Category: Note Keeping

Need to Add Note Keeping Schemes to Indieseek.xyz

10 August 2022

I need to add categories for different Note Keeping schemes to Indieseek.xyz directory.   Have to figure out where this fits in taxonomy.

Should include:

Both how to’s, definitions and real life examples.

Digital and analog paper.

Commonplace book, digital garden, zettelkasten, journals, logs, others.  (Name more others. )

Taxonomy could be tricky.  I don’t think I will split digital vs analog into subcats.  Must look at existing taxo.

(Side note: One could create whole section of what I call “stationary p*rn” (ie. writing paper, fountain pens, ink, ball points, journals, note books, blotters, etc. and/or “office p*rn” staplers, paper clip holders, card file cabinets, file folders, filing cabinets, postage stamp roll holders, stamp pads, …)

Adding a Chronological Sort order Journal by Category

I found two WordPress plugins that change the sort order of a category (not the whole installation) to a chronological sort order.  These will also work with ClassicPress.

 

It appears these will both do about the same thing.

What I like:

  1. By enabling chronological post order this emulates a paper journal, diary, book, log book (think ship’s log).  This is the reverse of and distinct from a blog.
  2. You can do just a category not the whole CMS installation.  So a blog or a digital zettelkasten  and a journal can exist on the same ClassicPress or WP instance.
  3. One is not limited to a journal.  One could web publish a book.
  4. The thought of doing something fictional comes to mind.  A. a Lovecraftian type journal wherein the narrator starts investigating strange eldrich events and ends up a gibbering madman, or  B.  some sort of serial hard boiled noir story.

I’m thinking about how this would fit in here on the cyberzettel.  A Zettelkasten is non-linear by design but there is also a use for linear note keeping (ie. reacting to news events of the day,  organizing ones short term plans for the next day or something like that.)

It could turn just a zettelkasten into more of a digital garden model.  It certainly adds options.

There is also something to be said for an end of the day personal log which can act as a daily debriefing session.

Chris Aldrich and his Research on digital public zettelkasten

I’m curious if anyone has tried building a digital public zettelkasten on WordPress…

Note by Chris Aldrich.

Chris’s question is what started me thinking about and cobbling together this site: Cyberzettel.  It’s going to be a work in progress as I figure out what works for me.

Chris has done a lot of research and thinking about note taking approaches in general and both paper and digital zettelkasten.  His ongoing quest is available here and is well worth reading through along with the comments.

Digital Garden

I’m not really sure what a digital garden is.  I think it is a place for notes to grow ideas or projects.

Most that I have seen have been in outline format.  I am terrible at outlines.  Worse on paper, slightly better on digital.  Still bad, me.

However, if you are good at making outlines I can see where this would be very powerful.

Plus it’s a cool name.

Added 10 August 2022:

See comments below for excellent links defining and explaining digital gardens.

How This Works: Zettelkasten

Zettelkasten

German

Zettel = slip of paper. (Like an index card.)

kasten = box

So notes on slips of paper stored in a box.

How this is supposed to work.

The idea is that each post represents one note.  In the dirt world each note would be on one index card.

A note can be any length.  Most are short but others will be longer.

There is no rulebook for this so I’m going to use:

Categories for broad topics:  (ie. search engines, computers, social networks)

Tags will be more specific:  (ie. Google, Amiga, Twitter)

At least that is how I’m going to try it at start.  Between categories, tags and site search I should be able to find notes.

The second point of this is through categories and tags you will find relationships between things, concepts and ideas that you didn’t think were related.  But for this to start happening you need a certain critical mass of notes.

In the meantime,  you have your notes all in one place AND you can find them.