Microsoft Onenote 365 On Mac Can't Create
Jan 31, 2017 It gives the impression that OneNote has no write permissions in the folders in which it is trying to create the notebooks, but this doesn't seem to be the case. The user launching the OneNote program, can create and modify files in the OneNote notebook folders.
Microsoft is making big changes to OneNote for Windows: The Win32 desktop app will no longer be included in Microsoft Office. Instead, OneNote for Windows 10, the UWP app, will be included in both Office 365 and Office 2019. OneNote for Mac, Android, iOS, and the web are unaffected.
- Dec 17, 2018 I'm running OneNote for Win10 Version 6.20076.0. I see the new 'Create New Tag' menu item, and the 'Create a Tag' screen, but unfortunately it doesn't work. I can't type in the Tag Name field (for some reason what I type appears above the label, and even after selecting an icon the Create button is never enabled.
- Sep 30, 2019 New to Microsoft 365 in September—updates to Microsoft To Do, PowerPoint, OneNote, and more By Jared Spataro, Corporate Vice President for Microsoft 365 Every update we make to Microsoft 365 is about helping our customers transform the way they work.
- If you don't have a Microsoft account, click Create Account to create a free Microsoft Account. I'm trying to activate, but OneNote tells me I don't have an eligible Office 365 subscription I have a subscription: If you already have an Office 365 subscription, click Sign In and enter the email address associated with your subscription.
The move shouldn’t be a huge surprise for those paying close attention to OneNote’s development. Back in February 2015, Microsoft made OneNote for Windows completely free by removing all feature restrictions. This untethering of OneNote from Office meant users could download OneNote 2013 for Windows 7 and Windows 8 without having to pay for Office 2013.
OneNote 2016 came and went without much fanfare, as Microsoft focused its efforts on the free app, the latest version of which is OneNote for Windows 10. Indeed, Microsoft added many of the top features from OneNote 2016 to the Windows 10 version, and also kept many of the updates exclusively for the latter, including intuitive inking, built-in intelligence, and improved accessibility. Then late last year, in the Office 2019 announcement, OneNote was not mentioned alongside Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook.
At the time, Microsoft described Office 2019 as bringing “new user and IT capabilities for customers who aren’t yet ready for the cloud.” Given OneNote’s dependence on the cloud, and the fact that Office is a paid product while OneNote is free, the move to decouple the two was some three years in the making.
To be clear, OneNote is still included in Office. By making it available as a free download in February 2015, and now killing off the Win32 desktop version, Microsoft hinted and today confirmed that OneNote can stand on its own.
Microsoft will no longer update the OneNote 2016 app with new features. Support, bug fixes, and security updates will continue throughout the Office 2016 lifecycle — mainstream support for OneNote 2016 ends in October 2020 and extended support ends in October 2025. That said, OneNote 2016 will be optionally available for anyone with Office 365 or Office 2019; it simply will not be installed by default.
OneNote for Windows 10
This also means Microsoft doesn’t have to keep up development of two apps, since OneNote for Windows 10 will get all the attention, including any that would have inevitably gone to OneNote 2019. Microsoft has long struggled to explain the differences between the two apps, even creating a support page specifically addressing the question “What’s the difference between OneNote and OneNote 2016?”
There’s another side benefit to this change for Microsoft: Users will have another incentive to get Windows 10.
For this and other reasons, some still prefer OneNote 2016.
Here is Microsoft’s explanation today as to why OneNote for Windows 10 is superior:
Why OneNote for Windows 10? The app has improved performance and reliability, and it’s powered by a brand new sync engine (which we’re also bringing to web, Mac, iOS, and Android). You don’t need to worry about being on the latest version since it’s always up-to-date via the Microsoft Store, and it lets us deliver updates faster than ever before. In fact, over the last year and a half we’ve added more than 100 of your favorite OneNote 2016 features based on your feedback.
And still, there are OneNote 2016 features that aren’t in OneNote for Windows 10. Microsoft is asking users to help prioritize what to port over by submitting suggestions in Windows 10’s Feedback Hub.
New features
Microsoft also made a point today to show off new features coming to OneNote for Windows 10. The following three “top-requested features” will be arriving “in the coming months”:
- Insert and search for tags: OneNote 2016’s tags feature is coming to OneNote for Windows 10, letting users insert, create, and search for custom tags. Tags you create will now roam with you to across your devices, and OneNote will even show you tags other people have used in a shared notebook so you don’t have to recreate them yourself.
- View and edit files: See live previews of Office files in OneNote, work together on attached documents, and save space in your notebooks with cloud files. Microsoft describes this as “the benefits of saving a file on OneDrive with the context and convenience of an attachment or preview on a OneNote page.”
- Additional Class Notebook features: The full slate of Class Notebook features available in the add-on for OneNote 2016 will be built into OneNote for Windows 10.
