Filing Tip - Super Simple But It Works

[Joe Bryant]

Hi Folks,

You all may do this already but I found something that's helping me immensely in setting up my general reference filing system.

I bought the Brother labeler and yes, the hype is true for me. It changes the entire way I look at my files. Big note - per DA's advice, spend the extra for the AC adaptor and you don't have to worry about finding 6 batteries every time you turn around. My files are looking great.

The trouble for me is remember how I filed something. Is my cell phone manual under M (motorola), C (cell phone), M (manuals) or O (Owners Manuals) As the number of files grows, it can get tougher and tougher to find.

I know there are products out there like Paper Tiger software that will help but it seemed overly complicated for what I wanted to do.

So I simply set up an Excel sheet and labeled my columns as such:

Date Created, Drawer, Letter, File Name, Contents - Key Words

My motorola cell phone manual entry looks like this under the columns:

Date Created - 3/20, Drawer - 1, Letter - O , File Name - Owners Manuals, Contents - Key Words - V60 cell phone manual

When I need to find something, I can hit the "find" button and quickly type in a couple of key words and then instantly find where I stashed the info. Works like a charm.

I've never in my life felt as confident filing something. Cool stuff.

Joe

[ext555]

hmmmm, that's so simple --yet so powerful .

I could do this at work and at home. :wink:

thanks for sharing ! :D

paul

[andmor]

Good tip, Joe.

A less sophisticated, but lower maintenance, tip is to guess where you might naturally look for the item when you need it later. If there are 2 obvious places, then make a copy and file it in 2 places, or drop an index card in the 2nd file referencing the 1st file. Usually, 1 place to file is enough and 2 places is the exception.

Andrew

[kglade]

I set up something similar in Excel with a separate worksheet for each filing location/type. For example, I have a worksheet named "Reference" and one named "Purchase Orders" and one named CD."

My columns are Location, Name and Keywords although I never actually type the name into Row 1 for reasons listed below. A typical row looks like this:
Reference 10 // Glues // white glue elmers mastic

How many columns I use and what I name them varies with what is in the file. If I had a music CD file I might have MUSIC // Artist // Album title // favorite tracks.

I set up file folders just numbered with no letters on the labels, just 1,2,3, etc. These are easy to do in batches ahead of time. For the CDs I just stuck the labels to the outside jewel case.

I was careful to set it up so that Row 1 corresponds to File number 1, row 2 to file 2, etc. This way, when I run Excel's Find command using the Find All within workbook option, I get a list of worksheets and cells like REFERENCE $B$3 which tells me immediately to look in file 3 of the REFERENCE file because the row number IS the file number. If I had a worksheet named BOTTOM DRAWER DESK I might see a Find All result like BOTTOM DRAWER DESK $C$24 so I know right away to look there in file 24. A result like CD $B$19 tells me to fetch CD number 19 and so on.
This is why I don't type the column names into row 1 - that would mess up the system.

In the past I've had a worksheet named BASEMENT with my cardboard boxes numbered and the major contents listed as keywords. Also handy for moving.

I have found that this system works best for me for files that I access infrequently, like my basement boxes. For everyday files, I still use an A-Z system with text labels because this saves me the step of looking into Excel each time I want a file.

Another tip: I created a file for those one of a kind, single pages that I was spending a great deal of time agonizing over where to file. I made one manila folder labeled "1-25," another "26-50," etc. Note, I mean that I will put all documents numbered 1-25 into ONE folder, in chronological order that I receive them, not by topic.

Now, my rule is "If in doubt, file it in the INDEX file." Sorry, the name is not very imaginative. Since the probability is 80% that I will never retrieve from that file, it gives me a quick way to take care of miscellaneous items. If I notice a trend over time that I am collecting several similar items, I can extract them and put them into a reference file. Before setting up this system I noticed that one-of-a-kind documents were taking a disproportionate amount of time and psychic RAM to file. Now, I can handle them on automatic pilot, without having to get a new folder, brainstorm up the right topic to name it so I'd find it later, print a label, etc.

The only downside is that I might be collecting a few items that I should have thrown away, but in two years of following this system, I am only up to number 87 in the fourth folder.

Hope this helps.

