- Workflowy Markdown Cheat
- Workflowy Markdown Manager
- Workflowy Markdown Manager
- Workflowy Markdown Table
This is an update to this blog post. The original text can be found here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FI0TMdy3UjgJbytShom3ZAN7nWDnaUntQ7_8hgk9LLI/edit?usp=sharing
Updated: Wednesday, March 17, 2021
Dec 17, 2015 If you’re a Markdown adept and you haven’t been writing directly in WorkFlowy, you’ve been seriously missing out on the punch that WorkFlowy packs as an outliner – you know, the ability to organize your thoughts. I have used a countless number of apps (webapps, mobile apps and Mac apps), for organising my thoughts and workflow. Trello, Simplenote, Evernote, Notational.
This a comparison between an extremely versatile, albeit unconventional note-taking or note-management app and task management app (WorkFlowy) and a simple, no nonsense, good enough note-taking app (Simplenote). Some may call Simplenote a “pile of notes” note-taking app but I think that’s a bit disrespectful. I really like you guys!
I drafted this blog post in Notepad. Both WorkFlowy at workflowy.com and Simplenote at simplenote.com are safe websites. For one thing, I’ve checked their ratings at Web of Trust at mywot.com. There’s some stuff to look into about Simplenote.com because the domain used to be owned by another entity. If that’s not enough for you, here’s an old TechCrunch article from 2016 calling Simplenote the planet’s most useful piece of software: https://techcrunch.com/2016/08/11/simplenote-the-planets-most-useful-piece-of-software-is-now-open-source-on-ios-macos-and-android/. TechCrunch is a popular tech news site. I might add here’s a PC Mag article from 2017 that reviews WorkFlowy: https://www.pcmag.com/reviews/workflowy. PC Mag is also a popular tech news source or at least it used to be.
Here are some links for those not still ready to click on workflowy.com or simplenote.com.
WorkFlowy Links
https://twitter.com/workflowy
https://www.facebook.com/workflowy
Simplenote Links
https://twitter.com/simplenoteapp
https://github.com/Automattic/simplenote-electron/
(That’s Automattic with two Ts)
They both don’t spam you. WorkFlowy may sends you summaries of all changes to your account (what you’ve added, edited, deleted, and that type of thing) if you request them but you can unsubscribe to those emails.
Before I get into the usual stuff you see in reviews, let me provide links to terms and privacy policies and briefly describe them.
$ Terms, Conditions, and Privacy Policies (Legal documents)
WorFlowy
WorkFlowy, Inc. Privacy Policy
https://workflowy.com/privacy/
I reached out to WorkFlowy support years ago and a representative told me through email that there is no separate terms. The terms are incorporated in the Privacy policy.
One good thing is this privacy policy is pretty short. At the same time I have a Jr. college degree and found it hard to understand.
I would try to summarize but I don’t feel like. I will mention that it basically says some users’ data may still be on WorkFlowy even after users delete it because of the “nature of the computer system’s operation and ongoing data back-up and archiving.” and that they do not knowingly “collect” data from users under the age of 13. The document says if WorkFlowy finds out they have data from a user under the age of 13 they delete promptly. On some of WorkFlowy’s landing pages this notice is found: This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply so I’ll include links to these additional legal documents.
Addition legal documents for WorkFlowy
Privacy Policy – Privacy & Terms – Google
https://policies.google.com/privacy
Google Terms of Service – Privacy & Terms – Google
https://policies.google.com/terms
Simplenote
Terms of Service – Simplenote
https://simplenote.com/terms/
This is one of the shortest, sweetest terms of service I have ever come across. I can’t believe I still didn’t read it when I first signed up. I read it later. Still one thing to know is it says they recommend not storing any sensitive data like passwords, bank account numbers, or credit card information in Simplenote and that they “reserve the right to… terminate the Service… at any time.”
Privacy Policy – Automattic (the privacy policy for Simplenote)
https://automattic.com/privacy/
(that’s Automattic with two Ts for the two Ts in Matt Mullenweg’s name, who founded that company)
I should mention, this is the same Privacy policy that WordPress.com uses. Automattic owns both WordPress.com and Simplenote. I have to say I have not read this privacy policy. It’s pretty long. I’ve read the other two documents.
