…yet I carry a reporter’s notebook. This is all 43 folders fault to be quite honest (well, I’ve had a larger moleskin before, but I didn’t use it it quite the same manner).
It’s sort of like my iPod’s. I’ve had my 3G iPod for a good while, but since bought a Shuffle at E3, I almost haven’t used the 3G iPod!
Portability is king!
When I step out the door in the mornings, I have my Z600, 5 keys in a keyring, a stealthblack creditcard holder (cash is so last year), my Shuffle (around my neck, iPod and wires under my t-shirt) and my reporter’s notebook and a pencil. All on me. No bags.
And while my keys annoy me because of their annoying shapes and my Z600 is just a tad too big for its own good, I can nonetheless move around unencumbered with all of these things and technology at my disposal at any given time.
Back to the notebook. I actually use it! That’s right, I didn’t think anyone actually carried these things around and used them! But I’ve come to rely a great deal on writing down ideas, keywords and making sketches of whatever I come up with in the spur of the moment.
And I think, because I now always have this option, I’m more likely to follow through on whatever thoughts I have during the day. In fact, many a K2 idea came to be in my little notebook.
It took a dozen or so pages before I had taught myself what I should and shouldn’t write down. Also it takes just a little time to figure out that I had to use a pencil and not a pen, and that entirely temporary notes don’t belong in there, only things with a bit more longevity.
I can’t pinpoint it. But for some reason I can’t bring myself to write in snippets and keywords on the computer as easily as I can in my notebook. On the computer it’s as if I have to fill out words to sentences, sentences to paragraphs and so on.
I found something analog that works better! So what if it’s tragically hip…
Its because you feel like you have an audience to impress. With a notebook, you only have yourself.
On a side note, in my Firefox 1.0.4, I notice it has abug that on your site when I hover over the tabs it creates a 1px black left border. Sometimes going repeatedly over the tabs will make some diasappear but sometimes reappear. Anyone have any idea what that might stem from?
“Portability is king!”
Hehe, I agree.
I have been using an A6 Moleskine sketchbook (or a Daler-Rowney A6 sketchbook) for notes and sketches since 1995. I am reasonably tidy, and tend to write small and pack the pages, so I’m only now about to finish the 10th book. What’s more, I tend to put very temporary notes in there, like shopping lists; I also stick events tickets in there and other scraps that I feel I should keep — I use the Moleskine for everything, including a place to store bits and pieces of paper that would otherwise be floating free who knows where. That brings me a great joy when I occasionally open up my sketchbooks from years ago and see what I was up to at the time.
Your milage may vary.
Kyle, can you supply me with a screenshot?
Here, here. I’ve got dozens of (slightly larger) notebooks going back five years. I use them for everything: client meetings, brainstorming, midnight ideas. Surprsingly, despite their utter lack of organization, it never takes any longer to flip around and find info in them than it does to search a hard drive.
Portability is king indeed. A friend is asking what digi cam to buy: a pseudo-SLR or a teeny compact. Of course your intended use is important, but having a camera in your pocket (or a smaller laptop hanging from your shoulder, for example) often allows you to use it more often. It’s about making thngs as easy and simple to use as possible.
And sorry, but Moleskin is almost too hip…you can get 10 regular notebooks from the drug store for what one Moleskin costs.
Yeah analog is really great. It reminds me of my dad. He went to go work at a new company (this was a few years ago) and everyone used Outlook to do everything. So even though he loved the program himself he had to break his company of this nasty habbit. They wouldnt go to meetings and such becuase they didn’t recieve it in outlook.
And yeah its cool, so keep on toting that notebook. I bring a pen everywhere and generally
(like my dad, hehe) find napkins and write on em.
P.S. Love your site, its been a little bit of over-inspiration for me over at Whale Salad. Love the content too, keep it up! Say hi to Freya for me.
Awsome, I have a little A5 Black n White notebook which I take everywhere.
It occurred to me that the best ideas always happen at the most inconvenient times, when there’s no means to record them. Then one day I had the idea to buy a notebook (but at the time I didn’t have anywhere to write it down), I must have thought about getting one about 5 or 6 times before I actually remembered to buy one when I was down the shops.
Once I finally broke free of my captive Catch 22, I got one and we’re very happy together.