Ken

[whkratz]

I'll throw my two cents worth in here. I use a method with the same intent, but using a different tool. My weapon of choice is Powermarks, available at www.kaylon.com. The program is a super-slick alternative to your browser's "favorites" function. It lets you file your web bookmarks with attached keywords. It then employs one of the fastest and most clever search engines to let you zero in on those long-forgotten bookmarks that are suddenly of critical interest. You can find an informative review of the program at http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,4149,544947,00.asp

Fortunately, Powermarks doesn't really care whether you enter a real URL or some other "address". So I use it for both website addresses and my reference file "addresses" like B1001, B1002... This also makes logical sense to me, since I consider both my physical files and various websites of interest to be important "reference files". I no longer print out material from websites just so that I can store it in my reference files. More importantly, I don't have to worry about remembering whether I saw some snippet of information on the web or in print. When I need to retrieve something, typing a few keywords instantly gives me an overview of any websites and files that contain relevant info. Incidentally, you can of course use Powermarks to index files on your hard drives by keywords as well.

With this approach I use Ken's method of pre-printing my file labels which are numeric only. This is one of the big lessons from the Paper Tiger approach (which otherwise is quite slow and awkward). Using numeric labelling in conjunction with keywords completely eliminates any "handwringing" over where to file something. It simply doesn't matter. Powermarks can accept and search instantly on any number of keywords, so you can quickly and effortlessly cover all your possible bases. I pre-print pages of Avery labels by the hundreds. Creating a file then involves only peeling off the next label (no more fighting with getting the backing off the Brother tape), slapping it on a file, and inputting a few keywords. I find myself completley relaxed with this method, because I am never worried about whether I will be able to retrieve something when I need to.

Here's one quick Powermarks screenshot to help illustrate how this approach looks.
http://www.improvedoutlook.com/images/Powermarks.jpg

Hope this explanation is clear enough.

Regards.....Bill Kratz
whkratz@attbi.com
www.improvedoutlook.com

[mbacas]

That looks very interesting Bill. Is there anyway to get that over to the Palm? Is that something you do?

I use a similar filing system that I learned about from a book called, "File Don't Pile". It's a number based system with an Index sheet. What's nice about the number based system is that you can line up your tabs and you can reuse your folders by just updating your index/search engine.

- Mark

[whkratz]

That looks very interesting Bill. Is there anyway to get that over to the Palm? Is that something you do?
- Mark

Mark -- No I don't integrate this filing method with a PDA in any way, and Powermarks is not designed for that either. Its primary purpose is as a replacement for a browser's "favorites" function, so it's not really geared to a PDA.

Having said that, I promise that it is so slick that you will be happy just to have it on your desktop (unless of course you don't work on a desktop or notebook at all).

Regards.....Bill Kratz
whkratz@attbi.com
www.improvedoutlook.com

[Anonymous]

Hi!
I have an easy way to find my files.
Since all files belongs to a task or a project, there is always a list item for every file.

In the entry for the task or the project I insert the label of the file.
For example:
File labelled "CD"
Task is "Talk with Peter at Product meeting about ¤CD"
The ¤ character tells me where to find the file, if there is any.
Otherwise I would look for "Peter" or "Product meeting" for it.
And no ¤ means no file!

[Anonymous]

dear whkratz
in your filing system using kaylon powermarks

what does the "B" in B000x stand for?

assume thats some sort of location?, rather than alpha reference?

the downside to the papertiger way is that your filing system can become awful fragmented if you blindly use numeric approach -- i am using paper tiger and have a client filing cabinet as one client. I find it too easy to simply create a new numeric folder rather than put it in an existing folder -- means a lot of folders have just one piece of paper in it -- which means if i'm looking for materials for client ABC, it may be in folder 1, 5, 7,31 and 310 -- granted the index makes it easy to figure this out, but makes it a pain to do physical retrieval. Wish paper tiger allowed you to have somthing like
A001 A002 A003 B001 B002 B003 -- then at least client related stuff would be in the same general location. powermarks may make this easy so i'm going to give it a whirl -- dread haveing to transfer all that paper tiger index data however if powermarks wins me over.

the GTD approach using A-Z makes sense in this context, but need fast retrieval which paper tiger allows -- powermarks may be the ticket -- thanks for the hint.

i do find having filing cabinet already stocked with files already numbered to be a phenomonal blessing. -- makes filing easy -- as long as you are diligent in recording the details somewhere for fast retrieval -- "outta mind as david likes to say"

[whkratz]

dear whkratz
in your filing system using kaylon powermarks

what does the "B" in B000x stand for?

assume thats some sort of location?, rather than alpha reference?


The "B" just stands for "Business" I separate my reference files into business and personal, so you are essentially correct -- the alpha prefix just tells me in which set of file drawers I'll find the file.

