Pile of Index Cards

Desmond Morris, an author of “Naked Ape”, point out in his book “The Nature of Happiness (2004)” that even human life is modernized, our primitive instinct as a hunter won’t disappear.

In this age, however, it is difficult to satisfy this instinct in a way actually hunt or kill animals. As a substitute, our brain feel similar satisfaction by hunt money, hunt book, do sports, or collect toys.

I have been thinking why analog media is so comfort for me, and not digital media. For me it is difficult to feel this kind of satisfaction on digital media. If I turn a computer off, shuuun, files on a monitor is disappear. All files are virtual. So I print almost all files I wrote on the computer, and then filed.

Why I return to analog media. Perhaps, it can be explained by the primitive instinct as a hunter. I like to collect my thought with cards. As I write cards, I see how many I wrote. It has certain thickness. I like to count them I write at the end of work. I like to see a dock full of cards I wrote.

I think paper won’t disappear even our life is more digitalized or virtualized. Or we already see it after heavy digital/virtual experience in this age.

Last week end, I picked up all index cards related to PoIC development from the dock@home. These selected cards are used for writing the PoIC manual v. 2.0. Watanabe Shoichi called this kind of selected cards as Task Force.

First, I made dividers correspond to the sections in the manual. Then I review all index cards in the dock@home, and put related cards into appropriate section.

I had use this card system to capture all ideas about this system itself. One year accumulation in chronological order, and 1.5 hours for classification. There are 700 cards about the PoIC. It is 1/3 of cards in the dock@home.

When I finish writing this manual, the Task Force could be keep out from the main chronological order because they finish their primal work. A remnant is keep in the main chronological order for future use.

This kind of reproduction seems the best way to reduce a number of cards in the dock. Same time, an entropy (randomness of information) of the system is reduced. Perhaps, it looks like a “meiosis” in biology.

The Kokuyo’s fieldnote is one of key tool in the PoIC system.

At the beginning of the service, I had thought I treat only index card and dock. With requests from readers, I include the fieldnote to the service.

In the PoIC manual, I wrote the Moleskine is too expensive to use as idea capturer. We tend to hesitate to take quick notes on the Moleskine. On the other hand, the hipsterPDA is consisted by index cards, but it is too disippative. In addition, as jon mention, a clip-holded hPDA makes us dis-inclined to check through our actions.

The Fieldnote seems good intermediate between the Moleskine and the hPDA. According to the reports from customers, they satisfy the Fieldnote as alternative for the Moleskine/hPDA, and the quality of the paper is good. I received some specification request from new customer.

Fieldnote Specification :
- 91 mm x 160 mm x 8 mm size (just fit to a pocket)
- 80 g weight
- 80 pages
- 3 mm quadrille grid (see close up)
- light-blue grid color
- hard cover

For reference, I usually consume a fieldnote per month. You can find some more pictures of the Fieldnote at my flickr photo set “Fieldnote as Virtual Memory“.

Ref. : @blog v1.5, Watanabe’s episode about Indexcard

I introduced this Shoichi Watanabe’s episode in brief before. This is little bit more detail to be merged into wiki.

While I stayed in Germany as student, I learned one can do a great work only with small, silent room and cards, from Professor Schneider.

At the beginning of the stay, Professor Schneider handed me a piece of card. Titles of papers are typed on the card. These papers are a start point of my study in Germany. He said “If you read these papers, you will see what you should read next.”

I read these papers, but I couldn’t find focus of my study. One day, he invited me to dinner, and asked me about a progress. I honesty answered my study didn’t go well, although my time is limited in Germany.

Then he gave me a suggestion (Darf ich Ihnen einen Vorschlag machen?). He recommended a card system for me. As first step, he suggested to get a card box (Kartei Kasten). And I bought wooden card box immediately. I bought a large thick paper together : I made card by myself.

I copied a whole contents of a book written by a grammarian, item by item to the cards, day to night, every day. In addition, I took memo of related stuff, discovery, everything on the cards.

