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The DEVONtechnologies Blog

Articles in the category Tips
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How to Use a Conditional Automation

August 4, 2026

Screenshot showing the input field for the Chat - Continue if smart action in the batch process editor in DEVONthink.

The Pro and Server editions of DEVONthink have a specialized action for smart rules and batch processes called Chat – Continue if, that uses external AI to determine if a process should continue. Here is how to create conditional automations with it. (more)

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Comparing Apple Vision and OCR

July 28, 2026

Screenshot of the Data menu in DEVONthink, where the OCR action is selected.

When creating searchable documents from images or PDF documents in DEVONthink Pro or Server, there are two mechanisms that process them: Apple’s Vision framework or traditional OCR. While seemingly similar in output, there are important differences between them. (more)

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How to Use Zen Mode in DEVONthink To Go

July 21, 2026

View Options in DEVONthink To Go highlighting Zen mode

If you frequently read in DEVONthink To Go and prefer reading in fullscreen view, things just got better with its new distraction-free Zen mode. We show you how to use it. (more)

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How to Use Local AI in DEVONthink To Go

July 14, 2026

Screenshot showing the server settings of LM Studio, so it can be accessed on the network.

When using AI on mobile devices, you typically access cloud services like. You can’t run a full local model on an iPhone today, but you can run one on your Mac and connect DEVONthink To Go to it. Here is how that works. (more)

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How to Create a New Account on Your Mac

July 7, 2026

Screenshot showing the macOS dialogue for creating a new user account.

When you get a new Mac, your user account gets set up for day-to-day use. But adding a second user account has some real benefits. And while it may sound complicated, it is straightforward to do. Here we show you how to do this and why. (more)

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How DEVONthink Keeps You in Control

June 30, 2026

Screenshot showing DEVONthink’s smart rule editor, showing a smart rule that uses the On Demand event trigger.

You might assume that apps will do certain things automatically. However, many decisions are yours to make, not the app’s. We prefer clear opt‑in controls rather than hidden opt‑outs. Here are a few optional things that are up to your control in DEVONthink or DEVONthink To Go. (more)

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How to Schedule Tasks in DEVONthink

June 23, 2026

Screenshot showing Annotations inspector, displaying a weekly reminder scheduled for every other Friday.

Reminders are one way to automate work in DEVONthink. They let you set exact times, days, and well-defined recurrences for certain time-based actions like playing a sound, opening a document, or even running a script. Here is how that works. (more)

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How to Use Sheets in DEVONthink

June 16, 2026

Screenshot showing the sheet creation dialog of DEVONthink.

DEVONthink lets you use several common file formats: PDF documents for reading, RTF or Markdown for note taking, and many more. But if you need to record information in a spreadsheet-style format, we also have a native format for that: sheets. Here is how to use it in DEVONthink. (more)

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How to Scan in DEVONthink To Go

June 9, 2026

Screenshot showing an iPhone’s Home Screen displaying DEVONthink To Go's application context menu with the New Scan command highlighted.

DEVONthink To Go lets you scan documents directly into your database. You can capture single pages or multi-page documents and even make them fully searchable. Here is how to do it. (more)

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How to Migrate from DEVONthink 2 to 4

June 2, 2026

A robot carrying files from an old and dusty filing cabinet to a desk with a MacBook showing the DEVONthink 4 logo.

Very soon, macOS will no longer support Intel Macs. Upgrading hardware is also a good impetus to upgrade DEVONthink. If you’re running the Pro or Pro Office editions of the 2.x line, here is the smoothest migration path to version 4. (more)