One of the best parts about writing for the brief is that I get the opportunity to try out all kinds of stuff. Another good part is then if I like it I can say so, and if I don’t like it I can say that too. However there are times when it is a little tough, specially when you look at a site that does almost the same exact thing as other sites out there do. But enough about my personal problems and on to the review.

Ubernote is yet another offering in the task management, note taking website area similar to Remember the Milk and other such sites. However I like these sites, so I like Ubernote as well. Plus it just has a real neat name and the starting of a community, which is actually where the biggest difference exists in Ubernote. It seems that today almost everyone wants to start a website, and more often than not those websites copy another website, but while Ubernote does provide a very similar service to other sites, it has a very active forum area that shows that there is more to Ubernote than its function. If there is a reason to use Ubernote over other similar offerings it is the fact it has a fledgling community. I hope they encourage this community and use it as a way to really make Ubernote a unique place to visit.

Once in a while I find a product that actually flat out amazes me. Evernote is one of those products. While at first glance Evernote appers to be yet another offering in the easy note taking software market. This note taking application does a lot more than most of them. First I can transfer my notes from a variety of sources including Outlook Express, Excel, and Microsoft word. This process is simple and easy to figure out. Second the interface is just fun to look at and play with. Finally the amount of options offered to the user is just short of staggering.

For instance, maybe you really dig one of our posts here on the tech brief, and you want to save it so you can refer back to it without having to dig through all of our archives. Simply copy the post select the web clips category on the Evernote interface, click the new note button and paste. Now you have the post saved in its original form to look at time and time again until your hearts content. If you are big time Microsoft Excel user Evernote is great for that as well. Just drag the tables you want to keep over into the evernote box and you now have them in an easy to find and reference location.

Honestly I don’t really have much to complain about with this product other than the fact it costs money. Yet also in all honesty I feel the money will be well spent on and excellent product. If you use other note taking software I can understand but I highly recommend Evernote to everyone, it just rocks.

Why is it that every time someone comes up with a good idea, everyone else takes the same idea, claims they have made it better and then puts out the exact same thing that everyone else has? That is exactly the question I had to ask myself about Sync notes. Sync notes is yet another offering to the desktop note taking market that bills itself as “Your notes, anywhere, anyhow” and really fails to provide any real reason to use them. However other than the fact that there is really nothing unique or new about syncnotes, it does do its job well.

I have covered many similar applications such as remember the milk and Mojonote, who all promise to make my life simpler by allowing me a one stop source for all my note taking/task mangement needs. What I am starting to find out slowly though is that for the most part one is as good as another. They all allow you to post your notes online, and by cell phone (provided of course it has some form of internet connection). However one interesting feature of Syncnote is that it has a downloadable desktop application (much like microsoft offices one note). This may actually be its one feature that makes it worth getting over all the other note taking applications out there.

Lets say you are writing on your desktop, a friend calls and tells you they have moved to a new address, simply open up the syncnote icon, type in your note, press the synchronize note button and it will appear online. Now admitted it would be just as easy to simply open your browser go to a bookmarked syncnote page and enter it there, but the honest truth is that there are times where internet is actually not available (which also kind of makes the synchronizing button a bit of a waste).

Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate syncnotes, I actually think that it is a good application, I just wish it were a little more inovative and offered something to make it stand out in the crowd. So in the end if you are looking for a solid note taking application, give syncnotes a try here.