DEVONthink ‚ should I buy it?

As far as I know, there are no German Devs on DT who are also writing in the different forums.

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I’ve only contacted support twice–they were “matter of fact” but I did not find them confrontational. Even if they were confrontational, I’m not sure if I care so long as I get the answer I need.

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I generally agree. And this can come off a bit “too direct” sometimes. But I as well have had comments back about issues basically told it’s not happening and then feel brushed to side. Seems to be a common thread here of a lot of people feel burned.

That being said DT and DTTG are my 100% file storage and note taking right now since haven’t found anything else better, and having notes in same system works best for me. But I have concerns long term and always looking to see if something solves some of my pet peeves.

I’d use DT in a heartbeat for all of my note taking if DTTG was better. It is a terrible editor making note taking an unpleasant experience. I take a lot of meeting notes on the iPad so a good mobile editor is important to me.

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DTTG editor is atrocious. I hate markdown, but it’s kinda best option for DTTG. I’ve tried using Apple notes (love it), but the exporting and moving to DTTG is one more step so might as well use DTTG. Tried obsidian, but the index function is a no go since I’m mainly mobile. I’ve tried “open in” markdown editors like Taio etc with DTTG but it’s all just one more step.

What I landed with is using phrase express for templates (now free, throws up my meeting template), and my quick inbox append from home screen shortcut (which means I never have to open DTTG and can get info there to organize later).

Not perfect, but everything is a compromise and at least this compromise keeps all the info in one place to look. Data in one place trumps better/more convenient/more aesthetic workflow for now.

I had not heard of this program. Is it completely independent of Text Expander or related/integrated with? I ask because of the home page for phrase express:

This is a “text expansion” app, aka a text expander, not THE text expander app by smile.

There is a free iOS app (has a keyboard which isn’t great, but lets you easily pop up your phrases and click by folder). This works well for me since most of my templates are long forms such as meeting notes for different committees. The mac has a free beta app that syncs via iCloud so you can make and use templates there as well.

Edit:
This does not require text expander app or any subscription, and is free.

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It is 100% independent and dates back to 2002 (?). Bartels Media dates back even earlier (to 1995). Bartels Media is a German developer. PhraseExpress is (not only) a text expander with a background that originally was more focused on professional use (it started with Windows, if I remember correctly) and is not to be confused with TextExpander that was bought by Smile in 2006 as Textpander (Our Startup Story) from Peter Maurer and became TextExpander later on.

They for sure are fishing in TextExpander Mac waters, too, though:

While of course stating: :wink:

‘TextExpander’ is a trade mark of SmileOnMyMac, LLC and is not affiliated with Bartels Media Gmbh and it has a different feature set than PhraseExpress.

I know the developer back from my Windows days (virtual CD ROM drive emulator, time has passed… :slight_smile: ). They never advertised in a way Smile has done in the past (podcasts, end users). One of the reasons might be their primary target group: corporations, companies - which is not surprising given their pricing and their feature set (including SQL server support and what not, depending on the version). It is free for personal use, though, like @jmanko16 has correctly stated: Info about the Text Expander PhraseExpress freeware version

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I’ve been using it for a decade or more and cannot live without it. My entire life; business, utilities, home, cars, hobbies etc etc are all neatly stored away on Devonthink. Thanks to Devonthink To Go it is all synced to my pocket at all times.

Any new project (selling a house, learning to Sail, further education … ) starts with a new Devonthink group or database and continues from there.

It isn’t cheap but Devonthink doesn’t make ongoing demands for more money. You buy it once then they leave you alone. Only one time have I been asked to pay more and that was for the major 3.0 upgrade. Even that was voluntary.

My advice? Get a trial and give it a spin. You will be amazed at how useful it becomes.

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Can’t recommend DEVONthink enough. Here is an example of the “connectedness.” I’ve selected a recent article I clipped from a journal in my library and the arrows point to related documents with similar content which may be relevant if I am researching this topic, preparing a presentation, or looking for information at the point of care. All of this with no effort on my part. Totally clutch.

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Eric (DEVONthink to go) and Christian (DEVONthink) of course also respond in the “German” sub-forum.

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. . . which I check fairly often

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One aspect about DEVONthink which, in my opinion doesn’t get enough visibility, is that the app is extremely accessible for people with disabilities. I’m a blind user and so rely on VoiceOver to read my Mac’s screen. When I first heard of DEVONthink, I thought nah, something this complex likely is not going to be accessible, however, they have a vague reference on their web page stating something to the effect that the app supports VoiceOver. I’m still in my trial period, but I have yet to find something that isn’t actually accessible using VoiceOver.

Aside from VoiceOver support, there is absolutely fantastic keyboard support for all kinds of functions in addition to navigation. For people with certain disabilities, this keyboard functionality is absolutely essential, but beyond that, it also is a huge productivity boost if you take the time to learn how to accomplish tasks using the keyboard alone.

The only reason I haven’t purchased DEVONthink yet is that with so many ways to use the app, I want to make sure I have a clear idea of how I’m going to work in into my workflow. I’m really impressed though with just how accessible the app really is, especially given its complexity and suspect I’ll be ordering a license within the week.

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Plus it is so highly scriptable that I suspect if you find some aspect that is not accessible out of the box then it would be possible for you to write a script to do what you need.

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DEVONThink is currently part of Summerfest, and 20% off. This ends on Friday, I think.

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Summerfest runs until 8 August:

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DEVONthink Standard Edition is currently for the next seven days on a 30% discount on Bundlehunt ($69 instead of $99):

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