold back on the switch

Good point. I hadn't thought of this. I just checked the app store for my iPhone and it is telling me to update my Logos mobile app to the new version. If I am staying on L7 desktop, would there be a problem if I upgrade my iPhone and iPad to the new Logos app or should I hold off until I upgrade to L8 in the future?

I have used the notes feature on Logos for nearly twenty years. I add notes on specific bible study topics, and title each note so that I can go back whenever I need to review my study. I sorted the notes based upon the topic title. I usually have dozens of bible verses in each note. I suppose that I have thousands of hours invested in these notes. 

About three years ago I replaced my laptop with an iPad. the iOS version is awesome, and can nearly do everything I needed to do. The one significant feature it was missing was the ability to export notes to an editable text file. I have been concerned about not backing up my notes, but it looked like future development would add that feature.  I’m still hoping it will come  

The brand new note feature sorts by date only. After using the new system for a while now I can say that my notes are almost useless to me. I like the quick response of the search feature, but it searches the whole note which produces so many responses I can’t find the note I’m looking for.  Unfortunately the online version does the same thing.

I realize more development is coming. However, I have waited for years for export features. The thought of waiting years before I can use my notes again in a meaningful way is depressing. 

If anyone knows of a workaround I’m not seeing I would love to hear about it. I’m getting desperate enough that I’m considering using my last notes export from three years ago to import to another bible software, and just lose the last three years of work. since notes now sort by date, I guess I could hand type those new notes, but the editing I’ve done on old notes would be nigh impossible to capture. 

Joe Mayden said:

Is the range of data types limited or unlimited - for example under the facet browser there are Highlights and Notes.

There's a "Types" facet which is limited to Notes and Highlights.

There's a datatype facet which will support any datatype that Logos supports (e.g. Bible, Josephus, TDNT, etc.)

Joe Mayden said:

Is the range of Anchors limited or unlimited

This supports several options: Text Range (you've selected text then highlighted or added a note), Reference (you've right-clicked and added a highlight/note to a reference), or Unanchored (you've added a note but not attached it to any resource). There are other options for notes anchored to workflows and headwords. There may be others I haven't discovered yet.

Joe Mayden said:

Referring to the attached document

Your document is mostly correct — apart from:

• "Each highlighting style creates a notebook". Each highlight palette (not style) is linked to a notebook. But there's no reason that all the palettes can't link to the same notebook if that's what you prefer. You can also create arbitrary notebooks if you wish.
• "If a selected text in a book has been highlighted it becomes a notebook" — this isn't correct. Hopefully the answer above makes this clearer for you.

Joe Mayden said:

Is the range of data types limited or unlimited - for example under the facet browser there are Highlights and Notes.

Steve said:

It looks like that would be a great solution if I still used the desktop. I didn’t see how to revert back for iOS or online use. 

You can revert back on iOS by re-installing the older version.

You can revert back on the web by going to https://7.app.logos.com/ but the web never supported 'old' notes so that won't help.

Thanks for the idea Mark. I’m still researching to see if I can do this. I back up to the cloud since I don’t have a laptop/desktop. Not sure it’s possible based upon what I’ve seen so far, but it’s a great thought. 

I guess I’m not sure. I used the desktop version for years. When adding a note I would put a topic title like “Anger” into the top section. Then I would type my note in the section below. When I went back to look for my notes which I had in the collapsed list, I would have an alphabetical listing of all my notes.  I could click on the single line that had my “title”, and that one note would show in the side panel  

When the iOS app came out our Notes didn’t transfer over right away, but eventually they were available. I could add or edit notes the same way I could on the desktop. That is when I started using my iPad so much I eventually ditched my laptop. 

I watched a video that introduces the new Notes design...and there wasn't a single example shown of what a note pop-up window looks like when the cursor hover over the note icon. A staggering oversight. I am left having to ask:

Can Logos 8 do this?

Notice how the pop-up window of the note shows the whole contents of the note. This is accomplished without a single mouse click, just by hovering over the Note icon. Notice also how BIG the pop-up is...it isn't one of those tiny and extraordinarily annoying 2x3 in. keyholes that Logos started sporting in L4. These new, post-L3 Notes pop-up windows are so limited they are almost functionally worthless. In contrast, how big can one of these L3 (that's what you are looking at) Note pop-ups be? As big as the screen itself...

