1a1 - The age of the linked note
Before recently, a note was just a note.
A note was something you took quickly, used, and tossed. But now, something transformative has happened. A note can now grow and evolve with other notes to form a living system. This is because of ==the ability to easily link notes together.== And it opens the door to new possibilities.
So where did this power come from? It wasn’t a sudden strike, it was the was slow convergence of four distinct elements.
1. Fast notes - Creating a new Word document just to record a new idea is clunky. Evernote marked a turning point in ==fast creation of new ideas.== And it’s gotten even faster since.
2. Free notes - Many of us are tired of having our data-mined without our knowledge, or of having our notes locked into a proprietary format. But now, the ecosystem of non-proprietary apps has matured to a tipping point. ==We have options. ==
3. Atomic notes - With the ability to create notes quickly, it became even more important to not get buried under a growing pile of them. ==One ingenious solution was the resurgence of a method where one note = one idea.== Fast notes encourages the development of Atomic notes, which is a fundamental aspect of the Zettelkasten Method.
4. Linked notes - Now, with the ability to make fast notes, free notes, and smaller, concise notes—the need arose for ==a way to manage them better.== Folders are no longer enough. ==Notes should be able to live in more than one place—just like how in our brains, many things can trigger the same idea.== Enter the Linked Note and here we are.
All of these elements have been around for a while, but now their powers have been refined, combined, and stream-lined. ==They have been democratized.== For the first time, anyone who knows basic computer skills can immediately and lastingly improve their thinking—now, and deep into the future.
We stand on the cusp of this new age—the Age of the Linked Note—and like a great frontier, the opportunities stretch out before us. But with this power to manage our knowledge, it’s important to ==have a system we trust.==