Everything You Ever Needed to Know About Notecards

Today Woot posted a notecard primer for those of you unfamiliar with notecards. Their guide, titled Sean University: Notecards, is intended for those of you headed off into the exciting world of Buisnessy Enterpriseness Buzzword Management. The same rules apply to those of you heading back to school wondering just what these notecard things are that your new teacher is requiring you to use. You should head to Woot and read the entire post, but just in case you are running low on time, here is the Reader's Digest version.

#1. You should only use 3x5 sized notecards. If what you need to convey doesn't fit on said notecard size and shape you need to rewrite it.

#2. If you were not sure what a notecard looks like, they included a diagram.

#3 When asked the serious question: "I’ve got to give a speech about notecards to executives of a notecard company. Can I write notes about notecards on notecards, or will that tear a hole in the very fabric of the very thing we know as reality????" they attempted to give a humorous answer. The correct answer the preceding question is "no."

Woot, however, neglected to answer the most important question: "Where can I buy notecards?" The correct answer is "everywhere." They sell notecards everywhere. I've seen them at Dollar Stores and at Grocery Stores. They sell them at Drug Stores, Convenience Shops, and Department Stores. Of course they also sell them at the Big Box Office Supply Retailers, but none of those places will give you the kind of variety you'll want if you are a notecard aficionado. After just a quick check I found 28 different kinds of 3x5 notecards available (commonly called index cards in the industry). There are cards that come with a color coded bar for organization, cards that come in neon colors if you want to blind your grandmother, and cards that come printer ready if you hate reading your handwriting. My favorite is the cards that come with a pen and specially modified binder clip.

Notecards with Binder Clip and Pen

Yes, you saw that right. Your eyes are not deceiving you. This is a pack of notecards with a specially manufactured binder clip that allows you to keep a pen attached to your notecards. Most people carry around a grip of notecards held together with a rubber band. They'll throw a pen in the rubber band to keep it from flying away, but you've got a pretty good chance that the whole thing will end up as a mess in the bottom of your bag. With Oxford's customized binder clip solution, you'll keep your notecards and your pen held together securely until you need them.

Of course, feel free to mod this setup with your favorite notecards and your favorite pen.

Winning Combinations

As back to school preparations begin, there are many things that high school students need. Binders, calculators, mechanical pencils... really fun stuff that everyone gets excited about. Combination locks have never been in that category. They're one of the many necessary evils of high school. Everybody gravitates to the exact same model and the sole factor in how comfortable it is to use is how easily the combination can be remembered.

Master Lock, producers of seemingly every combination lock ever created, is determined to offer some fun and simplicity to the device. For their Speed Dial locks, they have done away with the numbers and allow the user to set any combination of directions.

Speed Dial Combination Padlock

Sounds great, right? No number combos to remember and a code that can be entered with nothing but a thumb. There is, however, one thing that troubles me about this: what would you set for your combination? Quickly, think of one. A series of ups, downs, lefts and rights that you could recall automatically. Got one? Good.

All right... so who picked the relevant part of this?

I'm sure enough of you did. Enough of us in the office certainly did. And if I had some significant and justified reason to break into your locker, it's the first combination I would try. It's one of those things that we either remember from childhood, wished we remembered from childhood, or see randomly in unexpected places (typing it on certain websites trigger some interesting effects. Direction-based combinations immediately make people think of video games, and a lot of people have played video games. They often play the same ones.

It's an interesting new product and should do very well in schools, but I have to caution against using popular and beloved cheat codes for inspiration. It's like making your online password “password.” Put some thought into it and come up with something that is distinctly you

Using a Tom62202 without a Tom62201

I don't know how many people have ever been in the predicament that I was in a few weeks ago, but I was working on a crafty project and was on a tight budget and was looking to save any bit of cash I could. Everybody knows about Tom62201 (Tombow's flagship adhesive dispenser) and just about everybody also knows that Tombow offers refills in the form of Tom62202.

A fine specimen of Tom62201

 Any Tom, Dick, and/or Harold can look at the Tom62201 and see that there isn't a whole lot there.  Some translucent plastic bits, some transparent plastic bits and two rolls.  It's kind of like a Blueberry iMac, and a cassette tape got into that transporter from The Fly and this is what stepped out from the other side.

Tom62202 ready for the runway

Now if you are like you me you see the Tom62201 and the Tom62202 next to each other and think, man it's only missing the encapsulating plastic bit.  I can buy a Tom62202 and save myself a dollar.  Well sir, I'm sad to inform you that there are some extra bits that the Tom62201 have that are not easily replicated just by holding it firmly.  Attempting to use the refill by itself will fail just about completely.

