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OneNote is one of the better programs out there to help you get and keep everything organized. You can use it for every aspect of your life, including programming. I've learned to write everything down. It seems that if I don't write something down, I won't remember it. Some of the more useful features are:

• Search - This is a given, but the search in OneNote is powerful and even integrates with Windows Search and also every image is OCRed and is searchable.
• Screen Capturing - When you have OneNote installed, you can quickly use the Windows+S key to screen shot anything you are working on. After you push the shortcut, it allows you to draw a box around any thing currently on the screen and it saves it to a new page in OneNote. It also puts the date and time in the note, which is very helpful. It also OCRs any text in the image and immediately makes it searchable. You can also copy and paste the image into an email or wherever you might need.
• No Save Button - In OneNote, there is no save button. This takes some getting used to after years of continually hitting save in every program I use. OneNote just constantly saves everything as you type or edit. (You can push Ctrl+S to force a save, but it is unnecessary). After you get used to it, this is a great feature and I especially like it.
• Windows+N - I am on the phone quite a bit throughout the day. Before OneNote, I would open Windows Notepad and type notes on whatever they were saying. Additionally, anytime anybody needed me to do something, I would open a new Notepad and just start typing. While Notepad opens quickly so I could start typing right away, it is a poor way to save things and at the end of the day I would sometimes have 20 Notepads open. Now I just use the Windows+N shortcut key and a new OneNote page opens immediately. Anything I type is saved, and then I can file it in the appropriate section. Also, if it is a task I need to act on, I can assign it as such and it will be integrated with Outlook.
• Outlook Integration - As I mentioned in the last bullet point, OneNote integrates perfectly with Outlook. This is great because my Outlook is on Exchange and therefore synchronized across all my computers and my cell phone. Mark a task as complete in one, it reflects in the other.
• Spell check - OneNote has spell check similar to Microsoft Word. It checks as you type. (Another great feature over Notepad).
• Synchronizing - OneNote synchronizes very well if you have multiple computers. You can add/edit notes on either computer and they are reflected on the others. A very nice feature if you have multiple computers or work in multiple locations
• Multiple Projects - Although a very simple idea, this is one of the better functions of OneNote. Like most programmers, I have a good number of projects that I am working on at any given time. I simply create a new section (or notebook if it is a larger project) for each client/project and file everything I can in OneNote. I'll even put notes from phone calls in and make checklists of things that need to be completed.

While this a simple list of the main features I use, the program has a ton more features that I am not listing that might be helpful for a lot of people. I highly recommend checking this program out. It is a little awkward to start using at first, but if you dive right in, you'll quickly wonder how you survived without it.