4.8.2 Remember templates

In combination with Org-mode, you can use templates to generate different types of remember notes. For example, if you would like to use one template to create general TODO entries, another one for journal entries, and a third one for collecting random ideas, you could use:

     (setq org-remember-templates
      '((?t "* TODO %?\n  %i\n  %a" "~/org/TODO.org")
        (?j "* %U %?\n\n  %i\n  %a" "~/org/JOURNAL.org")
        (?i "* %^{Title}\n  %i\n  %a" "~/org/JOURNAL.org" "New Ideas")))

In these entries, the character specifies how to select the template. The first string specifies the template. Two more (optional) strings give the file in which, and the headline under which the new note should be stored. The file defaults to org-default-notes-file, the heading to org-remember-default-headline. Both defaults help to get to the storing location quickly, but you can change the location interactively while storing the note.

When you call M-x remember (or M-x org-remember) to remember something, org will prompt for a key to select the template (if you have more than one template) and then prepare the buffer like

     * TODO
       [[file:link to where you called remember]]

or

     * [2006-03-21 Tue 15:37]
     
       [[file:link to where you called remember]]

During expansion of the template, special %-escapes allow dynamic insertion of content:

     %^{prompt}  prompt the user for a string and replace this sequence with it.
     %t          time stamp, date only
     %T          time stamp with date and time
     %u, %U      like the above, but inactive time stamps
     %^t         like %t, but prompt for date.  Similarly %^T, %^u, %^U
                 You may define a prompt like %^{Birthday}t
     %n          user name (taken from user-full-name)
     %a          annotation, normally the link created with org-store-link
     %i          initial content, the region when remember is called with C-u.
                 The entire text will be indented like %i itself.
     %:keyword   specific information for certain link types, see below

For specific link types, the following keywords will be defined:

     Link type          |  Available keywords
     -------------------+----------------------------------------------
     bbdb               |  %:name %:company
     vm, wl, mh, rmail  |  %:type %:subject %:message-id
                        |  %:from %:fromname %:fromaddress
                        |  %:to   %:toname   %:toaddress
                        |  %:fromto (either "to NAME" or "from NAME")1
     gnus               |  %:group, for messages also all email fields
     w3, w3m            |  %:url
     info               |  %:file %:node
     calendar           |  %:date"

If you would like to have the cursor in a specific position after the template has been expanded:

     %?          After completing the template, position cursor here.

If you change you mind about which template to use, call org-remember in the remember buffer. You may then select a new template that will be filled with the previoous context information.