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I use cheap notebooks

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Re: I use cheap notebooks

#211

Post by criddell »

fencepost wrote: post #203
criddell wrote: post #140

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I also just tried out the new "sidekick notepad" from Cortex. Very expensive (overpriced), but I was happy to support their work. The sidekick notepad is a pretty nice idea, but $32 + $12 shipping is a lot for a 60 page pad. I've been using a Notsu dot-grid landscape notepad (great paper!) but it's 8.5" x 5.5". I just wish it was larger. The Sidekick looks like a pretty nice size... How hard is it to get custom pad…

The minimalismart.com softcovers that GP linked to have a B5 (10x7.6) size as well, including dot grid option.

True, but it isn't landscape and it doesn't look like the pages are designed to tear out cleanly and easily.

Re: I use cheap notebooks

#212

Post by alexpotato »

LaffertyDev wrote: post #78

It took me a while to get over the fear of destroying/using up nice things. Like enjoying a nice bottle of liquor, or using up a very nice notebook. Eventually I came across the idea that things are meant to be used, and now I'm much more relaxed about damaging/using up the things I own. I read once a stellar idea to help get over the fear of starting to draw in a notebook (or an art project, or a new software projec…

I was watching a video on how to split logs using high quality steel wedges and a point they made really struck me:

"Most people think the high quality wedges should be made out of hard, durable steel. That's actually the opposite of what you want. Hard steel wedges 'throw' chips when hit by a hammer.

You want soft steel that deforms since that's safer. If you are wondering 'But doesn't that mean the wedge wears down over time?', yes it does. That's fine b/c wedges are considered consumables."

The idea of an item being high quality AND consumable for safety/design reasons gave me a new appreciation for things like high quality pencils, paper etc:

yes they are high quality and get used up but that's the point

Re: I use cheap notebooks

#213

Post by solarmist »

gowld wrote: post #175
utopcell wrote: post #155

Expensive notebooks have the opposite effect on me. When I pick one up, I appreciate the effort that went into making it and the fact that it was designed counter to a bottom-barrel cheap philosophy. This puts me in a mindset to do higher quality work. Its cost never crosses my mind. Sure, moleskine-like notebooks are more expensive than run-of-the-mill Staples ones, but in absolute values, they don't really cost muc…

That's a problem though, because discouraging low-quality work means discouraging creativity. A notebook is not a publication medium.

Possibly, maybe not, though.

For me, this means slowing down my writing and trying to make it more legible, not editing what I put down. I still write in fragments, manage whitespace poorly, draw terrible diagrams, and repeat myself (sometimes on the same page).

That said, I consciously recognized and appreciate the difference between brainstorming and editing. Sometimes I use my notebook for both, sometimes just for brainstorming, and I'll copy it to Notes or Pages for a sharable version.

Re: I use cheap notebooks

#214

Post by dirtyid »

One of the first things I do on a piece of new hardware is to scratch it somewhere less visible so I can use it knowing it's no longer pristine. Tools are tools.

Re: I use cheap notebooks

#215

Post by vestrigi »

dTal wrote: post #147
nicbou wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Not putting miles on your Ferrari is like not having sex with your girlfriend so she'll be more desirable to her next boyfriend." -Jim Glickenhaus

The flaw in this delightful analogy is that boyfriends don't typically sell their girlfriends to each other.

And that women don't get "used up" because they have sex! Truly delightfully disgusting, that analogy. You'd probably need to own a Ferrari to come up with such nonsense.

Re: I use cheap notebooks

#216

Post by solarmist »

solarmist wrote: post #213
gowld wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a problem though, because discouraging low-quality work means discouraging creativity. A notebook is not a publication medium.

Possibly, maybe not, though. For me, this means slowing down my writing and trying to make it more legible, not editing what I put down. I still write in fragments, manage whitespace poorly, draw terrible diagrams, and repeat myself (sometimes on the same page). That said, I consciously recognized and appreciate the difference between brainstorming and editing. Sometimes I use my notebook for both, sometimes just for…

I do keep around post-it notes and a legal pad for truly insignificant things. Notes about appointments, bills, phone calls, etc that have zero long-term value.

Re: I use cheap notebooks

#217

Post by mrbooth »

And then there is this. $32+ tax $8 + shipping $12 = $52 for us in US. Thanks, I’ll stick to my Cambridge 9x7 spirals. They last me years. No damage yet, except when I spilled a full cup of coffee on one. Cured me of using erasable ink pens.

https://cottonbureau.com/p/XT9MRF/journal/sidekick-notepad#/...

Re: I use cheap notebooks

#218

Post by vuln »

alanfranz wrote: post #209
vuln wrote: post #207

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Doesn't stop the battery from expanding and ruining the keyboard, trackpad, bottom and top case. RIP 2015 MBP - you still had a few years left in ya.

Didn’t you get the battery replaced under Apple program some years ago, I think it was 2019? I got a brand new battery for free.

They replaced it with another defective battery that only lasted ~28 cycles before it expanded. Apple refuses to do anything about it.

Edit: Screenshot I submitted to Apple.

https://ibb.co/jwRN1MH

Re: I use cheap notebooks

#219

Post by fencepost »

runjake wrote: post #181

These days, I just carry around about a dozen index cards clipped together along with a cheapo Pilot G3 gel pen. On my desks (home and work) I have a legal pad that I just leave on the desk, but carry into meetings. Digital notes, and photos of index cards go into the Obsidian app. I absolutely destroy almost every notebook I've tried, including Moleskines and Field Notes. They last a few weeks, top, before the bindi…

The index cards + binder clip got popularized for a little while as the "hipster PDA" - one possibly useful improvement is to buy a cheap plastic pocket folder and cut it into index card sized pieces - then clip those on the outside of your cards to have them not get torn up in a pocket.

Re: I use cheap notebooks

#220

Post by runjake »

fencepost wrote: post #219
runjake wrote: post #181

These days, I just carry around about a dozen index cards clipped together along with a cheapo Pilot G3 gel pen. On my desks (home and work) I have a legal pad that I just leave on the desk, but carry into meetings. Digital notes, and photos of index cards go into the Obsidian app. I absolutely destroy almost every notebook I've tried, including Moleskines and Field Notes. They last a few weeks, top, before the bindi…

The index cards + binder clip got popularized for a little while as the "hipster PDA" - one possibly useful improvement is to buy a cheap plastic pocket folder and cut it into index card sized pieces - then clip those on the outside of your cards to have them not get torn up in a pocket.

  > The index cards + binder clip got popularized for a little while as the "hipster PDA"
Yep, and that's exactly where I got the idea, except I only carry ~6 blank index cards. The cards are usually filed/scanned before they get too worn.
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