With regards to your "fragmentation" comment -- I use the numeric/Powermarks method only for genuine reference filing. I maintain alpha files for Projects and Contacts (clients) that require a physical file, though I maintain most client data and records only digitally. Also, when archiving a physical Project file, I review it for reference material, and often move (or copy) such stuff to a numeric/Powermarks file.

My personal method for diligently entering the details into Powermarks is simply to do it always before I physically put anything into the file folder. Powermarks is always available, ready to spring to life, in my system tray, so it is super quick to call it up and enter the info. If for some reason that simply isn't possible, then the item or material goes into my inbox and is filed later when I can properly complete the "logging in".

Hope that helps to explain things.

[whkratz]

The only negative with Powermarks i have found is that the META-INFORMATION about the file, is not part of the file. Its merely linked to the file, within Powermarks.

So if i move a folder, or rename it, the links no longer work.
It would be nice to be able to embed the meta-data about the file INTO the file, as then even if it gets moved around i can still search and find it.
Anyone have any solutions?
Coz

No Coz, I don't have a solution for this. If Powermarks could do this, it might not be so "small and fast" as you accurately described it.

My own solution to this dilemma isn't particularly slick, but it works, mostly because I try not to move files on my hard disk too often. If I use Powermarks to find a file, and it isn't where Powermarks thought it was, at least it gives me the file name. Then I can use an Explorer search to find the file and then update the info in Powermarks. Not as seamless as you would like, but at least it gets me where I'm going.

[Anonymous]

for filing on a hard disk, i simply use sleuthhound which is a phenomenal searcher for file on HD -- gives you a brower interface plus preview.

have been trying 80-20 retriever that integrats both hard drive and email searching -it's lighting fast


downside to both of these
1) lots of hard disk space -- but speed is awesome
2) you can't store meta data about the file, but keyword searchging is awesome.

if 80-20 retriever is as accurate as sleuthhound, i'll be switching to it to get both email and hard disk retrieval

[Anonymous]

for filing on a hard disk, i simply use sleuthhound which is a phenomenal searcher for file on HD -- gives you a brower interface plus preview.

have been trying 80-20 retriever that integrats both hard drive and email searching -it's lighting fast


downside to both of these
1) lots of hard disk space -- but speed is awesome
2) you can't store meta data about the file, but keyword searchging is awesome.

if 80-20 retriever is as accurate as sleuthhound, i'll be switching to it to get both email and hard disk retrieval

[Anonymous]

So I simply set up an Excel sheet and labeled my columns as such:

Date Created, Drawer, Letter, File Name, Contents - Key Words

My motorola cell phone manual entry looks like this under the columns:

Date Created - 3/20, Drawer - 1, Letter - O , File Name - Owners Manuals, Contents - Key Words - V60 cell phone manual

Joe

Brilliant Joe! I use my PDA (Sony TG50 now, previously Treo 90, Casio E125 P/PC) for ALL notations, ridiculously easy to do globally with ShadowPlan (withOUT having to repeat entries or hassle categories, etc). Reason: My physical notes seemed to have Carl Lewis style sprinting feet attached- always ran away from my searching retinas! 20+ adult years of paper versus 2-3 years with electronic notes has taught me the long-term benefits of sticking with the PDA- always!

But the filing thing had vexed me. With your wonderfully explained tip, I'll be creating a HandBase applet/database, which will allow me the best of both worlds-- desktop and PDA access, via hands-off syncs. (Mercifully, current version 3.01i FINALLY got it right. {9th time's the charm, eh?!} Most buggies are dead, and the ones which remain are minor.)

Fantastic! I owe ya one, Pardnah :)

PG

[Anonymous]

Has anyone used QDOCS? Its a freeware document management application? Any reviews?

[Renger]

Here are my 2 cents: I am doing research work and a lot of scientific papers cross my desk. My experience is that a few weeks later I need one of these papers and can't remember where it is. So what I do is the following: a paper crosses my desk, I start my database program (as a matter of fact I have about 5-6 of them), and file the paper (Title, author, some keywords and then the most important information the name of the binder (I believe this is the english word for what I mean) I put it in, e.g. Papers V/12). When I want to look for the paper a few weeks later I just search using the keywords, or the author, pick the binder, and there it is. No need to think about if it should be in the binder "Papers on xxx" or "Papers on YYY", just put them in any binder. The same thing happens to manuals, letters, etc. (therefore my binders have no specific names (just R1, R2,...).

