mxNotes

mxNotes users are informed that the development of this app has been definitely suspended for the following reasons.

1. With iOS 18, PadOS 18 and macOS Sequoia, Apple's Reminders app has integrated some features of mxNotes, such as the ability to insert tasks into the calendar, so the latter has no longer any real advantages over the formar.

2. Moving mxNotes to Swift 6 would require a very deep code review, which is not justified given the few downloads of the app.

Users can export mxNotes data to open formats and import it into other apps.

Introduction

mxNotes is a free app for iPhone, iPad and Mac to manage tasks (i.e., to-dos), textual notes and documents with an integrated approach. It has been made with XCode and SwiftUI.

Each note, consisting of a title and a plain text, can have an expiration date and an indication of its completion. The expiration date may be recurrent (every day, every one, two, three, four weeks, every one, two, three, four, six months, every year). It's possible to attach to a note any kind of file (file of Pages or Word, PDF, picture, audio, etc.). This feature allows to archive documents and find them very easily. If the attachment is a picture, on iPhone and iPad it's available a button to open a preview of it, in which it's possible to pinch to zoom to visualize it better.

The text of the notes does not support neither formatting (italics, bold, lists, etc.) or encryption – like Google Keep. Besides the fact that this simple format takes much less space than one that supports formatting, in mxNotes the text is designed to contain jottings, even very long, but not structured documents, for which the word processor (Word, Pages, Writer, etc.) is the best option.

The use of the app supposes that the documents needing to be encrypted or formatted (for example, the minute of a meeting) are written with the word processor within a file attached to a note, and that the text of the same note is reserved for simple remarks (e.g. the agenda of the meeting and the decisions taken), which can be tagged and found by the app. So, in mxNotes, an attachment is considered a kind of extension of the note it belongs to. For this reason, a note may have just one attachment. Furthermore, changes made to an attachment - if it is not a compressed file - are saved in the original file. Accordingly, the word processor may be considered as the editor of mxNotes, although only for the attached documents.

This option avoids also the problem of the imperfect compatibility among the text format used by many note-taking apps (RTF, Markdown, etc.) and the one used by the word processor. This could be an issue when a note written in a basic format with a note-taking app becomes a more complex text and must be imported in apps like Word, Pages, or Writer. Something might be lost or not perfectly imported.

On Mac, the content of the attachments can be still found using Spotlight, but not within the app. This is considered an advantage, since allows to narrow down the results of searching to what is contained in the title and the text of the notes. In this way, the results are far more precise than those obtained by a massive search on everything. Of course, when a document is attached to a note, the user must type in the text of the same note at least the sentences or the keywords that might be searched for to find that note.

The notes and their possible attachments are automatically synchronized on iCloud between the various devices associated with the same Apple account. However, on each device it is possible to export the notes in plain text format or as a CSV file using tab as separator. This latter file can be opened with Numbers, Excel or another spreadsheet, or imported into other apps.

In the options of the app it is possible to enable the automatic synchronization of the notes having a deadline with the user's default calendar (see the Options and tools of the app). The title of these notes can then be viewed in the Apple's Calendar app. Each change made to these notes in mxNotes is mirrored in the calendar, but not vice versa. Their title is preceded by an emoji that can be changed in the options of the app  (see the Options and tools of the app).

The notes may be exported to Apple Reminders, and the tasks of Reminders may be imported in mxNotes (see the Options and tools of the app). In this way the user may easily fetch all the tasks already typed in Reminders, or go back to this app if mxNotes doesn't suit his or her needs without loosing the existing notes.

It is possible to disable iCloud synchronization in the device options. In this case, mxNotes stores the data exclusively in the device itself, without deleting any data already entered and synchronized on iCloud.

mxNotes requires iOS 16 or following on iPhone and iPad, and macOS 13 or following on Mac.

Ways to use the app

Here are some examples of uses of the app. Click on the title to view the full description.

Version for iPhone and iPad

Screenshots

The look of the iPad version of the app is very close to the one for iPhone. The colors of the interface may be changed by the user.

