Tag management

[benefits broker 0]

What is the best way to use tags to organize?

[BurgersNFries 2,407]

What is the best way to use tags to organize?

This has been discussed a lot on the board already. Please search the board on the topic.

[jbenson2 2,147]

What is the best way to use tags to organize?

 

GrumpyMonkey (Christopher Mayo) created a nice summary on different ways to manage tags.

http://www.christopher-mayo.com/?p=437

[JMichaelTX 4,117]

What is the best way to use tags to organize?

 

There is no best way to use tags.  It depends on the information you want to organize, how much info you have, and your own personal perferences.

 

Start by doing your own research.  Do a Google search (NOT a forum search) on "evernote tags".

This should give you plenty of ideas.

[righteousdork 203]

What is the best way to use tags to organize?

It sounds like you're looking for examples. There are plenty out there. Here's mine.

I use tags to essentially tell me what kind of note I'm looking at.

I try to limit the number of notebooks I use, so tags really are my main method of organization.

When I pay my car insurance, I will take the statement for example and give it the following tags:

- bill

- insurance

- vehicle

The title of the note can also provide that info, but with tags it allows you to really control what you see. If I just did a search for Allstate, I might end up with stuff that isn't bills.

So that's my use case. I've got tags for my family members and tags for years, which is probably unnecessary. When I get a receipt from a charity, I might tag it:

- (2013) [the tax year]

- taxes

- deduction

- charity

There really isn't a wrong or right way to use tags. I would recommend coming up with a system though. Broad or specific? Lowercase or uppercase? Stuff like that. Makes it easier when you try to remember tags on the fly. And don't be afraid to create a system and then pitch it for something different next week.

[jefito 5,589]

FYI: the forum search *is* a Google search.

[JMichaelTX 4,117]

FYI: the forum search *is* a Google search.

I know this.

But a forum search is NOT the same as a general Google search.

[jefito 5,589]

To search the forums (the advice offered originally), it's pretty much equivalent. There is plenty of good advice and strategy to be had here. If you want to search for non-forum writings, then use Google, by all means.

[JMichaelTX 4,117]

My suggestion was to use the general Google search with "Evernote tags".

This will return BOTH topics in this forum as well as many other useful pages/blogs/guides that are NOT in this forum.

 

So, searching IN the forum and a general Google search are quite different.

 

Also, the form/format of the results of a GENERAL Google Search is much easier to use.

[jbenson2 2,147]

My suggestion was to use the general Google search with "Evernote tags".

This will return BOTH topics in this forum as well as many other useful pages/blogs/guides that are NOT in this forum.

 

So, searching IN the forum and a general Google search are quite different.

 

Also, the form/format of the results of a GENERAL Google Search is much easier to use.

 

I agree 100%. When searching for past forum posts, the difference between the current hamstrung forum search and the full-blown Google search is night and day.

[jefito 5,589]

I agree 100%. When searching for past forum posts, the difference between the current hamstrung forum search and the full-blown Google search is night and day.

The forum search that you find up at the top right of the forum page is quite good; in fact it's pretty much equivalent to straight up a Google search for forum topics (probably because it is a Google search), and I use it often. It's hardly hamstrung. The so-called Advanced Search is something that I've never had much luck with, so I don't use it.

[jbenson2 2,147]

It isn't hamstrung if you enjoy using a small window that only shows 3 results.

It isn't hamstrung if you like to scroll through the results vs a full page of results

It isn't hamstrung if you don't mind an erratic sort method vs the consistent full-blown Google search.

 

Here is a comparison that visually shows why I said it is hamstrung.

http://www.evernote.com/shard/s2/sh/231a9963-9bfe-486b-af46-ac8b1d4ce725/e6e6f475b7a6e764c8144c0f21e1e9d6

[jefito 5,589]

Horses for courses. Meanwhile, back on topic...

What is the best way to use tags to organize?

A lot depends on what you're trying to do -- there is no 'best way' for all usages. If you gave out specifics what you're trying to organize, you'd probably get back specific ideas as to how to proceed. As noted, there are lots of topics in the forums that address various approaches -- search how you will, but I got a number of relevant results by just plugging 'use tags to organize' into the forum search box up at the top right hand side of the forum page here.

My own approach is to keep it pretty simple. After 5+ years of using Evernote, I only have around ~200 tags. Mostly I use tags as descriptive adjectives. They gain power in combination with each other (multiple tags per note), and with other types of search, including simple text search. I don't worry too much about organizing my tag list / tree, and generally don't use that for navigating my notes. I just type in tag searches as I go. This is on the Windows client, by the way, but it's not that dissimilar to the Mac in these respects.

[JMichaelTX 4,117]

What a strange nitpick.  Don't know why anyone would want to continue to argue against the GENERAL Google search.

 

 

What is the best way to use tags to organize?

 

There are so very many different ways to use tags, and so many different preferences.

• Some users even advocate not using Tags at all, instead relying totally on the Note Title
• Some prefer a very small number of Tags, to keep things "simple"
• Some prefer hundreds of Tags to be precise on future searches
• .... and so it goes

There are several users who have developed excellent strategies for using Tags.  If you're luckly they may post here.

But over the years there has been much written about Evernote Tags.

A lot has been written in these forums.

But a lot has also been written outside of these forums, and often the outside article are more organized.

 

A GENERAL Google Search will return hits on BOTH.   This is very obvious.  Enough said.

 

Good luck Benefits Broker.  I think we've given you plenty to chew on.  :-)

[jefito 5,589]

Yawn. Nobody's arguing against general Google search. A more rational reading of what I've actually said would be that I am arguing that forum search is a useful tool, more so than it's sometimes given credit for.

Me, I use Google search all the time, when my search needs call for it. But in the Evernote forums, I use the forum search when I am looking for forum content. It's convenient (I can search from the current forum page), and gives me the results that I am seeking because outside hits are filtered out, while the results are equivalent to the forum hits I get on general Google search. Plus it works far better than it used to, pleasantly so (since it was absolutely wretched for awhile), and I'm not bothered by the presentation of the results. In other words, it works for me, but since it may not for other folks, (quoting myself) "search how you will", and "horses for courses".