It is the same procedure I use for my tasks: If there is something I have to read in a week or two, I define a task: "Read x /P" where P is the file in my file cabinet.

For the palm I use smartlist (also for lists with items that I have to return like books, cds, etc.), my most used passwords for accounts in the internet and licences for software.
On my computer I use smartlist, asksam, access and mysql. They are all good in one way or another, depending on what you want to do with them.

[Anonymous]

Hi,

This thread was referenced in a more recent one. I was thinking about implementing such a system with Excel to see if I like it. I did stop and wonder how you keep it up to date. In other words, when I purge my filing system a couple of times ayear do I need to also sit down and purge the catalog? Seems tedious.

Thoughts?

Thanks.

[whkratz]

I don't know about with an Excel type system, but with the Powermarks setup, purging is no problem. I just sort the records into numerical order so that I can easily find the record for any particular folder. One click to highlight it, and one more click or keystroke, and it's gone. Super quick.

You could even decide to not purge the Powermarks file. If you later search for something and find that you have purged the associated physical file, you'll know that you threw out something you shouldn't have.

[done]

I can't believe I didn't think of that! I use Excell for everything else.

What really makes it nice too: highlight your column headings; click on DATA/FILTER/AUTO and you have alphabetical list automatically to choose from.

Thanks
DonE

[helenjc]

I'll throw my two cents worth in here. I use a method with the same intent, but using a different tool. My weapon of choice is Powermarks, available at www.kaylon.com. The program is a super-slick alternative to your browser's "favorites" function. It lets you file your web bookmarks with attached keywords. It then employs one of the fastest and most clever search engines to let you zero in on those long-forgotten bookmarks that are suddenly of critical interest. You can find an informative review of the program at http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,4149,544947,00.asp

Fortunately, Powermarks doesn't really care whether you enter a real URL or some other "address". So I use it for both website addresses and my reference file "addresses" like B1001, B1002... This also makes logical sense to me, since I consider both my physical files and various websites of interest to be important "reference files". I no longer print out material from websites just so that I can store it in my reference files. More importantly, I don't have to worry about remembering whether I saw some snippet of information on the web or in print. When I need to retrieve something, typing a few keywords instantly gives me an overview of any websites and files that contain relevant info. Incidentally, you can of course use Powermarks to index files on your hard drives by keywords as well.

With this approach I use Ken's method of pre-printing my file labels which are numeric only. This is one of the big lessons from the Paper Tiger approach (which otherwise is quite slow and awkward). Using numeric labelling in conjunction with keywords completely eliminates any "handwringing" over where to file something. It simply doesn't matter. Powermarks can accept and search instantly on any number of keywords, so you can quickly and effortlessly cover all your possible bases. I pre-print pages of Avery labels by the hundreds. Creating a file then involves only peeling off the next label (no more fighting with getting the backing off the Brother tape), slapping it on a file, and inputting a few keywords. I find myself completley relaxed with this method, because I am never worried about whether I will be able to retrieve something when I need to.

Here's one quick Powermarks screenshot to help illustrate how this approach looks.
http://www.improvedoutlook.com/images/Powermarks.jpg

Hope this explanation is clear enough.

Regards.....Bill Kratz
whkratz@attbi.com
www.improvedoutlook.com


Bill hi, I've decided to embrace this method - do you put the label on to a hanging file or a manilla folder? I'm about to start and don't want to do the manilla folders if it is unnecessary - wondering if you just put the label on the hanging file tab.
Also what label sheets do you use? I see avery does a hanging file tab sheet but I can't seem to locate it here downunder.
Many thanks for your inspiration, Helen

[zzzagman]

Bill,

On your numeric files, do you file each individual scrap of paper in a different folder, with a different number? Don't you end up with hundreds of one-page folders? Is this practical?

I would appreciate your thoughts.

Calin

[helenjc]

Calin
From what I understand you could put similar things into one folder with one number and just add keywords
say for instance you've got takeaway menus as a file then just add 'chinese', 'pizza', 'sushi' as you go - and when you do a search via powermarks for sushi it will tell you its in the takeaway file rather than its own 'sushi' file.
If anyone knows what the limit for number of keywords is (too lazy to look up the manual I know....) I"d be grateful
cheers Helen

[whkratz]

Helen & Calin -- Okay, some of this is just personal preference stuff, but here are a few thoughts.

