Comments on problems of sharing notebooks between Windows & Android platforms

[Kilili 2]

I have two different accounts I need to access on a regular basis. This is easy on Windows, but to switch between the two accounts on Android, I have to sign out of one, then sign in to the other.

However, sign out removes all cached notes and offline notebooks.

 

My two accounts have 9,000 [2.5 GB] and 7,000 [3.5 GB] notes, respectively. Even with a fast connection, the time to resync that much data on an account switch takes far too long to make this usable. In addition, there are other problems.

 

Sharing isn't too bad when dealing with just a few notebooks and tags. However, there are serious deficiencies when more data and structure enters the picture.

 

My two accounts have completely different attributes, each with a couple dozen stacks, dozens of notebooks, thousands of notes, and hundreds of tags, all with hierarchical structure.

 

I've been experimenting with shared notebooks, using about 4,000 notes, and have observed the following.

 

1)  All notebook and tag structure is lost by sharing.  This in turn totally disrupts the structure of the account to which the notebooks are shared.  Tags, especially, become unmanageable.  Windows carries forward the tags from a joined notebook, but Android does not.  Tag search becomes impossible for Android, as there are none, and difficult for Windows because of the lack of structure.  The tag hierarchy cannot even be reproduced as Evernote for Windows does not permit the tags from joined notebooks to be repositioned.

 

Although Android does separate out joined notebooks from the others, though still losing the structure of stacks, Windows does not, and the shared notebooks are co-mingled within the existing structure.

 

2)  Since sharing transcends platforms, i.e., I cannot share for Android only, as it really isn't needed for Windows, all shared notebook content is physically added to the Windows database, effectively doubling the database size.  This elongates synchronisation times and search times.

 

3)  Of course, every time a new notebook is created in the account that shares the notebooks, it must be newly shared.  Then, each Android device needs to set the notebook attribute to offline sync.

 

All of these problems are not unique to using Android.  The loss of hierarchical structure for notebooks and tags still causes significant problems for the Windows platform.

 

I suspect this problem has not been generally understood, and therefore ignored.  Perhaps, if other users would comment on this thread, the subject would get more attention, and thus get addressed.  I have only looked at the implications regarding Windows and Android platforms, but other supported platforms may present similar problems.  There may also be issues with regard to using the Evernote Business offering.

 

Oh, the ticket is # 536445.

[gazumped 11,652]

Hi.  I get that your problem is that its difficult to swop between accounts in Android,  but why exactly did you raise a ticket?  An Android device is basically a smarter calculator;  it's impressive that it shows one set of notes and searches contents.  If you insist on making it look at another set of notes,  it hasn't the memory or the processing power to do anything more than dump the first set of data and load another set e-x-c-r-u-s-h-i-a-t-i-n-g-l-y s-l-o-w-l-y.  If you need to look at two sets of data I'd suggest that you find a way to merge them into one account,  or buy another phone so you can load each notebook into a different handset.

[BurgersNFries 2,407]

Or on Android, you could use the web client for the second account.

[Kilili 2]

Or on Android, you could use the web client for the second account.

My Android copies are mainly for field work.  There is either no internet access of any kind, or it's simply too slow to use for anything more than email. We do not all live in a connected world.

[Kilili 2]

Hi.  I get that your problem is that its difficult to swop between accounts in Android,  but why exactly did you raise a ticket?  An Android device is basically a smarter calculator;  it's impressive that it shows one set of notes and searches contents.  If you insist on making it look at another set of notes,  it hasn't the memory or the processing power to do anything more than dump the first set of data and load another set e-x-c-r-u-s-h-i-a-t-i-n-g-l-y s-l-o-w-l-y.  If you need to look at two sets of data I'd suggest that you find a way to merge them into one account,  or buy another phone so you can load each notebook into a different handset.

 

Smarter calculator?  You are seriously underselling Android capabilities.   Switching to another account set, as it now stands, is all about having internet capability and sufficient bandwidth, not processing power or memory.  Besides, the simple fact that Android would readily handle the two accounts, if merged, blows away the whole argument anyway.

[gazumped 11,652]

I know it's possible to do some quite sophisticated things on a high-end tablet,  and there's talk of Android laptops,  but that's a niche case at the moment.  Developing better capabilities is probably in the road plan somewhere,  but for the moment I'd just settle for my dumb phone handling one account efficiently.  That's not a fault with the current app - that's a step or two down the development route.  I agree it will be good to have the option if/ when its available though - any other votes in favour?

[BurgersNFries 2,407]

Or on Android, you could use the web client for the second account.

My Android copies are mainly for field work.  There is either no internet access of any kind, or it's simply too slow to use for anything more than email. We do not all live in a connected world.

Then it sounds like you're trying to pull a boat with a bicycle. If you regularly need access to multiple accounts where there is little or no internet access, you may be better served with a laptop that has both databases. As Gaz pointed out, mobile devices have their limitations & the software running on them must try to peacefully coexist with those limitations.