> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://guides.fieldedgeapp.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://guides.fieldedgeapp.com/guide-to-canvassing-and-calls/reporting/viewing-notes.md).
# Viewing Notes
Read, search, follow up on and export the notes your team logs, using Note Explorer in the HQ Dashboard
Notes captured during canvassing and call time sync back to NationBuilder as part of each logged contact. **Note Explorer** in the HQ Dashboard brings all of those notes together in one place, so you can read them, search them, mark the ones that need follow-up and export them to a spreadsheet.
{% hint style="info" %}
Note Explorer is a new feature in [HQ Dashboard V2](/product-tour-or-hq/early-access.md), currently in early preview. You need Campaign Manager access to use it. Let us know how it's working for you using the thumbs up or thumbs down at the top of the page.
{% endhint %}
## Opening Note Explorer
You can open Note Explorer from a few places in the HQ Dashboard:
* **Tools:** select **Tools** in the sidebar, then click the **Note Explorer** card.
* **Stream:** select **Performance** in the sidebar, open the **Stream**, then click the **Note Explorer** button at the top of the page, next to **Export**.
* **Home:** click **Open** on the **Note Explorer** card.
* **An activity in the Stream:** click an activity card to open its details, then use the links in the **Notes** row:
* **Notes about this person** shows every note logged for the person who was contacted.
* **Notes by** followed by the field user's name shows every note that field user has logged.
## Finding notes
Notes are listed newest first and grouped by day. Each note shows its status, how the contact was made (for example a door knock or phone call), the time, the note itself and who logged it. Scroll down to load more notes. When you see **End of results**, you've reached the last one.
To narrow down the list:
1. Type a word or phrase into **Search notes**, for example "yard sign" or "volunteer". Search looks at the note text only and isn't case sensitive.
2. Use the date picker to choose a date range. With no dates selected, you'll see notes from all time.
3. Use the **All Users** dropdown to show notes logged by one field user.
4. Use the **All Statuses** dropdown to show notes with one or more statuses, for example only **Follow-up**.
5. Click **Clear filters** to start again.
You can combine filters. For example, search for "donate" and choose last week's dates to see everyone who mentioned donating during last week's canvass.
{% hint style="info" %}
Your filters are saved in the page address. Bookmark it to come back to the same view, or copy the link to share it with another Campaign Manager.
{% endhint %}
## Reading a note
Click any note to open it. The note panel shows:
* **Status** at the top, so you can update it straight away
* The full note
* **Person:** who the note is about. Their name links to their NationBuilder profile, and their phone, mobile, email and address are shown when available.
* **Logged:** the field user who logged it, the date and time, and the contact method
To see everything that's been noted about this person, click **See all notes from this person**. This clears your other filters and shows only their notes, with a **Notes for** label and their name above the list. Click the **×** on the label to go back to all notes.
## Tracking follow-up with statuses
Every note has a status, so your team can keep track of which notes need action and which have been dealt with.
| Status | Icon | Use it for |
| ------------- | ----------- | --------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Open** | Grey circle | Every note starts as Open |
| **Follow-up** | Amber flag | Notes that need action, like a yard sign request or a call back |
| **Closed** | Grey tick | Notes that have been dealt with |
To change a note's status:
1. Click the note to open it.
2. Choose **Open**, **Follow-up** or **Closed** from the status picker at the top of the panel.
The change saves straight away. The panel shows who set the status and when, and the status icon appears next to the note in the list. Statuses are shared, so everyone on your team who uses the HQ Dashboard sees the same status.
To work through your follow-up list, select **Follow-up** in the **All Statuses** dropdown. As each note is dealt with, change it to **Closed** and it will drop off the list next time it loads.
## Exporting notes
1. Set your filters. The export includes every note that matches them, not just the notes loaded on the page.
2. Click **Export CSV** at the top of the page.
3. Wait while the notes are gathered. You'll see progress under the button, and you can click **Cancel** to stop.
4. When it's done, a CSV file downloads that you can open in Google Sheets, Excel or a similar tool.
The file includes these columns:
| Column | Description |
| ------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Date** | The date the contact was logged |
| **Time** | The time the contact was logged |
| **Person** | Who the note is about |
| **Person NB ID** | The person's NationBuilder ID |
| **Note** | The full note |
| **Contact Method** | How the contact was made, for example Door Knock |
| **Contact Status** | The outcome of the contact, for example Answered |
| **Logged By** | The field user who logged the contact |
| **Status** | Open, Follow-up or Closed |
| **Status Set By** | Who last changed the status (blank for Open notes) |
| **Status Set At** | When the status was last changed (blank for Open notes) |
Dates and times use your computer's time zone. You can export up to 10,000 notes at a time. If your filters match more than that, choose a shorter date range or add another filter and export in batches.
## Other ways to view notes
Note Explorer is the easiest way to work with lots of notes at once, but you can also find notes in these places:
* **On a NationBuilder profile:** open the person in NationBuilder and scroll down past the tab row to the **Activity Feed**. Look for an entry like *Ryan Anderson contacted Josh Howard via Door knock Answered* and click **Show More** to read the note.
* **In the FieldEdge app:** open the contact's profile and tap the **Activity** tab.
* **With a NationBuilder filter:** in the People filter, add **Logged contact note** set to **contains**, then enter the text you're looking for. This gives you a list of people that you can tag, add to a list or export.
\[Screenshot: NationBuilder filter panel showing "Logged contact note contains" as the filter criteria]
For more ways to segment canvass activity in NationBuilder, see [Filtering activity in NB](/guide-to-canvassing-and-calls/reporting/filtering-activity-in-nb.md).
## Frequently (and infrequently) asked questions
Which notes appear in Note Explorer?
Every note logged on a contact in your nation. That includes notes from FieldEdge canvassing and call time, as well as notes added to logged contacts directly in NationBuilder. Logged contacts without a note don't appear.
Why can't I find someone by searching for their name?
Search only looks at the note itself, not at names. To see all the notes for a person, open one of their notes and click **See all notes from this person**, or open one of their activities in the Stream and click **Notes about this person**.
Why isn't a field user listed in the All Users dropdown?
The dropdown lists the field users whose notes have loaded on the page so far. Scroll down to load more notes, or open one of their activities in the Stream and click the **Notes by** link with their name.
Why is there no "Notes by" link on some activities in the Stream?
The link needs a NationBuilder account to filter by, so it doesn't appear for [Accountless Users](/product-tour-or-hq/team-management/accountless-users.md). The **Notes about this person** link still works.
Does changing a note's status update NationBuilder?
No. Statuses are saved in FieldEdge and only appear in Note Explorer and in your CSV exports. Nothing changes in NationBuilder.
Why does Note Explorer say my status filter results are approximate?
This can happen in nations where more than 1,000 notes have a status. Every note shown matches your filters, but the total may be an estimate, and some older **Follow-up** or **Closed** notes may not be included.
Can notes be sent to a spreadsheet automatically as they're logged?
**Export CSV** gives you a snapshot whenever you need one. If you'd like new notes to flow into a spreadsheet automatically, see [Sync to a spreadsheet](/guide-to-canvassing-and-calls/reporting/exporting-activity-and-notes.md#sync-to-a-spreadsheet).
#### Questions?
If you have any questions about viewing notes or reporting canvass activity in FieldEdge, please don't hesitate to reach out. We're fully certified NationBuilder Experts!