But if you have already gone over the deep end and need to get something done ASAP and you only have a Tom62202 at your disposal you aren't out of luck.  I found that if you just use the roll of adhesive and take it off the plastic bits you do end up with a convenient roll of double sided tape.  Peel off enough of the end for a tab, roll out your tape sticking it to the surface as necessary.  Tear your tape off from the role as necessary.  When you are ready to affix your two items, put the tape roll aside and remove the backing from your item.

If you follow the Tom62201-less method it does have an advantage on large surfaces as you won't have any side of your double sided tape exposed to the elements for much longer than necessary.

Comparison Shopping Foam Board

Foam Board, sometimes called Foamcore, Foam Core, or Foam Core Board is a necessity for all modern craters or people who need to build structures but require something a little nicer than cardboard.  The standard Foam Board for everyday use is 3/16 of an inch thick (or just shy of 5mm).  Lots of local stores have it in some quantity.  From corner drug stores like Walgreens to Office Supply stores like Staples to Big Box Super-centers like Walmart.  Last weekend I needed some Foam Board to build a Mat Board so I went on a trek from store to store looking for the best bargain

Elmer's 20 x 30 Foam Board

My first stop was Walgreens.  They had Crayola brand Foam Board for $3.99.  Measuring in at 22 inches x 28 inches I knew it wasn't going to be my best bargain so I pressed on.  You can see their selection here.

I stopped over at Walmart and they had a large selection of Foam board and at a discount.  They had the Elmer's brand Foam Board for $2.97.  Measuring in at 30 inches x 20 inches it is technically less Foam Board but at a dollar cheaper the decrease in price more than makes up for the decreased size.  I even did the math.  At Walgreen you pay $0.0065 per square inch while Walmart charges you $0.0050 per square inch (math rounded for ease of use).  You can see what Walmart offers here.

My final stop in the land of Brick and Mortar Foam Board Suppliers was Staples.  The carried the same 30 inch by 20 inch Foam Board size as Walmart but instead it was Staples Brand.  Oddly enough it was priced the same as Walmart but the price tag said it was originally $3.49.  I assume that was just marketing at it's finest.  Staples did carry the widest variety of Foam Board.  They had it in a variety of colors for an additional dollar or so.  You can see what Staples offers here.

I have heard that if you keep an eye out you can find some really cheap stuff at the big craft stores like Micheales or at Dollar stores but the quality may suffer.

Lastly I had to check the Online only retailers to see what kind of pricing they had.  I found that the Elmer's Brand EPI900802 Foam Board seemed most closely match what I saw in the stores and was well reviewed.  At this moment I see the pricing on the Foam Board is $34.37 for 10 boards.  So you can do the math and see that they are more expensive than picking it up in Walmart or Staples stores.  I'm sure if you waited and watched promotions you could find a worthwhile coupon code or wait for the price to drop and get it at an additional discount. I also noticed they have Foam Board available in larger sizes and some of the highest quality Foam Board, but as I see it pricing wise online pretty much matches what you can pick up in a store.

If you buy it in a store you have the advantage of picking through the pieces they have on hand and hopefully finding a piece without banged corners or crumbled edges.  If you buy online you aren't limited to stock on hand in a store.  You can easily buy a thousand or more pieces, and you should see quite a savings at that point.  So if you just need a sheet of Foam Board run out to your local Big Box retailer and pick one up.  If you have special needs from your Foam Board like an odd size or mass quantity you should shop online.

The Exotic Origins Of The Plain Yellow Pencil

In a world where mechanical pencils are taking over both the office and the classroom, there is still one time of year that the classic #2 wood pencil is still beloved- finals week. Well, beloved might be a strong word: between retrieving them, sharpening them and bringing spares in the event of untimely breakages, college students are often reminded why they switched to mechanical pencils in the first place. Still, filling in those little bubbles on Scantron forms is one of the last bastions for the classic Dixon Ticonderoga #2 and its brethren. So today we honor them.

Dixon Ticonderoga #2 Pencil

They don't give off an air of complexity, but between the core, the casing and the eraser, pencils aren't exactly primitive. You wouldn't think they'd be more than a couple centuries old. Skipping the ancient stylus, once a metal rod used for writing on papyrus (and now a plastic rod used for writing on smartphones), the modern wood-cased graphite pencil actually dates back to the 1600s. Once the Industrial Revolution happened, the whole thing just took off.

So the million-dollar question: why are pencils yellow? It's ingrained in our heads that pencils are supposed to be bright yellow, even though it's not heralded as a professional nor particularly studious color. They look pretty cheap too. Hard to believe that the ubiquitious yellow color was chosen by a high-end manufacturer looking for an exotic color to set their pencil apart from the generic brands.

