Updates? 😐

[GraphicOwls]

Hello,

Just curious what happened to the updates? 2 months before the previous update, you guys mentioned that updates were going to be much more frequent because you rewrote a lot of the base code, which is going to make progression on the app quicker and more efficient. However, sadly there has been nothing since. Just curious if the app is still actively being worked on.

Thanks,
– Noah

[marlonjames71]

Was going to ask the same thing.

[astoilkov]

Hey, sorry you feel bad about the frequency of updates. I do too.

We're spending some time learning and experimenting with LLMs. We feel like this tech will have an important role in note-taking, and knowledge management, and we feel it's important that we understand it. We already have some ideas on how to use it for note-taking (other than what is mainstream). While we really want to create new updates constantly and excite people around the product, we also want to maximize our value creation and built something really useful for the users and ourselves — that's always a hard balance.

We're also working on the next update of Nota. We've already implemented some of the things we've planned for the release.

[GraphicOwls]

I hope I'm not out of place here. Earlier you mentioned that Nota has been quiet because you guys were researching LLM's and how to integrate it into Nota. However, that's not why you have the users you do. None of this existed when I purchased Nota, and from most of these other comments it seems like they didn't either.

I agree with @lolbat, why the rush? I know that I love writing in Nota. I get this awesome VS Code writing experience and other nice things that no other app has. This is what drew me to purchasing a subscription. I wish the focus was more aligned with what made you guys create Nota in the first place (before all this LLM stuff), as well as what us users are requesting.

I could care less for having ai connect notes for me. I can find my notes perfectly fine myself. I also have Chat GPT plus, and if I really need to I can get ideas from there and bring them into Nota. If I need to. Personally, I would just love to see the focus go back into Nota organically instead of being sucked into this ai world. I mean have you really had that many Nota users express an absolute necessity for ai in the app? With the way the app is, I just can't see that. I could be wrong, but it's not something I would bet on.

If I am being honest, I would assume that as devs working on the app, maybe some boredom kicked in after working on it for as long as you have, and you wanted to jump on something new for the brain challenge, which I totally get. To feel excited again, or maybe it was pure curiosity, I don't know. Maybe I am just wrong altogether lol.

[tylxm]

I'm not a big fan of LLM in note taking app either.

[lolbat]

What we're exploring is connections between notes and how to make sense of the things you've written.

Isn't that my job?

I want UI fixes. I don't want LLM features. I can think for myself.

[minthemiddle]

What we're exploring is connections between notes and how to make sense of the things you've written.

What I am dreaming of is local semantic search within my notes. Notes creation is easy, notes application is difficult, especially with older notes. Tagging, linking, all of that is of course possible but does not trump semantic relateness.

I could build a system with LlamaIndex or LangChain (basically: creating local embeddings and GPT API calls) but that is very complicated and error-prone and hard to maintain.

Using LLMs to get semantic access to my thoughts would enhance my note taking and management a lot.

[sguergachi]

It's funny because the iA guys spent a year doing the same exploration and determined they wouldn't integrate any LLM tech into their app, instead the best thing to do was to help track the AI content pasted in vs. the content you wrote yourself. https://ia.net/topics/writing-with-ai

[tylxm]

Just purchased the license, hope you guys continue to support this product.

[borekb]

I'll just quickly pop in here to say that the guys behind Nota, @erusev and @astoilkov, have been extremely reliable in the past when it comes to good stewardship of this project, and Caret editor before that.

I've been following their work for many years and yes, sometimes the updates take some time, but the result is always well thought-out and brings joy when using the product(s).

I have no affiliation with them but just came here to say that sometimes, it's worth waiting for great things. I'm sure you all guys enjoy Nota and it's also because they take time to build things the right way, not always the fast way. Nota creators are great guys!

[astoilkov]

Hey Borek. Once again, thank you for your words and support throughout the years. I still remember your Caret rocks! issue. One of those small things that make a difference for others.

Also, shout out to @minthemiddle, who created the same kind of issue for Nota — Nota is great!.

They both end with exclamation marks! 😄

[minthemiddle]

… and I still use and love Nota's simplicity and limited set of features every single day. For me, Nota is like Things3 but for notes.