Interface

Notes are displayed in a list (image 1), and by tapping on one of them the related details are displayed, i.e. the title, the date of the last modification (assigned automatically by the app), any possible expiration date, any possible indication of completion, the possible attachment and an unformatted plain text as long as necessary (image 2). To go back to the list of the notes, tap on the top left arrow within a circle.

In the list of notes (image 1), at the left of the title, there's a symbol that shows if the note has not been completed (an empty circle), if it has been completed (a circle with a check) or if it's expired (a yellow or red circle with an exclamation point). Under the title of the note there is the expiration date, if any, preceded by the icon of a paperclip if the note has an attachment and by the icon of a page if the note has a text. After the possible expiration date there's the icon of a hourglass followed by the number of days left until the deadline. LIke the circle mentioned above, if the expiration date is earlier than the current day, the details are printed in red, if it's equal to the current day, in yellow.

Below the list of the notes (image 1) there is their number (only of those filtered, if the filter is active). If there are expired notes, also hidden, a red bullet and the number of those notes are shown at the right of the numer of all the notes. When the notes with the emoji of the padlock are not shown (see the Options and tools of the app for more information, image 7), an icon of a padlock with a slash is shown close to the number of the notes.

At the right of these details there is a button with the keyboard icon to close the keyboard after having typed some text in the filter (only on iPhone, in iPad it's included in the keyboard), the app's options button (icon with two cursors) and the copyright button (icon of an "i" inside a circle). In the copyright, there is a link to this manual.

In the copyright, tapping on the app icon will move it away in the background by rotating - just for fun. By tapping on it again, it will return to its place. It's possible to tap on the icon also while it's moving backwards or foreward.

To update the notes, that is to show immediately the changes coming from another device and already synchronized in the background, swipe down the list of the notes.

In iPad or Mac, it's possibile to create more views of the app, to show together different notes or details of them. Likewise, on macOS a double click on a note in the list of the notes opens a second window to edit just that note.

Filters and tags

Above the list of notes there is the filter field (image 1). When some characters are typed in this field, just the notes in which the title or the possible attachment name, or optionally the text (see the Options and tools of the app, image 7), contain these characters are automatically filtered. It is possible to type two or more words so that they both must be present in the filtered notes; to do this, just separate them with " && " (without quotes, there's a space before and after the two &). For instance, typing in the filter "report && Lisa" (without quotes), only the notes containing in the title and, optionally, in the text both report and Lisa will be shown. By tapping on the magnifying glass symbol, at the left of the filter field, the code " && " is automatically inserted, unless the code " || " is already present. The " && " code, infact, may be used only if the code " || " is not present.

It is also possible to type two or more words so that at least one of them should be present in the filtered notes. To do this, separate them with " || " (without quotes, there's a space before and after the two |). For instance, typing in the filter "report || Lisa" (without quotes), only the notes containing in the title and, optionally, in the text report or Lisa or both of them will be shown. By long tapping on the magnifying glass symbol, at the left of the filter field, the code " || " is automatically inserted, unless the code " && " is already present. The " || " code, infact, may be used only if the code " && " is not present.

If the ID of the note is typed or pasted in the filter, only that note will be shown - even the favourite notes will be hidden. To copy the ID of the current note in the clipboard, click on the button with the icon of a circle with dots inside, at the right of the modification date. The ID may be pasted in the filter or in the text of another note as  reference to the current note.

The circle button containing an "x" clears the filter and shows all the notes.

mxNotes allows to tag the notes by inserting at the beginning of their title one or more emojis that in the app have a particular meaning (image 3): 

• • Section "Urgent / Important" (4 items that comply with the Covey Time Management Matrix), which are automatically inserted or moved before the other emojis

  • Section "Priority" (from 1 to 6), which are automatically inserted or moved before the other emojis but after those of the section "Urgent / Important"

  • Deadline

  • Work

  • Hobby

  • Documents

  • Readings

  • Event and meetings

  • Idea

  • Memo

  • Call

  • E-mail

  • Hidden (previously, Confidential), which is automatically inserted after any othe possible emoji, just before the title

  • Custom (6 spheres and 6 squares of different colors, which can be totally customized by the user; only those customized are shown in the menu). 