It wasn't even the Dixon Ticonderoga you know and love but Koh-I-Noor- a European brand named after a diamond and now known more for calligraphy and drafting supplies. At the time, yellow was considered an exotic color that hinted at Chinese origins. Because nothing says quality like something made in China. It was such a big hit that everybody jumped on board and did the same thing, to the point where yellow became an industry standard and lost pretty much all its meaning. It's no surprise that Koh-I-Noor got out of that gig.

Distant Descendants of the Original Yellow Pencil

So for those slaving away at finals, now you know why the pencils you use for tests are yellow. Although, as an added punchline, it's worth pointing out that test scanners now read and accept some mechanical pencils. In fact, almost all Bic mechanical pencils are Scantron-certified.

And Look, They Come in Yellow!

Retractable Dry Erase Marker: From Skepticism to Joy

It has probably been a month now since a pack of BIC Retractable Dry Erase Markers hit our office. I tend to not question why boxes of random products show up as often as they do, because you should never look a gift horse in the mouth (unless the horse is full of Greeks). Last week a bunch of cans of Organic Sweet Leaf brand Tea showed up, so we did our duty to God and Country and drank most of it. Many moons prior we had some dry erase boards installed in our offices to help curb our addiction to covering walls with post-it notes. Approximately 3 fortnights after the dry erase boards were installed, I was given a Neon Orange Dry Erase Marker. After some lengthy internal monologue, I put that marker where it belonged, in the trash. So when another Dry Erase product hit my desk, I was skeptical. Low Odor? High Performance? A fine tipped Dry Erase Marker? I doubted that this product could live up to the hype surrounding it.

4 Color BIC Fine Tipped Retractable Dry Erase Markers

I cast the Dry Erase Marker aside knowing that the previous "advancement" in Dry Erase Marker technology was none of the sort and went along with my day to day business. At one point however I was writing some excruciating boring technical jargon on my Dry Erase Board and realized that it was way bolder than it needed to be. My conventional Sanford Dry Erase Markers only knew how to scream text and I needed something more conversational so I begrudgingly picked up my BIC, clicked it (was satisfied by the retractable technology used to keep the marker from drying out), and began to write.

Buy 1 Dozen Black Retractable Dry Erase Markers

After the day was through I was a convert. If I need to write on a Dry Erase Board, I need my BIC Retractable Dry Erase Marker. It turns out the marker is definitely Low Odor. I don't know if that's just a byproduct of a narrow tip not slathering my board with the ink that needs to quickly dry and spew forth the aroma of a New Jersey Chemical Plant, but I approve none the less. Nobody's getting high off this marker any time soon. High Performance? I don't know how you judge a marker on it's performance, but it has worked whenever I needed it to. It draws pictures and writes text on demand. The retractable feature works well and means you'll never have to worry about losing or damaging your caps (around our office we have broken 2 different standard marker caps leaving the markers unusable). Should you buy some of these Dry Erase Markers for your office? Yes. Yes, you should.

Hey Spies, Don't Forget the Scotch Tape

Hey all you James Bond wannabes, ready to pack for you next mission as you venture down your career path and gain a license to kill?  Don't forget your funny jet pack, your inflatable coat, your shoe phone, or your radio watch.  Add a new item to your list of spy supplies, Scotch tape.  Just get some of your standard every day tape.  You can get name brand tape or generic tape but just get some packing tape because you need wide tape.  Now as you are sneaking about an office building, if you see some frosted glass you'd like to peak through and have access to the side that has been treated, simply apply the tape to the treated side and you'll have mostly translucent glass.

YouTube Video Showing the Process

The science behind it isn't very interesting.  Frosted glass is usually created by treating one side so it is no longer smooth.  The bumps and ridges in the treated side don't allow light to shine through perfectly.  Applying the adhesive from the tape to the bumps and ridges gives the glass a smooth surface again and allows you to see more clearly than before.  People report, and I believe them, that using any liquid on the surface will give the same general effect.

Scotch Shipping Tape.  Cheaper than an Aston Martin DB5

We don't have any frosted glass in our office.  We don't have windows in the bathroom, and there just aren't many interior windows to begin with that would need some privacy.  But I really really wanted to try this out.  Luckily I had some beach glass on my desk and of course I had a role of transparent tape.  So I dutifully attempted to apply tape to both sides of a curved piece of glass and see the results.  Unfortunately, I didn't make a whole lot of headway and small piece of glass doesn't do much when you try to look through it, but I'd say it seemed to help light through a little better.  I'm not a scientist or anything.