Who's using a PDA and Day Planner? Best tips/techniques?

  • Thread starter Thread starter mike zimmer
  • Start date Start date
heh, I use my PDA for audio alarm reminders, and, a quick mobile notepad when i have to leave my desk for short seconds to visit another desk in the office. I use my paper planner (Franklin-Covey binder, threw out Mr Covey and put in my own modified versions of the DIY planner templates), anyway, use my paper planner for every thing else, project management, tasks, calendaring(yes, i actually take the time to copy my calendar out of outlook and onto my own paper planner, can't take outlook with you everywhere, and pda batteries go dead at the most in-opportune times. Mostly, i just 'think better' on paper, since i don't have to spend time being frustrated about writing on a 2.5x3in screen. I suspect i'll move more functionality to electronic formats when i afford myself a larger writing screen(read, tablet pc). so, for the most part, my pda is a paperweight with a meeting alarm =)
 
I use a Palm IIIc which, for me, is an upgrade from the Palm M-100. I sync it with the Palm software from the box. This is my back up. Projects are planned in a spiral notebook. That's it. I have no problems.
Mike
 
Funny you should bring this up. Work will not allow me to add software to my BlackBerry, so I am seriously contemplating going back to the hybrid approach. The vanilla BB apps just don't seem like enough for me, and I feel better writing some stuff down for later processing. Looking at going back to my Franklin/ Covey binder and adding a way to keep my BB with it too.
 
I don't use a paper planner, but I do use paper for capture most of the time, processing those inputs into Outlook or my Treo. In transit, I use a notetaker wallet; at the desktop, a junior legal pad. I've been doing some version of this hybrid setup for years, and I'm starting to experiment with abandoning paper capture altogether. But the hybrid setup has a few advantages:

  1. It maintains a hard edge between collection and processing. Any paper outstanding immediately signals that further processing needs to be done. When there's no paper left, there's clearly nothing else to process.
  2. Paper allows faster speed of entry, but digital organizers allow faster speed of retrieval, and almost all items need to be reviewed more times than they're entered. I don't have to spend extra time leafing to a particular entry. Two to four keystrokes will get me to any list, contact, or appointment in the system.
  3. I can paste or add action support material directly into the notes field of a task or calendar entry: addresses, confirmation numbers, checklists, etc. I almost never have to carry around an action support folder
Lately I've been playing with using the threaded SMS feature on my Treo to serve as a digital inbox, texting reminders to myself, then processing them into calendar or list manager entries once I sit down with either the Redfly terminal or Outlook on the desktop. Collecting this way works reasonably well, but my habit of writing things down on paper is so ingrained that I don't know if I'll ever fully switch over to thumb typing everything. But it's faster than pulling out the notetaker wallet and pen.
 
There is a palpable cognitive difference in taking notes on paper that digital input cannot replace.

I would put my digital tools up against anyone's (even people in Poland), but taking notes on paper is something I will not give up, and therefore I have a hybrid system.

The paper side is mostly Levenger, along with the Davidco wallet.

rdgeorge
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top