By tapping on the label symbol, at the right of the filter field, a menu pops up to insert one or more of these emojis in the filter, thus filtering all the notes that contain them. To get rid of the order in which those emoji appear in the title of the notes, separate each of them with " && " (without quotes, there's a space before and after the two &), to search for all of them, or  " || " (without quotes, there's a space before and after the two |) to search at least for one of them. The menu opened by tapping on the label symbol inserts automatically the " && " code before a new emoji, if one is already existing, provided that the " || " code is not present in the filter. On the contrary, in this latter case it inserts the " || " code.

The menu items of the emoji already present in the title of the note are in red. To insert an emoji in the title of a note, just enter the detail of the note (image 2), tap on the label symbol and select the desired emoji in the menu. To remove an existing emoji, select it again in the menu. The emoji related to the priority of the note are mutually exclusive. Obviously it's possible to add or delete an emoji - even not present in the menu - using the keyboard, like any other character.

It's possible to add to a note one or more hashtags, although they are not shown as links. Type in the text of a note the tags among two hash (like #project003#), so that these tags can be found through the filter without any ambiguity (looking for a tag like #project0003 would find also #project0035).

To set a note as favourite, so that it can be always shown in spite of any possible filter, tap on the button with the star icon. To remove the mark, tap on it again. It's possibile to set a note as favourite or completed swiping it to the left in the list of the notes (image 1) and choosing the proper button. To delete a note, swipe it to the right and select the "Delete" button.

By repeatedly tapping the icon at the top left of the list of the notes (image 1) the notes are sorted by

• • modification date (sheet icon with pencil),

  • title (rectangle icon with an "A" inside it),

  • expiration date (clock icon),

  • modification date without expiration date (archive icon).

These last two icons are red to indicate that not all the notes are shown, but – if no filter is active – only those with an expiration date and not completed in the first case, and those without an expiration date in the second. When the notes are sorted by expiration date, is a note marked as hidden is expired, it appears in the list of the notes even if the hidden notes are not shown, provided that no filter is present.

To sum up, the notes selected by the filter and also those marked as favorites (if the filter of the ID of a single note is not active) are always visible, regardless of their possible expiration, completion or the presence of the padlock in their title. In the other cases, a note is not displayed if even one of its characteristics makes it hidden, according to the following rules.

Sorting by modification date or title

• Notes without expiration: visible

• Due and completed notes: visible

• Due, uncompleted, and unexpired notes: visible

• Due, uncompleted, and expired notes: visible

• Notes with padlock in the title (if “Show notes with padlock” is deactivated in the options): hidden

Sorting by expiration date

• Notes without expiration: hidden

• Due and completed notes: hidden

• Due, uncompleted, and unexpired notes: visible

• Due, uncompleted, and expired notes: visible

• Notes with padlock in the title (if “Show notes with padlock” is deactivated in the options): hidden, unless they have a deadline, are not completed and are overdue

Sorting by modification date

• Notes without expiration: visible

• Due and completed notes: hidden

• Due, uncompleted, and unexpired notes: hidden

• Due, uncompleted and expired notes: hidden

• Notes with padlock in the title (if “Show notes with padlock” is deactivated in the options): hidden

In the sorting by title, if there are emojis in this field, the notes will be sorted according to these emoji, and so to their type (Priority, Deadline, etc.).

If it's necessary to sort the notes by a specific date, like that of a meeting, use the deadline or start the title of the note with the date in the format year-month-day, after the possible emojis, and then add the title. For instance: "2022-05-12 • Meeting with the team". In this way, when the notes are sorted by title, they will be sorted by the date typed at the beginning of it. The date might be inserted also at the end of the title (for instance: "Meeting with the team @ 2022-05-06"), provided that the title and the previous emojis are the same for all the notes related to the same subject.

 Changes

To create a new note, tap on the button at the top right (icon with the "+"). On iOS and iPadOS, the details of a note are saved when going back to the list of the notes with the top left circular button with an arrow inside it. On Mac, they are saved automatically when it's selected another note, the app is closed or with the shortcut Cmd + S.

When a new note is created, the possible filter is removed, and if they are not sorted by title, they are sorted by modification date, so that the new note may appears at the top of the list.

