How to Use Google Notebook

Introduction

• Google Notebook is a web-based note-taking tool. Since all notes are stored on Google's servers, you have access to them at anytime and from any computer. There are no downloads, or installs required. The only thing you need is a Google Account, and you're ready to go.

Step 1: Sign-Up & Login

• You must have a Google Account in order to use Google Notebook.

Sign-Up

• If you do not have an account:

1. Go to: http://www.google.com
2. Click on the Sign-In link located in the top-right corner of the page.
3. Click on the Create an account now link:

   • Create a Google Account

4. Fill out the Create an Account form.

Login

• As a Google Account holder:

1. Go to: http://www.google.com/notebook
2. Enter your Email & Password in the Sign-In form:

   • Google Notebook Sign-In

3. Click the Sign-In button.

Step 2: Create a Notebook

• Creating several different "notebooks" allows you to keep the information you collect while surfing the web organized. You might have a notebook for planning your wedding, a research project you're working on, funny images, job hunting, recipes or travel planning.

Create a Notebook

1. Click on the Create a new notebook... link located at the top of the sidebar on the left-hand side of your page.
2. Enter the name of your notebook in the highlighted Notebook 1 field.
3. Click OK.
4. The name of your new notebook will now appear in the left-hand sidebar along with any other notebooks you've created.

Step 3: Sections

• You can create sections in your notebook to further organize information. For instance, if you had a notebook named "San Diego Comic-Con" for your upcoming trip to San Diego, you might have sections titled "Hotel", "Travel" and "Schedule".

1. In the left-hand sidebar, click on the name of the Notebook for which you'd like to create sections.
2. At the top of your Notebook is a bar that reads "Type, paste, or add section." Click on the word Section.
   

   Click on the Section link.
3. Enter the name of the section you'd like to create in the highlighted Section 1 field.
   

   Enter the name of your section.
4. Click OK.
5. Your section will now appear in the list of sections in your notebook.
   • If you'd like to change the order of your sections, simply drag and drop them into place.
   • If you'd like to delete or change the name of the section, click on the drop-down menu on the right-hand side of the section header.

Step 4: New Notes

• Notes can be something you write or text you cut and paste from an article on the web.

1. In the left-hand sidebar, click on the name of the Notebook that you'd like to add a note to.
2. At the top of your Notebook is a bar that reads "Type, paste, or add section." Type or paste text into this field to create a new note.
   • If you'd like this note to appear in a particular section, click on the section's header. The same "Type, paste, or add section" field will appear directly beneath the header.
     

     Type or paste your note into the note field.
3. Your note will be automatically saved every few seconds, but you can assure that it has been saved by clicking on the Save now button located at the top right-hand side of your notebook.
4. To create a second note, click on the New note button at the top right-hand side of your notebook.
   • If you'd like to change the order of your notes or place it in a different section or notebook, simply drag and drop it into place.
   • If you'd like to delete, move or add a label to a note, click on the drop-down menu on the top right-hand side of the note by the date.

Step 5: Using Comments & Labels

• Comments and labels allow you to make your notes even more useful. With labels, you can make your notes searchable regardless of what section or notebook they're located in. With comments, you can make notes to yourself on the images and text you cut and paste from the internet—that way you don't forget why you saved a clip in the first place.

1. To create a comment, click on the Comment link at the bottom of any note box.
2. Enter your comment. It will be saved automatically.
3. To create a label, click on the Add labels link at the bottom of any note box.
4. Enter your labels. Choose terms that will be helpful in finding a note later. Your labels will be saved automatically.
   • To edit your labels, click on the Edit labels link at the bottom of any note box.

Sorting by Label

• There are two ways to find notes by the labels you've created:

1. Click on a label in the Labels box on the bottom left-hand side of the page.
2. Once you're in a notebook, click on the Sort by label or Sort notes with labels... link in the Sort & Filter drop-down menu in the upper left-hand corner of the page.

Step 6: Moving Notes

• All notes can be moved, both within the same notebook, and to a different notebook altogether.

Moving notes within the same notebook

1. Place your mouse over the left-side of the note. A blue sidebar will appear, and your cursor will change to the drag-n-drop symbol:
   • 

     Place cursor over the note you'd like to move.
2. Left-click on the note and drag it either up or down in your notebook.
3. When you've decided on the right spot, release your left mouse button, and the note will be moved to its new place.

Moving notes to a different notebook

1. Place your mouse over the left-side of the note. A blue sidebar will appear, and your cursor will change to the drag-n-drop symbol.
2. Left-click on the note and drag it to the left into a different notebook:
   • 

     Drag your note into a different notebook.
3. Release your left mouse button, and the note will be moved to other notebook.

