If you’re a software developer you’ve surely had those days where your brain is a whirlwind of ideas, codes, and a dozen pending tasks that seem to be piling up. Maybe you’ve tried organizing all these thoughts as notes, only to come back later and find out it makes, well, absolutely no sense!
What you need is a handy digital note-taking tool that can transform those chaotic notes into organized insights. Of course, it helps if you also had a way to turn these ideas into actionable to-do lists and share them with your team.
Well, say hello to NotebookLM.
NotebookLM is a note-taking tool that just might solve all your problems. In this blog post, we specifically cover how developers can use NotebookLM to organize their thoughts, generate ideas, and improve their research.
How to Use NotebookLM for Developers
What is NotebookLM?
Developed by Google Labs, NotebookLM is a handy research and note-taking tool launched in 2023. It is built atop Google’s large language model—Gemini 2.0, and acts as your personal research assistant, helping you interact with the information that matters to you.
You can upload any file to NotebookLM—PDFs, website URLs, your own documents, audio files, Google Docs, Google Slides, and even YouTube videos. The tool will analyze the information you upload to summarize them using Gemini’s multi-modal understanding capabilities to give you concise summaries. NotebookLLM can even make connections between topics so you can quickly understand complex subjects and identify patterns.
NotebookLM offers several other research management features, which we’ll examine below.
Key NotebookLM features
Here are some of NotebookLM’s standout features that can make life easier for students, researchers, and professionals.
1. Feature #1: Notebooks
Notebooks are similar to the folders in which you save files on your computer. You can create a different notebook for each project or topic. Since every notebook is completely separate from the other, NotebookLM cannot access information from multiple notebooks at once.
You can share your notebooks with up to 50 individual users if you access NotebookLM through your personal Gmail ID. On the other hand, if you have an enterprise account, notebooks can be shared with an unlimited number of users within the organization. Depending on your preference, a notebook can be shared with view only or edit access.
2. Feature #2: Instant insights
NotebookLM features a chat-like interface where you can ask questions based on the information you uploaded into the tool. With the right prompts, NotebookLM can summarize information, generate outlines, format the information as FAQs, and more. You also get to choose from a list of suggested questions to save more time!
Responses will include citations used by NotebookLM to provide the information to you. This way, you can check the accuracy of responses and find the original quote from where the answer was extracted.
💡Pro Tip: One thing to remember is that NotebookLM will source answers only from the information you upload unless explicitly asked to do otherwise.
3. Feature #3: Notes
Create notes for important information you want to refer to later. You can either create a new note and write or paste information into it. Or you can save certain responses generated by NotebookLM as notes.
👀 Did You Know? You can create a maximum of 1000 notes for every notebook.
Notes can even be converted into source documents, which allows you to work with the collection of ideas you put together as you read through the original information. This is handy when you want to turn your notes into actionable content and convert scattered ideas into a cohesive output for research or presentations.
4. Feature #4: Audio overviews
This is still a relatively new feature in NotebookLM. The audio overview turns your information into discussions between two AI hosts. The model summarizes all the information you upload, establishes connections between various related topics, and, get this—all this is used in a back-and-forth banter that sounds just like two people on a podcast.
Audio files can be downloaded so you can listen to them on the go. It makes grasping certain concepts easier and more engaging. However, since audio overviews are still experimental, inaccuracies can creep in during discussions.
NotebookLM pricing
- Free forever
- NotebookLM Plus: $20/month per user
How to Use NotebookLM for Developers
NotebookLM can be a valuable tool for software developers, especially if you manage multiple tasks such as debugging code, reading through documentation, sprint planning, or analyzing technical concepts.
Let’s break down how you can effectively use NotebookLM for tackling different use cases.
1. Code documentation management
Developers use code documentation to organize information related to software development projects. This documentation acts as a reference for stakeholders and users with details on things like the codebase architecture, APIs, and the functionality of the software being developed.
