PlaymoFriends

Creative => How-To => Topic started by: Rasputin on February 21, 2009, 17:12:54

Title: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Rasputin on February 21, 2009, 17:12:54

Ok i am taking on a new project and it has to do with organizing my paper work . I right now have all my Instructions and catalogs  in a large plastic box and it just does not work . I am looking for ideas as to what is a way of organizing them all including the posters . The one way i thought was to get a plastic box that has the ridges in the sides ( if there is such a thing ) that allows for legal files w/tabs and i can do it by # or theme . Well before i begin and learn the hard way i would like to hear or see what others have done .

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Gepetto on February 21, 2009, 17:24:50

A noble undertaking Rasputin!

I use a hanging file system like you are talking about, tabbed with a series of set #'s (3000,4000, etc.) then individual folders to break it down further to specific sets or groups depending on quantity. If I get too many in a series I will break a tab down further (3000, 3500,4000), I don't collect posters or oversize material (thank goodness!)  0)

I am interested to hear how other people deal with this.



Gepetto

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: peetje on February 21, 2009, 17:42:05

I scan every thing in the computer.
It is easy to look.
And easy tho organize

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Rasputin on February 21, 2009, 17:45:13

gepetto how about a picture , sounds like a system i am interested in .

peetje , yes scanning is the easiest but then i would still hang on to the paper work . i still have all of my playmobil boxes also  8}

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Bill Blackhurst on February 21, 2009, 17:52:47

Quote from: Rasputin on February 21, 2009, 17:45:13

gepetto how about a picture , sounds like a system i am interested in .

peetje , yes scanning is the easiest but then i would still hang on to the paper work . i still have all of my playmobil boxes also  8}

I still have all of the boxes for the ones I got MIB too, Ras! I would like to invest in a heavy duty 4 drawer filing cabinet to use for filing my important information, Playmobil that is, but money always seems to go to the PM collection first  :toot:!

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Walts-Trains on February 21, 2009, 20:23:05

I keep my instruction in files as you do Gepetto in a small filing cabinet and also the old catalogues.
I do not keep the boxes as this would take up to much room.
Last week we were in Malta and purchased a lot of Playmobil at the fun park shop.
To get it home we took it out of the boxes and placed it in plastic bags and marked on the numbers.
If we had tried to bring the boxes back I do not think they would have allowed us on the plane or charged us a lot of money. As it was we had a full suitcase of Playmobil and did not have to pay for extra baggage.

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Saskia on February 22, 2009, 08:06:03

I always scan my plans and then file them away in a clear sheatprotectors and then put them in ring binders in numerical order.

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Little Jo on February 22, 2009, 10:13:16

Instructions stay within the boxes or bags of the set (bags in case I do not have the box anymore).
Reason is to keep the set complete (including the instruction) and in case I want to play with the set and setup the content (especially complex building sets) I have the instruction right handy with the set itself. -- So with this no need for me to find a solution organising the paperwork.

For "organising" the instructions I also use the computer: I scan them into one PDF document each single instruction so I can look up items when I'm at the computer (what is quite often ... being at the computer, not looking up :-[).
The PDF documents are names with the set number and the ordering number of the instruction itself, e.g. 3068 - 30892100-pdf. They are all located in one directory for easy access.
Additionally I have setup my local copy of my collection HTML-page from my homepage (http://www.jr-x.de/playmobil/sammlung/sammlung.php) in that way, that when clicking on the instruction symbol the PDF document will be opened directly within a browser window; most times this is faster than navigating to the instructions folder.

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Gustavo on February 23, 2009, 02:21:40

Well, I'm owner of one *very* small collection, but ...
(who knows I can give an idea ;D )

(http://www.playmofriends.com/forum/album/albums/userpics/10422/normal_0902--_playmo_files002.jpg)

Take a look at the attachments ...

