Alphabetical list of terms and words relating to Zettelkasten, personal knowledge management tools, learning / study tools and methods. Use this glossary to familiarise yourself with the terms used by our industry.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z |
| Term | Definitions |
|---|---|
| Atomicity, Principle of |
The principle of atomicity means that each note should only contain one idea. The term was coined by Christian Tietze.1 |
| Concept |
Dict. 1. An abstract idea or general notion; 2. Something conceived in the mind; 3. An abstract or generic idea generalized from particular instances. 4. Concept x Idea. An idea stands for a rough mental construct, while a concept is a refined notion that is developed from extensive analysis. Notes: (a) concept means different things in different areas, e.g., in writing, a concept is an idea that has been evolved to the point where a story becomes possible. (b) Concept is an abstract idea. We use concepts in our everyday lives to make sense of ourselves, others, and the world around us. |
| Data |
A set of facts, concepts or statistics that can be analyzed to produce information. |
| Discipline |
Discipline is commonly used to denote particular areas of knowledge, research and education. The concept is used in knowledge organization and related fields. Discipline should be understood in relation to institutional and organizational features and this is what distinguishes it from related terms such as, field, domain or topic. Classifying by disciplines is also called “aspect classification”. isko |
| Fleeting note |
Is a simple note with a concept, information, fact or idea that come into your mind. It is used as a reminder of your thinking for near-future consumption. After use, a fleeting note can either be discarded or transformed in a permanent note. In this Zettelkasten implementation there are two specializations of the fleeting note — the video note and the software note. |
| Hub note |
It is a special type of zettel containing only references to other zettels. It works as an index of interrelated notes or interconnected thoughts and ideas. |
| Hyperlink |
In computing, a hyperlink, or simply a link, is a reference to data that the user can follow by clicking or tapping. A hyperlink points to a whole document or to a specific element within a document. Hypertext is text with hyperlinks. The text that is linked from is called anchor text.2 |
| Information |
Information describes a particular circumstance or case. Information consists of facts or data and may take on any one of several forms, levels of abstractions, and degrees of certainties. Information is used by knowledge to interpret or reason about a particular circumstance or case. The role of information is description. Data that has been organized within a context and translated into a form that has structure and meaning. (Note: while most people have an idea about what information is, it is rather difficult to define in a meaningful way). |
| Know-how | Skill or capability derived from knowledge and experience. |
| Knowledge |
1. The content of understandings and action patterns that govern sensemaking, decision making, execution, and monitoring. 2. Knowledge consists of facts, perspectives and concepts, mental reference models, truths and beliefs, judgments and expectations, methodologies and know-how. 3. Knowledge is used to interpret information about a particular circumstance or case to handle the situation. Knowledge is about what the facts and information means in the context of the situation. 4. Knowledge is possessed and represented on many conceptual levels, in many forms, of many types, and in many domains. Collins English Dictionary definition: The facts, feelings or experiences known by a person or group of people. Knowledge is derived from information but it is richer and more meaningful than information. It includes familiarity, awareness and understanding gained through experience or study, and results from making comparisons, identifying consequences, and making connections. Some experts include wisdom and insight in their definitions of knowledge. In organizational terms, knowledge is generally thought of as being 'know how', 'applied information', 'information with judgment' or 'the capacity for effective action'. |
| Knowledge management |
It is the systematic, explicit, and deliberate building, renewal, and application of knowledge to maximize an enterprise’s knowledge-related effectiveness and returns from its knowledge and intellectual capital assets. The field covers deliberate and systematical analysis, synthesis, assessment, and implementation of knowledge-related changes to attain a set of objectives and to monitor that KM activities are carried out appropriately and meet their objectives. It comprises activities needed to facilitate direct knowledge-related work. KM includes fostering “Knowledge Asset Management Mentality” required to create, maintain, and utilize appropriate Intangible Capital. There is a wide variety of definitions of knowledge management such as from knowledge management consultants Tfpl: "The creation and subsequent management of an environment which encourages knowledge to be created, shared, learnt, enhanced, organized and utilized for the benefit of the organization and its customers". |
| Literature note |
It’s a note containing the bullet-point summary of a piece of written text under study refering to a paragraph, sentence, or any excerpt from the original source. It can also contain the bibliographic reference and page number. A literature note depends on the original text to make sense. |
| Permanent note |
It's a note, byproduct of fleeting notes and literature notes. A permanent note is intended to last or remain unchanged indefinitely. A permanent note is understandable by itself, so it does not depend on the original text to make sense. |
| Project note |
In this Zettelkasten, a project note is any note taken during a project execution, delivery, and analysis post-morten. |
| Project notebook |
In the context of this Zettelkasten, a project notebook is the collection of all notes taken during all phases of a project. It is composed by one or more hub notes, fleeting notes, and all project notes. |
| Software note |
In this Zettelkasten, a software note is an specialization of a fleeting note prepared to contain pieces of software source code. It's used to document project decisions and implementation details. |
| SQ4R method |
The SQ4R active reading method consists of 6 steps (Survey, Question, Read, Record, Respond, and Review) that help to delve deep into written information. This method applies to books, textbooks, newspapers, journals, whitepapers, and websites. Benefits include increased understanding and retention of written material and more efficient studying. We adapted the SQ4R to use in one of this Zettelkasten's worflow. |
| Video note |
In this Zettelkasten, a video note is an specialization of a fleeting note prepared to contain a link to a YouTube® video. The user can watch the video directly from the zettel or open it on YouTube®. |
| Zettel |
A zettel is a note of a note-taking system. In this Zettelkasten, a zettel is a blog post — a web page with a flexible structure for note-taking. In other digital Zettelkasten systems, a zettel is either a digital file stored in a file system or a digital record stored in a database. In a non-digital or analog Zettelkasten system, a zettel is an index card or piece of paper used for note-taking. |
| Zettelkasten |
(German: "slip box", plural zettelkästen) is a note-taking and personal knowledge management system used in research and study. |