Editing The Pen Addict 111/transcript (section)

== Field Notes Editions ==


'''Brad Dowdy:''' All right, Josh. So what do you think about this edition?

'''Nifty:''' That Pandora's box is exactly where my mind went.

'''Josh Ginter:''' The moment I pulled these things out of the pack, I was blown away first by the size. I just, you get really used to that smaller size and these bigger books. But as I wrote in my review there, I found that I don't use them the same. I have started using actually both of them. I've got both. I use the arts for sketching out ideas for articles or for reviews, especially. I started using it for an entire outline of the arts and sciences review I wrote. And then I used the sciences book at the accounting office that I work at. So I've got a nice, I like using the blank pages for rough calculations and then little notes or to-do lists or whatever I've got to remember. But my experience so far is that I don't carry them with me. I leave them at my desk at home or at my desk at work. And I think that entirely changes. Entirely changes, at least for this idea. It's a different idea for field notes. For me, at least a mobile book, a book that you throw in your back pocket or you throw into your book or your bag and you pull it at the coffee shop or something along those lines. These books, they're different. They're not, I don't know what you guys find, but I find I don't use them the same. I already have different types of information in them. And I'm intrigued with that. I really hope that the field notes brand jumps on this opportunity to kind of take on an entirely different product line. That's what I'm keeping my fingers crossed for.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Do you know what? There was one thing that I did want from this edition, and it would be cool if they found a way to do it now, is to put a little band that goes around them to keep, you know. I don't know. I feel like at this size, there's kind of like this. I mean, I know it's convention, which is probably why they wouldn't and shouldn't do it, because I'm thinking like all of the other notebooks this size have the little bookmark in them and the elastic that goes around them. But I don't know. At the same time, I think it might be kind of cool to do something like that, to make a more conventional business-y style notebook. Yeah. For field notes.

'''Josh Ginter:''' Myke, do you find that the books are at the bigger size? You kind of expect the covers to be like thicker? Or Brad, do you find that, do you want them to be thicker, the covers? Or do you like how, like this kind of size reminds me of like a moleskin, like the general moleskin book. And I expect it to be like a thicker, sturdier cover. But it's not really like that. So it's its own dimension. But like, what do you guys find?

'''Brad Dowdy:''' I've actually always preferred the softer cover on this size notebook, just because of the flexibility. Like if you're using a moleskin of this size and the, so like I use this, you hit it on your review, Josh. I use this more as a desk notebook, right? The size and the format, you know, lends to that. And that's actually my preferred writing size. Like it's close to an A5. And that's what I always use on my desk. You know, that general, that ballpark five by eight inch size. And I don't know, you metric people might not understand that, but y'all can Google it.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' But this, but in this format, I prefer the softer cover just because of the thinner, the thinner book, like the thicker moleskins that are this size that have, you know, three or four times as many pages, it's harder for me to write on because of that space gap when you're writing with your, like if you're resting your hand on it and there's like a huge cliff falling off the edge of the notebook down to the desk type of thing.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Have either of you ever used the soft cover moleskin? Yeah.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. That's my, that's my favorite moleskin. Me too.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Oh man. I had one of those. It was like, I don't know what size it was, but it was bigger than the usual moleskins. It was moving towards ledger size. And I loved that notebook.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' That I, I still have some of those. That's the soft cover moleskins have always been my favorite. So this field notes is right up my alley.

'''Josh Ginter:''' So Brad, you were talking there about, I guess earlier I had said my expectation. You expect like this bigger, thicker cover when you have a book this size. But I, I think like utility wise, this soft cover is way, way smarter and it screams to be used. My, my hardcover moleskin book, it sits on my desk here at home and I haven't written in it in months. But that's just me. I hate the way my hand drops off and the way you've got to bend the first few pages. And that's, I, I can't stand that. So this soft cover is certainly better. It's just like your first initial expectation is for it to be thicker.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. I knew I liked you for a reason. We, our, our thoughts on these things are, are so similar and I agree. I agree. A hundred percent. You know, I, I, I'm trying to think the last hardcover notebook I've bought because that's just not my style anymore. I like this size field notes with the soft cover. I like, I like a five pads either, you know, just like a wire bound or a perforated pad. I have very few hardcover notebooks that I enjoy using now that I think about it. I think it's because, I think it's for that reason. The, the size is a little bit intimidating and, you know, just to have you, you, you feel so super committed to one of those books. And I like to be able to plow through a field notes book at a faster pace and then change onto something else. You know, if I want to change my mind and use a different edition or use a different color or, or whatever, or use it for a different project. Um, you just feel more pimped into those bigger hardcover, um, notebooks. And I think that's why, you know, these products, um, have, have hit such a home run for everybody.

