Pauline,
I'm using a small spiral academic calendar for a planner. It has pages I don't need, like class schedules & grades. I write "important info" like websites and books and cleaning products on those pages. Although I have plenty of space, I white-out those I find not helpful to keep my pages clear of useless info.

If I want sizes for someone's birthday, I put them on their birthdate. For the wedding shower this month, I put the registry places on the shower date.

I have an old Mary Ellen's Best of Helpful Hints book that I stash hints in or write them. Most of them have been in Heloise or in email hints, but the one I use most is for the icepack. DH had a knee replacement and I was buying crushed ice to make packs. The PT said to combine 1 part rubbing alcohol and 3 parts water (measurements vary) in a baggie (double bag for safety). Stick it in the freezer overnight. It will be mushy. Refreeze as needed. Eventually it will need to be replaced. Works like a charm.

I keep a small notepad in my purse. That's where I write that sort of information. I can clean in out, throw out the pages I don't need, once in a while. Or if proves to be important for long term use, I can re-write in somewhere more relevant.

I am avid reader. I keep a reader's journal. Starting in the front I keep track of what I have read, title, author, a blurb about the book, my response. Starting from the back I write titles and authors I'd like to read in the future. If I'm thinking ahead, I'll grab that on my way to the library or bookstore to search for those books.

I use Flylady's control journal system, so I have a section at the back I will jot things in.

Wantoretire, don't forget that a bag of frozen peas makes a good ice pack. Just remember not to eat them since they are in and out of the freezer so much. Before my mom had her knee replacement, I made her small packs and filled them with long grain white rice. Just keep them in the freezer too. When she needed heated ones, I made a flannel pillowcase for them. A minute in the microwave and you have a great heat pack. You can fill an old sock if you don't want them fancy.

Gloria

Pauline, I am like you and use sticky notes. At one point, I just put them all in a ziploc bag. I had often thought of putting everything into a small notebook (and even tried it) but the notebook is never around when I want to jot something down. And I never get around to rewriting the information.

This is an area I do have to work on. Perhaps my problem was the tiny notebook I tried to use but it was easy to put in my purse.

I'm going to have to search out another notebook or better yet, something I can just stick the sticky notes into.

I also use Flylady's control journal, but I'm also a sticky note fanatic. I should use Marie's idea and stash the bag in the pocket of my control journal!

Sheryl

FlyLady's control journal is one thing that didn't work for me. I made one, it was beautiful, it was very thorough and it weighed about 10 pounds. LOL It was way too big to lug around, and I eventually got fid of it and went with the planner, which tucks nicely in my purse.

I use a PDA for almost everything. For something like a person's size, I put that information with their name/address in the "notes" section. As for books to read, I have a "memo" titled "books". I have also made a spreadsheet for the PDA that I use to capture gift ideas and an inventory of what gifts I have given for a particular year - I was finding myself giving the same gift, or wondering if I had given it.

I put some of that stuff in my address book.

Under the person's name, often, or in the "Notes" pages in the back.

(I tried a PDA, but it was just too slow to enter stuff; I got frustrated. Add to that the problem w/ DH not setting up the backup system, and I lost all my info when the battery died.)

And stuff I know I won't need long, I put on a yellow sticky note, then put THAT note INSIDE my address book, on the front of back cover, or sometimes on the address page for the person.

I like the size of my address book--roughly 4x6. Big enough to hold two sticky notes, but not so huge it can't fit in my purse.

PDA for me, too. The problem I have with sticky notes is finding the one note I need when I want it. The PDA will look for me. :-)

PDA also. Under memos I have a category titled "How to..." that lists tidbits. For example:
How to: Make boiled eggs centered: if you want the yolks exactly in the center, store the carton of eggs on its side overnight before boiling.
How to: Find Flights By Airfares: http://dps1.travelocity.com/dreamMap.ctl?SEQ=111282648288383204062005&LANG=EN
How to: Anagrammatize your name: Anagram-A word or phrase formed by rearranging the letters of another word or phrase.
http://www.wordsmith.org/anagram/index.html

Mustangs, I just added the anagram site to my favorites.

Maybe we should start a thread with all these tidbits of information that we find important enough to write down.