NotebookLM can be used for code documentation management in the following ways:
Summarize documentation
Upload technical guides, API documentation, architecture diagrams, change logs, and other codebase management files into NotebookLM. The model can then analyze these files to generate contextual summaries highlighting critical points, so it becomes easier to share key insights with team members
💡Pro Tip: Summarized overviews of code documentation can be used to quickly onboard new developers
Connect related ideas and dependencies
Once the code documentation is uploaded, AI can link the functions, dependencies, and other related concepts. Use this feature to visualize how different components in the codebase interact.
For example, a function mentioned in the project structure file could be cross-referenced with the logic behind it, which is stored in the technical specs documentation. Being able to see how different components are linked can make debugging and refactoring easier for developers.
This means developers must be extremely careful about managing these dependencies. One wrong move can impact software stability and functionality. Using an AI-powered cross-referencing tool here eases a lot of the manual work involved in tracking and managing these dependencies.
2. Debugging and issue tracking
Debugging requires developers to review code, check for issues, and resolve the bugs and errors in a software program.
Issue tracking involves developers categorizing bugs, feature requests, and other development-related tasks within a centralized system to track their progress and manage accountability.
Centralize developer documentation
- Developers can upload code snippets, logs, bug reports, and meeting notes into a notebook so all the information regarding bugs and errors are stored in a single place
- AI-based cross-referencing can help developers connect issue reports with code documentation to find the root cause of a bug by linking errors with possible causes
Locate specific information
- Users can leverage the chat interface to ask NotebookLM questions based on the uploaded information and it will surface insights with citations. This makes it easier to locate the exact information related to a bug or error
- You can also ask NotebookLM to extract key findings from the uploaded information and present it in a structured format. An example includes a briefing document that highlights the key issues consolidated from the bug reports your developers upload
Work collaboratively on errors and bugs
- Useful for issue tracking, developers can upload meeting notes on bug discussions and ask AI to create a bug report based on what was discussed
- The responses can be saved into a notebook and shared with other stakeholders. Decisions related to resolution and progress can be logged as notes
- This way, developers can collaboratively work on issues and also monitor the progress of reported issues
3. Learning new technologies
Developers can leverage NotebookLM’s powerful features to make learning new technologies much easier.
Generate summaries
Upload all the resources related to the new technology into NotebookLM to create a central hub for knowledge. Use AI to generate summaries, FAQs, study guides, and timelines from the uploaded information to highlight core concepts.
💡Pro Tip: Create a glossary of terms to help developers understand the terminology related to the new technology.
Create notes
Developers can add their commentaries on topics and save them as notes to reference them later. If the notes are extensive, they can be converted into a source to get suggestions on possible improvements, alternative approaches, and more.
Audio overviews
If going through pages and pages of text seems too overwhelming, developers can simply use audio overviews.
🧠 Fun Fact: NotebookLM converts text into ‘deep-dive’ discussions, featuring two AI hosts that summarize your material and turn it into an engaging and lively banter.
Users can leverage these audio overviews to learn in a more interactive manner. These conversations can even be downloaded so users can listen to them on the go, enabling them to time that would otherwise be idle.
4. Collaborative knowledge sharing
With collaborative knowledge sharing, developers can discuss challenges and develop solutions shaped by expert opinions. It improves code quality and reduces information siloes that can slow progress.
You can leverage Notebook LM’s creative potential as a knowledge management system in multiple ways:
Share notebooks
Teams may share notebooks that contain all the uploaded information so everyone stays aligned and has access to a single source of truth.
💡Pro Tip: Enable different access levels when sharing notebooks to reduce unwanted changes and ensure only the right people are allowed to make changes to the information
Analyze notebook usage
If you’ve created a shared notebook resource, usage analytics is a good way to measure how well the information is being consumed. You get insights into the number of users that have accessed the notebook and the number of queries generated per day.
Lower usage metrics may mean that your team may require more context or additional resources to help them fully engage with the content in notebooks.
5. Project planning and prioritization
Developers working on multiple projects can use NotebookLM to create help centers, centralize project-related information, and analyze requirements.
