Personally, I still use EN2 every day. However, I also consider other alternatives, like OneNote and Ultra Recall. I agree with you that nothing else comes close to EN2’s simple power, but I have to face the fact that EN2 is end-of-life. I like Ultra Recall (I’ve started considering it again based on your message, actually) and am encouraged to see some tagging features therein.

The search continues! Please keep us informed as you go through your own search.

I’ve been an EN2.2 user for a while, although I haven’t done anything as elaborate as what you’ve done. I suppose that alone speaks to the power of EN – I just used it as a long streaming list of notes, and just the list and search features in its simplest form was adequate for me. (I’m not saying that my needs aren’t complex, just the opposite, however EN did everything I wanted without having to get all wrapped up in tweaking the tool itself.)

Anyway, I left the company I was working for, and left EN at the same time. I never upgraded (downgraded?) to EN3, and from what I’ve seen/heard, wasn’t interested in switching. I looked for something new to start the next phase of my career with, and have been using Ultra Recall for the past 6 months. It is certainly a very capable tool, but it lacks the simplicity of the power available with EN2. UR has as dedicated a following as EN, but for me, I was complicated enough, and I don’t need my tools to be as complicated as I am.

So here’s my dilemma – Do I:

A) Continue with EN knowing that it has reached its End-of-Life (cynical jab @ EN3), and risk technical obsolescence when the next OS comes along where EN2 no longer works; or

B) Keep searching for the next best thing in note taking since EN2 (another cynical jab @ EN3)?

Life is full of agonizing reappraisals.

Anyway, thanks again for your article!

Mike

Required Items:
Soldering iron
Silver solder
flux
20ga wire
wire strippers
GE Personal Security Door Stop Alarm
Wireless doorbell (I bought the cheapest one the plugs into an 120ac outlet)
Multimeter

Step 1:
Open the back of the doorbell button and unscrew the circuit board.
Step 2:
Remove the battery. There should be a button with two contacts. One going to the battery, another going to the wireless chip. Remove the button
Step 3: solder a 2 inch length on wire to each contact where the button used to be.
Step 4: open the back of the door stop alarm. There should be 6 wires, two going to the pressure plate, and four going to the speaker. Cut all of these wires as close to the circuit board as possible. Remove the circuit board.
Step 5: strip the ends of the two wires going to the pressure plate. Solder these wires to the wires you soldered to the wireless transmitter. Put the transmitter circuit in the base of the pedal and close it up. All done.

Basically if you have some basic skill with a soldering iron and basic knowledge of circuits this should be an easy project.

I thought about how to best get my dog to push the pedal, and how to re-enforce that behavior. I ended up putting a treat on the pedal and letting my dog find it on her own. When she found and ate the treat she pushed the pedal with her snout in the process and the chime sounded. As soon as I heard the chime I called her over and gave her another treat and praise. I repeated this process a few times and only called her over for a second treat if she made the chime sound. After about 6 successful pushes she learned that all it took to get a treat was to push the pedal.

Now she was running back and forth pushing the pedal and coming to get treats. Once I was certain that she knew how to push the pedal and that she associated pushing the pedal with the chime I switched my behavior.

Now I moved the pedal near the back door and showed her where I had moved it. When she pushed the pedal I opened the door and had her go outside. I let her back in after a minute. Over the next hour she pushed the pedal many more times, and each time I walked over opened the door and had her go outside.

The next morning was the real test. I went downstairs and instead of letting her out as usual, started making some coffee. She stood at the door for a minute and then deliberately pushed the pedal. I quickly went over and let her outside.

It has been 3 days since the first night of training and she still is pushing the pedal, even if it is just to go outside and bark at the magpies.

I am beginning the bell training with my 3 month old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. I live in a 3 story walk up, therefore, I have to literally put her leash on, and walk her all the way down stairs outside. Will the bell training still be successful- or is it easier if you have a backyard? Will the dog still make the association even though it takes an additional 30 seconds after the bell is rung to go outside?

With consistency, how long do you expect the training to be for a 3 month old pup?

Thanks!