But even there: Luhmann's "Zettelkasten" externalises the main data processing effort back to the users conscious and unconscious references of recorded information, giving back associations not conciously realised before - all with paper cards... would have been another good path not really followed...
I've found that having a whiteboard in my office helps me jot down quick mathematical ideas as soon as they come (but note how simpler this is due to the home office wave), but that doesn't work well for fleeting thoughts of a more philosophical or conceptual nature.
There's a lot of innovation going on for conscientious people to have a better UI to keep notes, but really all innovation can happen post hoc if you have a text editor and devise a quick text language for linking and metadata (maybe based off something like yaml to cut down on parser writing). The open problem is how to stop losing the fleeting thoughts of smart distracted people.
It's a big schlep, cue in Paul Graham essay.
I don't understand. If you're at a keyboard then just type, and if not, just write. Don't include much (if any) refinement, as you can do that at a later stage. Just get down as many associations as you can.