Microsoft this week is documenting a major update to OneNote for Windows 10. But only the select few Windows Insiders who signed up for the Skip Ahead ring, now closed to the public, can access the update.

So a few points of clarification here.

Windows 10 users can access two versions of the OneNote app. One, called OneNote for Windows 10, and the subject of this post, is a UWP mobile app that is included with Windows 10. The other, called OneNote 2016, is available for free from the web as a standalone desktop application, or via various Office 365 subscriptions.

(Confusing matters, Microsoft is bringing the desktop Office/365 suites to the Windows Store, but it is not porting OneNote 2016 as part of this effort. This suggests that OneNote for Windows 10 is “the future” of OneNote, and that at some point Microsoft might actually stop updating the desktop version of the application.)

And then there’s Skip Ahead, that most misbegotten of Windows Insider rings. As you may recall,Microsoft announced in July that it would temporarily offer a new ring to Insiders called Skip Ahead that would let them test Redstone 4, the version of Windows 10 expected in March 2018, instead of the Fall Creators Update (Redstone 3). But Skip Ahead wasn’t just temporary—it will be closed when the Fall Creators Update is completed—it was also limited to an unknown number of participants. So if you see today’s OneNote for Windows 10 news and think, gee, I’d really love to check that out, but you haven’t yet signed up for Skip Ahead—doh!—it’s already too late.

To recap, the features described below are coming to OneNote sometime after the release of the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update. And they can only be tested by a small group of Insiders in with PCs in the Skip Ahead ring at this time. Sorry.

So here’s what Microsoft has announced is new to OneNote for Windows 10 version 17.8568.5751.

Convert handwriting to text. Now, you can select handwritten notes in your notes and convert them to text. Just select the Lasso Select button on the Draw tab, drag a circle around the notes you want to convert, and then click Ink to Text.

New ink effects. Office 365 subscribers can access new lava, ocean, bronze, and rose gold ink effects from the Drawing tab.

New graph features. Office 365 subscribers can now calculate its new graphing features like minima, maxima, and axes intercepts.

Recent pages. New Forward and Back buttons above the Home tab can be used to navigate through the note pages you’ve already visited.

Paragraph links. Now, you can create a link to a specific paragraph and jump right to that content. “It’s a great way to make a quick table of contents at the top of a long page of notes, or copy the link and paste it in an email to help others find the specific content you want them to see,” Microsoft says.

Copy a hyperlink. Now, you can right-click a hyperlink in your notes and copy the link to the Clipboard so you can use it elsewhere.

Tagged with OneNote