OneNote is a digital notebook application that allows multi-user collaboration. It is a note taking tool that also allows users to share notes, drawings, screen clippings, and more.

If you have downloaded the Microsoft Office 365 Suite, which includes OneNote 2016, you may notice upon searching for the application on your Windows computer that you also have OneNote installed, which can cause some confusion. OneNote and OneNote 2016, while functionally similar, do have some differences to them, which will be explained below.

What is the OneNote Application That Is Already Installed on My Computer?

You may notice that OneNote (NOT OneNote 2016) is already installed on your Windows computer. OneNote comes pre-installed on all Windows 10 machines by default. Functionally, it serves the same purpose as OneNote 2016 does, although it has some major differences in design and navigation.

You may notice that it is hard to access some of your shared files on the pre-installed OneNote that you may have access to on OneNote 2016. This is because the Microsoft 365 suite applications work in conjunction and are all connected to the cloud. Once you are logged into OneDrive, your Microsoft 365 applications will all sync together, including OneNote 2016. This makes it easy to seamlessly access all Microsoft 365 applications and the files you saved in the applications.

Although the files shared to you through OneNote 2016 may be accessible on the preinstalled version of OneNote, there sometimes will be issues trying to access them through the preinstalled OneNote application. Therefore, it is recommended that you use OneNote 2016 since it works best with the cloud-based Microsoft 365 suite, which syncs with the rest of the Microsoft 365 suite applications once you sign into OneDrive.

What is OneNote 2016?

OneNote 2016 is an application that is included in the Office 2016 Suite that is available for a free download on Illinois State University’s Microsoft 365 page. For more information on installing the Microsoft 365 Suite, please read the following articles on how to install the suite. The articles give instructions on how to install the suite for a Windows machine, and a Mac machine:

• Installing Office for Windows from Microsoft 365
• Installing Microsoft Office for MacOS from Microsoft 365
  
  

It works the same as the preinstalled OneNote application does, but the design of both applications is different. You may find that navigating OneNote 2016 is easier than navigating OneNote. It is recommended that you use OneNote 2016 for the best possible experience. Using OneNote 2016 ensures that you are accessing the files available to you when you are properly logged into the Office 365 suite.

Video Demonstration

Select the following link to view a video that covers the features of OneNote: What is OneNote?

Getting Help

Technical assistance is available through the Technology Support Center by phone at (309) 438-4357; by email at SupportCenter@IllinoisState.edu; or by using the website Help.IllinoisState.edu to either submit a ticket or use the Live Chat feature.  

Similar Articles

• Microsoft 365
• Launching Apps in Microsoft 365
• Unable to Log in to Microsoft 365
• Microsoft Bookings
• Microsoft OneNote
• Microsoft Power BI
• Microsoft OneNote Class Notebook
• Microsoft Planner
• Microsoft Project
• Microsoft SharePoint
• Microsoft Stream (on SharePoint)
• Microsoft Teams
• Microsoft To Do
• Office Online
• Microsoft OneDrive
• Uninstalling Microsoft Office