I feel stupid asking this, but you mention something of your stealthblack credit card holder – is that just a fun title for a wallet, or is it some specific product?
It’s actually a creditcard holder, for swanky exec types, but it takes standard credits cards like it was made for it. :D
I’d be seriously interested in something like that, but I can’t find a website for the life of me. You wouldn’t happen to have a link or something, would you? =) All I can find is information about the CamelBak© Stealth Black or IBM monitors.
Some of the biggest artists, Michelangelo among them always carried a notebook to sketch things down. 500 years later, we still use the same tool. :)
Try the “Card Holder with Bullet Pen” here:
http://www.spacepen.com/usa/catalog/1005/index.htm
It’s a leather card case with an attached Fisher Space pen (included!). This makes for a GREAT way to take notes on the go.
The problem is, those paper pages don’t transfer well. You gotta scan them if you have a really great sketch. For me, I’m carrying my color screen, Palm Tungsten E around. Pull out the digital pen and doodle if I wanna freehand something in. Then I sync it to my Mac and I’m set. I have a silver carrying case so it doesn’t get busted up. It’s a bit cumbersome but having my calendar, my sketches, my contacts, and notes…all in my palm? And already in digital format? Can’t be that.
:)
You’ll probably be able to abandon your clunky “analog” keys for biometric house and car locks within the next few years or so, don’t you think?
Michael,
Interesting that you don’t carry a book. I always carry at least three books, which is why I need to carry a light bag. Usually the first one is an easy novel for the mornings, then a challenging (force you to think) novel for the evenings when I am more awake, and the last books purpose is to teach me a new skill which I read when sick of the novels. I carry a pencil to scribble in the books margins, I “dog ear” interesting pages and generally abuse my books. I also carry my camera at all times, because you never know when you will be inspired.
“Looks like we got ourselves a reader” – Bill Hicks
I’m in a situation where I don’t need to transfer more than I can do by hand. And in doing it by hand I find I remember my notes much better. YMMV.
I hope so.
I have 10 minutes from I walk out the door till I’m in my seat at work, all on bike. And once I’m here I don’t read. Once I’m done I go home and do K2 and what not. So I never have use for carrying a book around.
I do have audiobooks on my iPod(s) though :)
I would carry my camera if it was just a tiny bit smaller, but unfortunately it’s slightly too heavy to comfortably carry.
I loved my Z600, until it was stolen sigh I now have a slightly larger S700i, which is great. I can put up with slightly larger size for the excellent quality of the phone.
One day I shall have an iPod and be like all the other cool kids :(
I wish they would ditch the awful phone camera’s and instead just deliver a lean mean bluetooth enabled phone instead.
Well I find almost no real use for Bluetooth other than files, and those include the photos ;)
the S700 is also as good as many regular digi-cams — as it doesn’t use a CMOS chip, it uses a CCD. So crappy is a little unfair in this particular case.
What would you use bluetooth for? because the uses here are.. well… none. Unless you want to use it as a modem…
I sync my phone using bluetooth. That way I don’t have to worry about anything but one addressbook on my Mac mini, everything else is always up to date.
“handbag”
‘nuff said.
I’ve tried carrying a small notepad around with me, but the pen/pencil is always a stumbling block. Do you have a good, small solution? Anyone have experience with the bullet pens?
I use a Pilot Shaker. It can fit into the elastic of the notebook, and I have large pockets on the side of my legs where the notebook can fit into snuggly.
“I found something analog that works better!”
Absolutely. I love my little moleskin notebook. This might sound cliché, but I think the experience of sketching/writing things down on a tangible piece of paper is infinitely more spontaneous and personal than doing the same on any digital medium.
Michael, here it is:
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a193/irishjayhawk/binarybonsaiglitch.gif
Being a sometimes reporter, and having had several Moleskine reporter’s notebook, I must say I prefer the 4-for-a-dollar variety or a good old Steno pad. Don’t get me wrong, I like the Moleskine, but at almost $10 a piece, I go through them way too fast. But then I often take copious notes written in a shorthand that even I sometimes can’t read an hour later. But for recording simple on-the-street thoughts in an oh-so-trendy way, there’s probably nothing better.
Isn’t it strange that we tried to kill pen and paper with pixel and stylus? I personally always hated PDAs. A notebook is so much more reliable and far less complicated.