Create help centers
- Upload project-related documents into a single notebook and generate summarize for lengthy documents so they can be easily accessed and referenced
- Use AI to extract key highlights and structure them in various formats such as tables, documents, or Q&As for a high-level understanding
Identify and prioritize tasks
- Ask NotebookLM specific questions about project requirements and organize the responses as notes. For instance, ask the model, ‘What are the most important features highlighted in the user stories?’
- NotebookLM can also generate a timeline representing major milestones to be completed in the project. Developers can use these timelines and notes to keep track of what needs to be done, based on importance and urgency
Analyze dependencies
- Use NotebookLM to identify related tasks and activities in the project and plan your work accordingly. Use citations to pinpoint the information and quickly identify areas of concern
- NotebookLM can also be used to analyze project documents and get an overview of potential risks by asking questions like ‘What are the market risks for this software?’
Pros of Using NotebookLM for Developers
Developers can think of Google’s NotebookLM as their research buddy, complete with everything they require to organize, summarize, and connect the dots across code documentation and other technical information. Here are some of the pros of adding this tool to your existing tech stack:
- Efficient code documentation to easily maintain a centralized repository of information
- AI-powered summaries to highlight key points and essential details
- Streamlined note-taking and collaborative knowledge sharing
- Multi-modal understanding that allows you to upload information in different formats
- AI-enabled cross-referencing to suggest related ideas and concepts
- Audio overviews to enable interactive learning
Common Pain Points with Using NotebookLM
Although NotebookLM is one of the better AI apps for note-taking, research, and knowledge sharing, it does come with a few limitations.
- A clunky interface that can take some time to figure out
- Responses saved as notes cannot be edited again
- No mobile app
- Audio overviews can sometimes introduce inaccuracies during discussions, so it’s not a reliable feature yet
- The free plan has a lot of limitations, and the upgrades in the paid tier are not advanced enough for the price
NotebookLM is a good option if you’re looking for one of those simple AI tools that can help you with research and note-taking. However, if you’re considering something more advanced, like a virtual research assistant that can help you brainstorm ideas, automatically generate content, and compile research notes, you might want to give a try.
is more than a simple note-taking or research tool. It offers a suite of features designed to help you work smarter, not harder.
The platform provides a centralized workspace to collaborate with teammates, create beautifully formatted documents, build custom workflows, and more. Aside from this, is enhanced with powerful AI features that help you streamline business processes, saving you from redundant work.
So, how can help with software project management?
1. AI-powered technical documentation
’s AI— Brain acts as a writing assistant, allowing you to automatically create technical specification docs and source material in seconds. All you need to do is feed the right prompts to the tool, and voila! You have a detailed structure for code documentation ready to go. You can customize the documentation to suit your specific use case and make changes as you need so that it better adapts to your workflow.
You can also use Brain as an AI coding tool to generate test cases based on your code or test requirements. It analyzes the requirements, extracts key functionalities, and identifies both positive and negative test scenarios. This means your code reviews and testing now take half the time.
🔎 What else can Brain do?
- Surface insights from your workspace to give instant answers to all your work-related questions
- Automatically generate status reports and progress updates based on changes made to tasks and docs
- Generate tables with rich data and insights, including bug and issue tracking tables, test case tables, and code reviews
- Auto-summarize key points discussed during meetings initiated with ’s Zoom integration and create action items for further follow-up
💡Pro Tip: Integrate with a software development tool like GitHub so you can link pull requests, commits, and branches to your tasks. This way all your development activity is tied to specific, trackable tasks.
2. Centralized information repository
Create company wikis or perfectly structured information repositories with Docs. Add links, tables, images, and bookmarks to make your documents as contextual as possible. For example, you can include formatted code snippets to explain how to implement a feature or functionality.
With Docs, you can organize information into multiple documents and folders for topics like API documentation, technical specs, and other codebase-related areas. Invite stakeholders to review and edit documents, leave comments, and assign action items directly from within docs.
