Note Links are a new-ish feature we introduced that’s been talked about here and there on the blog. Not only are Note Links a powerful way to create an organizational structure that you like, they’re a way to actually associate your notes with a variety of 3rd party services. Let’s talk about how you could be using Note Links.
Creating a Note Link
You can create Note Links on any desktop version of Evernote and access Note Links from Evernote anywhere (including mobile versions). Creating a Note Link is easy: right click on a note and choose the Copy Note Link option, or choose it from the Note Menu. The link will be placed into your clipboard. From there, you can paste the link anywhere — a calendar event, a Post It on your desktop, another note, another application that you use, etc. Note Links are meant for you to access your own notes more quickly. Clicking on the Note Link in any location will pop up the note associated with that link.
Note Links are a super powerful way to bring organization, structure, and connectivity to all of your notes in Evernote.
Create Note Links on Your Desktop, Access them Everywhere
Once you start using Note Links, you probably won’t go back. Here are some great reasons to give them a try:
Create a table of contents for a selection of notes. Whether you’re working on a study guide or planning your wedding, you can use Note Links to get ahead of the game. Create a new note and add Note Links for things like Notes: October, Notes: December, etc. or “Guest List,” “Flowers,” “Vendor Numbers.” Do this for a Shared Notebook to help collaborators see your organization structure at first glance.- Add more context to your calendar.* Have a meeting scheduled and want to remember all of the goals you jotted down in Evernote? Place a Note Link associated with your Goals note straight into the calendar invite by pasting the link into the notes section of your calendar. Pull up your note straight from your calendar by clicking on the link.
- Associate notes with a big presentation. Keep the research you’ve saved in Evernote handy right inside a working presentation: drop Note Links into slides or comments for quick reference.
- Access your frequently-used notes, fast. Have a handful of notes that you’re always referring to (a piece of code for your blog, instructions for cleaning your pool, or important numbers related to your kids activities), link them all to a ‘Most Used Notes.’ You’ll barely have to search again.
- Create a calendar reminder.* Wish your notes could remind you of to-dos? They can. Create a checklist or to-do list in your Evernote account. Paste a Note Link into notes section of your calendar event like ‘To-do’ deadlines and use your calendar with Evernote to stay on top of whatever you have to get done. When you click a Note Link from the Web, or your calendar, it opens Evernote on your desktop (if you have it installed) and highlights the note.
- Add Note Links to Shared Notebooks. If you put Note Links into a note and drop that note into a Shared Notebook, the people you’ve shared that notebook with will be able to use them, too. This particular use case is super helpful if you’re working on a project that might require a table of contents, for example, to give added structure to a Shared Notebook.
*If supported by your program, Note Links open Evernote when clicked. In some cases (for example, when using Google Calendar) you may need to add HTML code to make the Note Link clickable. In all cases, notes you link are only visible to you and will not work if you do not have Evernote installed on your desktop or mobile device.
These are just a few ideas for how you can use Note Links. How are you using Note Links?
139 Comments
Mark Frauenfelder
This is a great idea.
I’m having trouble getting it to work with Wunderlist. I scanned a hand written note and saved it to Evernote. Then I selected Copy Note Link. When I past it into a task in Wunderlist, I get this:
evernote:///view/149956/s3/63da30e0-ed97-4560-b1e3-3f4f90581253/63da30e0-ed97-4560-b1e3-3f4f90581253/
It doesn’t turn into a clickable link. Am I doing something wrong?
Kasey Fleisher Hickey
Mark, Note Links are in and of themselves not clickable links in any app, unless that program supports URL creation (in which case, it will create a clickable link that will take you to the note in your Evernote account). If the program you paste it into doesn’t *automatically* turn it into a clickable link, you’ll need to do that yourself by coding the html: link to note
Sam Sexton
Kasey, I was going to make the same comment as Mark. I saw your response and went back to http://blog.evernote.com/2011/10/21/did-you-know-note-links-and-how-to-use-them/?utm_source=interspire&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Newsletter_10-2011_v2m n case I’d missed something – but no, it doesn’t mention having to code the HTML and definitely implies that all you need to do is paste in the link. I clicked on your “link to note” and was told that “You may not access this note link as it belongs to a different user”.
