I’ve been an Evernote user for as long as I can remember. I’ve used it for collecting story ideas, write chapters while on the go, outline ideas, write first drafts of blog posts and so much more. Yesterday, I said good-bye to Evernote.
Yep, I’ve finally decided to get rid of the application I’ve used for years.
Why would I do that?
There are a number of reasons, really, but the primary thing is really the Evernote business model. For years, I’ve worked within the limitations imposed on free accounts. Being limited to just a set number of devices has been annoying and considering I work across multiple devices, this has always introduced some compromises in one way or another.
When my hard drive went belly up a couple of weeks ago forcing me to start over with a blank slate, I seemed like a good time evaluate all the software I use and whether to use alternatives. I hadn’t planned on replacing Evernote but as I was trying to remember the name of the Linux client I used, I instead stumbled across something else.
That something else is an application called Joplin.
Before today, this app was completely unknown to me. As I looked at it closer, I discovered that it is intended as an Evernote replacement. It’s open source, not tied to any service tiers and it can sync with Dropbox. Add to that a Linux client, a Windows client and an Android app. Oh, and no device limitations and a user interface that looks pretty much the same as Evernote.
Moving from Evernote to Joplin wasn’t difficult either. I exported the notes for each notebook using the built-in export feature in Evernote, then imported each one into Joplin. All together, this process took about five minutes.
Although I’m sure there are other differences as well, the only limitation that affects me is that there is no hosted web version of Joplin (although there appears to be one you can host yourself). It doesn’t matter. I only every used the web version of Evernote when device limitations forced me to use it. It was a hazzle that I always wished I could eliminate. Now I have.
Good-bye Evernote.
Hello Joplin.
If you’re interested in giving Joplin a shot, check out their website here:
