Best Electronic Logbook?

ebykowsky

ebykowsky

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I'm looking to transfer my logbook to an electronic database while it is still short, and would like opinions on the best.
Requirements:
Info saved online for access from any computer; free; relatively easy to use.
 
i just transfred mine to myflightbook.com they had an iphone app as well very easy to transfrer i didnt do much research but it was free and easy.
 
Just remember that you need to keep a paper logbook with the instructor pen-and-ink signatures for training received and signature/endorsement for required endorsements unless your e-log is compliant with AC 120-78, or is otherwise "acceptable to the Administrator." To my knowledge, the only 120-78-compliant e-log system for general use is Zululog, which requires that the endorsing/signing instructor also be a paid subscriber.
 
Ron Levy said:
Just remember that you need to keep a paper logbook with the instructor pen-and-ink signatures for training received and signature/endorsement for required endorsements unless your e-log is compliant with AC 120-78, or is otherwise "acceptable to the Administrator." To my knowledge, the only 120-78-compliant e-log system for general use is Zululog, which requires that the endorsing/signing instructor also be a paid subscriber.
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For BFRs and whatnot I've been having the CFI write it out on a piece of paper, scanning it and inserting it into the excel row for that flight. Been working fine for me so far.

Having to have a paid membership or a computer handy just to sign a log is a PITA as far as I see it.

For a student pilot I'd 100% recommend staying with a paper log until after training.
 
NineThreeKilo said:
For BFRs and whatnot I've been having the CFI write it out on a piece of paper, scanning it and inserting it into the excel row for that flight. Been working fine for me so far.
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I'd still save the paper. Yeah, I know, photocopies are acceptable as long as you sign something saying it's a true copy before presenting it to the Feds, but...

Having to have a paid membership or a computer handy just to sign a log is a PITA as far as I see it.
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Me, too, which is why I haven't done it.

For a student pilot I'd 100% recommend staying with a paper log until after training.
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I think that's a good idea. But still make photocopies/scans of each page as you finish them, just in case.
 
I tried out myflightbook and really like it--thanks Marcos! I'll still be keeping my paper, but having it safely online is a nice feeling should I ever lose the physical copy. As for excel, I lost all my computer data even with an external hard drive so that isn't a sure fix, and I hate Google docs. I love that myflightbook can track all your flights on Google Earth and allows video upload for each flight--exactly what I wanted and more.
So, I think I found the answer to my question!
 
ebykowsky said:
I'm looking to transfer my logbook to an electronic database while it is still short, and would like opinions on the best.
Requirements:
Info saved online for access from any computer; free; relatively easy to use.
Click to expand...

Granted, but now the FAA can....

Oops wrong thread (hint hint.)
 
Sac Arrow said:
Granted, but now the FAA can....

Oops wrong thread (hint hint.)
Click to expand...

I'll humor you, but man, having a job that I actually have to do things for really eats into time for things like POA postings. Plus, racking up 800 posts in a few months was a little out of hand in the first place.
 
I also am working with MyFlightBook and it is easy enough to use. I really like that you can download to an Excel file, so even if the site up and croaks I still have the Excel spread sheet.

I understand that I need to keep paper for things like BFR's and training which is not a big deal. About 15 years ago I nearly lost my original log book to a flooded basement. I managed to dry and iron out all the pages but unfortunately some of the posts were with a felt tip. Note to all, never use a felt tip to wright down anything in your logbook. If it gets wet it ends up as a big blob of color.

Should I scan my logbooks and keep a running backup just in case the house burned down and I lost it?
 
I use the free version of zululog to back up my paper. Just make sure that you do not put your flying future in the hands of some website - do regular pdf downloads and save/print them.
 
tmyers said:
Should I scan my logbooks and keep a running backup just in case the house burned down and I lost it?
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Scanning the images, signatures, endorsements, and all can't hurt. That's the belt, suspenders, and velcro approach.

Storing the file on a thumb drive and a cloud drive service (eg. google drive) would reduce the risk of the hard drive with the scans being stolen, burned, or going tango uniform.
 
Tarheelpilot said:
I'm reviving an old thread to see if anyone has experience with SafeLog.
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I use SafeLog. I manually entered almost 400 hours of flight time when I started out. I was going to use MS Excel. But, decided I liked the iPhone app for SafeLog as well as being able to log into the website from any internet connected computer.