I would suggest that the use of this facility be clarified, with an example of what needs to be done to get the links to work.
Irina I
Kasey, could you please explain how to add HTML code to the note link to make it clickable from external applications like Google Calendar or Google Docs. I cannot find an explanation anywhere.
Thanks!
Heather
When you edit the event in Google Calendar, add HTML tags such as <a href=”evernote://view/362535/s4/9905be3e-279e-4b0c-a9d3-01d1d0eabce9/9905be3e-279e-4b0c-a9d3-01d1d0eabce9/” rel=”nofollow”>Evernote Note</a> in the description.
If you edit the event description again, you’ll need to add in the code again, as Google strips it each time you edit.
Rob
As much as I love evernote and note links, having to add code to each entry into Google Calendar and various other programs I use is far too much work and renders the note links feature irrelevant for me. Anyone with more computer experience than me know of a way to automate the generation of the relevant code through a script or something?
Dean Holmes
I use OmniFocus and Apple Mail in LION to manage most of my tasks from emails. It’s an easy, key command set to do this (would love to see a keyboard shortcut for doing this out of a single or multiple selected notes). I would love to be able to use Evernote to handle all of my tasks.
Quite frankly, it’s really suited well for tasks. I use a GTD process as well and have this setup in Evernote (@Agendas, @Calls, etc…) in Context Tags. I am looking for a way to use Apple Mail ONLY along with this new feature in Evernote (at least new to me) to have 1 place that I can create notes and link to an Event or Reminder in LION Mail and iCal.
I am using a Mac on LION. I have tried to add the copy link note url to an iCal Event. Issues are:
• URL does not hyperlink automatically
• When I right click the url in the Event, it sometimes opens and sometimes not
• In multiple select Notes in Evernote, the copy link note url appears to contain all 3 (for example 3 notes I selected) – how to make this create 1 single url?
Questions (Hoping others have figured this out):
• How to make the url in iCal Events auto-hyperlink so I can just click to open it
• How to make 1 url out of multiple notes selected
• Has anyone tested this to be able to use with reminders in LION?
Lastly, not totally on topic, but I have had one heck of a time trying to determine an app for the iPhone (using Egret List right now) that is being updated on a consistent basis (These guys have all but abandoned the EgretList app).
• Does anyone know of an app they use thats better than EgretList?
• Is Evernote considering a way to do better tasks with due dates???
Thanks everyone. The real value of this community shines when we all put our heads together. Love it. Keep up the great work. This is an amazing feature.
Kasey Fleisher Hickey
Hello, Dean. In response to your questions, please see the update in the post regarding pasting Note Links into calendar events – it depends on the program’s capabilities…You may need to add additional HTML code to make Note Links work outside of Evernote. Note Links enable you to link individual notes to one another. Hope this helps!
Scott Whittaker
As a side note, I have found that note links work great when pasted into the Notes section of an OmniFocus task. You can even drag & drop selected notes from Evernote.
Jeff B
Dean,
You should be able to paste the Note Link into the url field when creating the new calendar event. Works for me on OSX 10.6.8
David Taylor
You should emphasize this is only available on the Mac version. I really drove myself nuts trying to find this command on my Windows version.
Kasey Fleisher Hickey
David, Note Links are available for Windows: http://blog.evernote.com/2011/06/15/big-evernote-desktop-update-windows-and-mac-get-note-links-note-copying-and-much-more/
Windows: Right click the note, mouse over Copy Note, then choose Notebook…
Mac: Right click the note, go to the bottom of the notebook list, mouse over Options
Dean Holmes
Kasey, any chance you will comment on my reply here? Spent a lot of time crafting the comment. Would be helpful for all if you could answer it. Thanks
Kasey Fleisher Hickey
Sure, Dean.
