Noto's résumé
The reasoning behind Noto's roadmap
Before we start: Many new subscribers this week… Welcome and thank you for joining this app development adventure! Please don’t hesitate to interact and be active: This project is still small enough that your voice will count a lot!
Inspired by Jobs Theory, I have structured Noto’s roadmap around the three main jobs that it should complete for you:
“I want to remember the important things that come up while doing something else”
“I want to use my time better, focus on what's really important, and worry less about it”
“I want to develop my thoughts into complex ideas and projects”
Based on research, and my own experience, there is a big opportunity in creating a product that solves for these jobs, especially if you do it in the same app… There are so many synergies between them, and so few acceptable solutions! Just to name some examples:
You’re on a walk and you have an idea for the big pitch you’re preparing.
During a meeting, your boss adds two new tasks that need to be completed before tomorrow.
While working on a big project, you realize there are some tasks that need to be completed before you can keep going.
There are very few solutions (if any!) that allow you to connect all these things together in a simple an integrated way. There are cool things coming from the crazy Roam Research community, but those feel too hacky and unintuitive to me.
I want to bring this to everyone.
With all that in mind, this is the current backlog of Noto, organized by job:
“I want to remember the important things that come up while doing something else”
Mobile app: We all carry a connected, powerful computer in our pockets… And we pay a high price for it! Noto will help you get more from it.
Instant load + quick capture: While you’re on the go, you don’t want to wait for the app to open, authenticate and then go into some “compose note” screen. In Noto you just open, type and move on.
Automatic classification: You are on a walk, or eating out, or watching TV, or at work… You don’t want to fiddle with titles, labels or folders! Notes in Noto are classified automatically based on your own rules.
Attachments: As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words sometimes. Or maybe it’s a location? Or a link? Whatever it is, you can attach it to a Noto note.
“I want to use my time better, focus on what's really important, and worry less about it”
Smart To-Dos: Noto’s to-dos are useful, unlike the usual list of tasks that are never finished: You can annotate how long they will take, when you need to have them done, or until when you can forget about them.
Agenda view and connection to calendar: When life starts becoming busy, a simple agenda can become your biggest ally: Plan your days and weeks in advance and you’ll be rewarded with focus and efficiency (don’t forget to keep it flexible and realistic!)
Assisted scheduling of To-Dos: Thanks to the smarts described above, Noto can help you answer the really important question: When do I have time for this?
“I want to develop my thoughts into complex ideas and projects”
Web app: When it comes to deep work, nothing beats the big screen and the physical keyboard. Noto’s progressive web app is fast, and gives you all the space you need for the most complex projects.
Linked notes: Inspired by Zettelkasten, notes in Noto can be linked and backlinked, creating an interconnected graph of individual thoughts (the same as your brain!)
Note graph export: When it’s time to consolidate your work, pull the thread and all your connected notes will present themselves, ready to be converted into a presentation, a blog post, a book, or whatever you’re creating!
Note formatting: Noto is not (and will never be) a place for text editing but it gives you the basics that cover 90% of your needs: Bold, italic, and lists.
Noto’s job definitions and the roadmap associated to it are constantly evolving. Your feedback and thoughts are one of the most important sources of change.
Are you inspired by this? Anything to add? Let’s start a conversation! Feel free to write me on Twitter or by email.
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