#7

GoodNotes is good and searches your handwriting but does not convert it to text.

I think Prizmo and Nebo convert your writing to plain text.

Nebo lets you export as PDF as well.

#8

GoodNotes can easily convert handwriting to text. (Lasso the relevant text, and then “Convert”, and export the plain text in the resulting window ). I forgot to mention that!

6 Likes
#9

You can also drag and drop once lasso’d to apps like Drafts. Pretty magical.

1 Like
#10

And I just discovered that the Apple Pencil “Scribble” function works just fine in Obsidian Mobile, on the iPad. Very cool!

4 Likes
#11

I’ve been scribbling! It’s awesome!

1 Like
#12

With a reMarkable you can convert your handwritten notes into word documents, and you get pretty decent results.

1 Like
#13

I am more into writing on paper. What I am thinking about is how to link the handwritten and scanned paper slips.
Here’s an example
https://github.com/crelder/zettelkasten/wiki
I think the linking via file prefix (see source) is not really practicable…does anyone has something similar implemented with obsidian?

2 Likes
#14

I take notes in workshops with my reMarkable 2, extract each session’s notes into a PDF, and insert that into Obsidian notes that detail other aspects of the topic for that workshop that were not discussed during the group session.

(I don’t convert the reMarkable notes to Word. My notes ramble all over the page with illustrations, arrows, etc., that Word cannot deal with.)

2 Likes
#15

Do you know if there is any plans for Rocketbook to export to Obsidian? That would be a game changer for me (and a lot of other folks) I imagine.

I recently got some of their reusable index cards. I would LOVE to be able to scan those and send them directly to obsidian.

3 Likes
#16

I don’t know of any. I wish, though, right?

1 Like
#17

I’ve been trying different apps and still haven’t found a single one that does one basic thing which I think is crucial: Keep the handwriting and convert it to text on the same page without much manual work. I can write in most apps and many make it searchable which is cool. But this searchable text can hardly be copied properly without unnecessary line breaks and spaces. For the time being, I’m writing in Apple Notes and then copying the handwritten part as text and then exporting it as PDF.

Does anyone know of any app which could automate the second part ie converting handwriting to text without removing the handwriting using Shortcuts or any other apps (like Scriptable)?

1 Like
#18

As I was saying, Rocketbook does okay at this. I think the problem is that OCR still isn’t a completely reliable tech, because millions of people and millions of styles of handwriting, but it does a tolerable job for my purposes. I have had to transcribe a little, but it does some of the best I’ve seen. You don’t even have to have one of the books, just use their sheets, or make your own with their QR codes and destination dots.

#19

Thanks for the recommendation! Unfortunately, it seems to add a lot more friction in writing and then taking a picture. The part about taking a picture could get cumbersome soon I imagine. I’ve tried this with Evernote (Scannable) in the past and gave up in 2 weeks easily. What is your workflow like when keeping the handwritten notes?

#20

I don’t keep the written notes. But if I did, the process would be about the same. Write the notes, scan them in using the Rocketbook app – or the Adobe scan app (also free) and then store the notes.

Both of those apps use a scanner, so, it’s not “taking pictures” as much as holding phone steady and letting it collect the data. Not sure how else you’d digitize the information other than letting a camera at it.

Alphasmart/Freewrite, Rocketbook longhand & ObsidianMD
#21

I see. The way I see it is if I’m starting with the assumption that I need to digitise everything anyway, it is better to just write things on the device already using one of the many handwriting apps instead of writing it on paper and then using the camera. The only limitation I’m hitting with all the apps is the inability to keep both the handwriting and text except for manual copy/pasting.

#22

Alternate viewpoint: I think retyping my literature notes is actually more valuable than seamlessly converting them to typed text.

Of course, you sacrifice time. That’s something that I’m ok with because I find the benefits of memory retrieval from handwriting and retyping to be greater than the negatives of increased time to get my notes into Obsidian.

We all have different requirements, but I thought I’d just mention that I think there could be some value in taking the long road.

10 Likes
#23

Try Nebo, it does it instantly right above the text you wrote and you can copy it out. Even better, when you return to any handwritten note and you select it and press Command + C and you got the text copied :slight_smile:
It is not my favorite handwriting app but for this purpose it is the best.

#24

Thanks. The last time I tried it, however, it couldn’t export both the handwriting and text on the same page. Has that changed now?

#25

No the quick copy & past only grabs the plane text of what you wrote. If you need both, I believe the only way is to export it to a PDF which is not as quick and easy if you only want a segment of it because you can only export an entire note :confused: The plane text is copiable and searchable in the PDF.

You could create always a new note and then save the PDF in your Obsidian vault to get quick access to it.

#26

PDF is how I’m saving them now (although I take handwritten notes at a minimum because of the friction) using the built-in notes app. I almost never need to save a fragment so saving the full note is fine. Could you please check if it exports both the handwriting and text automatically? In Notes, I need to copy/paste handwriting below to get text and then I can export.