Logbook - old dog - old tricks

[saddletramp]

I recently filled my fourth logbook. It was a Standard Master Pilot logbook. Not sure how many pages total but way over 200 with 18 lines per page. I'm not bragging about the hours because there's a slug of people that have much more time than me. This is my 49th year flying & it's all been GA - so not too bad.

I decided a few months to go back to being a CFI full time. Suddenly I was filling my logbook much faster. I've done some instructing in the last decade but most of my time has been putting around in my 182.

I'm a big time Foreflight user & sign my students electronic logbooks all the time. I kept asking myself electronic logging or stay with paper? Since I knew my logbook was about full a decision had to be made.

Yesterday, I ordered another Standard Master Pilot logbook. AT 65 years of age I doubt I'll fill this one but, I do have a 93 year old friend that still flies his Cardinal RG almost daily, so you never know.

After thumbing through my logbooks & reliving so many great flights with funny remarks I decided to support the paper industry. I look forward to filling the pages.

 

[PeterNSteinmetz]

That is the nice thing about the paper logbooks. A tangible reminder of good times. I can see why you just want to stick with it.

 

[Clip4]

I wish I could find an electronic logbook that I could dictate the entires.

 

[saddletramp]

I wish I could find an electronic logbook that I could dictate the entires.

Please explain.

 

[midlifeflyer]

That is the nice thing about the paper logbooks. A tangible reminder of good times. I can see why you just want to stick with it.

Just as I can appreciate how some people like that tangible feel, I can also appreciate how others like to be able to find that flight they took years ago in about 6 seconds.

 

[midlifeflyer]

Please explain.

You don't have to tap keyboard or write. Just talk.

hmmm... Kinda surprised there isn't one.

 

[luvflyin]

Has anyone with like many hundreds of hours done the transition. Like get out your old log books and start making all the entries into the electro log thing to get it started. I did. And quit not long thereafter when realized how long it was going to take

 

[steingar]

I’ve been backing up my logbooks electronically for years, I just use an excel spreadsheet. Was a lifesaver when my first log book staged an escape.

 

[luvflyin]

You don't have to tap keyboard or write. Just talk.

hmmm... Kinda surprised there isn't one.

Based on some of the gobbledygook I’ve seen from talking text messages, phone trying to transcribe messages etc, I’m not seeing this as working very well.

 

[midlifeflyer]

Based on some of the gobbledygook I’ve seen from talking text messages, phone trying to transcribe messages etc, I’m not seeing this as working very well.

You've seen my posts. Plenty of gobbledygook when I type. I'm even worse when texting.

 

[luvflyin]

You've seen my posts. Plenty of gobbledygook when I type. I'm even worse when texting.

Lol. Thing with logbooks is gobbledy up just one digit and the whole thing becomes wrong

 

[Brad W]

Just as I can appreciate how some people like that tangible feel, I can also appreciate how others like to be able to find that flight they took years ago in about 6 seconds.

I'm still in my first paper logbook, and it's not even one of the large ones... lots of long rusty pilot stretches through the years. A couple years ago I was reminiscing & I made myself a project to enter the logbook into a google sheets spreadsheet. Fortunate I guess that my logbook is thin. Still it took several evenings entering lines while mutitasking in front of the TV or doing some other things....I also have a scanned image of all the pages.
I have found these digital versions extremely nice to have. I even went back and added time in type columns, and even by tail number. Using online resources I even entered SN's for every aircraft I could find. A few I could not that were either penned with the wrong tail number or were long ago stricken from the FAA registry. Many of the entries were scribbled so sloppily or so small trying to fit too much info on a line that I just can't make it out.... some of the instructor's names for example, I'd love to remember but never will know... I didn't enter most of the comments for this reason but I can always go back and look at the paper or scanned images as a cross check.

Anyway, I'm old fashioned and still prefer the paper but can certainly see the appeal of digital. It has been very fun to be able to search back on a whim, even when at work or anyplace really....