The first that I'm using the most behind my DM Screen (notably a 17'' laptop) is Microsoft's wonderful OneNote 2007. Those who can afford it (or already have it from their Office suite) should definitely try to use it. It's a great and a fast tool for whatever you need - from note taking to initiative tables on-the-run. One of the fastest solutions I ever used (even compared to some specialized "solutions").
On the other hand there is MediaWiki for group solutions. If you have some kind of (free) hosting (I think even Yahoo Pages supports it) it can be a perfect solution for you and your players where you can exchange and keep some notes. Please be aware that due to it's syntax it could slow down games if used while playing. It can be usable in a way even for those who don't have any kind of hosting and it's completely painless.
Another great piece of software is TiddlyWiki that is completely lightweight and runs only in your (any) browser. It's a one HTML file personal Wiki and it can be very very useful as a note taking tool (and can be used for a bit more for those braver technologically advanced users).
As a conclusion I would like to mention RPTools that is an almost perfect solution for many painful task as a DM - especially if you can afford a projector, HD TV, or a large monitor next to your gaming table. MapTool is definitely THE tool for running combats using maps and virtual miniatures.
P.S.
This topic is in a reply to a Dungeon article that linked here asking for our opinions.
I have seen many "solutions" for DMs for note taking and campaign management but somehow most of the people forget to mention those that might be the most useful (and in some cases free).
The first that I'm using the most behind my DM Screen (notably a 17'' laptop) is Microsoft's wonderful OneNote 2007. Those who can afford it (or already have it from their Office suite) should definitely try to use it. It's a great and a fast tool for whatever you need - from note taking to initiative tables on-the-run. One of the fastest solutions I ever used (even compared to some specialized "solutions").
On the other hand there is MediaWiki for group solutions. If you have some kind of (free) hosting (I think even Yahoo Pages supports it) it can be a perfect solution for you and your players where you can exchange and keep some notes. Please be aware that due to it's syntax it could slow down games if used while playing. It can be usable in a way even for those who don't have any kind of hosting and it's completely painless.
Another great piece of software is TiddlyWiki that is completely lightweight and runs only in your (any) browser. It's a one HTML file personal Wiki and it can be very very useful as a note taking tool (and can be used for a bit more for those braver technologically advanced users).
As a conclusion I would like to mention RPTools that is an almost perfect solution for many painful task as a DM - especially if you can afford a projector, HD TV, or a large monitor next to your gaming table. MapTool is definitely THE tool for running combats using maps and virtual miniatures.
P.S.
This topic is in a reply to a Dungeon article that linked here asking for our opinions.
OneNote is indeed very useful. I managed to go paperless for my bills and other important materials for about six months. . . . until my scanner died. Now I've got a backlog to catch up on one day, *sigh*, I digress.
If you're a DM aspiring to run your own campaign, and want a way to keep track of all your notes, thoughts, etc - and you don't mind going online, or want a free option - I'd suggest Obsidian Portal.
You get a wiki, blogs for your players (for their characters) a map, and various places to keep your notes for a custom campaign. I believe you get two campaigns for free.
The only drawback I, personally, have is that the free version doesn't allow you to set your campaign private. You have to be a subscriber to limit it to friends (via logins) or private. I haven't used it a whole lot (never have as much time as I'd like) so I don't know how much of a problem that really is. ~shrug~
I write my own adventures, but very often I'm creating the adventure week-to-week, a few encounters at a time, rather than sitting down and writing 2 or 3 levels' worth of adventuring at a go. One of the papers in my DM binder is a copy of the treasure parcel tables out of the DMG. Since I don't plan out a dozen encounters at a time I can't assign all the parcels in advance, so instead each time I create an encounter I tag it with a parcel and then cross that parcel off my list. It makes it very easy to keep track of where I am in assigning treasure, and if I end up having to come up with encounters on the fly to accommodate unforseen player actions (not that *that* ever happens!), I can just flip open my binder, award the party an unclaimed parcel and then cross it off my list.
Done.
For in-game lore, I have a home-made note taking program that lets me quickly store, link, and search xml-based notes. A light-weight wiki program should work just as well.
For note-taking during a session, I find that nothing beats a pencil and paper. The only way that I could see using a computer is if I had a tablet so that I could sketch, draw arrows, and do other non-text input quickly.
From the DM's side, I have a *lot* of files, usually with names like faelands_encounters, faelands_the-court, ... to group things without hiding them in subdirectories. But I have a weekly prep document that I have my notes for the next session, cut and pastes from other documents, etc. This is what I print out for each session. I write notes all over it and they go back in to the other documents afterwords. I try not to have the computer open when I play.
I also keep a set of folders with images - maps, major NPCs, potential NPCs, etc. I print these as needed.
Cheers,
=Blue(23)
My standard arsenal includes OneNote (currently I use it to compile notes and I use grids for initiative in combat), and I'm pursuing use of TiddlyWiki, although I've never DMed with it before. My methods are clunky however, and I personally wouldn't rely on OneNote alone. My computer is a laptop, and I mostly use it for music during a session. I find that the Shadow of the Colossus soundtrack makes for great atmosphere. I'm also thinking of tracking down sound effects to help bring my sessions to life.
Your approach sounds like it would suit me well, Blue. What kinds of stuff do you put in your prep document? I'm always on the lookout for ways of streamlining my methods.
The first that I'm using the most behind my DM Screen (notably a 17'' laptop) is Microsoft's wonderful OneNote 2007. Those who can afford it (or already have it from their Office suite) should definitely try to use it. It's a great and a fast tool for whatever you need - from note taking to initiative tables on-the-run. One of the fastest solutions I ever used (even compared to some specialized "solutions").
Vooood, you are a genius. I've had this program in my Office suite for over a year and I've never used it. It's absolutely perfect for keeping track of a campaign!
Since I'm running the modules from WotC, which I purchased in pdf format, I can just cut and paste everything I need from the modules into OneNote. I wish I'd have thought of using this before.
Have a
along with my eternal thanks.