What is going on with E*N?

[tombran44 5]

What is going on with Evernote? It used to work perfectly. I made a commitment to your platform, transferred all my data and now I have problems that have started recently. I'm using the app not a browser on my MacOS devices, have the mobile app on my iPhone and iPad and recently on the iOS devices, E*N will repeatedly lock up and have to be rebooted, losing everything I just added to the note I was working on. Now in MacOS, as well as iOS, it makes duplicates, sometimes 3 or 4 of the same note. Mostly they are identical but not always, and it forces me to open each one up and check. This is frustrating and a waste of time. I've edited a note, then it locks up and when I re-open, everything I just input is gone, forcing me to write in text edit and then cut and paste into the note to insure that what I just worked on is saved. I've spent considerable time inputting a new note, with contact data phone numbers addresses etc., then when I go to attach tags, it freezes up and I lose everything. This is unacceptable for a real professional database. There used to be a help tab in the sidebar, now that's gone too......What is going on?

... I am not a casual user. Like I said at the top, E*N used to work perfectly. I update always, on the MacBook Pro running 10.15.7  it's v10.47.47, on the iPad and iPhone who knows? The widget in iOS simply doesn't work. I put it on both iOS devices hoping to get E*N to launch quickly, and it totally screwed everything up when I launched the regular pgm.

[PinkElephant 8,719]

EN sync has one large problem: AFAIK it treats the whole note as an entity. The identifier that is flagged for syncing is the UID of the whole note. This used to be the way of syncing in the founding days of EN, and is closely related to the basic data structure.

More modern concepts use a „granular“ sync. They break a document down into tiny pieces, and only flag those elements for syncing that have really been changed. Beside better syncing this improves as well collaborative, real time work on the same document.

Many tools use this approach, among them those from Microsoft (O365), Google and Apple. It is possible - but it means rebuilding the whole data structure. 

We currently have all accounts taking down for maintenance. Different to before a user can’t access all copies stored on the server for half an hour. Changes in the underlying data structure, rebuilding the database server by server … just thinking out loud …

[PinkElephant 8,719]

We run a similar setup of nearly 100% Apple devices, no such problems.

If an iOS app freezes: 

https://help.evernote.com/hc/en-us/articles/217930798

To reduce duplication, try not to open the same note on more than one device at a time.

[tombran44 5]

OK, I understand your idea of not opening the same note on more than one device. There is logic to that, but it should be addressed and fixed. I can leave my desk and say, go to lunch and need to access a note. This should not be an issue. That said, thank you for your quick reply, and I will try to avoid that.

I'll also use the link you provided and see how that goes.

[PinkElephant 8,719]

This is how syncing works today. It becomes critical once a change on one device has not yet reached the server, and from there all devices, before changes are made to an older copy. EN won't know which edit to keep, and creates a safety duplicate.

If you think it should be done better, contact EN by feedback or through a support ticket. The forum is user 2 user.

[SteveQ55 0]

I'm getting the multiple duplicates as well. I opened a note, added a couple things and when I came back to it a little later, there were 4 copies. This has just started happening the last couple days. And no I'm not opening the note on multiple devices. The note was only opened on the same device. Something has changed and needs to be fixed. I've gotten duplicates before but only 1 copy and it's usually been if my wife went into the grocery list within a very short time of myself going in and changing something, other than that, I've never seen 4 duplicates created from editing my own note. It's happened 3 times in the last couple days.

[tombran44 5]

Dear Pink Elephant, I appreciate your “that’s how sync works”.  You may be right, but I use Apple Notes on my Mac mini, MacBook Pro, IPad and iPhone. All are open most of the time. No duplicates or issues, everything syncs immediately, and of course I direct you to Steve’s post. I have put in this issue to feedback in the E*N app

[Boot17 1,529]

12 hours ago, tombran44 said:

Apple Notes on my Mac mini, MacBook Pro, IPad and iPhone. All are open most of the time. No duplicates or issues, everything syncs immediately

Yep. It's my experience as well that Apple Notes and Google Docs sync way better (as well as many other apps that I have used) -- no doubt about that. Hopefully Evernote can improve their syncing game as they are said to be working on.

Having said that, I also use Evernote on two Macbooks, a Windows PC, an iPad and iPhone and I rarely have syncing or duplicate issues, but I am also pretty careful and make sure that my content has synced before changing content on a different device and I don't share notes with anybody else. Even so, I recently had two or three duplicates appear on the same device after barely creating it on that same device -- so even caution on my part does not 100% prevent it. But I haven't had data loss (as far as I know) in over a year or more (and even then wasn't too bad and could have been fixed with version history, but I didn't have access to it at the time.)

[SteveQ55 0]

Bottom line is that Something has changed, this is a new issue with the whole 4 duplicates nonsense and it's on notes that have only been touched on the same device. This needs to be fixed. It sucks EN doesn't let you submit a ticket if you only use the free account. Very tempted to switch to Google Keep it something different. EN has gone downhill.

[Boot17 1,529]

1 hour ago, SteveQ55 said:

Bottom line is that Something has changed

The note duplication seems more prevalent since the inception of Version 10 back in 2020 if that is the change you are referring too. A Google search of these forums will show you that there have been a large number of posts about it since then: https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Adiscussion.evernote.com+duplicate+notes. 