:wave:

Gus
:blackhair:

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Gustavo on February 23, 2009, 02:26:12

(Files are exactly the same size of pictures
and of small instructions, as well as medium instructions as they come in boxes ...)


attached

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Gustavo on February 23, 2009, 02:29:02

(medium catalogues right after instructions)


attached

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Gustavo on February 23, 2009, 02:34:43

(The back part of the album is for pictures, and adresses/cards from playmofriends :)

I only have no room for big instructions yet; however, they're still very few ... Until now ;D 8}
Oh boy ... :hmm: Someday I may find myself in your situation :-\ I'll possibly get bigger classifiers 8} :P )

 :wave:


attached

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Gustavo on February 23, 2009, 02:42:37

Oh, very important! (to me ...)

so, Ps.

I keep the chronology of the sets. (I mean, Romans, Knights, Pirates, Bunnies, & Modern.) 8}
It's very important! :yup: (And, it may seem a bit crazy, I myself make the funny smiley faces on my ... mania, but it gives some sort of order to the thing. It's interesting to find an order, even if order of acquisition, or of chronology of playmobil dates (year the set was released) ...)

So, some kind of order is interesting. Pick yours! :)

G.~

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: CountBogro on February 23, 2009, 12:26:24

I'm afraid I've scanned all my instructions and have put them all on a USB-stick.
The paper-instructions then go into a filing system called "the box"  :-[ ...
Not the most orderly way; but it works for me  :P

Bogro

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Gustavo on February 23, 2009, 13:23:32

Quote from: CountBogro on February 23, 2009, 12:26:24

I'm afraid I've scanned all my instructions and have put them all on a USB-stick.
The paper-instructions then go into a filing system called "the box"  :-[ ...
Not the most orderly way; but it works for me  :P

Bogro

 :lol:

It's probably in order of acquisition, backwards (older under, newer above ;D ...)

G.~
:blackhair:

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: CountBogro on February 25, 2009, 11:53:06

Quote from: Gustavo on February 23, 2009, 13:23:32

:lol:

It's probably in order of acquisition, backwards (older under, newer above ;D ...)

G.~
:blackhair:

not even that  :-[ after scanning the go somewhere on a pile and after a while I put them in a box.
But since that involves opening my cupboard in the livingroom (aka "treasure room" according to my oldest son) this cannot be done with the children present  :-[ ... so it gets delayed some months normally ...

I sure hope my collegues never find out about this ... I am a archivist by profession  >:D

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Gepetto on February 25, 2009, 15:57:50

Quote from: CountBogro on February 25, 2009, 11:53:06

I sure hope my collegues never find out about this ... I am a archivist by profession  >:D

 :lol: :lol: :lol:



Gepetto

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: nicki72 on March 11, 2009, 03:56:18

Quote from: CountBogro on February 25, 2009, 11:53:06

I sure hope my collegues never find out about this ... I am a archivist by profession  >:D

What is that old saying about the cobbler's children not having any shoes?? lol!

(If it makes you feel any better, my husband works in IT and until a couple of months ago we didn't even have a wireless network at home!)  :lol: :lol:

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Bill Blackhurst on March 11, 2009, 12:25:37

Quote from: nicki72 on March 11, 2009, 03:56:18

What is that old saying about the cobbler's children not having any shoes?? lol!
(If it makes you feel any better, my husband works in IT and until a couple of months ago we didn't even have a wireless network at home!)  :lol: :lol:

It was at one time very embarassing to be a mechanic, & being caught jump starting your vehicle for a week in the mornings to go to work because you couldn't get a " 'round tuit"  :-[!

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: leefert on May 16, 2009, 02:52:38

I store my instructions in one of those plastic accordian folders for now.  I don't keep my boxes so I put the parts in an appropriate bin and the instructions in the folder.

Title: Re: How do you store your instructions
Post by: Sylvia on May 16, 2009, 11:05:19

I keep most of mine in plastic spiral-bound binders. These have plastic pockets like the ones in Gus's photos.

They are sort-of organised. :toot: The binders have different coloured covers so I associate the colour with a set's theme - sometimes more than one theme per binder - and then try to put the instruction sheets within in order of set number (or close to it) to make them easier to find.

Some of my sheets are not in the binders because I haven't gotten around to re-organising them to fit in the newer ones. Some are also still kept in their set boxes. You can probably get what I mean by "sort-of organised" now. :P

The good thing is I don't believe I've completely lost any instruction sheets yet... perhaps temporarily mislaid some, though... :-[