Google Notebook's Early Retirement

Sadly, everyone's favorite search engine and web application provider, Google, has decided to discontinue development of its Notebook utility. I discovered this when I finally decided to upgrade my Inspiron from Ubuntu's Jaunty Jackalope to Karmic Koala 1, and found that no Notebook extension exists for Firefox 3.5. While the developers at Google don't offer any explanation as to why they decided to discontinue development, the advice they offer seems to suggest that they consider much of its functionality redundant with other services that they offer. Once I learned that Notebook would be retired, I began researching the alternatives discussed below.

Option One -- Stick with Google

Users who wish to stick with Google Notebook can of course do so. Google has discontinued development, but plans to maintain the service indefinitely. This means that users can continue to use the service as it exists now, and will continue to have access to whatever information they have stored in Notebook. Some of the more advanced users have even modified the Firefox plugin to work with version 3.5 (i.e. they bumped the "maximum value" variable in the plugin's compatibility check up to 3.5). The modified plugin is available here: http://googlenotebookextension.blogspot.com/2009/06/google-notebook-extension-for-firefox.html

Alternatively, users can attempt to replace Notebook with the alternative applications that Google suggests. The developers suggest four applications, which combined could approximate some of Notebook's functionality. The first application they mention, SearchWiki, is integrated into Google's search engine. It allows users to rate, include, remove, and comment on the results of a Google search. For more extensive note taking functions, the developers suggest the venerable Google Docs. The word-processing capabilities of Docs far excedes those of Notebook. Tasklist features have been added to Gmail as an integrated Tasks utility. Finally, users can bookmark important websites using Google's Bookmarks application. Bookmarks stored with this utility can be labeled (think tags) and searched in a manner similar to a web browser's bookmark collection. The primary advantage to Google Bookmarks is that it is accessible to users on any computer.

Option Two -- Zoho Notebook

Users who prefer the integrated functionality offered by Google Notebook can also turn to Zoho Notebook. I hadn't heard of Zoho before this, but a preliminary look at their services seems to indicate that they are the anti-Google2 of web applications and email for business users. Zoho's developers seem to have put significant effort into giving their applications a "Google-esque" feel, and into integrating them with Microsoft's products (as well with OpenOffice). Microsoft Office and OpenOffice users, particularly business users, may find Notebook useful.

Option Three -- Evernote

The Evernote Corporation offers a more advanced notebook and web clipping utility, named (aptly enough) "Evernote." In addition to the original features of Google Notebook, Evernote allows users to insert images, audio and video files, and provides handwriting recognition for tablet PCs and image files. As someone with an adviser who frequently uses the white board in his brainstorming sessions, I am rather fond of this feature. As with Google Notebook and Zoho Notebook, these services are web-based and available for free. A premium service that provides faster recognition and larger upload limits is also available for $5.00 per month. Evernote also offers software downloads for various portable devices, as well as a desktop version for Mac and Windows--but not Linux. As the application is web-based, I'm not quite sure what the point of the desktop versions is, which is why I was able to forgive them for not having a Linux version. A browser plugin is also available for Firefox 3.5.

Option Four -- UberNote

I discovered UberNote while looking for the Evernote plugin on my office computer. It looks and feels much more like Google Notebook than Evernote does. Its primary functions include website clippings, tasklists, notes, and bookmarks. Instead of a top-down hierarchical classification system, the notes are organized by tags, meaning that a single note can be included in multiple categories. While I personally tend to go way overboard when it comes to tagging my content, I do prefer the ability to assign multiple tags to a single item. The speed of UberNote's server seems efficient, and the application itself is free to use. According to the website, a premium version is coming at some point, although I'm not sure what the advantages to a premium account will be. As with Evernote, Ubernote has a browser plugin for Firefox 3.5. Although Evernote has a few more features, I decided to go with UberNote after playing with it for a while. It offers the features I'm looking for with very little overhead.

Option Five -- Springnote

I learned about Springnote from one of the comments below. It has wide array of features, such as different notebook types, group notebooks, and a watch list. Notebooks are organized into a hierarchy, which may be preferable for people who tend to get lose track of tags. The server running Springnote also seems to be efficient, and a free user account comes with 2 GB of file storage space. Users can authenticate with OpenID, which eliminates the need to create a new user ID and password. I didn't find a Firefox plugin, but Springnote has an open API, so one could be developed.

Option Six -- Go Local

Another option is to abandon the web-based notebook concept entirely, and use a local application to manage web clippings and other notes. Microsoft users can do this with OneNote, and Linux users can use Lognoter. While I think that Lognoter looks quite helpfully, I consider it overkill for what I'm looking for. There's also the drawback of not being able to access your notebooks via the web. On the other hand, there's the advantage of being able to access your notebook when you don't have access to the Internet.

Conclusion

That more or less completes my foray into the world of online notebooks and web clipping. Google Notebook itself is still available, and other Google applications can replace some of its functionality. Alternatively, Zoho Notebook and Evernote offer similar online services, and OneNote and Lognoter offer these services on a local machine. Other suggestions are always welcome.

1. 1. Despite my faith in the Ubuntu development team, the issues I encountered when going from Hardy to Intrepid have turned me into something of a late adopter when it comes to the latest releases. Much of this hesitation stems from the knowledge that my computer has reached the technological equivalent to middle age.
2. 2. The prefix "anti-" in this case means "in place of," not "against," as many tend to use it.