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hello,
i am an author and recently heard of this software while looking for a tablet laptop. i read a lot of info on microsoft's web site for this software but can't figure out if what i would like to use it for is possible, so i'm hoping someone here can tell me.
i'd like to be able to have one document for each chapter. i'd like to write the chapter by hand on the tablet and have it converted to text, preferably a ms word document. is there an option to start a new paragraph? i won't mind having to change the margins or font once it's in ms word.
is this possible? any assistance would be greatly appreciated. thank you.
Tracy * * * * * * * * * *
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On Mar 18, 12:51 pm, "Tracy" <Tracy.bug...[ at ]cant.spam.me> wrote:
[Quoted Text] > hello, > > i am an author and recently heard of this software while looking for a > tablet laptop. i read a lot of info on microsoft's web site for this > software but can't figure out if what i would like to use it for is > possible, so i'm hoping someone here can tell me. > > i'd like to be able to have one document for each chapter. i'd like to write > the chapter by hand on the tablet and have it converted to text, preferably > a ms word document. > is there an option to start a new paragraph? > i won't mind having to change the margins or font once it's in ms word. > > is this possible? > any assistance would be greatly appreciated. > thank you. > > Tracy > * * * * * * * * * *
1) Do you have a Tablet PC ? 2) Did you know there is a 60 day free Trial of OneNote ? 3) The writing to Text conversion is unlikely to be good enough not to be a hassle ? 4) Can you type ? 5) Why not try Dragon Naturally Speaking 9 (it works well).
I guess it depends on when and how you are going to do your writing. It's not all that pleasing looking at a computer screen ... use paper and then dictate it
6) Windows Vista is supposed to be pretty good with speech. 7) Windows Vista handwriting recognition is supposed to be quite better than Windows XP Tablet Edition (never tested by me yet). 8) What might work for you is Googy TwoNote (google it). OneNote's strength is not really long pages (which I presume 1 chapter would likely get pretty long). What might be OK is inking in TwoNote or Journal when you have to ink (? are you on a train/bus ?). 9) Paper is good, don't forget that.
This really really depends on your exact situation where you are going to do your writing. My suggestion is that if at all possible use a keyboard or paper ! :)
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I would agree with the stuff EMRhelp suggested, but only because it was on-target, not because it specifically answered your questions directly.
Like you, I do a lot of writing. I spent over 20 years as a writer -- journalist, writer, reporter, and editor -- now I do a lot of freelancing, as well as writing for non-profit entities.
Using OneNote can be a great help, but why would you want to write the stuff manually? Sure, jotting notes is good for keeping things fresh in your mind, which is why I carry 3"x5" index cards in my pocket, along with a pen. You never know when a great idea will strike -- and you never want to miss that once-in-a-lifetime chance to seize that one nugget of truth.
This is where you insert EMRhelp's reply.
If you watch the video MS has on the OneNote page, you will see you can dictate (especially using Vista). Using Vista, in fact, you can have the computer "type" for you. That's a cool feature, but for me, I can type much faster than Vista can listen and type, so for me, keyboarding everything is the way to go. Even Drag NaturallySpeaking is too slow for me.
Using OneNote, though, is like using a loose-leaf binder. It can be for hand-written notes (why?!), or typed notes. I have several OneNote notebooks for writing -- and each one is broken down with its own dividers -- just like a looseleaf binder. Think of the looseleaf binder as one in which you slip printed pages into for storage. Or think of it as a book-in-progress. If you want to write each chapter, that's fine, too. Just save each one with a different tab -- or whatever setup you want. Perhaps you want each chapter as a separate OneNote notebook. You will see many notebooks open in OneNote -- and if you have 10 chapters, it's possible that you'd see all the chapters open at once.
My suggestion is to download the trial copy -- or, for the shelf price of OneNote, buy a copy and write it off on your taxes as a business expense -- and figure out how it works best for you.
When you're done writing, export it to an MS Word document, PDF, or whatever format works for you.
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In article <D8908DCD-8540-44F1-A42C-24580474E190[ at ]microsoft.com>, Scoop[ at ]discussions.microsoft.com says...
[Quoted Text] > Using OneNote can be a great help, but why would you want to write the stuff > manually? >
I have been using computers since the first Radio Shack Model-1 but I still think better and more freely in handwriting. When I am handwriting, I don't worry so much about if I am spelling it right or punctuation. I don't have to worry about where the keys are and I don't have to look one place and do something with my hands in another place. This may be easy with lots of practice but it is still not as easy as just writing it down. I definitely do write slower in handwriting but it seems to be at just the right pace to match how fast I think of what I want to write. I have far fewer pauses where I have to stop and think of what I want to write. So, if I already know exactly what I want to write then it can be faster in typing. But if I am thinking as I write, then it can go more smoothly if I hand write it.
