Instanote - another note taking app joins my workflow

Long time readers know I'm fascinated by note taking apps. Primarily Evernote, where I'm now closing in on 35,000 notes since 2008. Google Keep also has a place in my work flow.

My latest phone has 128 gig of storage. That leaves room for apps I might never use after an initial experience.

Such was Instanote. It was a fun little app that stored notes on a sequential roll. It was actually reminiscent of an early version of Evernote before it was redesigned and went big time. Evernote briefly used the same metaphor.

I liked my first look at Instanote, but had not use case then for it. Yet I kept it on my phone. Turned out to be a good thing.

Life happens, and for me that meant unexpected surgery in early April. I'm okay, but I now need to pay attention to taking pills and taking measurements like blood pressure.

During my hospital stay, I found Instanote on my phone. It was almost perfect for recording notes from doctor visits, and such. On my release, I used it to record blood pressure, temperature and other attributes.

My doctors were impressed with the amount of data I could report back to them during visits.

The only complaint I had was that it showed notes in date/time updated order. If I edited a note, then the note ended up in the wrong place, with the wrong date/time recorded. I mentioned that in feedback to the developer.

The developer reached out to me and we discussed my need. He updated the app and sent me a beta to evaluate. Amazing response. It now allows sorting by date/time created.

He also had me a test the export to CSV file. That is good for backup and for preparing a spreadsheet I can send my doctors.

There is a lot more to Instanote than this. It supports both Android and IOS. It has reminders, lists, sharing, and color coding of notes. Color coding is handy for me to make measurements stand out from medications etc. There is even a web version for when I'm working on my laptop.

It may not be for everyone; no note taking app. You might find a use for Instanote as I have.

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