My iPad runs on iOS7. My Notes app (resident iPad app) crashed while I was typing in a new note. As I typed, I noticed that one of my older notes doubled itself in the list of notes on the left side. Tried to delete it and Notes crashed. Now, every time I try to open the app, it instantaneously crashes. I started reading numerous similar complaints on the Web and realized that it was a MAJOR and old issue that amazingly has not been resolved by Apple for some reason (there should be one, I guess). The worst thing is that there appears to be no solution to this persistent flaw. People suggest various, albeit mostly ineffective, solutions (like resetting). None of them work. Does anybody have a real and tested solution to this problem? I should much appreciate a solid advice.
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Notes app crashing
- Thread starter AlexG
- Start date
twerppoet
iPad Fan
Are you syncing your Notes with a service?
If you are syncing with iCloud, go to icloud.com in a computer browser and see if you can delete the problem note that way.
If you are syncing with Google or Yahoo, go to the Notes folder in that email account and try deleting the problem note there.
Good luck.
If you are syncing with iCloud, go to icloud.com in a computer browser and see if you can delete the problem note that way.
If you are syncing with Google or Yahoo, go to the Notes folder in that email account and try deleting the problem note there.
Good luck.
- Thread Starter
- #3
Thanks, but I think you must have misunderstood my point. You advise deleting "the problem note". I am not talking abt a problem note, but rather abt the entire Notes app crashing.
twerppoet
iPad Fan
You said that it duplicated a note. I'm guessing that a problem occurred with that note, corrupting it, and that it is crashing the Notes app each time it tries to open and display that note.
A similar problem can happen with Mail and emails that get corrupted. The solution is the same. Go in by another method and delete the corrupted file.
Is this a tried and true solution to this problem? No. Because I've never heard of this specific problem with Notes. I have heard of Notes spontaneously deleting everything, but not a persistent crash that could not be corrected by a restart or reset; which you seem to have already tried.
If this does not work, the only other idea I have is a clean restore. A rather large pain, so it's best left as a last resort. If the Notes app itself has somehow become corrupt (not impossible) then a restore will be the only way of fixing it.
While I don't think it will help, you could also try Reset All Settings. This has surprised me a few times in the past by fixing things I'd never think it would help. Since all it does is default most of your settings (without affecting account information) it's not as drastic as a restore.
In the end, I tend to recommend people use an alternative app to Notes. At least for important stuff. I like Evernote, but there are tons of apps out there. I use Notes only as an in-between sort of app. A kind of editable clipboard. Anything important goes into other apps with a more reliable history, and more importantly a better backup/restore solution.
While I'm sure you've tried them all, or most, I'll append my Usual Fixes post; in case there is something you (or I) missed.
------------------------------
The Usual Fixes
------------------------------
When you have problems with an app it's a good idea to clear it from RAM.
Close/Clear the app:
iOS 6: With the problem app closed, double tap on the Home button to get the multitask bar. Tap and hold on any icon in the bar until they jiggle, then tap the minus sign on the problem app.
iOS 7: Double tap the Home button to get the multitasking display. Swipe up on the problem app's thumbnail image (not the icon).
If that does not work try a restart,
Restart: Hold down the power button until the power off slider appears. Slide it off. When the iPad finishes shutting down, hold down the power button again until the Apple logo appears. Apple recommends you restart the iPad at least once a month.
and then a reset if that does not work.
Reset: Hold down the power and home buttons until the Apple logo appears. The iPad will reboot. This usually takes a bit longer than a restart.
Reset All Settings: Another, somewhat more drastic thing you can do is Reset All Settings. You'll find this under Settings > General > Reset > Reset All Settings. It won't erase any of your content, apps, or accounts; but you will have to go through most of your other settings and re-tweak them back to your liking. Do not confuse this with Erase All Content and Settings.
More detailed information at: iOS: Not responding or does not turn on
A similar problem can happen with Mail and emails that get corrupted. The solution is the same. Go in by another method and delete the corrupted file.
Is this a tried and true solution to this problem? No. Because I've never heard of this specific problem with Notes. I have heard of Notes spontaneously deleting everything, but not a persistent crash that could not be corrected by a restart or reset; which you seem to have already tried.
If this does not work, the only other idea I have is a clean restore. A rather large pain, so it's best left as a last resort. If the Notes app itself has somehow become corrupt (not impossible) then a restore will be the only way of fixing it.