I know that OneNote's voice or handwriting to text conversion isn't perfect. But my typing isn't perfect either. If I were to just type without fixing the errors then it would be much worse than either voice or handwriting to text conversion. At least the latter always spells the words correctly.
Usually, if what I have written is of a personal or creative nature, I will not convert it directly to text. I will copy it to another page and convert that to text. Throwing away the original handwritten version is like throwing away the core of my original creativity. Sometimes, I like to look back over things in my own handwriting. It can bring my mind back to where it was when I originally wrote the material much better than just looking at converted text. I do admit that it is nearly impossible to edit something I wrote in handwriting. I just forget about that and pretend I wrote it in ink on paper. But, in OneNote, I can search for words in that handwriting and easily copy parts of it and use them elsewhere.
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In article <#5qWf2XaHHA.1216[ at ]TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl>, Tracy.bugoff[ at ]cant.spam.me says...
[Quoted Text] > i'd like to write the chapter by hand on the tablet and have it > converted to text, preferably a ms word document.
Really, the best way to "convert" something from OneNote to Word is to just copy and paste it. I use OneNote to work up my outlines and original thoughts. Then I copy what I need over to Word to finalize the document.
> is there an option to start a new paragraph?
Unfortunately, no. You can skip down a couple of lines when handwriting but OneNote doesn't always get the clue. Plus, it seems to dynamically decide where carriage returns belong within handwriting and changes them around sometimes. Lines that were correctly in separate paragraphs one day could suddenly be in the same paragraph tomorrow, especially if you edit anything around them. Take it from someone who has been fighting this issue for years - and who has written an article about about using handwriting in ON 2003 - you are much better off accepting the fact that OneNote has no clue as to the structure of your handwriting. It won't know where paragraphs start and end, it won't know whether something is indented or not. So don't expect to do any REAL outlining in OneNote. You can write out something that looks like an outline but to OneNote it is just a bunch of words in rows. That is as smart as it gets on this issue. Microsoft's video demos will try to make it look as if you can do this but they are either very carefully crafted or are simply faked.
All of this being said, I still use OneNote extensively for all my thought organizing. I just accept the fact that it can only do so much.
> i won't mind having to change the margins or font once it's in ms word.
When you copy and paste text over from OneNote expect to only be transferring the text. One of the biggest mistakes people make when they start to use OneNote is to attempt to use OneNote to FORMAT their document. OneNote is for organizing things, not formatting them. Yes, you can change the font of text but I recommend against it. OneNote doesn't really even understand the concept of margins. Each block of text is whatever width you set it to by dragging the edges. It can be positioned anywhere you want, even three feet over to the right. Think of a OneNote page as just an infinite sheet of paper that automatically expands in any direction to make space for whatever you put on it. Don't think of it as a document. Think of it as a place to stick thoughts or information that you can easily get back to and you will get the best use out of it.
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EMRhelp, thanks for telling me how I "should" do stuff. I've been writing professionally for more than 28 years. I write, using pen (or pencil, crayon, etc.) on paper, matchbook covers, or napkins. I write using any tool that does the job for me.
Frankly, Word is NOT a tool I want to use for the majority of the writing I do, as it adds code that is not recognized in other programs, or that simply adds garbage to the final product.
A lot of my writing is actually done in Notepad++ then dumped into QuarkXPress or InDesign, depending on the project I am working on, then saved to OneNote for my historical reference. See, Word is NOT a tool I want to use at all.
Thanks for the link to the hipster PDA. My Franklin Planner does fine, though. < http://snipurl.com/1e5v5 >
"EMRhelp.org" wrote:
[Quoted Text] > Scoop, if you type in OneNote, you should use Word instead. > Whatever function you are likely to use in OneNote as a writer, I > highly suspect Word would do a better job. > > OneNote has INK, but I'd use cue cards like you do instead. > > Get a Hipster PDA - http://www.43folders.com/2004/09/03/introducing-the-hipster-pda/> >
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Seems you and I started out about the same time. I got a TRaSh-80 brand new back in the day.
Have fun!
"Grant Robertson" wrote:
[Quoted Text] > I have been using computers since the first Radio Shack Model-1 but I > still think better and more freely in handwriting. When I am handwriting, > I don't worry so much about if I am spelling it right or punctuation. I > don't have to worry about where the keys are and I don't have to look one > place and do something with my hands in another place.
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