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27 January 2015

Free For All Tuesday No. 208

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11 comments:

  1. Morag27 January, 2015 02:41

    I know this question isn't strictly Filofax related but I'm hoping it will be allowed? I use a Filofax for everything and kept a separate one for work, however, I recently had a huge report to email which involved me looking back over certain events for the last 3 years and noting them all in the report which made me realise that it might have been easier if I had kept an electronic diary instead then I could have just cut and pasted all the info.
    Has anyone any experience of using one? Is there one you can recommend?
    Thank you

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    1. Alan Marshall27 January, 2015 09:13

      I plan to look for software that would integrate with my Filofax, so I am interested in this question too.

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    2. Josh LaPorte27 January, 2015 11:55

      I spent most of this past weekend copying my planning into my work Outlook calendar, realizing that it has several benefits and I find myself having to use it a lot at work anyway so why not consolidate everything there? Plus, as you found, compiling info from your system is somewhat easier when it is all in an electronic format; cut and paste away! But after getting it all set up I found myself not very happy with the result. It was just not as pleasing to use and I did not have the sense of security I get from my personal filofax which is really "command central" for my life and has basically everything I need in one place and is as familiar to me as the back of my own hand.

      I'm going to continue to work with Outlook in tandem with my filofax to see if it may become more natural and "trusted" as I use it more, perhaps down the road allowing me to use a paper planner just as a "daybook" to list my tasks and notes for the day but not really with any significant planning. It makes me sad to consider moving away from the filofax but it is inconvenient to need to duplicate my schedule in paper and on Outlook and then continually keep the two synchronized as things change through the week/month/year.

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    3. Morag27 January, 2015 13:23

      Thanks, Josh. I know exactly what you mean about that feeling with your paper planner but, as I said, it would make it easier for work things. I still intend to use my Filofax for personal appointments and everything else in my life but I really need to consider the electronic route for work. I work from home and generally correspond by email about work related things. I will look into Outlook - can you make lengthy notes on the daily parts? Is it searchable? Thanks

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    4. Stacey L27 January, 2015 18:53

      Evernote! The Evernote premium account has the ability to take photos of handwritten notes, etc., scan them, and use character recognition to help you file things into categories, set up reminders, and even search within a handwritten document for a specific word or phrase. I keep dot-grid paper from Rhodia in my filofax and use that to take notes on- apparently the dot-grid helps the program with character recognition. That way I have my handwritten notes and an electronic searchable file. Also, Evernote has a feature where you can assign a category to a color of post-it note- blue, green, pink, and yellow, I think, and then snap a photo of the post-it, and it will automatically categorize your note by type. And business card scanning... can you tell I'm an Evernote fan?!

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    5. Josh LaPorte27 January, 2015 19:02

      You can enter notes appended to scheduled entries, not sure if there is a way to take notes directly on the calendar. The whole thing is searchable but some of the searching behaviors are annoying to me (it defaults to search the folder you are looking at, doesn't seem to allow you to search across a few, just one or all, but maybe I just have not played with it enough to figure out all the features). I have Outlook provided at work, if I did not have that I would probably experiment with Google Calendar

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  2. Amanda Fleet27 January, 2015 06:10

    Would other people be interested in a compact-personal size Van der Spek binder? I emailed Petra about whether it would be possible to get a custom-made one with 20mm (approx) rings and she said she needs to order the rings in sets of 1000 (so can't make the binder for me).
    I just wondered if I am being unique in finding 13 or 15mm rings too small and 25mm a bit too big, or if there would be more people interested in a compact (rather than the 13mm slimline)? Admittedly, I doubt that 1000 people might be interested though...

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    1. Alan Marshall27 January, 2015 09:16

      There is a ring set seller on eBay that often has compact sized. What about buying a set of rings and asking Petra to use them?

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    2. Amanda Fleet27 January, 2015 10:21

      Thanks! I'll ask her and see.

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    3. WellPlannedLife27 January, 2015 16:19

      I would be! I desperately want to order a VDS but I'm conflicted because I switch between my FF compacts (15 mm) and am so afraid the VDS compacts (13 mm) would be too small. While I manage to get everything I need into the 15 mm, I often wish there was something just a hair bigger. Currently I'm thinking of going with the VDS persnal equivelent but am worried that I won't use it that much. Since I'm ordering from the US and will essentially pay a lot more for a VDS than I'm used to paying for a planner, I want to make sure it would be worth my while.

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  3. Unknown28 January, 2015 16:23

    I'm waiting for my 13mm compact to arrive from vds. I'm hoping my dodopad will fit in it. The paper is rather thick.
    I've heard that the vds 13mm fits as much as ff 15mm but I can't understand why that would be.

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