On Line Day Book

[ruffrecords]

Back in the 70s, for a short time I worked for a US company called CPI (Computer Peripherals Inc). All engineers were provided with a Day Book in which they were expected to record the technical details of their work, in ink. The pages were numbered and had to be dated and signed each day by their immediate superior. The reasons for doing this were mainly to do with IPR. I had never come across such a  thing but I was impressed. So much so that a decade later, when I was managing a group of engineers of my own I introduced a similar sytem. The habit has remained with me every since and I still maintain a Day Book.

Technology has moved on and I now do a lot of stuff on various computers. Carting an A4 sized Day Book about is a bit of a pain but the good thing about paper an pencils is it can cope with words, equations and drawings. Trouble is my writing is getting worse as I get older. SO, it occurred to me it would be nice to have a Day Book on line somewhere, in the cloud so to speak. Searching for Day Book on line only brings up a bunch of stuff for teachers and babies. So my question is, does anyone know of a suitable program that will do what I want?

Cheers

Ian

 

[rob_gould]

Google Docs

 

[ruffrecords]

Google Docs

Interesting. I already use Google Docs to create the documentation for most of my projects. I had not thought of using it as a not book. Might be a bit hard to draw tube schematics with it though.

Cheers

Ian

 

[JohnRoberts]

Back in the 70s, for a short time I worked for a US company called CPI (Computer Peripherals Inc). All engineers were provided with a Day Book in which they were expected to record the technical details of their work, in ink. The pages were numbered and had to be dated and signed each day by their immediate superior. The reasons for doing this were mainly to do with IPR. I had never come across such a  thing but I was impressed. So much so that a decade later, when I was managing a group of engineers of my own I introduced a similar sytem. The habit has remained with me every since and I still maintain a Day Book.

IPR (intellectual Property something?), and day book are not familiar terms.

Among my dad's old papers I found dated engineering notebooks or journals from back in the 1930s when he worked for Western Electric.  These notebooks had pre-numbered pages to help provide a date context for any undated page notes.

Technology has moved on and I now do a lot of stuff on various computers. Carting an A4 sized Day Book about is a bit of a pain but the good thing about paper an pencils is it can cope with words, equations and drawings. Trouble is my writing is getting worse as I get older. SO, it occurred to me it would be nice to have a Day Book on line somewhere, in the cloud so to speak. Searching for Day Book on line only brings up a bunch of stuff for teachers and babies. So my question is, does anyone know of a suitable program that will do what I want?

Cheers

Ian

I have several patents, and those dated notebooks if signed and witnessed, could serve as the evidentiary "disclosure document" used as part of the (former) patent application to establish an invention date. Proper disclosure documents were signed and dated by the inventor, and witnessed by another technical type with the signature line "read and understood by".

The US changed from "first to invent" to "first to file" in 2013, so the whole dated notebook and disclosures are academic.  I am not sure how this affects inventors who never protected their invention by filing. It seems they could lose rights to use their own invention, if they do not publicly disclose it before somebody else files a patent application. The first to file system is easier to prove, eliminating a lot of wrangling over hard to prove first invention priority dates.

JR

PS: Having engineering supervisors sign each engineer's daily log book, sounds more like a management technique to make sure both are doing their job and on track. The rigor of writing down project progress notes does focus the mind somewhat (using both halves of the brain.)

 

[DaveP]

My old boss got the idea of a Day Book when he did his MBA, I guess it was part of his syllabus.  We never ran with it though.

DaveP

 

[thermionic]

Have you seen Trello? I'd be interested to know if you think it may work for you (it might give me some inspiration to get it set up! self-serving advice, I know -)

 

[Matt Nolan]

IPR (intellectual Property something?), and day book are not familiar terms.

Rights.

 

[Spiritworks]

I've been using Windows Calendar for my day-to-day business scheduling. It leaves plenty of room for typing in all sorts of details.

 

[peterc]

Might work using a free online diary?

http://www.my-diary.org/
https://journalate.com/

Have not used them myself, but they look OK.

Peter

 

[ruffrecords]

Might work using a free online diary?

http://www.my-diary.org/
https://journalate.com/

Have not used them myself, but they look OK.

Peter

I have found quite a few of these diary like application. Unfortunately none of them will allow me to draw sketches and simple schematics. Some you can upload images to but you need a separate app to create them.  Still looking.

Cheers

Ian

 

[JohnRoberts]

Might work using a free online diary?

http://www.my-diary.org/
https://journalate.com/

Have not used them myself, but they look OK.

Peter

I have found quite a few of these diary like application. Unfortunately none of them will allow me to draw sketches and simple schematics. Some you can upload images to but you need a separate app to create them.  Still looking.