Fast-track work with Templates
also offers a huge library of agile software development templates for project management. This means you don’t have to worry about creating a doc from scratch every time a new project begins.
Here are two templates to start with:
The Software Development Template provides everything your software development team will need to deliver product features and fix bugs and errors. Use Views to get a bird’s-eye view of your to-dos and add tags to easily filter out the information you need to see.
With this template, you can:
- Organize tasks using the list or board view for better visibility
- Brainstorm ideas and solutions using Whiteboards
- Add Custom Statuses to the tasks at hand for better tracking
- Capture specific information related to bugs, errors, and features using Custom Fields
Developer teams can also use the Software Change Log Template, a comprehensive framework that ensures change requests are handled smoothly and efficiently. It can help you keep track of change processes and maintain a detailed history of all the bug fixes and releases done in the past.
You can use this template to:
- Maintain a centralized database of change requests and associated documentation
- Assign change requests to the appropriate team members
- Set Recurring Tasks in for reviews and approvals of all the changes made
- Use Brain to simplify task planning and document management
💡Pro Tip: Keep your development workflow smooth and organized using ’s issue tracking templates. Standardize capturing bugs, feature requests, improvements, and user stories to resolve issues faster.
3. Automate workflows
Enable your developers to focus on what they do best and let automation take care of the rest. With Automations, you can streamline repetitive tasks, ensuring smoother workflows and better problem-solving.
Let’s say a piece of code has been completed and is ready for testing and review. A task is created, and the status is updated to ‘Code Review’. The AI automation builder allows you to configure a rule where the task is automatically assigned to a senior developer for review. The automation can also include a notification to be sent to the developer along with a due date for the task.
This is perfect for managing complex code reviews and moves things along faster.
💡Pro Tip: If you want a better way to use AI for software development, set up Custom Fields for tasks in . Set specific triggers, so that whenever it occurs, Brain automatically populates the field with the latest update on a task.
4. Manage developer tasks
Easily create, assign, and manage tasks like planning, coding, feature development, and deployment to the appropriate team members using Tasks. Categorize different types of tasks using lists, folders, and spaces based on sprints or departments like Front End, Back End, etc.
Set due dates and reminders for every task along with priority levels so that your teams know exactly what to focus on. Add task descriptions, Custom Fields, and task types to make sure assignees have everything they need to execute their action items.
💡Pro Tip: Capture bug submissions using the Form View. Responses are automatically categorized and connected to trackable tasks, which are then routed to the right team members.
5. Create visual roadmaps
Use the Gantt Chart View to visually represent your team’s workflows. Drag and drop action items on a flexible timeline and use color-coded labels to organize tasks and get an overview of critical milestones.
Use cascading views to see which tasks depend on others and track how far along your project is with the help of progress percentages. Identify areas of concern and potential bottlenecks and take action before they escalate to keep your projects moving smoothly.
pricing
- Free Forever
- Unlimited: $7/month per user
- Business: $12/month per user
- Enterprise: Contact for pricing
- Brain: Add to any paid plan for $7 per member per month
Other Alternatives to NotebookLM
Aside from , we’ve also compiled a few other popular alternatives to NotebookLM.
- Notion—For note-taking, task management, and documentation
- Confluence—For knowledge management and code documentation
- Slab—For organizing internal documentation
- Coda—For team collaboration and project management
- Obsidian—For note-taking and visualizing interconnected notes as a knowledge graph
Level Up Your Development Workflow with
NotebookLM is a great note-taking tool and a good solution if you’re looking for something with basic code documentation and knowledge-sharing features. But if you’re a software developer looking for something that can actually help you plan, manage, and execute your sprints in the most efficient manner, NotebookLM might just be too niche for you.
On the other hand, , with its extensive list of features, helps you streamline sprint planning, implementation, and everything in between. Whether you’re collaborating on code, visualizing your product roadmap, managing tasks, or brainstorming, has well and truly got your back.
So, if you’re looking for something that combines productivity with fun-ctionality, sign up to today! 🌟
Everything you need to stay organized and get work done.
