Thanks very much again to Paul for this next instalment of his wonderful guest post series.
You can find all of the 'Filohax' posts here.
Just enough space
I've been using Filofax personal format inserts off and on for nearly 40 years and it's only just occurred to me why this format has proliferated for over a century... 'There's just enough space. '
The 6 ringed binder that has gone on to be called 'Personal' or 'Bible' size was always intended to be a portable housing for technical information sheets - for taking 'off site', so portability was essential (the original ring size may have been a slim 1/4 inch, only big enough for slipping into an overall pocket).
(Here a couple of posts by Steve about personal size, in case you'd like more details - https://philofaxy.blogspot.com/2022/06/personal-size.html and https://philofaxy.blogspot.com/2018/01/why-is-personal-size-still-most-popular.html)
The depth
But why the portable size that it is? I think this was dictated by an average handwriting size writing a list that covered 31 days, a day per line. I don't think it's a coincidence that after a space for heading information there are 31 lines...so that covers the depth of the page.
The width
Again, an average hand will be able to write 7 or 8 words on a personal insert line - just enough for a to-do item.
There is a downside to this 'just enough' format - it's not really large enough to write, for instance, a daily journal on one side. However for me, it's a trade off - in the past whenever I've tried journalling in larger format bound journals I've given up before too long as I mainly journal 'on the go' while out and about and these weren't portable enough for me.
However since I started journalling in personal format I've been doing it daily for 3 years - a compromise that works for me, how about you?
I enjoyed reading your post. I like the personal sized filofaxes for their portability but I also like the space in an A5 sized. For journalling I usually use a B6 sized bound book which for. me is that great cimpromise between portability and size,, but I can see the advantages of journalling in a personal sized filofax for on the go.
ReplyDeleteThank you for another intriguing post Paul. It would be interesting to know more about the genesis of the Personal format.
ReplyDeleteI find that, as long as your Personal binder is wide enough, A6 with slightly fewer lines is a more convenient size for journaling without sacrificing portability. Writing text, as opposed to notes, flows more easily for me on A6 than on standard Personal size and it is also readily available commercially or simpler to cut (with less waste) for home production.
A6 agreed - but it sticks out of my beloved personal Filofax!
DeleteOne other thing to bear in mind about the origin of the Personal size is that printing often uses oversize paper, which is then cropped to the 'correct' size. So there may be an oversized paper that would fit a number of Personal pages, allowing for cropping and separation into the smaller pages. Assuming an Engineer's Pocketbook was a normal folded & bound construction, the printed page would be twice the width.
ReplyDeleteAs for the number of lines, I went into that in some detail when recreating all the old Filofax inserts. Most Personal inserts are based on 31 ruled lines. Pocket on 26 ruled lines. There are special cases for some inserts that needed more, or fewer lines. My generation script extracts the line separation from the generated PostScript files, so I can check all inserts are consistent... I am assuming there must have been some 'style guides' for generating inserts originally (and you can see these change over the years); whilst I do mine using PostScript and digital printer, originally, they would have been created by hand, using photolithographic reproduction, or typeset using real metal type blocks, which included line blocks.
I have some custom notepaper from a grocery store my grandad worked in; not only is it individually typeset, with a line drawing of the shop, but the main type is then embossed. It shows real pride, in both the shop, and the printing work.
The hole positions and spacing are also based on 'obvious integer fractions' of imperial units, starting with the basic 6 3/4" height, and 3/4" spacing.
I have recently been measuring some printed circuit boards to make a 3D printed enclosure. A European board has 'obvious' metric dimensions. A US board has 'obvious' imperial dimensions. Once you come up with a measurement system, it determines the sizes of designed & manufactured things (cf the history of nuts & bolts).
Don't you think that as we move further into the 21st Century 'efficiency' (ie maximising profit above all else) is squeezing out that quality that you refer to - pride in the work? We see it when only the rich can afford levels of quality that were once ubiquitous...
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