Arvid
Would love to see this work in the mobile clients as well
Don
Absolutely, please support the “evernote://” copy note link creation in the mobile clients like Android. This makes integration with Remember-the-milk quite good as the link can be inserted in an RTM task’s URL field, allowing quick reference to the EN note (without having the make the note public through https:// sharing)… Thanks!
Linette Singleton
I agree with Arvid. New product features are useless if they’re not developed for multi-platforms. Given the mobility trends (I only use EverNote via my iPad and smartphone), the future of this and other products is being sorely disregarded.
Stephen Morris
I have tried and tried to get the Copy Note Link functionality to work. I’ve tried using it with Outlook and Salesforce. Either I’m not fully understanding how to use it, I’m using with it programs that don’t work with Evernote or I just don’t know what I’m doing.
I would love to have this functionality. It looks awesome. Any help would be great, thanks.
Stephen Morris
Never mind, I was missing the Coding the HTML part. I got it now.
Chris
Hi there!
I LOVE Evernote and can’t see myself living without it! I use it to keep all my reference material for home and work, and love being able to use note links. I use Things, from Cultured Code as my planner, and It works very well with Things. If I drag a note from my note list into the “note” section of my task or project on Things, it will create a shortcut to the note’s location on my Evernote Desktop. Makes it easy and quick with no copy or paste needed. And when I work at home, where I have both desktop apps as well, the links work the same, and get me where I need to be. Just makes my life much easier…which is no surprise, because that’s what Evernote does, lol.
Man, I love Evernote.
Mike
I did notice that if I just right-click on the note while it is inside the folder view, and click on Copy Note Link, I get a url that takes me into my whole Evernote console. However, if I click the Share dropdown and select Copy Note URL to Clipboard, now I have a url that will open only that note. Sort of confusing, since using the instructions above actually open my entire Evernote console, not just the individual note.
Kasey Fleisher Hickey
Mike, copying the note URL to your clipboard actually creates a public URL for that note (this is useful if you want to share a single note with someone and is different from the Note Link feature).
Arvid
Any news or ideas for Mobile clients?
Ron
It would be cool if copy Note link were in the tool bar of the note somewhere. Either the share menu – where I could see it being confusing – or its own button.
First time I tried to use this I wanted to add a link in my TO DO note to a note open in a separate Note Window so I could close it. I had to go find where that note was filed so I could right click on it.
(Talking Mac version BTW)
Vicki
Help! What specific html code do I add to Google calendar? And where?
Kevin
I am also stumped. I see no way to poke URLs like this into Google Calendar, either in events or task items. So close….
What calendars do support this? Are the compatible with Google’s? I’d really be ecstatic if I could manipulate dated items in the Calendar and see them on all Google-Calendar clients, since I have lots of devices and shared calendars too. Like Jorte on Android, for instacne. If Jorte and Evernote could just get along, what a world
Nan
I didn’t see that the first few questions above have been resolved. My apologies if this duplicates efforts. I found the instructions for including a note link in a calendar item a bit misleading. Just having read the article, I thought I’d try copying a link to an event I’d just scheduled. The instructions say to paste into the ‘note section’ of the calendar item. Indeed, the ‘link’ does not appear as a link. There are two solutions – if you copy to the note section, right click on the apparent link and click ‘open URL’ or simply copy the link into the URL section, then it will actually show up as a link and you can click on it directly.
Thomas
Hi Kasey
Just to confirm (or correct me!).. Using the “Copy Note Link” is a private way to link my notes in whatever 3rd party program that supports/works. This link is not public and the note is only accessible by me. If I want to make that same note public and share then the “copy shared Note URL to clipboard” does that. I know it may sound like a no brainer question but want to confirm the “Copy Note Link” is a private link.
Kasey Fleisher Hickey
Hi Thomas, you are correct! Copy Note Link does NOT create a public Note Link.
Thomas
Actually…. after reading the post above I found the answer..