For the record, what L3 notes are capable of can't be replicated in L4, L6, L7, (and I guessing) L8, either. Why not??? Am I the only one who sees how valuable this function is? This allows pretty much any pertinent content (from your Library or elsewhere) to be pigeon-holed in the precise spot in your Bible where that information is relevant. For instance, in the screen shot below, I am about to hover over a note in verse 16...

...and when I do, this is what I see.

Isn't this 10000000000 times better than what L8 (or any L-not-3) does? But it's not just the ability to create alternate marginal references. You can include pretty much any useful info for instant reference WITHOUT A SINGLE CLICK NEEDED, such as...

...or this...

THIS IS WHAT NOTES IN LOGOS 8 SHOULD DO.

Why not?

Then expend the .00000000000001 of a joule of effort and move the cursor 1-2 mm.

PROBLEM SOLVED.

Besides, how are you going to read your notes if you can't see them?

Honestly, your rejection sounds a whole lot like, "I hate those darn wheel things! They keep rolling away!"

MJ. Smith said:

That doesn't resolve the problem - text and notes should work politely side by side with predictable alignment. But I have no problem with your working your way and my working my way. I won't ask for changes for you nor evaluate the value of your way. Just don't ask me to pretend that one way is the only way or the right way or the best way.

Um, pretty sure you are doing what you are suggesting I'm doing, when I'm not doing it. [&]  L3 does what you insist it should do...

...which I think you know. But I CAN'T do what I want with Notes because the functionality I use constantly was removed from the program FOR STUPID REASONS.

I'm not saying Notes must be used my way or not at all...which ought to be obvious. But having the functionality I demonstrate above is EXTRAORDINARILY FUNCTIONAL and HELPFUL...not to mention FAST and EASY (because NO CLICKS ARE REQUIRED to read the note contents).

I used the old note system and it was effective for me. I would organize a sermon plan, make the note icon silver circle for sermon prep notes. Then I would write out the entire manuscript in Logos. I would take previous notes i wrote and add them all onto a word processor document, footnote what was necessary, post to my blog on Patheos, and then copy and paste that post back into Logos. I would make that new note a gold circle (for the completed sermon). I put it in a certain folder where I knew sermons were going. 

All my notes would show up in the Passage Guide, I could work with them, and my workflow became simple. I would just add notes and thoughts to a certain note and then write my sermons out. 

I used the search function to find all I needed and used my Scripture verse as my connecting search. 

However, now with this notes system, my searching has changed (and it doesn't do what I want it to do). I can't find my notes so easily and it seems that tagging is the way to sort most of my notes. My problem with this is that I have over 3000 notes and I will probably have to spend a week to tag them all. 

I wish there was a way for Logos to help tag and make it easier for me. 

The fact that my notes don't show up in the Passage Guide is a serious misstep. This should have been ready when Logos 8 was made public. I also don't like that I have to go to another menu to find my notes. 

I will adapt to this new system. But it reminds me of going from writing my sermons by hand to typing them out. It also reminds from going from odl school searching to searching digitally on Google. It just changes the way I have to work. I hope it cuts my time down. But I wish Logos would not make me have to do additional work just to make something that was already workable function properly in its own new system. 

John Sheeley said:

I see a lot of people love the new notes in 8. Put me down in the camp that hates the new format. I've tried watching the tutorial video and it just confuses me even more. I've had Logos for 9 years now and most upgrades I've liked, this one is the first I loathe. It makes no sense to my brain and I can't figure out how to just make notes for a particular sermon anymore.

The new Notes system actually makes lots more sense than the old one — but I guess if you're used to the old one then the new one can be confusing. If you have a specific question, or are able to explain what you're trying to do, then I'm sure forum users would help.

Phil,

My wife and I have been owned logos through many product cycles, we are still very beginning users and have not been through the many available tutorials or read the plethora of forums on your site.  Frankly, for us, it's like drinking from the proverbial fire hose.  Therefore my question here may be too basic, (or because I am lazy... if I worked just a little harder I could find the answer on your site myself.)

 But here are two questions.

#1.  As my wife begins to use Logos more frequently, she will highlight something important for her... but when she does it shows up on my note/bible/commentary as a highlighted note.  Question:  What do we have to do to separate her notes/highlights from my notes/highlights?

#2  Is there a way to set my "preferences for highlighting" to one or more "default preferences".  I find it cumbersome to "hunt" for the correct tool each time I want to use the highlighter tool.  I would like to "set" the tool to my individual preferred default preference.  (I hope that makes sense to you?)

Thanks for any input you may have

Bill & Gail

It seems like you could use separate folders to solve some of the issue, with more than one user.