Quick facts
$ Simplenote
– every note is a document with a title and any tags you include
– available for Android, iOS, mac, Linux, and the web
– a list of your tags are a part of the interface
– lets you create a passcode for the mobile apps (last I checked)
– lets you share notes (you used to be able to download notes them)
– includes a trash bin for deleted notes
– basic search
– lets you recover previous versions of a note (you can see the history of a note)
– only allows rich text formatting through markdown (a form of syntax, see: https://simplenote.com/help/#markdown
$ WorkFlowy
– every note is a bullet
– every note has it’s own URL
– all your notes are in one document
– knowing the tags you’ve used is kind of up to you
– lets you share notes as a shareable link or export your notes
– can be used as a task management app
– you can use #hashtags
– you can use @handles
– allows rich text formatting (any combination of bold, italic, and underline)
– some things are easier to do on a desktop
– Apps available for Android, iOS, and Linux
– Available as a web app
– not really optimized for mobile devices if you ask me
– lets you export or download all notes in one fell swoop
– allows rich text formatting by default out of the box
– powerful search bar
$ More explanation
– It helps to be on a desktop to format text in WorkFlowy but there are workarounds if you’re not
– Moving bullets in WorkFlowy can be difficult on mobile, touch screen devices
– Workflowy allows advanced searches, and special searches like is:shared for bullets you’ve shared or “OR” for something like #todo OR #due
– Here’s what a note in Simplenote looks like http://simp.ly/publish/MqtYpZ (This is just any old note I made)
– And
– Here is what a note in WorkFlowy looks like https://workflowy.com/s/3M3AJxhSl4 (This is a template. Not every WorkFlowy note looks like this).
$ Updates
Since I first wrote this post there have been some updates to both apps.
WorkFlowy
— Added a left bar
— Added fractal boards (like Trello)
— Now allows images
— Now allows and seems to recommend Google login-
— Read about these updates on their blog on https://blog.workflowy.com/
Simplenote
— Has been bought by Automattic, the company behind WordPress.com
— Added checkmarks
— Added internal links (simplenote://)
— Read about these updates on their blog on https://simplenote.com/blog/
$ Recommendations
WorkFlowy is great for those who want to flex their geek muscles and use a unique, advanced app. Simplenote is great for someone looking for an app that gets the job done. I can put it put this way: if I had to recommend a note-taking app to a Senior citizen, I would recommend Simplenote (no offense). If I had to recommend a note-taking app to a Senior in High School, I would recommend Simplenote especially if they weren’t very tech savvy. I might add it’s great for writing drafts of a blog post although you can use WorkFlowy too if you use “sub notes” which I haven’t mentioned in this post. Simplenote makes it easy to write what you need to write and transfer it somewhere else and it does seem to offer more storage for a free account. In my humble opinion, while WorkFlowy offers features you don’t find elsewhere, Simplenote is better for most purposes. I can’t get enough of WorkFlowy, from the attractive UI to the hard to describe way I feel when I use it on the desktop) but Simplenote is better for the average user but that’s not my final word. At the same time I know even Simplenote can be hard to manage. That’s what the Lifehacker site said in an article promoting just saving everything in plain text files on your computer.
$ Pricing
They’re both free apps.
– Simplenote is completely free.
– WorkFlowy has a free version, a Pro version month by month for $5 a month, or a yearly Pro version plan for $50.
– WorkFlowy’s pricing information can be found here: Workflowy pricing https://workflowy.com/pricing/
$ Storage
– Simplenote… it’s complicated. There’s no listed limit I could see in the app and one review said it’s n/a (not applicable). There’s apparently no limit to how many notes you can make in a month (within reason). The Help page does say “we don’t recommend making notes longer than several thousand words.” (See: https://simplenote.com/help/#note-length)
– WorkFlowy’s free version, which is the version I’m mainly concerned with gives you 250 bullets a month. If you refer someone or you signed up with a referral link you get an additional 250 bullets for a total of 500. I’ve heard you can’t do much with 250 bullets a month and if you’re trying to take notes every day or be a power user I would have to agree. 500 has been enough for me for a while.
Workflowy Markdown Cheat
$ Final Conclusion
If I was going to write a 20 page paper I think I would use WorkFlowy. I just think it’s more useful. It’s almost as if I haven’t scratched the surface. If I were to set out to write a 200 page book I would definitely use WorkFlowy because of how powerful it is. I’d probably use a combination of both and maybe some other note-management apps and writing tools. I’ll leave you with this. Who says you can’t use both? They’re both amazing tools you can add to your toolbox. Just to manage my day to day life I could use both WorkFlowy and Simplenote together. I already do.
Workflowy Markdown Manager
Edit: 3-17-21: I added a section on terms, conditions, and privacy policies and made other edits. I added links to reviews. I made headings bold and added “… but that’s not my final word” to the part about recommendations.
Workflowy Markdown Manager
Workflowy Markdown Table
Edit 4-2-21: I added additional links to legal documents WorkFlowy users are subject to under $ Terms, Conditions, and Privacy Policies (Legal documents) and I added a link to WorkFlowy’s pricing page under $ Pricing.