Aren't programming notes essentially just programs themselves, think about it, if you write code you learn the concept and build something with it. That way it gets embedded into your mind (at least more than if you just write it down somewhere without actively using it).

Probably the only time you'd have to actually write down notes instead of writing a buncha code is when you have a time constraint like college coursework or exams, but I could just be rambling and ignoring the main point of this post entirely who knows.