Mobile Notebook: Another Awesome BlackBerry Tool

Update: shortly after publishing this post, Google announced that they would stop active development on Google Notebook. Current users will be able to continue using Notebook, but Google will now allow any new users to sign up. Personally, I think this is a really big loss for everyone. There are few other Tools as useful and multifunctional as Notebook.

With all the productivity tools available, I tend to loose track of my notes and to-do lists easily. After all, in my quest for hyper-organization and over-utilization of all tools disposable, my to-do lists and notes are divided across my calendar, Task2Gather, RTM, and many more. If you are a BlackBerry user, you can get back to basics easily by just using one tool for everything: Google Notebook.

Notebook, Perfect on the Go

If you are constantly moving between different computers, offices – perhaps even countries -, then using an online client to keep track of your notes is a perfect solution. Not only does it save you from lugging around different (physical) notebooks, it is also impossible to forget certain notes. Now, you could use Google Docs for this same purpose, but let me explain why I think Google Notebook exists for a good reason, despite Docs being a fabulous tool:

• Notebook allows you to keep track of your notes only, instead of mixing them up in between actual documents that are meant to be finished letters, proposals, you name it.

• This tool also lets you tag and organize your notes based on categories. No need to create different folders, you can easily browse between short notes without constantly opening a new file.

• No matter where you are in the world, you have access to your notes. Like Google Docs, you can share them with others or keep them to yourself. You can even use them as blog posts by themselves, or manage blog posts.

• If a note develops into a finished product, you can easily export it to Google Docs.

Although these reasons are compelling enough to ditch your moleskin notebook, it doesn’t take away the fact that Google Notebook is an online feature. It comes with great anywhere accessibility, but in order for that to exist, you first need to be hooked up to the internet in the first place. If you are in some obscure corner of the African rain forest without internet access, you are better off chronicling your notes on a paper pad. But, if you have a Blackberry, then there is still hope…

Notebook on BlackBerry

Blackberry users have their own built-in to-do list, and memo pad. If you have a BlackBerry Bold, or Storm, then you also have access to documents. Why then, use Google Notebook? Simple… you have universal access. Whatever you add to your notebooks from your BlackBerry, you can access from your computer without any syncing or complicated moving or copying of files. Although that may seem simple enough, keep track of enough files and you are soon pulling your hair out trying to figure out which one is the most updated one. I like the simplicity of having one less thing to think about by using Notebook.

How to Get to Notebook on BlackBerry

As long as you get the Google Mobile client on your BlackBerry, you don’t need to bookmark the link to Google Mobile Notebook. You can access it by going into “more”, and Notebook is at the bottom of the list that pops up on your phone. Fast and easy enough, considering it takes just about as many clicks to get into either your BB’s to-do or memo application. If you don’t use the Google Mobile client, you will have to bookmark http://m.google.com/notebook on your phone for easy access.