'''Josh Ginter:''' I think, I think there was a command space episode, Myke, where you were talking about, uh, with Mr. Kudal there at one point. And he had said the best part about the field notes books is that they, like they are better used and, uh, and they're like this thinner book that is, um, smarter. It just, like you said, there's like an intimate attachment to those big books and these small ones, they are, uh, I agree there, they're want to be used and they look better used and they, yeah, it beats that for sure.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. Jim's opinions about field notes, I think is what, and I know they all have this, everybody that works there is the same. We know that. Um, but the, the opinion that they have about the way the books, they, it sounds like such a simple thing, but the idea that the notebooks that they make are notebooks that are intended to be used. Like, I don't feel like you get that in other scenarios. Like they, I feel like there's a lot of choices that they make and also just in the way that they sell the products, you know, the marketing terms that they use, they're very much like, don't, we're not going to tell you about artists that used to use these pads, you know, that died and we're not going to slip a little thing in there. You know, we're basically telling you, fill them up, fill them up with all kinds of crap. Just fill them up. Like that's kind of a, I mean, I've, I've distilled it quite significantly and made it a bit more crass, but that's effectively what they tell you to do, right? Writing it down to remember it now, right?

'''Josh Ginter:''' Rather than later. Exactly.

'''Myke Hurley:''' They just fill it up and, and could all, like I asked him what he used these for. And like, I remember him telling me like, like city things like recipes or like, um, shopping lists, but also like scores for get card games. It's just, he just fills these up and I see people do the same. Like when I go to WWDC and I see the people that I know are field notes nerds and they have them with them and they just fill them up with stuff, you know? And I just think that's so great. And that's my favorite thing about field notes. It's why I don't mind burning through them. Like you said, Josh, that you did about three or four pages of writing every day. I did the same, but it's not writing. It's just notes. Like things happen in a day where I'm like, right. Okay. Write this little note down for myself, put it in a box. Okay. Oh, now somebody wants me to help them rewrite this subject line. Let me write out 20 different ways of saying this.

'''Myke Hurley:''' That's impressive.

'''Josh Ginter:''' You're a busy man. That's impressive. I don't know how I can come up with that many little scribblings in a day, but.

'''Myke Hurley:''' My field notes books, you know, I started scanning them in, Brad. Basically now, if I scan in 10, 15 pages, it's a miracle. Yeah. Because I've stopped scanning in the things that are pointless, right? Like where it's that stuff. I'm like, I'm never going to need this again. Like there's no point of this. So I just scan in the things that I need. But. That's true. You know, and it's also why I tend to have like six concurrent field notes books. Because some of the projects, I keep them separately and then, you know, but they don't leave the house. And then I have like two on me at all times.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' And yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Like I definitely have a problem. Yeah. I was going to say, I've just finished two, like within a day of each other, you know, kind of simultaneously finishing two notebooks because they were used for different things. Because, you know, like one of these, my podcast notes notebook I filled up last week and then the one I carry, carry with me just for general stuff I filled up last week. So now, which it was a good timing for the arts and sciences to come in. So I took this week's podcast notes and planning in the sciences edition. So I'm really happy with it.

'''Josh Ginter:''' Do you like that engineer grid so far? Do you like the way that? Yeah. Yeah.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' I'm a huge grid fan. You can almost never go wrong. As long as the lines aren't too dark, I'm all about grids. Yeah. Grids are, I've said this all along, grids are the most freeing line format for me. They, I feel the least restricted on what should be the most restricted format. And I can't explain it. It's just always been that way. It's been that way since I was a kid. I've always hunted down graph paper. I hate lines. So maybe if, if anyone wants to trade their engineering for, for arts and sciences, I mean, their sciences for arts, I'm all ears.