Another vote for the PDA. But---I also carry around a small paper notebook and use lots of sticky notes. It's much quicker to jot down a phone number or a reminder to myself on paper. For things I want to keep, I type them into my organizer software and sync with my PDA. Miscellaneous info usually goes into the memo function.

Julie - I had the same problem at first with FL's control journal. I finally condensed it so it's in a small binder. I knew if it was that heavy I'd never use it!

Sheryl

Sheryl,
I'm glad I'm not the ONLY one who went overboard with the Control Journal! Mine sat on the kitchen counter for a while, then I decided THAT didn't work since I spent more time at work. It was too heavy to carry back and forth, so... I left it at the office for a while, and THAT didn't work since it wasn't at home for my routines and I needed phone numbers out of it, or whatever. Then I tried leaving it in my car for a while so it would be availale at either place... and eventually threw it out. LOL

I love my new planner, probably because it limits me!

I use a PDA. Having so many sticky notes makes a mess. If I use a paper notebook, I have to go back & skim the info to find what I want. I can do a search using the PDA.

I use ACT as a contact manager & enter most everything in there. I have contacts such as Holly's Books or Holly's Household or Pets . . . so info relevant to the contact is entered there.

I too was a sticky note nut but I got fed up with the piles of stickies everywhere (and having to go thru them for the one I wanted) so I have a small notebook by the 'puter and now scribble notes in that if I'm not willing to enter directly. Then later, as I've time, I can jot them in the correct place in ACT and cross them out of the book.

I've often thought of getting a PDA as I could sync it with ACT but haven't gotten there yet. Think I'd still end up doing scribble notes.

I have a small notebook by the 'puter and now scribble notes in that if I'm not willing to enter directly.

That's how I keep my ongoing "to do" list at work. I don't transfer it anywhere; I just use it as is (unless I've written phone numbers in it just for now, or something).

I keep those bits of information nn my sticky note MAC desk top. For instance: "to vacuum around keyboard, disconnect 1/2 hour before and leave it unconnected 1/2 afterward". Things that are not needed anymore ("Look for refund check to make sure it comes"), I just erase. All of which sounds organized but (and this is a small insight for me as obvious as it sounds) it is not the bits of infomation that bedevil me, it is the hard copy of what ever passes through my hands. Piles, too many piles.

it is not the bits of infomation that bedevil me, it is the hard copy of what ever passes through my hands. Piles, too many piles.

The way I battle that demon is to simply refuse to accept paper whenever possible. At work, I don't take a printed copy of the meeting agenda that I already have on my PDA (and which I will annotate with meeting notes rather than write them down and have to type them later). I ask people to send me information or documents via email or our instant-message client. I copy and paste a lot! Business cards that I know I'll want to keep are entered into the PDA Contacts list and the card goes bye-bye. If I have an electronic copy of something, I toss the paper copy. I do back up my computer hard disk and PDA frequently.

Outside of work, it's a little tougher. I periodically sweep through the file cabinet to get rid of owner's manuals to items I no longer own and old insurance receipts, really old tax returns, etc. I don't buy cookbooks anymore since it's easier for me to find recipes on the Internet. If I see something in a newspaper or magazine which interests me, I tear it out and put it in one special pile which is then transcribed into the PDA or my computer the next time I open either one. Magazines and newspapers get tossed when the next edition comes in. I've also throttled the information firehose by not picking up brochures for goods or services in which I'm only a little interested. Instead, I ask if they have a Web site or email -- by the time I'm truly interested (if I ever am), I'm sure things will have changed at least some; why have something outdated on hand? I used to be really bad at picking up just about any free periodical in those racks at the bookstore; I just can't clutter my life with them anymore for the few interesting tidbits I'll pull out of them. It's a matter of being conscious about what paper you accept.

Hope that helps....

Steve -- you know, I think you are right. I don't use a PDA because my schedule is not that complicated at the moment, but 60% of what I can eyeball right now on my desk probably is on-line. However, if I find out that all this stuff is available elsewhere, then I will have to make so many new stickies to remind me to do the stuff that no longer has a physical presence that I might find myself in desktop hell. But it is worth a try. Sometimes I find a hard copy better / easier, even though when I actually make use of it, I do it on my computer. Maybe this is a habit I should break. Thanks.

if I find out that all this stuff is available elsewhere, then I will have to make so many new stickies to remind me to do the stuff that no longer has a physical presence that I might find myself in desktop hell.