In the details of the notes (image 2), it is possible to add, modify or delete the deadline date by tapping on the alarm icon at the right of the indication of the deadline; the suggested date will be three days after the current date. The calendar symbol with the "+" allows to add or update the deadline wih its possible recurrence, the calendar symbol with the "-" to cancel the deadline with its possible recurrence. The top left button with an arrow in a circle leaves the deadline unchanged.

At the top of the dealine (image 4) there's a button with the icon of a clock followed by the selected date which opens a menu useful to set forward the date of one or more days (image 5).

Tapping on the link below the calendar selects the recurrence of the due date (image 6); then it's necessary to tap on the calendar icon with the "+" to make the recurrence effective. When a recurrence is set, the alarm symbol is replaced with that of a clock inside circular arrows, both in the detail of the note and in the list of the notes. By tapping on the "Completed / Not completed" toggle, the expiration date is updated with the following one, and the activity is marked again as to be done. To be able to mark it as completed, remove the recurrence of its expiration date.

To add an attachment, tap on the icon with a paperclip and a square on the right and select the desired file. Once inserted, it can be removed with the trash can icon that will appear on the right. To view the file or send it to other apps, click on the icon on the left with a picture of an up arrow. If the attachment is a picture, at the left of its name there's a button with the icon of a photography which opens its preview. In the preview it's possible to pinch and zoom to show better the image.

At the left of the attachment there is an icon depicting a pencil and a rectangle which is used to assign the title of the current note to the attachment, without the possible emojis.

If the button to share an attachment, or to preview it as a picture, or to rename it according to the title of the current note doesn't seem to work, try again after few seconds. Simply, the attachment has been created with another device and has not yet been downloaded in the device in use. In this case, the download starts with a tap on the button to open or share the attachment or to show its preview.

To insert a new attachment, first remove the existing one.

To understand why it's possible to attach just one file to a note, see the FAQ below.

In the detail of the notes, at the bottom, there are the following buttons, above and below the text (image 2).

Above the text:

• the "Font name" button, with the icon "Aa", to change the font of the text of all the notes in the device in use; the available fonts are Avenir Next, Georgia, Gill Sans, Palatino, Menlo, System, American Typewriter, Arial, Chalkboard SE, Iowan Old Style, Optima, Trebuchet, Verdana;

• the "Line spacing" button, to change the line spacing of the text of all the notes in the device in use; 5 settings are available;

• the "Font size" button, with the icon "AA", which enlarges the font of the text of all the notes in the device in use to make it more readable; 7 sizes are available on iPad, 4 on iPhone;

• the "Spell checking" button, with the icon of "abc", to activate or deactivate the spell checking of the text of all the notes in the device in use; on iPhone and iPad, when this option is activated, the details of the current note are automatically closed to reset the field of the text;

• [only on iPhone and iPad] the "Search" button, with the icon of a magnifier, to find and possibly replace a sentence within the text of the current note. On Mac must be used the item "Find" in the menu "Edit".

Below the text:

• • the "Share" button, with the icon of a square and an up arrow, to send the title and the text of the current note to other app, or to copy or save them;

  • the "Save" button, with the icon of a document and an arrow, to save the changes to the note - the same data may be saved going back to the list of the notes;

  • the "Web" button, with the icon of a world, to open the first web address that is written in the text of the note;

  • the "Close keyword" button, to close the keyboard, only on iPhone;

  • the "Widen text" button, to show the text of the note at full screen for a better reading and editing.

Links

It is possible to insert in the text of the notes various links to websites or files attached to any note, or external. Even if they are not formatted as such, links can be easily opened by Ctrl + clicking them and choosing the "Open Link" option. If this menu item doesn't appear, select the link and retry.

To insert a link to an external file, compose it as follows, replacing any spaces with %20: 

file:///Users/[user-name]/Path/Name%20of%20file

For instance,

file:///Users/paul/Downloads/Article%20of%20review.pdf

To insert a link to a note attachment, write it as follows, replacing any spaces with %20:

file:///Users/[user-name]/Library/Mobile%20Documents/iCloud~org~nardello~icloud~mxnotes/Documents/[ID of the note in uppercase]/File%20name

For instance,

file:///Users/paul/Library/Mobile%20Documents/iCloud~org~nardello~icloud~mxnotes/Documents/ED0AF1CF-A5B0-4792-A54F-WWWPD6EB56D8/Article%20of%20review.docx

If Apple Mail is used, it's possible also to insert a link to an email into the text of a note. Select the desired message and then choose View - Message - All headers menus (⌘ ⇧ H). Then look for the email identifier, which appears in the middle of the text between two hooks and ends with the domain name of the email (e.g. <2K0FS3RF9-5BE0-4DG5-9467-FEA12QD38F28@gmail.com>). The link to the email must be written in the text of the note by typing message:// before the identifier (e.g. message://<2K0FS3RF9-5BE0-4DG5-9467-FEA12QD38F28@gmail.com>).

Options and tools

The options and tools of the app, which can be accessed with the button at the bottom right in the list of the notes (image 2), allow to customize or set the following elements (image 7):

• to customize the color of the text, of the interface and of the buttons when both the dark and light theme are in use; tap on the circular arrows at the right of the labels "Dark theme colors" and "Light theme colors" to resume the default colors;

• to set whether the filters must include also the text of the notes;

• to set if the notes containing in the title the emoji of the padlock (the one that may be inserted with the emoji menu) should be shown or remain hidden, unless they are set as favourite or required by a filter;

• to set the synchronization of the notes having a deadline with the default calendar; when this synchronization is activated, only the notes created or modified afterwards will be affected; the comments of the calendar items contains the ID of the linked notes, which must not be modified;

• to change the emojis before the titles of the notes both still to be done and already completed that appear in the calendar, if the synchronization is active;

• to export all the notes in plain text, sorted by modification date;

• to export all the notes in CSV format; the various fields (title, text, etc.) will be separated by a tab, and the file obtained could be opened with Numbers or other spreadsheets,or imported into other apps;

• to import all the tasks from Apple Reminders; the recurring tasks will be imported with the current deadline, and should be set again as recurrent in mxNotes;

• to export all the notes to Apple Reminders;

• to open the form to customize the tags.

This last option opens a form to customize the 12 customizable tags (image 8) identified by default by a colored circle or square and without any label. It's possible to modify their emoji, and their label as well.

The Notes marked as hidden, i.e. containing a padlock emoji, are not encrypted. Simply, they are not displayed, except when marked as favorite or selected by a filter, so as not to burden the normal view of the note list.

The changes are syncronized among the various devices of the user. Anyway, before customizing the tags, it's better to quit the app in all the devices not in use, to make the changes to the tags in the device in use, to wait for some seconds so that iCloud may conclude the synchronization and then to open the app in the other devices.

Version for Mac

Screenshots

The colors of the interface may be changed by the user.

The version of mxNotes for Mac is very close to the one for iPhone and iPad. Here are some differences:

• like in iPad, it's possibile to create more windows (menu File) or panels (menu View) of the app, to show together different notes or details of them;

• use the horizontal scrolling of the trackpad or of the mouse over the name of a note to show the button to delete it, or to set it as preferred or completed;

• to update the notes, use the button close to the one useful to change the sorting, or the shortcut Cmd + R (the vertical swipe doesn't work);

• to copy the ID of the current note in the clipboard, click on the button at the right of the modification date, or hover on it just to show the ID;

• to attach a file to a note, it's possible to drag it over the details of the note, except for the title and text fields;

• the icon with a eye opens the attachment with the default app; anyway, if it's a compressed ifile, it will be copied in the Downloads folder;

• to open the calendar to change the deadline, click on the down arrow at the right of the deadline;

• in the Options, it's possibile to activate a better contrast of the background of the text of the app;

• in the Options, there is a button to export all the attachments in the Downloads folder; each file will be contained in a directory named with the ID of its note (e.g. BE2591B0-AC17-4BE4-9B53-142E69DB29C2), and the ID of each note is available in the exportation files in textual or CSV format, just below the title;

• at the bottom left of the app, there is a clock, a button to open the list of the shortcuts and a button to open the Options of the app. Leaving the mouse on the clock, a hint shows the current date.

Highlighting of parts of the text

The text of the notes cannot be formatted, but it is possible to use the emojis to highlight some parts of it (title, lists, links, etc.), in order to recognize them more easily and search for all the notes that contain them. Here's an example.

Shortcuts

On Mac, and also on iPhone and iPad with a physical keyboard connected, the following shortcuts are available:

• • Create a new note:  Cmd + Shift + N.

  • [iPhone and iPad] Open the details of a selected note: Space bar.

  • [Mac] Select the filter field: Cmd + F.

  • [Mac] Cancel the filter: Cmd + Option + F.

  • Change the sorting of the notes: Cmd + Shift + R.

  • [Mac] Sort the notes by modification date: Cmd + D.

  • [Mac] Sort the notes by title: Cmd + T.

  • [Mac] Sort the notes by expiration date: Cmd + P.

  • [Mac] Sort by the notes date without expiration: Cmd + B.

  • [Mac] Update the notes: Cmd + R.

  • [Mac] Save the current note: Cmd + S.

  • Insert an attachment or delete the existing one: Cmd +Shift + A.

  • Rename the attachment as the note: Cmd + Option + Shift + A.

  • [Mac] Open the attachment: Cmd + Shift + P.

  • [Mac] Create or delete a deadline: Cmd + Shift + J.

  • [Mac] Show or hide the calendar (if there is a deadline): Cmd + Shift + C.

  • [iPhone and iPad] Open the first web link contained in the text of the note: Cmd + Shift + O.

  • Widen the text of the note: Cmd + Shift + W.

  • [iPhone and iPad] Change the font size: Cmd + Shift + "." [that is, dot].

  • [Mac] Increase the font size: Cmd + "+".

  • [Mac] Decrease the font size: Cmd + "-".

  • Change the font type: Cmd + Shift + F.

  • [iPhone and iPad] Change the line spacing: Cmd + Shift + L.

  • [Mac] Increase the line spacing: Cmd + Opt + Shift + "+".

  • [Mac] Decrease the line spacing: Cmd + Opt + Shift + "-".

  • Activate and deactivate spell check: Cmd + K.

  • [Mac] Set the note as favourite: Cmd + Shift + T.

  • [Mac] Set the note as done: Cmd + Shift + D.

  • [Mac] Select the current paragraph: Cmd + Opt + A.

  • [Mac] Delete the current paragraph: Cmd + Opt + Delete.

  • [Mac] Move up the current paragraph: Opt + Arrow up.

  • [Mac] Move down the current paragraph: Opt + Arrow down.

  • [Mac] To make uppercase the current word or those selected: Cmd + U.

  • [Mac] Make lowercase the current word or those selected: Cmd + Opt + U.

  • [Mac] To capitalize the current word or those selected: Cmd + Opt + Shift + U.

  • [iPhone and iPad] Quit the details of the note: Cmd + E.

  • [Mac] Open the options: Cmd + ",".

  • [Mac] Quit the options: Esc.

  • [Mac] Open the list of shortcuts: Cmd + Option + H.

The list of shortcuts contains also those useful to insert the various tags.

Troubleshooting and hacks

• • To import a CSV file into Excel so that the emoji are preserved, use the "File - Import" menu, then choose "Text file" as the file type, select the desired file, indicate UTF8 as "File source" (not Macintosh) and finally tabs as delimiters.

  • Exiting the filter field with the tab makes ineffective the shortcut Cmd + F to select it again. To restore this, exit the filter field with a click outside it.

  • The synchronization with the calendar may creates two identical appointments for a single note. This may happen when:

    1. the user creates a note with a deadline and the synchronization activated, so mxNotes creates a new item in the calendar;

    2. the user changes that very same note in another device, when the syncronization between mxNotes data has already taken place but not the synchronization between the calendars of the two devices; so, on this second device mxNotes doesn't find a calendar item related to the note, and creates it;

    3. when the synchronization among the calendars of the two devices takes place, the result is a double item in the calendar.

To avoid this, do not modify the same note with a deadline in different devices at a few seconds of distance. Or remove the double items in the calendar.

• • On Mac, the folder containing the attachments may be opened typing in the terminal:

open "/Users/[username]/Library/Mobile Documents/iCloud~org~nardello~icloud~mxnotes/Documents/"

Do not modify anything in this directory, because this could crash the app.

Support

mxNotes is a free app, but there's no support available for users. To contact the author - not for technical support - send an e-mail to ms.nardello at the domain gmail.com.

Mentions

Download.cnet - Mac version and iPhone/iPad version

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why should I use an app to manage activities and to take simple notes?

Although the use of paper or an agenda may seem the simplest and most immediate solution, the choice of using an app such as mxNotes allows you to:

• • quickly insert various notes and activities on your iPhone, iPad or Mac also using voice dictation;

  • filter and quickly find the notes and activities of interest;

  • keep under control the expiration of activities;

  • manage data on different devices, always synchronized with each other;

  • automatically have a backup copy of your data on iCloud;

  • on mxNotes, export the notes and print them as a document or as a table.

Is mxNotes close to some Apple apps?

Basically, mxNotes replicates some features of both Apple Notes and Apple Reminders, while having a completely different structure. The much greater possibilities for exporting mxNotes data, however, allow the user to switch more easily to other apps, as well as view his or her data in a word processor or spreadsheet. Furthermore, those who are still tied to the paper format of notes and to-dos can easily create a printed version of their data created with mxNotes.

The absence of the formatting of the text of the notes is a limitation of mxNotes, which however represents an advantage when it comes to import its data into other apps. In this context, a formatted text would be difficult to be shown correctly, while the problem does not arise for a plain text like the one created by mxNotes. Furthermore, if it's necessary to write a formatted text, the word processor is the best choice. To compensate for the absence of formatting in the text of the notes of mxNotes - and therefore also of bulleted and numbered lists – emoticons can be used, as in the example above.

Putting together different data, doesn't it end up with a confusing archive?

Actually, mxNotes is designed to manage notes and activities of various scopes at the same time. To avoid a messed archive, it is necessary to tag the individual notes using the various emojis available from the appropriate menu or others of personal choice, and then display each time only the notes of interest. If each note has been appropriately tagged, it is very easy to filter only those of interest and work only on them. In this way, it’s not necessary to manage different lists, with the risk of forgetting where a note has been placed, or to move it from one list to another. Any hidden note (which includes the padlock emoji in the title) never appears, except when it is requested by a filter or set as preferred, to keep lighter the usual list of the notes.

Why just one attachment for each note?

In mxNotes, an attachments is considered an extensions of its note. So a single note should correspond to a single file, having basically the same title and a similar content. If more files are related to a project (meeting, plan, etc.), create a note for each one of them and tag the notes properly, so that they may appear all together when the user wants to work on that project.

What if I wanted to use the app in a different way and attach many files to a single note?

Many files may be compressed (zipped) and attached to the note as a single file.

Is it possible to have a main note that contains many sub–notes?

In mxNotes, the function of a main note, to gather many sub–notes, is played by the emojis that tag the notes, thanks to the use of the filter. Each emoji, or a set of them, maybe along with one or more keywords, work as a metaphorical container of many notes.

Why are the notifications not possible for the notes with a deadline?

Since it's possibile to synchronize the notes having a deadline with the default calendar and benefit of the notifications of this app, there's no need to replicate this feature in mxNotes.

Why expiring notes don't appear on my calendar even though I have sync turned on?

Probably the default calendar is hidden. Check the Calendar app.

Why should I prefer mxNotes to other apps?

The apps that manage notes, documents and to-dos are countless, even on the App Store. mxNotes is among the apps that:

• • manage data (also) locally, so the user does not necessarily need to access the Internet to consult or modify them;

  • don't use the Electron framework, which is used instead by apps like Obsidian, Joplin, Zettlr, etc.; in fact, it poses significant security problems if online content is accessed, like stated in the website of Electron;

  • work not only on computer, but also on smartphone and tablet, keeping data synchronized between these devices;

  • allow the export of all data in open formats quickly and easily;

  • are completely free.

Compared to apps that have these features, the peculiarities of mxNotes can be summarized as follows:

• • it allows to manage notes, tasks and documents at the same time, avoiding different lists with the implied complications;

  • its use is very intuitive, and corresponds to the standards of Apple devices and apps;

  • its data can be synchronized with the calendar, imported and exported to Apple Reminders and in open formats.