Also, each time you "Synch" your app, you have an independent copy of your complete logbook that is separate from the SafeLog cloud. You can also download a copy of your logbook in delimited text (*.csv) that you can import into excel.
 
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wilkersk said:
I use SafeLog. I manually entered almost 400 hours of flight time when I started out. I was going to use MS Excel. But, decided I liked the iPhone app for SafeLog as well as being able to log into the website from any internet connected computer.

Also, each time you "Synch" your app, you have an independent copy of your complete logbook that is separate from the SafeLog cloud. You can also download a copy of your logbook in delimited text (*.csv) that you can import into excel.
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Do you know anyone that used their import service from other apps. I have almost 6k hours in log ten pro and want to migrate away from their program. No way I"m going to start all over.
 
I was presented with an electronic logbook to endorse. I am not sure if it is "acceptable to the administrator". It did ask for name, certificate number an expiration date and electronic scribble pad for a signature, plus a remarks section.

How is a CFI to know?
Of course this pilot was rated, getting recurrent in gliders and meeting our insurance checkout requirements. His paper logbook was still in movers packing boxes. I told him he needs to find it for his "aero tow" endorsement, or we'll need to complete some more training for me to provide an endorsement in his electronic logbook.
 
Tarheelpilot said:
Do you know anyone that used their import service from other apps. I have almost 6k hours in log ten pro and want to migrate away from their program. No way I"m going to start all over.
Click to expand...

Sorry. I tried LogTen Pro and decided I like SafeLog better before I had very many flights logged.

Also, I still use the paper logbook. I just have the e log for backup and sort/filter functions. I also store photos of all endorsements.
 
I use Logbook Pro. I actually haven't filled out my paper one in about a year. I update it about once or twice a year on a rainy day.

Airline reps have told me that they would rather have the electronic one printed instead of my actual logbook. They said it's easier to read in the short time they have it.
 
I was wondering whether any of the logbook apps, either for iOS or Android, can automatically record take-off and landing time as well as departure and destination airport, using GPS?

This would be really handy for those os us who tend to forget to make such notes. :redface:
 
Yes, the MyFlightBook app will do this as I recall (I use the app and website, just not usually this function).
 
German guy said:
I was wondering whether any of the logbook apps, either for iOS or Android, can automatically record take-off and landing time as well as departure and destination airport, using GPS?

This would be really handy for those os us who tend to forget to make such notes. :redface:
Click to expand...

Yes, indeed. MyFlightbook can do this. You'll need to turn it on in the app's settings, but then just indicate your engine start time and it will watch the GPS until you indicate that the engine is stopped. (If glider, just pretend you have an engine :)). It will note the time of your first takeoff, of your last landing, airports you visited, # of landings and whether they were full-stop or night-full-stop, and cross-country time (if you go > 50nm). You can also have it auto-fill total time based on this.
 
Is there a log program that has an OCR feature so I can just scan the pages into the database?
 
Henning said:
Is there a log program that has an OCR feature so I can just scan the pages into the database?
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Holy crap, that would be both cool and incredibly difficult, based on the pilot handwriting in logbooks that I've seen.
 
JeffDG said:
Holy crap, that would be both cool and incredibly difficult, based on the pilot handwriting in logbooks that I've seen.
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True, but I have had surprising results with OCR, and my writing is not too neat. Even Siri does amazingly well when compared to the early Dragon stuff.
 
@ Russ + Eric:

Thank you. MyFlightBook seems to work great. I tried in on my drive home from work: 8 full stop landings, total 'flight time' was 24 minutes. :D
 
There is a new option on the Market called Pilot Partner (https://pilotpartner.net). It actually isn't new. The original version was written in 1997 but it went quiet for many years. They are just getting started, but it is actively being developed and has some unique features that makes it pretty cool.
 
Whatever you choose, make sure to maintain your own backup. Just got this email yesterday:

skylinked.com said:
SkyLinked Logbook is Shutting Down December 31st 2015

After 6 years in business, SkyLinked.com has decided to sunset its pilot logbook product at the end of 2015. The website will remain operational through December 31, 2015. At that point it will be shut down.

We have sincerely appreciated your business and hope you have enjoyed using the product. With a renewed passion and focus in other areas we simply can no longer give SkyLinked the attention it deserves.

