I’m not the person you asked, but I evaluated and passed on Notion (and Coda, and Airtable) for similar reasons.
I need a system that syncs, works offline, helps capture structured-ish data, is quick+flexible, and has fabulous linking.
I discovered and am currently using Obsidian.Md. I use Ulysses to access and edit on iPhone+iPad.
I love that it is markdown-based, linking is super easy, and everything is fast.
Cons: doesn’t work super well with native macOS features (e.g. services), native app for iOS/Android is still in private beta, and I don’t like the separation between edit and view modes. Also it could probably use a stronger UI for database-like features (e.g. tags). I wish there were better options for inking on mobile, but that’s not really their thing.
Previously was a OneNote devotee, but as I get into more complicated community engagement work, I needed something that could cross-link and find patterns.
I appreciate this write-up! I've been considering a migration from Evernote to Obsidian/Notion/other-competitor for a while as Evernote's UI gets steadily worse, and this reconfirms my perspective that Obsidian is leading the pack. Thanks!
> I wish there were better options for inking on mobile
Mobile beta is pretty similar to the desktop app. Like even most of the plugins I use work fine on my phone. The only real complaint I have is that it's kinda slow to start on a phone. Not as slow as Notion, but still takes a few seconds.
> and I don’t like the separation between edit and view modes.
I need a system that syncs, works offline, helps capture structured-ish data, is quick+flexible, and has fabulous linking.
I discovered and am currently using Obsidian.Md. I use Ulysses to access and edit on iPhone+iPad.
I love that it is markdown-based, linking is super easy, and everything is fast.
Cons: doesn’t work super well with native macOS features (e.g. services), native app for iOS/Android is still in private beta, and I don’t like the separation between edit and view modes. Also it could probably use a stronger UI for database-like features (e.g. tags). I wish there were better options for inking on mobile, but that’s not really their thing.
Previously was a OneNote devotee, but as I get into more complicated community engagement work, I needed something that could cross-link and find patterns.