I don't use hanging folders at all. I just slap a label on a manilla folder. (For those outside the U.S., this may not be as practical given differences in the type of folders and files available.) DA's advice about good quality filing cabinets does come into play here in making just manilla-folder systems easier to use. And some people like the hanging folders. It's really a personal choice. The key is to use a method that is fast. If it were to take me more than about thirty seconds to file something, I would have a mental block against doing it, and if I'm doing it in the midst of other workflow (besides processing my inbox), it would present too great an interruption to that workflow.

I use Avery #6245 (1" x 2 5/8" inkjet) labels (30 labels/sheet). With something like this, you can easily print several hundred labels at a time, and have enough to last for a day or two of filing. You can even "pre-apply" labels to folders while you are "zoned-out" watching TV, so that you have a stack ready for hyper-filing.

Yes, often I put just one paper (or scrap of paper) in a file. Some such stuff of course goes in Project, Client, or Accounting files that I maintain separately in alpha or date ordered systems. However, for Reference filing, it's just fine to have a single folder for a single item. I rarely look up something in Powermarks in order to find a file to add an additional item to. I'd rather quickly add whatever it is to a new folder and get it stashed at the back of the stack. No, I don't end up with hundreds of folders with single pieces of paper -- I end up with thousands. But I can find those papers in a matter of seconds. A manilla folder costs three or four cents. If I have to spend three, five, ten or twenty minutes hunting for a piece of paper in amongst others, I've burned up the cost of month's worth of manilla folders.

Finally, don't "overthink" this whole thing. Just start using the "numerical/Powermarks" filing method. It's so simple and intuitive, that you will quickly make the adjustments to your personal style.

[kglade]

Let me add to Bill's comments with my own personal preferences.

I use hanging folders because my cabinets require it.

For my numbered files, I use a hanging folder with its plastic snap-on label holder. I don't use any manilla folders inside. I label the hanging folders, "1-25", "26-50", "51-75" and so on. When I add a document, I pencil the number in the top corner of the document, then stick it in the back of the highest numbered folder (e.g. "51-75"). For example, if I just made document #62, I'd stick it at the back of the "51-75" folder where it would be behind doc #61.

When I fetch a doc, I go to the appropriate hanging folder and thumb through the docs, reading the numbers at the top of each until I find the one I want. When re-filing, I make sure I stick it back in the right place.

Works for me and is simple enough.

Note that in my system, each doc has its own number, not each subject. This is an important feature for me.


-Ken

[Anonymous]

thanks for sharing your method !!

raul

[Anonymous]

Bill, a dumb question.......you say you print a few hundred/thousand Avery labels at a time...Am I missing something or just plain dumb, but I cannot figure out how you set them up sequentially (B1001, B1002, B1003 etc) without tediously and manually entering one label at a time. Is there a program you are using that allows you to setup the labels on the computer that automatically generates sequential numbers for each label sheet? Thanks.

Paul Skikne
Owner
Montana Avenue Realty
Santa Monica, CA

[Anonymous]

originally thought that powermarks was useless, but i'm now running with a single set of bookmarks between home and work.

even better i have been able to contextualize both my bookmarks and my personal organizational system.

the next level would be to add this functionality to my palm/cell where i would have it with me all the time...

[whkratz]

Paul -- Not a dumb question at all (there are no dumb questions!). I use Avery LabelPro that lets you set up a field on the label as a sequential "serial number". Tell the program what number to start with, and print as many as you want. I use a style with thirty labels per page, so in a few minutes I can have two or three hundred new labels ready to go.

To be honest, while I wholeheartedly agree with the idea that a nicely printed label greatly improves the filing system/process, I absolutely wouldn't file things promptly if I had to stop and fuss with a one-at-a-time labeler like a Brother. I am not exaggerating when I say that using the "pre-printed" method and Powermarks, you can file something in just ten or fifteen seconds.

[Anonymous]

Bill thanks for your reply on LabelPro. Another question, I had as I was filing away a College Savings Account statement for my kids in my current A-Z system. I could file it immediately because I know exactly where the folder is.......Switching to the Powermarks/Numeric System would require me to sit at my computer, open PM, type in what I am looking for, and then be told by PM where numerically the folder is. Seems that for certain frequently accessed folders, an A-Z system is still superior, or am I wrong?

Paul Skikne
Owner
Montana Avenue Realty
Santa Monica, CA

[whkratz]

Paul -- No, you are not wrong. My Numeric/Powermarks system is for "Reference" filing. Financial records go in there own alpha system (along with a few other "monthly" kinds of files) that is completely separate from the numeric system. It is separate both for convenience and security reasons.