“If supported by your program, Note Links open Evernote when clicked. In some cases (for example, when using Google Calendar) you may need to add HTML code to make the Note Link clickable. In all cases, notes you link are only visible to you and will not work if you do not have Evernote installed on your desktop or mobile device.”
Rummy
Very interesting feature. However you should focus this is only available on the Mac version. I really drove myself nuts trying to find this command on my Windows version.
Heather
How bout an answer to Vicki’s question. I would want my Google calendar items to end up in Evernote and vice versa. And what about HTML. For those of us who only drive these machines but don’t get the mechanics, how does one know what HTML code needs to be added?
suppachok nattip
happy all music work
IwoJimaJim
I tried to apply this Copy Note Link but failed to see it when I right click on my Windows Evernote item. Came on the Rummy comment that the app is only available on the Mac version. Hope that is not true.
My objective is to have a link on an Excel worksheet that takes me to my Evernote explanation of some of the intricacies in that worksheet In Excel a right click will open a drop down menu that has a Hyperlink feature but I was unable to browse to the specific evernote to establish the link.
Susan
So I need to start using an electronic calendar that synchs like Evernote. Was yhinking of google calendar but how do I do HTML code for a link? Any other calendar & desk app you recommend with Evernote?
Kevin
I am really hoping for some clarity on this too. I’ve done a few simplistic experiments and have found that: (1) google calendar on the web does not connect to links if they are in the description of tasks (I care more about tasks than events — YMMV). I would like to be able to link notes to tasks/events, though (esp for info that the calendar doesn’t support — say, photos). (2) some mobile calendar programs, in my case both Jorte and the Google Calendar App under Android, DO link directly to note shared URLs — but not to note links (instead it tries to see them as phone #’s!). So this means that it *is* possible to just drop an unadorned shared URL into a Google Calendar item on my PC, and then later call up the evernote note from my mobile calendar by just clicking. This is a step in the right direction… but more than a bit fiddly.
Lidia McMahon
I love the screen view as described in option 1 on the above document – where the pictures are thumbnails in the note and are therefore easily recognisable.
However I cant seem to achieve the same for my evernote notebook – please help
LarryS
Lidia McMahon, I am using Windows XP, so it may be different in other Windows versions or on a Mac. You should be using Evernote desktop if not, it is a free download from the Evernote web site).
Once Evernote desktop is installed and synced with your Evernote online account: View > Thumbnail View
Or press Ctrl + F7 on the keyboard.
LarryS
Lidia McMahon, I am using Windows XP, so it may be different in other Windows versions or on a Mac. You should be using Evernote desktop if not, it is a free download from the Evernote web site).
Once Evernote desktop is installed and synced with your Evernote online account: View > Thumbnail View
Or press Ctrl + F7 on the keyboard.
Steven
I really need this feature on ios client.
I use evernote on ipad 99% of the time. 1% on the desktop through remote desktop app just to copy note links and to add them to their notes so I could use them on ipad.
Alan E
PLEASE ADD THE NOTE LINK FEATURE TO THE iOS VERSIONS.
Jason
Pretty Please….with sugar
Nick W.
I really love this feature and I love Evernote.
The last part of this linking stuff that would make it perfect for me, coming from a wiki background, would be the ability to highlight text in a note and have the right-click option to create a new linked note with the selected text as the note title.
That would make it so much easier to create linked lists and to see which of my projects needs to still have a note added for it.
Currently I make my master list.
Copy a line.
Create a new note with the line as the title.
Copy the link for that note.
Highlight the line in my master list and past the hyperlinked note in.
Thanks for looking into this.
Jerome BG
I hope this question hasn’t already been asked, but when I can’t make the note link (evernote://XXX/YYY) clickable – is it possible to take something from that link and find the note in evernote?
I have tried searching (in evernote) for the first number from the link (XXX above) and then for the second string (YYY from above) – with no luck.
Until these app specific links are better supported, the ability to use a link’s text to jump to a note seems logical.