Note duplication and conflicts has been an issue and concern a long time before that though. From this thread here in August 2017: "As a backup to the frequent issues raised here to do with note conflicts and duplicates I'd like to suggest that Evernote add a utility to the Help menu to check an account for duplicated notes and highlight any differences in content. "

 

[tombran44 5]

So, for the first time this morning on my iPhone I had no other devices active except the phone, I added some items to my Shopping list and it duplicated the note. I looked at both, and deleted the older one, and when I hit the back arrow, just like Steve it went to a black screen and I had to quit it. When I relaunched my original shopping list was there, but everything I just added was gone. 

[Kimberly Purcell 342]

2 hours ago, tombran44 said:

So, for the first time this morning on my iPhone I had no other devices active except the phone, I added some items to my Shopping list and it duplicated the note. I looked at both, and deleted the older one, and when I hit the back arrow, just like Steve it went to a black screen and I had to quit it. When I relaunched my original shopping list was there, but everything I just added was gone. 

There was a fair amount of rolling maintenance this morning. You can still access mobile and desktop apps during that time but it doesn't sync. 

 

From Evernote: We are working to restore service as quickly as possible. You may still be able to access your notes using the Evernote desktop or mobile app, but you will be unable to sync or share your notes until service is restored.

 

[fmk2 0]

AmethystProductivity, the problem is not a failure to sync, but note duplication... so really it's the sync process running amok, not failing to occur.

It happened for me this morning as well.  I updated a note on the Windows app and soon had 4 copies of it, all showing the same "UPDATED" time, and 3 of them showing a "CREATED" date and time that is the same as the "UPDATED" time.

I certainly hope Evernote considers this problem a high priority.  They'll lose a lot of customers if they don't fix it quickly (including me).

[PinkElephant 8,719]

From my observation many cases can be explained by „one note on multiple devices“. Many, but not all.

A few days ago I had a situation where I had just created a new note on the Mac, and made some entries. Suddenly I got the message an older version had been detected, and I should review and decide which to keep. 

It may be another device was involved, because I usually have EN open on other devices as well. But the note had only been existing for minutes then, and it had been created and exclusively edited on my Mac. I had not even closed it once before this happened. This is disturbing, even when at least for me it is an absolute exception.

Just let’s hope EN will make a leap in how syncing is happening soon.

[SteveQ55 0]

Again... Bottom line is that Something had changed, this was a brand new issue with the whole 4 duplicates nonsense, it just started in the last 2 weeks and it's on notes that have only been opened on the SAME device. I have a free account and can only log into it from 2 devices. My wife has it on her phone and I on mine. She h has notes that only she has opened and the same with me. It's not a sync issue. I think it may have settled down, I haven't had an issue again since my last message but everyone jumping on about sync problems are way off. The problem was the app creating multiple duplicates after editing a note, nothing to do with sync

I'm just hoping that the issue has stopped and they fixed whatever it was.

[Boot17 1,529]

4 hours ago, SteveQ55 said:

The problem was the app creating multiple duplicates after editing a note, nothing to do with sync

I think you are failing to see what so many experts are pointing out. The whole reason it creates a duplicate in the first place is because it thinks there is a sync conflict. Duplicate notes is how Evernote handles sync conflicts. Instead of blowing away changes on a note on one device because of changes to the same note on another note (which Evernote actually does that too), it will create a duplicate note and allow you to sort out the issue yourself.

Even if you don't run Evernote on another device, it still syncs your local note to the server and can get confused about what it thinks it's doing.

[tombran44 5]

Ok guys, For a top shelf relational database, which Evernote is, I'm actually shocked at the issues I've faced in the last couple of weeks. The duplicates, yes, and the black screen, and things disappearing. Now, I selected Evernote after trying several other sites. I put in an initial 3 weeks to input all my data, get my wife on-board and input her stuff etc. I've made a serious commitment to use Evernote, and I hope these posts are being monitored, because 2 subscriptions are not insignificant.

The argument made on behalf of E*N doesn't really fly. I have 5 devices in the MacOS and iOS worlds, and Notes just never has any problem. Multiple devices all on at the same time, syncing and updating. Now to be fair, the notes app from a code point of view is not nearly as complicated, but the little AAPL app does scan and import photos and .pdf's  and I don't have to worry about duplicates, or things going missing.

At this point, I really have to type or import really important data into notes or text edit, copy to Evernote, and hold both until I'm sure Evernote has it. I'm very disappointed, and I also hope, whomever works the platform addresses these issues, I know dealing with AAPL updates etc. is a chore, but I am paying almost $70/yr to use E*N.

[PinkElephant 8,719]

These posts are monitored - by other users. If EN staff is monitoring the forum, who knows. If they did in the past, it was quite selectively, like for Tasks and sometimes for security posts.

To contact EN, you can use the feedback function (no answers, goes to PM) or issue a support ticket (will be answered, goes to support).

[tombran44 5]

Sorry to be a newby here. Feedback function? Don't see it

[PinkElephant 8,719]

Mobile client, just have it open. Similar on desktop: