Microsoft Journal, the handwritten note-taking app, is coming to the Microsoft Store


Benjamin Logerot

April 07, 2022 at 10:40 a.m.

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Microsoft Journal

© Microsoft

After a year of experimentation and feedback, handwritten note taking app Journal officially becomes Microsoft Journal and is available on the Microsoft Store. By becoming an application supported by the American giant, Journal acquires more advanced monitoring and a roadmap.

Microsoft Journal is intended as the ultimate note-taking tool on devices with a touch option, offering AI aids and an interface designed for lovers of writing on paper.

Smooth note taking

A team from Microsoft’s applied science department launched an app called Journal as part of the Microsoft Garage program in February 2021. This program was designed to encourage employees of the Redmond firm to innovate and develop projects outside their usual specialties. During this early access, the teams were able to take user feedback into account to improve their tool.

Bet won since Journal is now an application supported by Microsoft and even takes its name. It is already available for free on the Microsoft Store. But what does it actually offer and how does it stand out from the competition in this already well-stocked market?

Microsoft Journal is therefore an application built and designed for people who prefer taking handwritten notes on touch devices (tablets, 2-in-1s, etc.). It is boosted by Artificial Intelligence which can predict and understand the gestures you make to select text or activate the eraser tool to erase. No need to click on the appropriate option in a menu, everything can be done simply with a gesture corresponding to the command. The objective is simple and clear: to allow you to stay focused on note taking by offering a fluid and quasi-organic experience.

Microsoft Journal is here to stay

By becoming an application supported by Microsoft, Journal can claim to grow and improve its services. The AI ​​will continue to be developed, although it is already particularly effective according to the teams (it is able to recognize the way we write a title or draw a picture and to offer options adapted to these specific types of content ), and more integration of other existing services is expected. For the moment, only integration with Microsoft 365 is possible to synchronize notes with the calendar, making it easier to share minutes during a meeting.

Microsoft Journal

The application has the Windows 11 design, softer and in color, but is available on both Windows 10 (on versions dating from October 2020 minimum) and 11. It is possible to find all its notes there on a menu made up of colored cards, built to facilitate the search for old works.

Similar to true mass usage, but data mined by the project team over the past year shows that users actually use Microsoft Journal more to annotate PDF documents (59%) than to write on blank pages (41%). Another interesting data, 49% of users prefer to select text by tapping on the screen while 34% use the instant lasso tool instead.

Source : Microsoft



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