Takes Notes on Everything

The author says he likes books that expose the mind’s limitations, especially the unreliability of memory. For coding and other technical reading, he says he usually cannot remember useful details unless he has read them many times, so he relies on notes to find and reuse information later.

Reading notes

#

• He keeps a GitHub repo of markdown notes from books, blog posts, and other material he wants to save.
• He writes down syntax rules, term definitions, personal tricks, ideas, quotes, and summaries that seem useful or inspiring.
• He says note-taking helps separate signal from noise and makes information easier to search.
• He says the act of writing notes forces him to distill the source material to what matters most.
• He says public notes can help other people, especially beginners, and can also show a learner’s focus.
• He describes note-taking as a calmer, slower kind of accomplishment that balances the rush of finishing a project.
• He argues that programmers should write outside of code to improve their knowledge and craft, whether for others or for themselves.