One task that I must complete with my technology is writing. I write notes for sermons, I write details for tasks that must be completed and I write emails and letters. Ulysses is a writing app that exists on all Apple products. Ulysses also syncs via iCloud and Dropbox and most any other external location I want to put in. In many ways, this writing app is a database of documents. It can store, sort and maintain a huge number of documents. So to maintain a history off prayer requests, visitation activities or blog posts, I can use Ulysses and it is equal to the task.
When I beginning to write with Ulysses, the screen empties and all I have is a blank slate and a keyboard. From that black slate I can write in Markdown. Markdown is a simply method of adding bold, italic, images and links to a documents in plain text. There are a variety of programs that know how to read Markdown and convert it to HTML or rich text for publication. Therefore I can do most any level of formatting in Ulysses before I publish.
Ulysses is also very fast. Uploading, downloading, opening and closing files are instant. This may seem like a minor point, but I regularly work on multiple documents at once. Especially if I am away from my office, I will work on a prayer list, then bounce over to sermon notes, then open ideas for a blog post. Ulysses is instantly fast and if I do not have internet, changes are cached and uploaded as soon as a signal is detected.
As a database, Ulysses is able to store and sort and file tens of thousands of documents or more. People have talked about putting their entire sermon catalog in Ulysses. From the main screen, searches can be performed on titles, dates, contents and more. The searches are fast and any document, even very old ones can be opened install and edited.
As a pastor, I am expected to know everything and remember everything. That is part of the gig in a small church. Of course this is unrealistic and impossible, but people’s expectations are difficult to manage. Like David Allen before me, I do not know everything, but I know where to find it. If someone wants to know when an event occurred ten years ago, I know how to look it up and search and Ulysses is an integral part of that. Everything I write, everything I publish, everything I create goes into Ulysses and I may not remember everything but it does and Ulysses has no problem giving up its secrets instantly.
Ulysses is a professional product so it will cost some coin to get it. It exists for the Apple Desktop and Laptops, iPads and iPhones. It does not work on the watch yet, and I am not sure what value that will add. For getting things in Ulysses from my watch, I use Drafts.
When I beginning to write with Ulysses, the screen empties and all I have is a blank slate and a keyboard. From that black slate I can write in Markdown. Markdown is a simply method of adding bold, italic, images and links to a documents in plain text. There are a variety of programs that know how to read Markdown and convert it to HTML or rich text for publication. Therefore I can do most any level of formatting in Ulysses before I publish.
Ulysses is also very fast. Uploading, downloading, opening and closing files are instant. This may seem like a minor point, but I regularly work on multiple documents at once. Especially if I am away from my office, I will work on a prayer list, then bounce over to sermon notes, then open ideas for a blog post. Ulysses is instantly fast and if I do not have internet, changes are cached and uploaded as soon as a signal is detected.
As a database, Ulysses is able to store and sort and file tens of thousands of documents or more. People have talked about putting their entire sermon catalog in Ulysses. From the main screen, searches can be performed on titles, dates, contents and more. The searches are fast and any document, even very old ones can be opened install and edited.
As a pastor, I am expected to know everything and remember everything. That is part of the gig in a small church. Of course this is unrealistic and impossible, but people’s expectations are difficult to manage. Like David Allen before me, I do not know everything, but I know where to find it. If someone wants to know when an event occurred ten years ago, I know how to look it up and search and Ulysses is an integral part of that. Everything I write, everything I publish, everything I create goes into Ulysses and I may not remember everything but it does and Ulysses has no problem giving up its secrets instantly.
Ulysses is a professional product so it will cost some coin to get it. It exists for the Apple Desktop and Laptops, iPads and iPhones. It does not work on the watch yet, and I am not sure what value that will add. For getting things in Ulysses from my watch, I use Drafts.
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