Get Everything Done

In Do It Tomorrow Mark recommends "lever arch files" for filing. I don't think this term is used in the U.S. but the product should be available there.

Any ideas?

Thank you Mark,

I look forward to streamlining my filing system.

It's kind of funny to see this going in the other direction for a while - usually on the web you see Europeans trying to get their hands on US-style manila folders to get away from lever arch files because David Allen told them so. ;-)

I recently decided to do all my filing digitally by scanning all documents with my scansnap document scanner and archiving the originals simply by date. But I guess that's not for everyone.

What is the superior filing system- "Mark Forster lever arch files" or "David Allen US-style manila folders"? I am using the manila folders and do not want to switch over unless there is a clear advantage.

Regarding digital scanning- I am surprised more people haven't thought about taking their notes using a digital notepad such as Acecad Digimemo by Solidtek. That way all handwritten notes can go directly onto your computer.

However, I am not thrilled with Acecad Digimemo by Solidtek because it uses wireless technology and I am concerned about the potential health hazards of wireless technology.

Does anyone know of a comparable device that does NOT use wireless technology?

Regarding scanning- my scanner is very slow. Can anyone recommend a "high-speed" and efficient scanner?

I think there is nothing wrong with the US-style 3 hole system, if a good punch is available. Only the occasional adding of small sheets is a little more difficult. Technically, I expect the punch holes to be larger than with a 2 hole system, but I was never able to check if this is true.

As Andreas says, the only true orthodoxy is manilla folders :) That's why I was not saved.

Mark T, I Missed the mail

For scanning Andreas mentions the Fujitsu ScanSnap Scanners (25ppm), if you can pay it.

For a digital pen IRISnotes can also work in wireless mode. But overall I think that Acecad Digimemo has a lower level of energy than IRISnotes in continuous mode

The portable version of the Fujitsu ScanSnap is the S300 and S300M (for the Mac). Tiny and super fast--the best scanner I've ever used. I have one at school/my studio and one at home and got rid of tons of paper files by digitizing anything worth looking at again. I use Yep, which I think is Mac only, to organize my pdfs.

Now, my paper files are mostly "temporary" project files and when the project's done, they get stripped and recycled. I swear by clear plastic document files (open on two sides) with custom color-coded cover sheets.

Circa rings + ScanSnap scanner + Brother labeler = filing and organizational Nirvana.

Thanks for your suggestion on the portable scanner.

Please provide me with a link that shows where I can purchase "clear plastic document files (open on two sides) with custom color-coded cover sheets."

Photos would be useful also.

Here's a link to the clear plastic folders (open on two sides):

http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/741341/Office-Depot-Brand-Poly-Project-Files/

I have been using them for a couple months now and they really do make a difference. Much easier to sort and handle than manilla folders, for me anyway. I am able to retain a much clearer picture of my projects (literally!).

Magazine holders work well with these, to group related folders / projects as needed.

Hi Liz I. or anyone else who knows,

What are the advantages of "Circa rings" and where do you recommend I get them?

http://www.levenger.com/POPUPS/HowTo.asp?PageID=4619&cm_re=1.0-_-Articles-_-See%20Circa%20in%20Action

http://www.levenger.com/POPUPS/HowTo.asp?PageID=4479&cm_re=1.0-_-Articles-_-How%20to%20Circa

http://www.levenger.com/POPUPS/HowTo.asp?PageID=7109&cm_re=1.0-_-Articles-_-Replacing%20Your%20Circa%20Notebook%20Cover%20-%20Video%20for%20Windows

http://www.levenger.com/PAGETEMPLATES/PRODUCT/Product.asp?Params=Category=326-846|Level=2-3|pageid=5961

Thanks Mike. Now I can make and informed decision about my use of Circa rings.

For those who are scanning everything in that sounds great but how are you then organizing it on the computer and how do you back up. I would be afraid of a hard drive crash.

Larry G:

I have my ScanSnap S300 setup so that when I press its button, it scans the papers in the tray, saves them as PDF in a directory on my harddrive *and* adds them to my Evernote account. Evernote does excellent text recognition (if you have a premium account, 45$ per year), so I can just search for anything and find the corresponding pdf. So I have my documents searchable in Evernote, backed up on a server and the original scan on a local harddrive.

I file all papers except stuff I need frequently in folders labeled "year-month", for example "2009-12". If I need a receipt or a bill, I search it in Evernote, look at the date and know in which folder its in. Once a year I archive the folders from the year before last into archive boxes. Since those are labeled "year-month -- year-month" I can still find stuff fast if I need a older document.

That system might not be perfect, but it moves very smooth for me, much better than my old alphanumerical sorted category system.

How many scans per minute can you do with the ScanSnap S300?
Can you scan pages from a book with this scanner? I have a traditional flat bed scanner. It is very slow but gets the job done. Does the ScanSnap S300 replace it completely?

The speed varies from 8 pages per minute to 0.5 pages per minute , depending on quality settings and color mode (you can scan both sides of a paper at once, so you can double these numbers in that case). I only scan photographs in high quality and resolution, normal documents go through really quick.

The ScanSnap S300 is a small, portable scanner, it's designed for holding 10 sheets at once - though you can refill while it's scanning and it will all go into the same pdf. If you need more speed and volume, you'll have to pay up for a S500 which holds 50 sheets and scans max. 20 sheets/40 pages per minute.

All sheet-fed scanners can of course not scan books, so you'll still need a flatbed if you do that a lot. I use my scansnap to scan photographs, but a flatbed would probably get better results. But if you need a scanner for your documents, the speed improvement is tremendous. Just press a button an your multi-page, two-sided contract becomes a single, auto-cropped, auto-rotated, searchable PDF. If I had to scan my documents with a flatbed, I wouldn't do it at all.