How do you take notes?

I write today on the inspiration of a former colleague, who wrote to me yesterday about the proper way to take notes when interviewing someone. She's getting back into the writing business, and is a little rusty so she was looking for some advice.

She and I learned the old school way of journalism, of having a notebook and pen in hand, and frantically scribbling notes while a subject spoke way too quickly to do so legibly. People are taking notes in so many ways now, she said, that she isn't sure what's acceptable any more. Is it OK, for instance, to have a laptop present while you are interviewing someone, or is it rude? Is it smart to rely on voice-transcribing software?

Look, I can't answer what's best for you. I believe in my own accuracy, and handwritten notes have always been the way for me, despite the fact that writing ferociously now triggers what I can only imagine is the beginning stages of arthritis. I've sat through media law and ethics classes, and learned that if I am ever subpoenaed to court in a libel or slander case, the first thing a lawyer will ask for will be my notes.

Good luck, because it won't be easy reading. I've interviewed witnesses to a police shooting at 2 in the morning, writing my notes down on a cocktail napkin I borrowed from a bartender. It wasn't my best work, but it got me a story in the paper the next day as the first reporter on scene.

I say do what works best for you. I still like to use my own manual notetaking techniques on a legal pad, as I've developed my own little form of shorthand that I go back to and fill in the blanks as needed while I am taking notes. That isn't always the most accurate way, so I like to keep a tape recorder handy and ask my subject if recording is OK. That way, I have an electronic backup.

If it's a phone interview or a public meeting, a laptop is fine as long as you aren't disrupting the public's enjoyment of an event. I wouldn't, for instance, suggest tapping away during a play or concert as you are likely to get more than a few terse stares.

I've turned to using a computer to take notes in recent years as my typing skills have gotten much better, but take care. If you're like me, you likely quickly slam on the keys as you are trying to keep up with the speaker. I've literally interviewed an ergonomics expert who has told me she can hear me developing Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Turns out, she was right.

At the end of the day, do what makes you take the most accurate notes. That's what really counts.