How notes work
Notes in the Research app are a powerful tool for capturing your thoughts, summarizing content, and deepening your understanding of each item in your library.
What are notes?
Notes are text-based annotations associated with individual items in your library. They serve as a personal workspace for:
- Summarizing key points
- Recording your thoughts and insights
- Outlining important aspects of the material
- Connecting ideas across different sources
Key features of notes:
Personal workspace: Each item in your library has its own dedicated notes section.
Rich text editing: Format your notes with headings, lists, emphasis, and more to organize your thoughts effectively.
AI-generated summaries: Jump-start your understanding with AI-powered summarization.
Flexible content: Notes can be as brief or extensive as you need them to be.
Automatic saving: Your notes are saved in real-time as you type.
AI-generated summaries
When you're starting with a new item and want a quick overview, you can use the AI to generate a summary as a starting point for your notes. The app offers several summarization methods:
- Concise overview: A brief summary highlighting the main points.
- Detailed analysis: A more in-depth exploration of the item's content.
- Key findings: A focus on the primary results or conclusions.
- Method summary: An overview of the research methodology used.
- Critical review: A summary that includes potential strengths and limitations of the work.
To generate an AI summary:
- Open the notes section for an item.
- If the notes are empty, you'll see options for AI-generated summaries.
- Select the type of summary you want.
- Click "Generate" to create the summary.
Working with notes
- Creating Notes: Start typing in the notes section to begin your personal annotations.
- Editing Notes: You can modify your notes at any time, including AI-generated summaries.
- Formatting: Use the text editing tools to structure your notes for better readability.
- Searching: Your notes are included in the app's search function, making it easy to find specific information across your library.
Best practices for notes
- Use AI-generated summaries as a starting point, then add your own insights and connections.
- Regularly review and update your notes as you delve deeper into the material.
- Use consistent formatting or tagging to organize information within your notes.
- Consider including questions or areas for further research in your notes.
By effectively using the notes feature, including AI-generated summaries, you can create a rich, personalized layer of understanding on top of your research materials.