OneNote Mobile gives you instant access to your Microsoft OneNote 2010 notebooks on SkyDrive. To get started, all you need is a Windows Live ID.
Notebooks that you already have on SkyDrive appear as soon as you sign in to the app using an Android phone. If you don’t have notebooks, a new notebook called “Personal (Web)” is automatically created for you and you can start taking notes right away.
The free download can be used to sync up to 500 notes with your device. After this limit, you will no longer be able to edit notes and will be asked to upgrade.
In this article
Why do I need a Windows Live ID?
A Windows Live ID is an email address for signing in to Microsoft services, such as SkyDrive. Because OneNote Mobile syncs notebooks to SkyDrive, you must first sign in with a Windows Live ID.
If you have any of the following accounts, you already have a Windows Live ID that you can use to sign in to OneNote Mobile:
- Hotmail (example@hotmail.com or example@live.com)
- Your own email address that is registered as a Windows Live ID
- Messenger
- SkyDrive
- MSN
- Zune Pass
- Xbox LIVE
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Get a Windows Live ID
If you don’t have a Windows Live ID, you can get one for free by creating a new hotmail.com or live.com email address.
Tap here and then follow the instructions.
If you prefer to use a different email address — such as a Gmail or Yahoo account — as your Windows Live ID, follow these steps:
- From your computer, open http://signup.live.com. You will see either this screen:
or this screen:
- In the Use your email address box, enter your email address. If the screen you see has the Windows Live ID box instead, click Or use your own email address.
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How do I use OneNote Mobile?
OneNote Mobile works with SkyDrive to sync your notebooks to an Android phone. This means that any notebook that you want to access from your device must be located on SkyDrive.
There are three ways to do this:
- Create your notebooks on SkyDrive using the OneNote Web App
- Use OneNote 2010 on your Windows computer to share your notebooks to SkyDrive
- Sign in to OneNote Mobile and a new notebook called “Personal (Web)” is automatically created for you
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I have OneNote 2010 notebooks on my computer. How can I use them with OneNote Mobile?
On your Windows computer, do the following:
- Start OneNote 2010 and open the notebook that you want to use with OneNote Mobile.
- Click the Share tab.
- Click Share This Notebook.
- Under Share On, select Web. You will need to sign in to SkyDrive if you haven’t already.
- Under Web Location, select the folder for the notebook.
- Click Share Notebook.
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I have notes in OneNote Mobile. How can I access them from my computer?
Notes taken with OneNote Mobile are automatically synced with your SkyDrive account and can be accessed using the Web browser on your PC or Mac.
- From your computer, open www.skydrive.com and sign in with your Windows Live ID.
- Find the notebook you want and click to open it in the OneNote Web App. If you can’t find the notes you’re looking for, check the Personal (Web) notebook where unfiled notes are saved.
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I have one or more notebooks on SkyDrive. Do I need to do anything else?
No. Just sign in to OneNote Mobile to sync with your SkyDrive account. Your notebooks are immediately available in the app.
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I don’t yet have any notebooks. Can I still use OneNote Mobile?
Yes. Just sign in to OneNote Mobile and a notebook called “Personal (Web)” is automatically created for you on SkyDrive.
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What are “Personal (Web)” and “Unfiled Notes”?
“Personal (Web)” is a special notebook that is automatically created when you first sign in to your SkyDrive account. “Unfiled Notes” is a section in that notebook. OneNote uses both of these to properly sync your notes to SkyDrive. For this reason, neither the “Personal (Web)” notebook nor its “Unfiled Notes” section should be deleted or renamed.
To move an unfiled note to a different notebook or section, use OneNote 2010 or the OneNote Web App on SkyDrive.
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How do I file or move notes?
To organize notes, use either Microsoft OneNote 2010 on your Windows computer, or use the OneNote Web App in your Web browser on your PC or Mac to access your notes on SkyDrive.
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How do I delete or create a new notebook or section?
To do this, use either Microsoft OneNote 2010 on your Windows computer or use the OneNote Web App in your Web browser on your PC or Mac to access your notes on SkyDrive.
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How can I change the color of my notebooks and section?
To change the color of a notebook, on your Windows computer, do the following:
- In OneNote 2010, right-click the notebook’s icon on the Navigation Bar, and then click Properties.
- Under Color, click the Color drop-down menu, and then click the new color you want.
- Sync the notebook with SkyDrive. The new notebook color will appear the next time you open the notebook from OneNote Mobile.
To change the color of a section, on your Windows computer, do the following:
- In OneNote 2010, right-click the section tab whose color you want to change, click Section Color, and then click the new color you want.
- Sync the notebook with SkyDrive. The new section color will appear the next time you open its notebook from OneNote Mobile.
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Some items from my notebook are missing. What’s wrong?
Notebooks that are created on SkyDrive using the OneNote Web App or on your computer using OneNote 2010 might include elements that will not display in OneNote Mobile.
These items include:
- Audio and video clips
- Tags (other than the “To Do” checkbox tag)
- Embedded or inserted files
- Math equations
- Ink drawings and handwriting
In addition, the following features are not yet available in OneNote Mobile:
- Copying/Pasting text
- Selecting a full page
- Syncing with notebooks on SharePoint
- Creating, deleting or renaming notebooks
- Organizing sections or pages
- Viewing or editing password protected notebooks
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Can I sync my notes using only Wi-Fi networks?
Yes. If you prefer not to use your data plan to sync notes, you can choose to sync only when a Wi-Fi network is available.
- Tap Settings and then turn on Sync on Wi-Fi Only.
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How do sync my notes with SkyDrive?
Syncing automatically happens when you move between notes and sections. For example, if you type a new note and then tap backwards to the sections view, the new note syncs with SkyDrive.
To sync all notes and sections, and any new notebooks on SkyDrive, do the following:
- Tap Sync.
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Why am I asked to upgrade?
The free download of OneNote Mobile can be used to sync up to 500 notes with your device. After this limit, you will no longer be able to edit notes and will be asked to upgrade. To upgrade, do the following:
- Tap Settings.
- Tap Upgrade.
Here are some ways to reduce the number of notes syncing to your device:
- Delete notebooks or sections from SkyDrive (except the “Personal (Web)” notebook and “Unfiled Notes” section)
- Delete notes from your device
When you’re finished, tap Sync.
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