I found myself printing all kinds of information from websites thinking I'd use the information later. This caused so much chaos around my desk and on top of my dresser as my office is set up in my bedroom. I've found things I've printed and wondered why I printed them.
My solution to this problem was to unplug my printer altogether to eliminate the impulse. When I pay a bill, rather than print the confirmation, I write it down on the bill itself. I'm hoping this solves my problem with organization.
By Betty from Lubbock, TX
Add your voice! Click below to comment. ThriftyFun is powered by your wisdom!
I try not to use my printer but not because of disorganization, I do this to save on the price of ink as those cartridges are costly. I always left the printer off as I figured it used less electricity that way.
When I pay a bill, I also write down the confirmation number and other info on the bill itself. No need to print anything. Same goes for recipes. If I want one I write it down myself. I used to print many recipes and never use them.
Our printer ink dries out so quick. We don't print things every day but it seems like every time I go to print something the ink is dried out. I try to print an email once a week just to use it. But is it normal for an ink cartridge to dry out in 2-3 months time? They aren't cheap.
I named a folder in my Yahoo email "Print". I can access that email account from the local library & for 10c black & white & 25c for color copies I can print whatever it is I really want.
My Printer comes on during Startup, but I just turn it 'off' as a habit; plus when I print anything, I just highlight the data that I want, then select 'Selection' when prompted for the print. This saves ink as well.
I'd recommend that you print out receipts using the selection method as this will only take up about 1/6 of the sheet and you can use the bottom side to print out the receipt from a different company (flip the sheet) and don't forget that you can use the back of the sheet as well (ie, 4 receipts on 1 sheet).
Another method I use for receipts, is to create a folder in your email system [Cable TV; Telephone; Credit Card, etc.] and move the receipt to that folder....no printing and you can delete it after a month or two.
I copy & past the confirmation of payment, or whatever it is I need, and email it to myself. Then, when I know the transaction did go through, and is showing up on my bill and/or bank acct., I can either delete it or save it to a folder. This method removes a LOT of stray papers from my life, and over time I'll save a tree, or at least a couple branches? :)
I do have problems with ink drying up, so I think I'll make sure I print some coupons every week, instead of waiting until I'm ready to use them.
I thought HP was making cartridges that were slower to dry up, specifically for low-use consumers, but the last time I bought ink I didn't see any of it. Anyone know more about that, or what it was called/what different numbers or whatever are on the packaging? (I should've kept my packaging!) I haven't really scoured the HP website about that yet, so if I do find more info, I'll try to remember to share it here!
I'm thankful my printer uses toner rather than ink! I rarely print anything, except to let hubby read, since he complains he can't read from my computer screen. For that reason, I only turn the printer on long enough to actually print something. I'd turn off the surge suppressor, but since my cordless phone's base unit is plugged in to the same outlet (it's actually plugged into the printer,) that's not workable.
While I do print my Visa payment receipt once a month, it usually works best for me to note confirmation numbers in my "notes to myself" MS Word document. Then I only have one line to delete once the item has cleared my account. Other bills, , if I can pay electronically and get the receipt emailed to me, I copy and paste the whole thing to a Word document and save to my "money matters" folder. I make sure the payee's name and the date paid are in the file name: for example, "mortgage receipt 02.09.2010.doc."
btw, this method totally works for me because I'm visually impaired and haven't enough usable vision to read even the largest, boldest print. I'm being green and selfish at the same time, I suppose.
I do what Janiebean (above) does. I rarely print anything unless I have to. I have a file named 'receipts' and after I email the payment information to myself, I file it in the receipt file.
I push "print" and then "save as PDF"
Easy. Green. Cheap. I don't even own a printer.
I just print to Microsoft One Note. It saves a copy in my computer.
Add your voice! Click below to comment. ThriftyFun is powered by your wisdom!