Step 7: Finding Notes

• There are several ways to find a note you saved.

1. Type a keyword into the Google Notebook search bar. Click on Search My Notes.
   

   Google Notebook Search Box
2. Click on the Sort & Filter drop-down menu in the upper left-hand corner of the page. You can sort your notes by date or label.
3. Click on a label in the Labels box on the bottom left-hand side of the page.
   

   Google Notebook Labels Box

Step 8: Deleting Notes

• If you have notes that you no longer need, you can delete them:

1. Choose Delete from the drop-down menu located in the top-right corner of every note:
   • 

     Deleting a note
2. You can also delete entire Notebooks. Make sure that the notebook is open and choose Delete notebook from the Tools menu:
   • 

     Deleting a notebook
3. If you've deleted a note by accident, you can quickly undo the action by clicking on the Undo link:
   • 

     Undo a deleted note
4. Finally, if some time has gone by, and you realize that you need a deleted note, you can always look in the Trash. All deleted notes are stored for 30 days:
   • 

     Restore a deleted note

Step 9: Sharing Notebooks

• You can share your notebooks with friends, as well as publish them online for everyone to see:

1. Click on the Sharing options link:
   • 

     Sharing options
2. Type your friends' e-mail addresses into the text box. They will be sent an email with a link to your notebook. Not only will they be allowed to view the notebook, but they will also be able to add content to it:
   • 

     Inviting Friends
3. To make your page open to the general public, click the Yes radio button located under Publish this notebook...
4. You will be given the exact URL of the notebook page, which you can then send to anyone.

Step 10: Browser Extension

• Google Notebook has a browser extension that allows you to view and edit your notes without actually having to visit the Google Notebook website.

• The Google Notebook extension is available for both the Internet Explorer browser as well as Firefox.

1. To download the extension, click on the Download the browser extension link:
   • 

     Find and click on the above link on your Google Notebook page.
2. Make sure you understand the Terms of Service and click the Accept and Download button:
   • 

     Click Accept and Download
3. To bring up the Google Notebook mini-window, click on the notebook icon located in your browser's status bar:
   • 

     Google Notebook Mini-Window

• You'll notice that the mini-window is a compact version of the actual Google Notebook site. Notebooks and Labels are in the left sidebar, and Sections and Notes are on the right side of the window.

• You can use this extension to add notes in one of two ways:

1. Highlight some text or an image on a website. Click on the yellow star located at the bottom of the mini-window. The highlighed area will be added as a new note to your current notebook. You can then drag-n-drop this note into another notebook if need be.
2. Highlight some text or an image on a website. Right-click on the highlighted text or image and choose from the context menu:

Step 11: Open in Firefox Sidebar

• Here's a tip on opening Google Notebook in your Firefox Sidebar:

1. Right-click on this link, and choose "Bookmark This Link." Save it as you would any other bookmark.
2. Next, go to this bookmark in your Firefox browser and right-click on it.
3. Click on "Properties":
   • 

     Click on Properties
4. Check the box labeled "Load this bookmark in the sidebar":
   • 

     Check this box to load Google Notebook in the sidebar.
5. Click the "OK" button.

• The next time you click on the bookmark, Google Notebook will open in the Firefox sidebar.

Step 12: Note Google Search Results

• When you have a Google Notebook account, you can easily save any Google search result to it:

1. Go to http://www.google.com
2. Type in a search term. For this example, we'll search for "Mahalo."
3. When the search results appear, click on the Note This link to save the result to your Google Notebook:

   • Google Search Result for Mahalo

Step 13: Add to iGoogle

• You can keep track of your Google Notebook notes right from your iGoogle start page. To add the Google Notebook gadget:

1. Go to your iGoogle page: http://www.google.com/ig
2. Click on the Add Stuff link.
3. In the search box, type "Google Notebook":
   • 

     Find the Google Notebook Gadget
4. When the search results appear, click the "Add it now" button located under Google Notebook:
   • 

     Add the Google Notebook Gadget
5. Click the "Back to iGoogle home" link.

• The Google Notebook gadget will be located at the top left corner of your iGoogle page.

Resources for How to Use Google Notebook

• Google Notebook
• Google Notebook FAQ
• Google Notebook Blog
• Google Notebook Data API
• Wikipedia: Google Notebook
• Lifehacker: Getting Things Done with Google Notebook (May 2, 2007)
• Lifehacker: Clip and collect the web with Google Notebook (May 16, 2006)
• TechCrunch: Google Notebook Screen Shots (May 11, 2006)

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