(Watanabe, Shoichi, Chiteki Seikatsu no Houhou (A way to intellectual life), 1976, p.p. 127-130)

This book was written in 1976, and he reminded when he was student. So this story is about more than 50 years ago. Watanabe’s box here is smaller than the Dock we call. Later he call the box as “Task Force” and he said still use it. Watanabe’s card is larger than 5×3. His card is approximately B6 size.

Ref. : @blog, Output without input is impossible

I’ve been reading Shoichi Watanabe’s “Chiteki Seikatu no Houhou (A way of intellectual life)” since last monday. This book is one of a reference of the PoIC manual, and a bible for me. This morning, I found a hint about taking Reference card in this book unexpectedly.

In topic “Problem of card system” (p.p. 74-75),

Taking card is harmful for reading book, because it interrupt reading. The best way to avoid this problem is to buy a book. Then you can put line where you like, put circle where your heart moves. It is possible because it is your own book. … This hack is for a general book. This is not true when reading technical book. (Translation by Hawk)

For general book, such as hobby, enlightenments, whatever, we should be more relaxed. Our enjoyment must not be spoiled by taking card. But for technical book we must not hesitate to take Reference cards.

So it is natural that a characteristics (or distribution of cards) is different between Dock @home and @office.

# I didn’t expect the solution is in this book at all. This kind of miracle sometimes happen for “analog” book. :)

Ref. : @ blog v. 1.5, Statistics and Analysis

Look close at my Dock@home and tag of the cards in detail. You find Record and Discovery cards are dominant. It means I had used the PoIC system mainly as record and idea capture. The GTD card is not so many because most of time a GTD stuff is processed on the Fieldnote.

So a statistics that I made at the end of last year reflects mainly a number of Record and Discovery Card. It shows huge oscillation, from 100 at minimum to 400 at maximum.

Weissmanrichard, a flickr user, give me an interesting comment about the statistics. He points out Record, GTD, and Discovery are an output (blue line in the picture), and Reference is an input (red line in the picture). I had never imagine such view points before.

What I can deduce from them is, if I concentrate only to output, it oscillates like a wave. Increase, soon it stops, then starts decrease. In other words, a slump happen anyhow. Output without input is limited, or more strongly impossible. In my case a input mainly come from reading. The Reference Card is much more important in the system than I thought before. I had a trick not to take note of the book. I need to rethink how to take the Reference cards better.

The previous Blog based manual writing is at the limit. Parallel to the new WordPress Blog, I started a small project that editing the manual using Wiki system : PoIC v. 2.0. The applied Wiki here is MediaWiki that is same one with Wikipedia. It is easy to use, and powerful tool for editing. A big reason to move new .org server is to use newest version of the MediaWiki.

I finished installation and set up of the Wiki, and pour v. 1.5 on the database. It is still (or always?) under development, but ready to use. As a nature of Wiki system, anybody can join for the editing.

- Drop in, and Read articles
- Leave comments or join to discussion on the Forum
- Edit articles

I accept editing articles until it is productive and constructive. As a first step, you can create your own account and login. If you are not familier with Wiki system, start from Help page that I collect during basic setting. Wiki is not difficult.

I’m happy if I could collaborate with you :)

If I settle the icPod just in front of the Dock, the meaning of “Pod” is obvious.

The dock is used as card storage, and basically stable. On the other hand, the icPod (known as KM2P) holds cards up to a week’s, and mobile. The relationship looks like space ship and space plane in Sci-Fi. After check (review) process, the Pod leaves the Dock, and fly into a space again. :)

In the previous KM2P, it is difficult to imagine it’s time sequence since cards and week dividers are difficult to see. Now, with the new icPod, a temporal sequence of now-to-past correspods to a spacial sequence of here-to-there. It’s intuitive. Whole system is united.

This customize bring me two mental effects. One is that it is fun to see cards accumulate in the icPod as I write cards through week. This might be somewhat childish, but important for me. Second is the connecting dock makes clear a meaning of week review process : Connect, and send the cards to the Dock, empty icPod, and leave again. This is anothor fun stuff. :)

I have used Kaizo (= customized) Moleskine Memo Pockets (KM2P) as index cards folder. A problem is the cards inside pocket is hidden by a wall of pockets. For a while I have used it just as a shuttle between office and home.

