Bi-directional Linking

[friz 19]

Not that this is a new idea, but a recent new kid on the block in note-taking apps has it at one of their killer features. It got me wondering -- does anyone here think Evernote may add bi-directional linking somewhere down the line?

[DTLow 5,736]

3 hours ago, friz said:

does anyone here think Evernote may add bi-directional linking somewhere down the line?

No idea but Evernote has not indicated an interest in this function 

The note's id is embedded in a note-link; a backlink list can be generated by a search   
I'm able to generate this list on a Mac using my backup Evernote data

The screenshot shows a list of all notes
with a link to note 72b0b6868776

 

 

[Dave-in-Decatur 3,959]

On 5/3/2020 at 3:59 PM, friz said:

Not that this is a new idea, but a recent new kid on the block in note-taking apps has it at one of their killer features. It got me wondering -- does anyone here think Evernote may add bi-directional linking somewhere down the line?

Old kid on the block here. Can you say more about what bi-directional linking is and does, esp. in relation to what it could do in Evernote?

[bounce 74]

This will give you an idea of the power of bi-directional links: https://reddit.com/r/RoamResearch/comments/giei3w/bidirectional_links_how_is_it_different_from/ 

they are different than tags in that they help you quickly synthesize information and connect ideas without losing flow. Many new note taking apps are adding the feature. 

[OsamaREO 7]

A backlink feature in Evernote would be awesome!, I don't want to lose all those notes in Evernote if I move over to Roamresearch.

[hkgnp 7]

With all the hype going around apps that offer backlinking (Roam, Athens, Obsidian, etc.), do you all think that Evernote should go down that road and offer backlinks?

Maybe not in the way that Roam does, but more like how Evernote does it in the web-clipper on search engine pages (where your notes that are linked to your search query appears on the right hand side of the search results). I thought this will be something valuable to have in the Evernote desktop apps, so that as you are writing a note, it also searches for related notes already in your database, and displays them upfront for you.

[DTLow 5,736]

4 hours ago, hkgnp said:

do you all think that Evernote should go down that road and offer backlinks?

I merged your post with an existing discussion on this topic

>>so that as you are writing a note, it also searches for related notes already in your database, and displays them upfront for you.

Like Evernote's Context feature (Context reveals notes with related content)

 

[gazumped 11,665]

4 hours ago, hkgnp said:

as you are writing a note, it also searches for related notes already in your database, and displays them upfront for you.

I totally agree with your general point - the links process should be much better;  that particular option though?  Seems to me it would eat up your processing power and/ or bandwidth in the web version and be incredibly annoying to many users...  still there are changes (allegedly) coming...

[fsmontenegro 9]

Came here to voice my support for backlinking on Evernote. I have been using Roam for over a month now and that capability is INCREDIBLE in the context of linking new ideas together.

IMHO, Evernote with good backlinking support would be a MUCH superior product to Roam, since Evernote already has APIs, good client-side apps, etc... 

As it stands now, I'm leaning towards reducing my usage of Evernote for more 'free form' notes based on how seamless Roam is. Will I drop Evernote altogether? Not likely, but I really hope the company recognizes the threat from a new company and doesn't rest on its laurels.

 

[gazumped 11,665]

19 hours ago, fsmontenegro said:

Will I drop Evernote altogether? Not likely, but I really hope the company recognizes the threat from a new company and doesn't rest on its laurels.

Every established company has the drawback that a new player can come up with new features that it includes on launch from zero users.  The older company with a few hundred million existing users (in this case) all of whom have their own ideas on what new features should be a priority,  can't just magic the new options overnight. 

As it happens Evernote has an ongoing upgrade  - a process of completely re-coding all of their apps for all operating systems (See the Evernote Blog for details). 

I tried Roam and liked the Wiki-like linking process,  but while it may suit some,  it didn't suit me.  So I'm 100% Evernote (plus Filterize / Backupery / Postach.io and Typora...

 

[hkgnp 7]

I guess it's not really a brand new feature. They are already introducing it when on my search engine results page?

Hence I thought this would be incredibly feasible.

[MeverJBote 3]

I spent a few hours today learning about Roam Research. The Bi-Directional linking would be incredibly useful to me. 

Evernote can sometimes still feel like it is stuck in the "files and folders" past. Evernote still works very well for me. But then again, it is, far more than any other technology, responsible for how I organize my life. But, Roam's automatic, bi-directional linking feature looks killer!

I watched a lot of videos that compared Roam to Evernote, and I do take exception with nearly all of them that didn't even touch on how tagging can work in Evernote.

With thousands of notes going back 30+ years (back dating notes is so helpful!) I would love to be able to link that way.

[DTLow 5,736]

2 hours ago, MeverJBote said:

Evernote can sometimes still feel like it is stuck in the "files and folders" past.

I'm not clear how this applies to Evernote, which has evolved from folders to notebooks/tags   
On the other hand, many users are stuck in "files and folders"

Now, back to the backlinks discussion   
I added my vote to the feature request posted at 

 

[gazumped 11,665]

Don't know whether I've just become used to the way that Evernote works,  but while I used to manage a Wiki-style database (which originated the Roam feature of [linking] notes) the ability to create 'instant' links started to confuse me this time around...  trying the new feature out,  I created too many links because any new [note] I created seemed to call for too many [links] to different [topics]... and I found it was more difficult to concentrate on writing coherent content.

Evernote doesn't operate the same way,  but when I do need to write a nested series of notes it still seems fairly easy to me to copy the note title from my (Windows desktop) note 1 / Ctrl+N for a new note and paste the title into that new note.  I carry on typing and repeat as necessary for any other key words or phrases.  While I finish Note 1,  the 'sub' topics Note 2, 3 etc are syncing,  and when I finish it's easy(ish) to copy the internal links and Ctrl+K them into Note 1,  and then copy the link to Note 1 into the others as a 'back' link.

The fact I have the whole family of notes open on my desktop means I can update them all with leaving orphaned empty notes to clear out later.

Doesn't work (obvs) so well on mobile devices,  but it works for mainly-desk-based me!

 

[fsmontenegro 9]

Thanks for the detailed comment @gazumped. Your point about too many links is valid. I found this post on Ness Labs to be very applicable - https://nesslabs.com/how-to-choose-the-right-note-taking-app

I enjoy the linking to connect ideas in a more natural way. I look back at some of my efforts in using mindmaps for this in the past (back in 2008 or so...) and ending up with dozens of maps with clunky processes for creating backlinks. Roam makes it much easier.

Thanks again!

 

[gazumped 11,665]

...Just to round out this discussion by the way,  don't omit NodusLabs' Infranodus - it will import Evernote notes (and many other types of text network) and present a 'connections' analysis based on common words and phrases - specifics can be included or eliminated.  It's a sort of self-connecting mind-map (sorry, Nodus!)

[phoebos 0]

On 5/4/2020 at 11:43 PM, Dave-in-Decatur said:

Old kid on the block here. Can you say more about what bi-directional linking is and does, esp. in relation to what it could do in Evernote?

The "new kid on the bloc" apps he was referring to are probably Roam Research and Notion.

They are creating notes linked to one another, forward links and back links.

A kind of notes’ tree where you could navigate a hierarchy of notes, to my understanding in a dynamic and automated way.