Cheers

Ian

An important part of invention disclosure to prove priority is being dated, signed, and witnessed. A notebook with numbered sequential pages helps support a date or pattern of dates.  While electronic media can support dates and even signatures, I worry about the legal status , and robustness of electronic media.

Since first to file now trumps first to invent, these are no longer as important for that (in the US).

FWIW I have about a dozen old notebooks that I used over the decades to document ideas. I keep them and like to revisit from time to time (usually after beer oclock).

JR 

 

[pvision]

Have a look at www.evernote.com. Not exactly what you are looking for, but useful nevertheless. I like it for lists - you can put checkboxes in lists & tick jobs off when done

You can view lists & notes via a web browser or an application on your desktop machine, and it automagically syncs between desktop, your phone and the cloud. You can also share lists with other people

If you're a UK Virgin broadband subscriber they give (gave?) a free 1-year pro subscription with your broadband

Nick Froome

 

[ruffrecords]

FWIW I have about a dozen old notebooks that I used over the decades to document ideas. I keep them and like to revisit from time to time (usually after beer oclock).

JR

Me too. I have a series of  about 10 documenting my exploration of tube mic pre and mixer design. I do occasionally revisit them. My wife thinks I am a sad old git.

Cheers

Ian

 

[sahib]

.... My wife thinks I am a sad old git.

You are not alone.

If only there was an equivalent description  to "train spotting".

 

[ruffrecords]

.... My wife thinks I am a sad old git.

You are not alone.

If only there was an equivalent description  to "train spotting".

I was a train spotter as a boy until they replaced all the lovely steam engines with boring diesel ones in the early 60s.

Thank heaven for steam preservation societies.

Cheers

Ian

 

[leadbreath]

[quote.... My wife thinks I am a sad old git.][/quote]

Ian I think we're all sad bastards at the end of the day, I see my girlfreind's eyes glaze over as soon as I reach for the pile of schematics I have piled up on the lounge table...I think deep down she loves it as I'm not in the pub or out visiting mates... ;D

 

[sahib]

.... My wife thinks I am a sad old git.

You are not alone.

If only there was an equivalent description  to "train spotting".

I was a train spotter as a boy until they replaced all the lovely steam engines with boring diesel ones in the early 60s.

Thank heaven for steam preservation societies.

Cheers

Ian

We did not have much opportunity for steam trains back in Istanbul but we had the steam engine passenger ferries up until late 70s . They were magic. I would get lost watching pistons going up and down in the engine room. Life can take a funny turn.  Almost 50 years later my  office now is in the very building/yard  (in Glasgow) where those ferries were designed and built.

 

[joaquins]

Might work using a free online diary?

http://www.my-diary.org/
https://journalate.com/

Have not used them myself, but they look OK.

Peter

I have found quite a few of these diary like application. Unfortunately none of them will allow me to draw sketches and simple schematics. Some you can upload images to but you need a separate app to create them.  Still looking.

Cheers

Ian

An important part of invention disclosure to prove priority is being dated, signed, and witnessed. A notebook with numbered sequential pages helps support a date or pattern of dates.  While electronic media can support dates and even signatures, I worry about the legal status , and robustness of electronic media.

Since first to file now trumps first to invent, these are no longer as important for that (in the US).

FWIW I have about a dozen old notebooks that I used over the decades to document ideas. I keep them and like to revisit from time to time (usually after beer oclock).

JR

I've heard of some case with auto e-mail as being prove of pre invention, probably you mentioned somewhere.

Might work using a free online diary?

http://www.my-diary.org/
https://journalate.com/

Have not used them myself, but they look OK.

Peter

I have found quite a few of these diary like application. Unfortunately none of them will allow me to draw sketches and simple schematics. Some you can upload images to but you need a separate app to create them.  Still looking.

Cheers

Ian

I use CamScanner, to scan from a paper to the cellphone with pretty good results, I've presented informs for work while on the road and paper, pencil and the cellphone was the only available tools. I also use it as every day scanner, if you start on a white A4 and put anything you want to scan over it you get 1:1 printable scans.

JS

 

[ruffrecords]

We did not have much opportunity for steam trains back in Istanbul but we had the steam engine passenger ferries up until late 70s . They were magic. I would get lost watching pistons going up and down in the engine room. Life can take a funny turn.  Almost 50 years later my  office now is in the very building/yard  (in Glasgow) where those ferries were designed and built.

There is a steam gondola that that still runs across Coniston water in the Lake District. I road on it with my wife and kids back in the 90s. It was an absolutely gorgeous piece of engineering. So smooth, so silent. Definitely worth the trip.

http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/steam-yacht-gondola

Cheers

Ian

 

[sahib]

Have just checked it. I must do that.

Below is the picture of a model of Symington's Charlotte Dundas that I built twenty year's ago for Falkirk Museums. They later built a full size replica of it.

I'll probably get another doing from John for going off-topic  ;D