The numeric reference system is for all the material that may be needed/useful, but that isn't accessed regularly. Typically, this means one item per folder. The exception to this is archiving things like project files. When a project is completed, if the working folder contains things/info that may be needed/useful in the future, I move the contents to a numeric folder and catalog the keywords in Powermarks.

Hope that helps.

[MarkChristensen]

Hi,

How do I avoid duplicate files in an A-Z filing system??

At work, I use a numeric filing system ("File Don't Pile" based) and really like that I can cross-reference. For example, if I were to have maintenance done on a car - let's say a Honda Odyssey, I might originally file it under "Honda" (only own one Honda). Weeks or months later, when I need to file something else, I might look up Odyssey. Finding nothing I would then look up Honda, slap myself on the forehead, and write the numeric code for the file under "Odyssey" also.

Okay - I can slap my forehead just the same with an A-Z system but I've sometime run into duplicate problems. I have an A-Z system for some personal filing (to make it easier for some family members to access) but recently discovered that I had two files for the same topic. In the above example I would end up with a "Honda" file and an "Odyssey" file, having made the second one (probably in haste) when I didn't find a file. (I'm stretching the example a bit here - I would probably have known better than to make a second file for something that I should have known I already had filed for.) It typically happens for things that I don't handle much. My most recent problem was with "Community Education" and "ISD 197 Community Education" (ISD is for Independant School District). Two folders doing the same job.

So - how do others handle this problem? Am I just too quick to make a new folder?

Thanks,

Mark

[Guy Bjerke]

Mark - I've set up a small database in Access. That allows me to both print labels in an Avery #### format and an alpha report of existing files. If I think I may have already created the file I can either search the database or simply refer to the hard-copy, alpha report of existing files that I keep on my desk. HTH.

[intrigueme@aol.com]

Good Morning :)

For anyone who doesn't want to think too much on a Satuday morning (or any morning for that matter) i want to ask why we have a topic heading about "Super Simple Filing" that has already involved at least three extra pieces of software/hardware, etc.... (lol)

Here's what's been working for me - personally (I have about 300 files at work, and about 100 or so at home)

I'm using "the basics" as David outlined either in the book, or here on the board:

Brother P-Touch Labeller ($40 at Costco) Brother P-Touch Label Tape 1/2" Wide - Back on Clear (getting a little "wild" here, because David recommends the white tape) I use "square cut" folders that are sealed on three sides, so that if I have to grab it, shove it in my briefcase, run into a meeting with it, (or worse) lend it to a fellow worker, I'm more secure that nothing is goig to fall out of it.

All the Brother Labels are placed exactly in the center of each manilla folder's square cut tab.

I grab the "whatever" - I think (in two minutes or less) about where it "fits" in my life, what "Category" or "Area of Focus" that it fits into. At home - this might be "Insurance - Auto; or Insurance - Home; then the name of the policy." There are also "Vital Doc's" folders set up for everyone in my family - for things like insurance cards, SS cards, Copies of passports, Driver's Licenses, etc...

At work - those folders can be something like "Client Name" - "Project Name/Number" - "Project Component" OR "Internal Department" - "Department Topic" - "Department Report" or "Department Individual."

I then have some hanigng pendaflex dividers (cut in half) with nothing but "A," "B" etc.. on them, to form a quick "visual index" for the files.

Sure enough - as David (or someone else) said - you open the file drawer; and the consistent placement of the labels, consistent size & shape of the files DO create a three-dimensional "index" or "Table of Contents" for what is in the drawer.

I don't use a separate document to keep track of what's there. The drawers themselves do it.

For those with even more files, and who may be "Database-Phobic" instead of Access; why not just good old "Excel?" There is not that much data that we are trying to organize, and Excel is just as capable of sorting by topic, drawer, etc....just by clicking on a column heading. The benefit to Excel is that you can "strap it to your waist" using your Palm and "Documents to Go." If you've got A LOT of files - just make each letter of the alphabet it's own spreadsheet in Excel. You can then search the entire workbook, or just individual sheets if you need to.

For me, I keep going back to David's yardstick about having "as many buckets" as you need - but "no more." I try to keep my system as "intellectually clutter free" as possible, and for me "simple is powerful." Sometimes I surprise myself with how WELL the basics do work. Its usualy a surprise because I'm not putting my focus into thinking about the system. It just "is."