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by grep_name 2395 days ago
I've been thinking about journaling a lot lately, but haven't done it regularly in years. I'm going to crosspost my response to another currently active HN thread to provide different perspective from the ones posted here:

"Funny, I just ordered a pocket notebook for the first time in years today. I'm curious to see what contingent of people on HN still use a physical notebook. I also use orgmode extensively to keep track of my intentions, media preferences, notes, and stray ideas, but it doesn't really scratch the same itch as a physical notebook.

The reason I had to order a physical notebook online is because I wanted a pocket notebook with no lines, dots, or grids on the pages, which is surprisingly hard to find. I'm attracted to the non-linear approach to notebooking, and plan to fill this one with content in a random page-order as things strike me. Sometimes I just have a cool thought or sentence, or just want to slowly fill a page with something, and it can really help your creativity solidify to have a trailing log of your weird random inspirations. Sometimes I just transcribe lines from a song or book I like, or write down something someone said. Some pages are just geometric shapes. Rarely, I'll make a simple "today this happened and this is how I felt about it" page. By the time you fill it up you have a really organic document that can help you understand what makes you unique and what you like / care about in your daily life, without the stress of writing a cohesive or linear work."

The reason I shared this here is because I'm not entirely sure that software can replicate what I'm looking for from journaling. I'm just not likely to look back through entries in a software format, or treat it as anything other than a log. The most flexible solution I know of is probably TiddlyWiki, although even with TW you can't get that direct-to-brain connection you get from pen and paper. I may be an edge case though, good luck!

1 comments

Thanks for your answer. I actually have been carrying a physical notebook for years. It keeps me organised and helps me remember things, but I've found it difficult to be disciplined with journaling - I'm currently thinking software might help in solving that, in sending me a reminder to journal and a quick way to put down a few thoughts everyday. I'll report back on how it goes!