While I don't think it will help, you could also try Reset All Settings. This has surprised me a few times in the past by fixing things I'd never think it would help. Since all it does is default most of your settings (without affecting account information) it's not as drastic as a restore.
In the end, I tend to recommend people use an alternative app to Notes. At least for important stuff. I like Evernote, but there are tons of apps out there. I use Notes only as an in-between sort of app. A kind of editable clipboard. Anything important goes into other apps with a more reliable history, and more importantly a better backup/restore solution.
While I'm sure you've tried them all, or most, I'll append my Usual Fixes post; in case there is something you (or I) missed.
------------------------------
The Usual Fixes
------------------------------
When you have problems with an app it's a good idea to clear it from RAM.
Close/Clear the app:
iOS 6: With the problem app closed, double tap on the Home button to get the multitask bar. Tap and hold on any icon in the bar until they jiggle, then tap the minus sign on the problem app.
iOS 7: Double tap the Home button to get the multitasking display. Swipe up on the problem app's thumbnail image (not the icon).
If that does not work try a restart,
Restart: Hold down the power button until the power off slider appears. Slide it off. When the iPad finishes shutting down, hold down the power button again until the Apple logo appears. Apple recommends you restart the iPad at least once a month.
and then a reset if that does not work.
Reset: Hold down the power and home buttons until the Apple logo appears. The iPad will reboot. This usually takes a bit longer than a restart.
Reset All Settings: Another, somewhat more drastic thing you can do is Reset All Settings. You'll find this under Settings > General > Reset > Reset All Settings. It won't erase any of your content, apps, or accounts; but you will have to go through most of your other settings and re-tweak them back to your liking. Do not confuse this with Erase All Content and Settings.
More detailed information at: iOS: Not responding or does not turn on
- Thread Starter
- #5
Thanks much again for your taking time to help me out w/ this. Actually, I haven't even noticed the point at which one of the entries I worked on got doubled. But one thing is certain: I didn't import into it any information or link from the Web. It was plain text written by me. Hard to figure what exactly led to the app crashing the minute I try to open it. Re another point you're making: unlike you, I have never read abt Notes wiping out all of its entries (God forbid this happens). But there's a lot of talk abt the issue I'm raising, i.e. Notes unexpectedly crash and then do not allow you to go back (as it crashes the moment you put your finger on it).
twerppoet
iPad Fan
Ok. I did a Google search and see that there are indeed quite a few hits on the problem. Given the large number of members we have here, I'm surprised no one else has mentioned it; or maybe I just missed those posts; can't read everything.
In case you got different results I'll mention the fix that most people are saying worked. It seems to hinge on opening Notes by an alternative method. One that will bypass Notes desire to open your last note.
Method One is to use the search feature. Pull down in the middle of the screen to get the Search field and enter some text that you know is in a note, preferably not the last note you had open. Select the note from the search results. It should open Notes to that note.
Method Two: Use Siri to create a Note and open it. Activate Siri and say something like "Note Hello". Siri will create a note for you. Tap on that note in Siri's interface and it will open Notes to that newly created note. Obviously this only works if you have an iPad 3 or later; Siri not being available on older models.
In both cases people say the problem went away and stayed away. Personally, I'd still consider a better note taking app.
Good luck.
In case you got different results I'll mention the fix that most people are saying worked. It seems to hinge on opening Notes by an alternative method. One that will bypass Notes desire to open your last note.
Method One is to use the search feature. Pull down in the middle of the screen to get the Search field and enter some text that you know is in a note, preferably not the last note you had open. Select the note from the search results. It should open Notes to that note.
Method Two: Use Siri to create a Note and open it. Activate Siri and say something like "Note Hello". Siri will create a note for you. Tap on that note in Siri's interface and it will open Notes to that newly created note. Obviously this only works if you have an iPad 3 or later; Siri not being available on older models.
In both cases people say the problem went away and stayed away. Personally, I'd still consider a better note taking app.
Good luck.
