I found another journal writing program, LifeJournal2. It’s a demo of the full version and seems to have everything one needs to journal on a computer. I think it will be harder for anyone with average computer skills to learn than The Journal program I reviewed below. However, it does have more built-in features, such as the time line, life history, pulse input and pulse graph, quotes and a writing timer, just to name a few. Everything is compartmentalized in small popup theme-base boxes which can be confusing but can also create a well organized journal once you learn how to use the program.
Here’s what the Web site says this program can do:
1. Write naturally without changing your writing process to adapt to the software
2. Assign topics to journal entries and passages to later quickly find exactly the text you are looking for
3. Track the actions and quality of your day (your “Daily Pulse”) and automatically cross reference that information with journal entries
4. Search for journal entries by date, topic, word, journal type, and “Daily Pulse”
5. Create a timeline of your life in words, images, and sounds
6. Fully customize your journal–choose color themes, add prompts and quotes, choose up to 10 scales to track, and more!
Looks pretty impressive and probably is impressive once you learn how to use all the features. If you are serious about creating a journal on your computer and want to add interesting features with your entries, then this program might be exactly what you need. I like that I could add sounds but have yet to figure out how to do that. I will play more with this program when I have some extra time.
This program cost $39.95 and you can download it and/or purchase a CD. They also offer e-prompts (email writing prompts) for a hefty $9.95 per month and a companion notebook for $12.95. The e-prompts are sent three times a week but I’m not so sure they are worth the cost. I think you could surf the net and get the same creative shot that a prompt might offer.
I think I may try it. I’ve tried a lot of various software for note taking, and I haven’t been satisfied with most of what’s available. I’ve been waiting months for TinderBox for Windows to be released. I use Inspiration for mindmapping, and it allows notes to be attached to mindmaps, but they can’t be searched and categorized like in LiveJournal. I can see a niche for both Inspiration and LiveJournal in my note-taking software.
Jennifer, let me know how you like it once you have used it for awhile. Or maybe write something about it on your blog and I will link to it. Just let me know. Thanks for commenting!
I’ve been using LifeJournal for several months now and I’m certain that this is far and away the best journal writing program I’ve come across. It has more value than any other journal software I’ve tried. I think I checked out about 6 or 7 of them in December when I first was looking for a good program. I love that you can take the information that you’ve written and slice it and dice it in ways that will give you insight into your life. It’s innovative. Much different than the other programs which are just word processors on steroids. This is really different. And it’s easy to learn. I highly recommend that you check the program out.
Too funny! Thanks for leaving a comment. It’s good to have others point of view. To be honest, I haven’t had the time to really use the program. I only gave my initial thoughts on both programs and I was thinking of how easy would it be for those who are not very computer savvy. Every program is easy once you learn how to use it. However, not all are good programs.
I did like what little I used in the LifeJournal program. And the cost is excellent for the value it returns. I’m just not sure the average computer user will find it easy to learn. If you drop back by, can you offer what level your computer skills are? When I say average, I’m referring to those who have the very basic word processor skills, can get on the Internet but have no real clue as to how it all works and uses it mainly for sending and receiving email.