I found a good solution for the KM2P. I have been using a card tray as card stand because I can see what I wrote. Then what about I cut the pockets of the KM2P? I have used KM2P more than half year. Nothing to hesitate for futher customization.

So I start Kaizo. The procedure is,

1. Fold all accordions in reverse, then
2. Cut away half length of the pockets.

That’s all. The first procedure is already done in ver. 1. So this time, only second is needed.

It’s so simple. But it makes huge effect because a frequency of access depend on a visibility. I have used through this week, and it is quite useful. The “Next Action” is front end of the Pockets. So I clearly see what I have to do. In addition, I found if I settle it just in front of the Dock, a sequence of the cards are more easily understood : From day to week, week to month.

Since I have called a card storage as “Dock”, it is natural to call the KM2P as “Pod”. It resemble to a concept of the iPod, too : A thousand songs in your pocket. It resemble to space vehicle in Sci-Fi and Japanese animation like “Gundam” as well. The Dock-Pod relationship in PoIC system is clearer. Now the Pod is much more than just a shuttle.

Hereafter, I call it as a Pod rather than KM2P. Futher more, the Pod for index cards, so… Index Cards Pod -> icPod? Then the catch copy must be, “A hundred of index cards in your pocket” :)

I got new domain www.pileofindexcards.com just after new years day, and moved from my old .Mac account. I was little bit hurry since it was beginning of the year. I didn’t think deeply to get .com domain.

After while, I feel small gap between what I want to do, and the domain .com. Is this site really commercial? I started the Service, but it’s main purpose is to distribute card, note, and dock I use. This question might be tiny stuff. But it is always come to my mind.

Last week, I tried to get new domain again. This time, pileofindexcards.org. Organization. It sounds better for me. Because the PoIC system is not mine, but ours. I seeded, and the seeds start glowing.

I put same files and start test run. It seems the new .org server is slightly faster access than present one. More importantly, the new server supports newest version of PHP and MySQL.

It is 2+ weeks since I start a Service to provide fieldnotes and cards. The first packs I sent to my friends just begin to arrive their home. I’m happy to receive emails that reports the arrival of packs and first impression

This week end, I reorganized packages to distribute broader. Now, new Trial pack (1 fieldnote + 1 index cards) and Combo pack (5 fieldnote + 5 index cards) are available to you.

The pack starts from $8. It will make much easier to introduce the fieldnote and cards. The packs are for who just want touch how the fieldnote and cards.

Now the amounts in the Indexcard Pack and Fieldnote Pack is reduced from 10 to 5. As you see, I have struggled to send the products in reasonable and simple way, from the beginning of this service. I have to think postal fee, how to pack, total price, etc. My policy is that a stationery must not be expensive since it is used in daily base. Consisting pack, as I have been doing, is the best solution for both you and me. And this way, a postal fee doesn’t change even I send two or more packs to you at once.

A “Trackback” feature of a weblog is useful to know which article refer to own article.

We can take advantage of this feature into indexcard. And this is quite easy. I introduced how to link between cards. Just reverse of the link. I use a red pen for emphasis. If there is many trackbacks on a card, it indicates the card is useful.

This idea is originally from a comment by riclav at flickr.

The picked up cards are returned in a original position of a chronological order. This becomes hard if I pick up a lot of card at once. If it is too hard, I hesitate to pick up cards from the dock.

An easiest way to overcome this problem is to mark the positions of picked up cards. If I use post-it, however, I have to mark, say 30, every time.

I invent a a trick to use indexcard itself as position marker (picture above). When I pick up a card, raise a card just behind. The right-hand side is exposed to know the date stamp of raised card. When return the picked up cards, see the compare the timestamps, and return. This trick reduces effort to find a certain time from the sequence of card in the dock.

If this process is fun enough, it increase a chance to review cards in the dock. :)