- Thread Starter
- #7
Thank you very much. Surprisingly the "Note Hello" thing worked. Hope it'll be helping me in the future. As for other note-taking apps, I use Evernote as well, but prefer Notes (if I need to jot down something quickly) for its user-friendliness and simplicity. Kind regards.
twerppoet
iPad Fan
No problem. I'm glad it worked.
longshanks
iPF Noob
- Joined
- Dec 5, 2011
- Messages
- 35
- Reaction score
- 7
Hi,
I have jumped in on this subject because I to have the same problem, Our IPad is model 2 with ISO 7.1. None of the above will work, I can't use Siri but the search pull down opens up the notes index but when I select a note it all closes. I cannot remove the notes app as it is embedded. I have tried resetting no luck with that, I don't understand the ICloud suggestion, I have never signed up for that. Choosing a different App well I've done that but what about retrieving all my original notes ?
I have tried all suggested solutions but none work, surely there must be a magic bullet solution to this.
I have jumped in on this subject because I to have the same problem, Our IPad is model 2 with ISO 7.1. None of the above will work, I can't use Siri but the search pull down opens up the notes index but when I select a note it all closes. I cannot remove the notes app as it is embedded. I have tried resetting no luck with that, I don't understand the ICloud suggestion, I have never signed up for that. Choosing a different App well I've done that but what about retrieving all my original notes ?
I have tried all suggested solutions but none work, surely there must be a magic bullet solution to this.
twerppoet
iPad Fan
If you've tried all the above, then you'll probably have to restore the iPad to make it work properly again.
But before you do that, give Settings > General > Reset > Reset All Settings a try. This won't delete anything, but it will default quite a few preferences like wallpaper, sounds, etc. I don't hold out much hope that this will fix this problem, but it has surprised me in the past.
To retrieve you current notes, I suggest setting up an iCloud account and letting them sync; then going to icloud.com on a computer to copy them. A basic iCloud account is free. You should be able to set one up by going to Settings > iCloud and signing in. If you don't have an account already signed in you'll see an option to create a new one. It's usually best to link your iCloud account to your current Apple ID account rather than create a new user name and password. There should be an option for that.
When you do this, and Notes is turned on in the Settings, you should see a dialog box that asks if you want to merge your notes. Do that and they should all be copied to your iCloud account.
This only works if you're notes are not synced to some other online account like Gmail or Yahoo. If they are, then you can retrieve your notes by going to you email in those accounts (preferably on a computer) looking for a Notes folder, and copying them from there. (do not delete or edit notes in this folder, as it will break your syncing for those files).
Once you've copied all your notes to another location, you can try deleting them from iCloud or the other service and letting it sync. I know I said not to delete notes if they are in the Notes folder in Yahoo or Gmail, but this would be the one exception. If it's a badly formatted note that's causing Notes to crash, this might fix the app and make restoring the iPad unnecessary.
But before you do that, give Settings > General > Reset > Reset All Settings a try. This won't delete anything, but it will default quite a few preferences like wallpaper, sounds, etc. I don't hold out much hope that this will fix this problem, but it has surprised me in the past.
To retrieve you current notes, I suggest setting up an iCloud account and letting them sync; then going to icloud.com on a computer to copy them. A basic iCloud account is free. You should be able to set one up by going to Settings > iCloud and signing in. If you don't have an account already signed in you'll see an option to create a new one. It's usually best to link your iCloud account to your current Apple ID account rather than create a new user name and password. There should be an option for that.
When you do this, and Notes is turned on in the Settings, you should see a dialog box that asks if you want to merge your notes. Do that and they should all be copied to your iCloud account.
This only works if you're notes are not synced to some other online account like Gmail or Yahoo. If they are, then you can retrieve your notes by going to you email in those accounts (preferably on a computer) looking for a Notes folder, and copying them from there. (do not delete or edit notes in this folder, as it will break your syncing for those files).
Once you've copied all your notes to another location, you can try deleting them from iCloud or the other service and letting it sync. I know I said not to delete notes if they are in the Notes folder in Yahoo or Gmail, but this would be the one exception. If it's a badly formatted note that's causing Notes to crash, this might fix the app and make restoring the iPad unnecessary.
longshanks
iPF Noob
- Joined
- Dec 5, 2011
- Messages
- 35
- Reaction score
- 7
Many many thanks my friend the iCloud trick works I now have all my notes, recipes back, after 5 weeks of abject frustration trying to fix this your advice came out as trumps, I owe you a beer.
Regards
Brian
Regards
Brian
Last edited:
twerppoet
iPad Fan
You're welcome. I'm glad it worked.
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