Microsoft didn’t give a timeframe for these additions other than “this summer.” Expect these updates to thus roll out by mid-September.
Note: The information in this article applies to the most current version of OneNote for Mac. Like most modern software, OneNote is frequently updated to add new functionality and to improve existing features. Please check back periodically for new and recently updated questions and answers.
Why does OneNote look different from before?
An improved layout in OneNote for Mac makes it easier than ever to organize your notes. All of your notebooks, sections, and pages can now be found in columns on the side of the app — efficiently navigable with screen readers and keyboards. To learn more about these changes, see Get started with the new OneNote.
Why do I have to sign in to use OneNote on my Mac?
OneNote for Mac continually syncs all of your notes with OneDrive. This lets you open, view, and edit your notebooks on all your devices so they’re always up-to-date.
OneNote for Mac requires access to OneDrive using a Microsoft account. To create or open notebooks in OneNote, sign in with your Microsoft account or the organizational account you’ve been given by your work or school. A Microsoft account is an email address used to sign in to Microsoft services.
You already have an account if you use any of these services:
Outlook.com
OneDrive
Xbox LIVE
MSN
Messenger
Office 365 subscription
If you don’t already have a Microsoft account, click here to sign up for free.
Can I work offline in OneNote?
If you temporarily disconnect from the Internet for any reason (for example, while traveling on an airplane), you can keep working offline in the cached (locally saved) copy of the notes on your Mac. While you work offline, OneNote will warn you that it cannot sync the notebook. As soon as you reconnect to the Internet, OneNote will automatically sync your changes to the notebook on OneDrive. After syncing shared notebooks, you’ll be able to see any notes from the other notebook authors that were added or changed during the time you were offline — and they will be able to see the changes you have made.
I used to get updates for OneNote, but they seem to have stopped. What’s wrong?
We’ve changed the minimum system requirements for OneNote for Mac to take advantage of the latest capabilities in macOS. In order to continue getting new OneNote updates from the App Store, your Mac must be running Mac OS X 10.10 or later. To check what version you have, click the Apple menu on your Mac, and then click About This Mac. If you’ve made sure that you have the latest version of macOS but are still having trouble getting app updates, see Check for updates in OneNote for Mac.
There seems to be no way to copy text from a picture I’ve inserted. I thought this was possible?
OneNote for Mac supports Optical Character Recognition (OCR), a process that recognizes text shown in pictures. OneNote can extract the text it recognizes in pictures so you can paste it elsewhere in your notes (or into another app), where you can edit and format the text as needed.
Microsoft 365 Onenote Tutorial
Note: Depending on the complexity, legibility, and the amount of text shown in the picture you’ve inserted, the Copy Text from Picture command may not be immediately available on the menu that appears when you Control-click the picture. If OneNote is still reading and converting the text in the image, wait a few moments and then try again. Learn more about copying text from pictures (OCR).
I’m searching my notebooks, but OneNote isn’t finding what I’m looking for.
If you’re certain that the keyword, search term, or phrase you’re entering in a notebook search should be found in your search results, make sure that the section containing those notes isn’t protected with a password. OneNote excludes the contents of password-protected sections from a notebook search in order to keep your protected notes secure. To include the pages in protected sections in a notebook search, you must first unlock those sections before searching.
Note: OneNote automatically locks each password-protected section after a few minutes of inactivity. Be sure to initiate a notebook search immediately after unlocking your password-protected sections.
I password-protected a section in my notebook but can’t seem to open it.
Passwords are case-sensitive. Make sure that the Caps Lock key is off before you apply or enter the correct password. If you recently changed the password for the affected section, try remembering and entering the password that you used previously to protect that section. Passwords to protect notebook sections in OneNote are not the same password you use to sign in to OneNote. Be sure you’re not accidentally typing the password for your Microsoft account.
Microsoft Onenote 365 On Mac Can't Create Account
Important: Unfortunately, if you forget your password, no one will be able to unlock your notes for you — not even Microsoft Technical Support. Learn more about password protection.
Can I password-protect just a single page?
No. You can apply passwords to individual notebook sections, but not to an individual page. However, you can create a new section in your notebook and then move the single page you want to protect into that new section before locking it with a password. For more information, see Move or copy notes in OneNote for Mac.
Can I password-protect an entire notebook?
You can apply passwords to individual notebook sections, one at a time, but not to all of the sections in the same notebook all at once.
My question isn’t answered here. What can I do?
If you need additional assistance with OneNote for Mac, please try any of the following:
On the OneNote menu bar, click Help > Search to enter a keyword or a phrase that describes what you’re looking for. You can send us feedback about our documentation by answering the short survey provided at the end of this article.
View and post questions in the OneNote for Mac Community forums to get free technical assistance from experienced OneNote users and members of the OneNote product team.
Visit the Answer Desk for a list of additional Support options.