[webwesen]

regular monthly releases fixing even some of the most minor bugs would go a long way supporting the community you have built around Nota. (paid customer here)

[astoilkov]

Yeah, I agree. We can do that.

Are you referring to specific bugs? If you can link them I can understand better what type of bugs we should prioritize. I would assume that the issue here is more about not recognizing the bug is important enough for us to spend the time going through the whole release process.

[webwesen]

nothing in particular... anything. just optics - showing that the product is still alive and is no longer an abandonware.

[astoilkov]

Got it. Yeah, you mean that more frequent updates (regardless of the size) just feel better for the users. I like that. It actually feels better for us too.

and is no longer an abandonware.

What do you mean by "no longer" (we've been doing Nota releases for 2 years and a half)?

[GraphicOwls]

Totally agree with this. I didn't think Nota was even being worked on anymore.

[minthemiddle]

Paying customer here and I am totally fine with thorough less frequent releases.

[marlonjames71]

Was told UI updates were coming a while ago. No big deal if it's not feasible at the moment. I just like when words are kept.

[erusev]

We are working on a UI update, and as Nota users ourselves, we are excited about it, but it's hard to say when it will be ready. Sorry for the wait 😔

[marlonjames71]

Excited to see it. Also, are you guys still looking into a phone app to access notes on the go? That's a big pain point for me right now.

[erusev]

We have a mobile app in the works, but it's mostly focused on reading and searching notes, less on editing. It's on pause for now, but we hope to get back to it at some point.

[marlonjames71]

Ehh...you guys kinda lost me. Kind of a shame to be honest.

[astoilkov]

There has been a lot of activity in this thread. We agree that we should be more informative, especially when releases are too far apart.

I had a call with @claudiorrrr yesterday and he proposed the idea of a place where we can discuss the new updates. I just created a new discussion that discusses the new upcoming release — #405.

Thanks for all the feedback and help. We're very fortunate to have such an amazing user base.

[GraphicOwls]

Seriously.. waste of money! Their intentions should've been more clear or I never would have purchased the app. I can't stand that!

[minthemiddle]

Yes, more transparency would be appreciated. And: I have been getting value out of Nota from the very first moment and still do to the very moment. I don't need new features, I would appreciate stability and speed updates though.

[GraphicOwls]

@minthemiddle How do you get value out of Nota? Can you not write notes in any of the other 100+ note apps out there? I paid to use Nota of course, but also to support the growth and future of the app. And it's apparent now that there isn't one. That would be misleading.

[minthemiddle]

How do you get value out of Nota? Can you not write notes in any of the other 100+ note apps out there?

It stays out of my way, is fast, is simple. I don't know any other app that feels likes this (and yes, I know Obsidian et al.). I use it every day, so I don't depend on future changes. I understand that it's very different for you.

[webwesen]

@minthemiddle - continuous support and development is an absolute requirement as manifested in #410

[igor-arkhipov]

I don't think it's worth forcing release of new versions. Quality is better than frequency.

Somehow make regular "releases" to calm down users and it looks funny

[webwesen]

5 months have passed... a keep-alive ping: "any updates?"

[igtsimoes]

Another ping... just in case... are we getting a Christmas update gift?

[arunaugustine]

Just want to chime in and say, I love Nota as it is today! Otherwise I would never go looking to see what's brewing.
If updates are not needed, or will take time to brew correctly, that's OK!

Just wanted to check in and see if you guys were doing OK! @astoilkov and @erusev

I just hope that you guys don't think other apps like Obsidian has won this space due to their feature list (or bloat if you ask me) and give up on Nota.

[erusev]

Thanks for the kind words, @arunaugustine. We're doing well, thanks for asking ❤️

Earlier this year, we took on a new project, IntelliBar, and development on Nota slowed down a bit, but we are working on it and using it daily.

The time away from Nota has given us a clearer view of how to improve it, and we're excited to make it happen. We'll have more to share in the new year.

[denvist]

After more than a year since the last release, it looks like the project is going to be abandoned. I think it is time to look for alternatives.