Dowloading Fastmail Notes
 

I occasionally use Notes - not because it's that great but it's handy. Can somebody recommend a way to download a backup of them, please?

'Free' and 'simple' solutions preferred. ;)

I asked Fastmail about this some time ago.
They suggested copying the contents of the Fastmail note you want to 'download' and paste into whatever notes app you want to use.
Since I only had about 25 notes this wasn't too bad but it is not ideal.

Thanks, evfrson. That's not a great piece of advice from Fastmail if you have a lot of notes, is it?!

I see that email clients using imap include Notes as a folder and it can be downloaded from there. However, in that way, each note comes with email headers - not just the text.

In my email client (betterbird) there is a 'read-only' Notes folder. I didn't create the folder, it's read off fastmails server. So the note itself can only be created or modified thru the app or the web.

- Bruce

Yes that's the problem.
Surely it wouldn't be too much effort for them to implement a download function ?
But it is what it is I suppose.
I stopped using Fastmail notes for this reason and used Apple Notes instead which for a 'free' app is excellent.

I have my iPad and iPhone synchronized with Fastmail, and my Fastmail notes, calendar, and contacts appear on my iPad and iPhone. I don’t understand what that’s any better for you, but if you like Apple iOS Notes that’s one way to get Fastmail notes into the iOS Notes. I’m not sure if you meant iOS Notes or some other Apple device.

Bill

Thanks, Bill. Yes, I suppose it's one way to get another copy for backup if I can get it into iOS notes. I hadn't thought of that.

If your primary concern is not to lose the meaningful text in those notes surely extra headers are only a minor inconvenience?

Are the headers dummy ones (ie every note has the same contents) or do they actually contain info relevant to each individual note, eg the time you created (or maybe last-modified) each one?

You're right, JeremyNicoll. I only want to insure against the loss of data. The headers are brief and exactly the same except for the date. I think I'll settle for what I've got - and try to be less perfectionist!

Given that they provide access to file storage via Webdav

https://www.fastmail.help/hc/en-us/a...l-file-storage

it does seem odd that one cannot similarly manage one's Notes using the same protocol. Seems to me it would be nice if Notes were really just text files in one's file space, under the hood, with the Notes section of the web interface being merely a friendly UI for accessing them.

I wouldn't be surprised to learn that FM also thinks it would be better implemented this way, but they have the legacy implementation in place, and it's just too much trouble (i.e. cost) to change it at this point.