I like the simplicity of your tool as well as the fact that no login is required to use it (although I would appreciate a backup option like saving the localStorage data as a single text file and being able to load it back).
A few suggestions about the UI:
Cards have no visual cue that they are stacked (I think this came up in some other replies here), so it is impossible to tell how much information can be found underneath. With books, for example, you can tell by their thickness roughly how many pages you can expect. But a general problem with digital content is that its dimensions can be infinite, especially if it is revealed/concealed interactively in a fractal-like manner as it is in your tool.
Personally, I would feel overwhelmed quickly after taking multiple nested notes, especially if I wanted to look up a piece of information that is hidden deep inside or if I wanted to reorganize my notes (although I think this is not possible yet in your app?).
I like that you made a breadcrumb-like navigation back to the parents - this helps a lot with orientation. But maybe also consider a more global navigation and a search tool to move more quickly between top-level notes and find notes that are deeply nested.
I would also adjust the font-size dependent on the amount of text in a card. If you enter a lot of text, cards quickly become too cumbersome to read.
I also think the parent card/header(?) should be differentiated much more against its child cards. I became a bit confused about which cards are clickable and which are not.
Nonetheless, I always appreciate people who build tools that they find useful for themself and share them with others, especially if they help with thinking.
> impossible to tell how much information can be found underneath
"underneath" == "children" of card you going to click, isn't it? Yes, thank you. Didn't get this point from other comments (thought about "breadcrumb" navigation, facepalm.jpg). Thank you for emphasizing it. Got it. Nice example with books. I plan to add at least the number of children, but maybe will find other more elegant ways.
-
> I wanted to look up a piece of information that is hidden deep inside or if I wanted to reorganize my notes
Yes, good point. For sure there are different modes of thinking: when you write/brainstorm, read what you've got, and work with it/rearrange/edit. So I want to try and add separate modes of interaction to help with it. For sure "read mode" — compiled text (of current branch, or entire board, when watching from root).
-
> global navigation and a search tool
Yes. Search for sure, navigation between boards, clipboard to move stacks around.
-
> font-size dependent on the amount of text in a card.
This is a slippery road leading to messy/noisy situation. I tried this approach, not in this project, but earlier in my UX/UI career. I know what you mean — cards can (will) hold a lot of text. I plan to truncate text with ellipses. Will try to find some balanced solution. But yes. Good point.
-
> parent card/header(?) should be differentiated much more against its child cards
A few suggestions about the UI:
Cards have no visual cue that they are stacked (I think this came up in some other replies here), so it is impossible to tell how much information can be found underneath. With books, for example, you can tell by their thickness roughly how many pages you can expect. But a general problem with digital content is that its dimensions can be infinite, especially if it is revealed/concealed interactively in a fractal-like manner as it is in your tool.
Personally, I would feel overwhelmed quickly after taking multiple nested notes, especially if I wanted to look up a piece of information that is hidden deep inside or if I wanted to reorganize my notes (although I think this is not possible yet in your app?).
I like that you made a breadcrumb-like navigation back to the parents - this helps a lot with orientation. But maybe also consider a more global navigation and a search tool to move more quickly between top-level notes and find notes that are deeply nested.
I would also adjust the font-size dependent on the amount of text in a card. If you enter a lot of text, cards quickly become too cumbersome to read.
I also think the parent card/header(?) should be differentiated much more against its child cards. I became a bit confused about which cards are clickable and which are not.
Nonetheless, I always appreciate people who build tools that they find useful for themself and share them with others, especially if they help with thinking.