There are several great logbook services available. We hope one of them will fit your needs going forward. Here are a few options you might want to consider:

LogTen Pro X (Mac, iPad, iPhone) - Cost Varies
Pilot Pro (iPhone, iPad, Web) - $39.99
MyFlightBook (iPhone, iPad, Web) - Free

Thank you for your understanding and support. Please let us know if you have any questions.
Click to expand...
 
flyer299 said:
There is a new option on the Market called Pilot Partner (https://pilotpartner.net). It actually isn't new. The original version was written in 1997 but it went quiet for many years. They are just getting started, but it is actively being developed and has some unique features that makes it pretty cool.
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David, did you add OCR? I didn't see it mentioned.
 
Myflightbook.com is great. I've donated to them a couple times....
 
I switched from logten to logbook pro, and now I'm using mccpilotlog. Powerful with a nice interface. Free for the basic version (unlimited entries).

Can't hurt to give them a try...

http://www.mccpilotlog.net/preview/
 
I use FlightLog by Jeff Cardillo.
It's free, and it's configurable so I was able to make a template for endorsements. Yes, yes, I know it's not "officially approved" but it's nice to have the endorsements in order on the dates you completed them and in a searchable database. The search and create\send reports functions are nice.
I back the database up from whatever device I'm using, to Dropbox, which allows me to restore to all my different devices so they can be in sync.
 
Logbook Pro , literally does my logbook for me with the schedule import feature.
 
flyer299 said:
There is a new option on the Market called Pilot Partner (https://pilotpartner.net). It actually isn't new. The original version was written in 1997 but it went quiet for many years. They are just getting started, but it is actively being developed and has some unique features that makes it pretty cool.
Click to expand...
I attempted to create a new account there to see if I liked it. There was an issue with the signup process. So I posted a note to their facebook page and after they fixed it they gave me a year subscription for free on top of the initial trial period.

A nice touch is when you add an aircraft to your logbook, as long as it's in the FAA database they will already know what it is. Type in the tail number and they populate some details like registered owner/address, type/category/class/year, etc.

Another cool thing is if you enable public sharing, you have access to a blog entry on the same screen that you enter your flight on. So after you enter the hours, etc, you can blog about the flight while the details are right in front of you. I like it. :)

It's definitely still in the beginning stages, and there are some rough edges. But if you're willing to point out the problems and wait for them to be fixed, it could turn out to be a good service. They at least have a service-oriented mindset.

I'll probably use something else as my primary logbook (currently using paper and an excel spreadsheet saved on dropbox.com), but I'm going to also use Pilot Partner and see where it goes.
 
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Tarheelpilot said:
Do you know anyone that used their import service from other apps. I have almost 6k hours in log ten pro and want to migrate away from their program. No way I"m going to start all over.
Click to expand...

Tarheelpilot, I also would like to get away from logten pro X. Have you found any apps that would accept imported data from logten pro X?
 
N1783M said:
Tarheelpilot, I also would like to get away from logten pro X. Have you found any apps that would accept imported data from logten pro X?
Click to expand...

If you can export into a csv file myFlightBook will take it. You may have to rearrange columns.

John
 
poadeleted20 said:
Just remember that you need to keep a paper logbook with the instructor pen-and-ink signatures for training received and signature/endorsement for required endorsements unless your e-log is compliant with AC 120-78, or is otherwise "acceptable to the Administrator." To my knowledge, the only 120-78-compliant e-log system for general use is Zululog, which requires that the endorsing/signing instructor also be a paid subscriber.
Click to expand...

MyFlightbook allows for signatures of flights and endorsements, and it is compliant with AC 120-78 as far as I am able to determine. There is no certification for this; it is self-certify. The gory details of the implementation and why I believe it conforms is at http://www.myflightbook.com/logbook/Public/FAQ.aspx?q=23#23.

(Note: I am the author of MyFlightbook)
 
jsstevens said:
If you can export into a csv file myFlightBook will take it. You may have to rearrange columns.

John
Click to expand...

Indeed. I can also help with this - contact me at myflightbook - at - gmail.com.
 
myflightbook is great.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
dans2992 said:
myflightbook is great.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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I've been using it for 2 years myself.

You never know if somebody will break in your car or house fire.

All flights are logged in there and after 2 or 3 flights I will 'catch up' in the paper book which stays in a safe.
 
N1783M said:
Tarheelpilot, I also would like to get away from logten pro X. Have you found any apps that would accept imported data from logten pro X?
Click to expand...

Pilot Partner has a full featured import system that can take files from just about any Source. We have created a training video showing how it works:
 
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