How about creating special email folders and a bookmarks/favorites folder for these? Call it "To Do" or "Action" or such and keep the info there.

Maybe, despite an uncomplicated schedule, you really could use a PDA. They all offer to do lists and space for memos/lists. So while most people use the calendar and not much else, you'll be the reverse. It's an idea....

Steve, you called my bluff. No PDA is about how I can't do another learning curve right now. My new TIVO has me in tears. And until I figure out how to use my new space, turn on the new switches correctly, and turn down the music when I want, I'm not adding one more device to my life. Maybe next year.

elizabeth, it's at least something to keep in the back of your mind. I can relate to the "learning curve"; in the past week I bought a new digital camera, replaced the wireless network in my house (well, to be accurate, tried to; it's not working the way I want it to yet), and have been reviewing software to create Web sites. Right now I just want to shoe horses for a living.... :-)

This is how I am managing my Odds and Ends Information.

I'm also a PDA user. It is like having a spare brain, storing all sorts of information, organized, random, or otherwise. The best part is the "search feature".

I find the Palm so handy to weed through and edit as I'm waiting for one of my kids to finish a piano lesson or soccer practice -- or even while waiting in line at the grocery store.

At times, I find a pen and paper more handy; these notes eventually get transcribed into the Palm as needed.

I also use a digital voice recorder, kept on the visor in the car (where lots of random thoughts pop into my head while driving)and enter those thoughts into the Palm in needed...again -- putting "wait time" to good use. It is as slim as a credit card.And FYI, many cell phones feature voice recorders. Check, yours just might!

Ideally I would love a Palm that had a voice recorder that would then transcribe itself!

Another PDA user here. I have, for example, a memo listing the refill part number for everything in the house I refill (printer ink, the water purifier in the refrigerator, etc.), books I want to read and movies I want to see, gift suggestions and people's sizes (I write them down throughout the year so I have ideas when it's time to buy), and all sorts of other things. I used to use sticky notes, but gave all my stash away when I got the PDA specifically so I wouldn't use them again.

Paper, I deal with like Steve. I'm always asking people if they have a website or if whatever they're trying to give me is available digitally. When I buy a new item with a manual, I immediately go to the website, download the manual and save it on my computer (and sometimes on my PDA as well) and get rid of the paper manual. I use my PDA voice recorder to make notes of things I want to remember when I'm in the car and can't write.

For anyone who's never tried a PDA, I can't recommend it strongly enough. There isn't much of a learning curve for the things you'll use most often, like contacts, calendar, notes and tasks. Within an hour or so, I was able to use all these things perfectly well. Tally Sue correctly notes that it's a bit slower to enter things into a PDA than to write them on paper, but I think the convenience of having *everything* in one place and not having to keep all the paper around more than makes up for it.

Interesting. I work at home (if I can possibly manage it with a good consulting job) . Isn't a PDA more useful if you are on the go and about town. I can do everything on my desktop that I could do on a PDA.

And age may matter for the learning curve. The audio installer came for the 14th time today (maybe not but it seems that way). He is young and everytime he makes a change to the old system when a new part comes in, I have to relearn a new procedure. If I stamp my feet and say NO -- that is not how it was last week, he simplifies it. But he forgets to tell me things that are probably intuitive to the young.

My DD taught us TIVO and managed to leave out several important steps. She just assumed we'd know that you have to push the button four times to get the fast forward really fast. How did you know that I ask? I just did. No PDA for me.

Isn't a PDA more useful if you are on the go and about town. I can do everything on my desktop that I could do on a PDA.

The portability of PDAs is one of their big assets. So are the abilities to search and to sound an alarm at a specified time, and the fact that PDA information can be backed up on your computer easily so that even if you lose the PDA, you don't lose the information (try that with a three-pound Dayrunner or Franklin planner). But the key, in my mind, is that it provides a focal point for your information.

If you can do everything on your computer that you would do with a PDA, that's fine. The key is having one place (Getting Things Done calls it a "trusted system") where you know you will have your appointments and to-dos listed, as well as access to the information you need to accomplish those things. It doesn't have to hold all that info, just point you to it. If you can do that with a PC, great. But you have to maintain it or you don't have much of anything.