Max Stanley
Friends, I think it’s pretty clear from the number of times this question has been explicitly asked and ignored:
Despite the content of the above article, Note Links actually doesn’t work from within Google Calendar, and there’s no possible “addition of HTML code” that will make it so.
Too bad – that’s a popular calendar, sorta.
Kid X
Add me to the list of thoroughly confused Note-Link people.
Particularly, I would like to achieve the ends that the “attorney” from the article “How an Attorney and Dad Uses Evernote for Work and Parenting”, seems able to have utilized this feature. This is what whet my appetite for the feature. At the bottom of one paragraph in the article where he was mentioning how he utilizes Note Links, was a link that says, “Learn more about Note Links”… but THIS TOO, is nebulous, and every attempt I’ve made to duplicate what he states he was able to do — I can NOT do.
Netjera
I really love this feature. I use it to make index pages, and I also use it it to keep track of 3d content. However, I’ve noticed that it doesn’t work properly when inserting the hyperlink into a note that was created from a webpage.
For example: I clipped a copy of an itemized list of 3d products I’ve purchased from my account on the vendor’s website. This has a list of all the names of the items I’ve bought. Then I use Evernote to clip copies of each of the individual product pages. I then copy the hyperlink for a note made for an individual product page, I go to the itemized list, and I select the text for the product name and say “Hyperlink: Add”. I pasted in the link, and then say okay, but the link is not added. If I go back to the right-click hyperlink menu it will still say “Hyperlink: Add” with no other choices.
This doesn’t happen all the time, but it happens at least once on every list I’ve made. Sometimes selecting a different portion of the text fixes it. Sometimes selecting something else fixes it. Sometimes it doesn’t work at all for one or more items.
Just to clarify: The text I’m using doesn’t have a hyperlink already attached to it. It’s just regular text, same as I’d use for making a custom-made index. The only difference, is instead of typing in 1000s of items, I’m using a clipped list and then linking the items.
Has anyone else experienced this issue?
OrkGandalf
Is it possible to use the note link to actually open the note in a separate window instead of simply positioning to it in Evernote?
I’d like to have it open when I click the link like when i double click the note in Evernote.
Thanks.
Chris
Is it possible to create a link in a text like “click here” instead it always pasting the title of the note?
Lisa Dunn
Ditto what Ork says above about opening in a new window. If I have a table of contents with a list of hyperlinks to notes, it would be so cool if when I clicked on a link in the table of contents they didn’t disappear in place of the note I linked to. I know I can use the arrows on the top of the page to go back and forth….but would be great if this where an option.
I just came back to Evernote from Springpad. I was an evernote user about 1 year ago, and could no longer resist the pull to come back. You’ve done a lot of great work in the last year. Love it!
MWood
I started using the Note Link feature as a way to create a status launch ‘page’ for myself, one note with overview info that linked out to other notes containing details. This worked great until I ran across one fatal flaw – the links break if you move the target note to a different notebook.
Is there any way to keep this from happening? Going back and updating the links isn’t an option because I don’t keep track of *every* place I link to a note from.
petegreg
It would be great to see this taken a step further and have the link added to say an Outlook Calendar item automatically if you select ‘Add to Evernote’ from the context menu. Then be able to go to that note from a new context menu item once the note has been created.
CSK
Note Link with iCal – Mac OS X
Reminders with Evernote – Mac OS X
Here are some simple directions to make an Evernote (EN) note link open in iCal:
in EN select a note, right click, and select “copy note link”
Add an event to your calendar, or edit an existing event. In the notes section of the iCal event, paste the EN note link, and hit enter/return (you will see an underlined hyperlink)
Right click the note link that appears in the Notes section of iCal for the event and select “Open URL” and the note in Evernote will appear. Touchpad users can use two finger touch, if you’ve set up your touchpad to do so, to open up the hyperlinked EN note.
By logical extension and as described above in this blog, one can set up “To do” reminders by developing iCal events in the calendar and linking them to EN notes.