Typically I use pen and paper, but I’ve been interested in a tablet or similar device for a while and am interested in what other people are using.
The reMarkable 2 seems like a really cool option to play with, but also pretty pricey for trying it out to see if it would even work well.
While it’s not directly related, when playing in games, I usually use a paper character sheet for reference, a notepad for consumables, story notes, and HP, and Pathbuilder on my phone for spells.
As a GM:
I host online for friends, so we use digital tools.
As a player:
I have a tablet PC with a pen. I take notes on Rnote (free, open source.) I used to use OneNote which was great because I could search my handwriting, but I stopped using Windows.
Historically, I always used physical dice because I was playing in-person. I did my PF1e character sheets manually by writing on the PDF in OneNote, but for PF2e I do enjoy Pathbuilder to help me plan it out. For actual play, I build my character sheet in Foundry (even if the GM isn’t using it for the game) just to make everything easy for me to find.
You mention that you could search in OneNote for handwriting, does Rnote not have good support for natural handwriting? That’s one of the things I’m looking for is a device that can handle natural handwriting well so that I can just make notes quickly. What tablet are you using?
Rnote is a dedicated handwriting app. I have a Lenovo Thinkpad Yoga (first gen.)
Awesome, I need to actually google things before I ask. I’m heavily considering a 2-in-1 for a device (I also need it for work stuff, homelab coding, and school work), so I’d be interested in hearing more about how the Yoga worked for you and any pros/cons that you’ve recognized when you have some time.
Absolutely. I have been using tablet PCs since 2011, all of which have run desktop operating systems. My first was an ASUS that ran Windows 7, which I used for school and later for TTRPG. OneNote was excellent software which got me through that phase of my life.
I later upgraded to a laptop-type tablet instead of a slate with a Bluetooth keyboard. I find the format more convenient. The Yoga has been excellent for me — though I don’t like the keyboard a lot as I’m used to the chunkier type. The pen has a battery so I do have to pause to charge it after a few hours of writing/drawing, but that has been nice because it forces me to take breaks (which can be hard when you have ADHD!) The pen is a bit narrow and now super ergonomic, but there are many compatible styluses out there that are larger.
As for software, I’ve switched to Linux as of many years ago and up until recently there were not many good apps out there for handwritten notes. Xournal++ is ugly but good for marking up PDFs. Rnote is a very new app, written in Rust and designed around GNOME design principles, so it looks very nice and is quite fast. It’s not a 1:1 replacement for OneNote — it has basic file management but not as advanced as OneNote’s notebooks and tabs and pages, and there is no OCR for searching within your handwriting. I would not use it to do worldbuilding, but it has been more than good enough for me to take rough notes as I play.
The downside of the Yoga is that it has soldered RAM, so you need to get one with good enough specs right off the bat. I purchased a 16GB model and it has been sufficient, though the processor is a downgrade from my last laptop. I still use my desktop for beefier jobs. One example of where it struggles is that when I played 5e with a group, if I rolled digital dice on DND Beyond the performance was quite slow. This seemed to be an issue for everyone on a laptop, though.
The 3D dice feature on D&D Beyond is notoriously horribly unoptimized. I’ve seen decent desktops chug to render that.
I’ve added the Yoga to my list of computers to consider, based on your recommendation. Any suggestions for the Pen or does it not matter as much?
The one that comes with it is fine. Please note that there are multiple computers under the name “Yoga,” some are very cheap. I have a first generation Thinkpad X1 Yoga. The X380 Yoga and others in that series are apparently also very good. The cheap ones are not.