Reloading Ledgers

[FordPrefect]

I have been working on a personal web based reloading ledger to keep track of all my reloading data and whatnot. After adding some features and realizing that there are a few people where I work that have shown interest in what I am doing I thought to ask here if there may be any other interest in what I am working on.

It is basically as I have described it, a web based ledger, really easy to use and look up historical loads. I would link to where I have it but given that I started it as a personal project, I would prefer not to show it to the world as of yet, mainly due to access privileges.

If anybody has any interest in this, please get with me and I can go into more detail.

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[AMProducts]

I have something like this I've worked on for a number of years, it's all CGI based with a mysql back-end. I'm probably going to open source it.

My tool is geared towards ammunition manufacturers.

I'm great at back-end perl programming, I'm horrible at web site design.

Care to collaborate? See if our goals meet up?

 

[FordPrefect]

Sure. I am sending you a PM with the link to my current ledger. It's not much. It was my starting point and I've been working on it from there to make it more secure.

 

[AMProducts]

Sure. I am sending you a PM with the link to my current ledger. It's not much. It was my starting point and I've been working on it from there to make it more secure.

My suggestion... (if you're using MySQL on the back-end) is assign an ID to each load, and even if the load changes, keep the old one in the book. You can handle feeding the most up to date load by picking the one with the highest ID, the real trick is making sure the ID is the key-field. (so there can be only one) and in your sql insert statement, just have it be an auto-number field. You might want to have a column for a depreciation date. That essentially says "this load is depreciated as of ... "

 

[FordPrefect]

I am using a SQL Server database. The method applies to that as well. The one I would use for a more robust "production" web application would use multiple tables to remove duplication of the data.

For that one I have most of the code-first written to take the example of what I sent you in the PM. There are other things I want to expand on; cost per round, check box for selected load workup, and a few other things. Real work just became a larger time sink for me the past few weeks so I have not had much time to work on it. Not to mention I need to get domain/hosting for it to check its functionality off my computer.

 

[Sgt Nambu]

Nice, when I was reloading, it was pre PC's! A notebook and the box labels had to tell the tale!

 

[FordPrefect]

Nice, when I was reloading, it was pre PC's! A notebook and the box labels had to tell the tale!

I just got started reloading earlier this year when I picked up my 500 Smith. I got tired really quickly of needing to write everything down on a ledger form (paper, card, whatever). Don't get me wrong, when I am loading I still write everything down that I am doing so I don't fsck up anything, but for "long term" storage and having the ability to look up data, I decided to write a simple personal one for me and that got me going on a bigger more secure one.

 

[evltwn]

3 x 5 index cards in a file have worked for years in my "boom room". In my case a "file dump" would mean picking up a mess on the floor. It can be pretty uncomplicated being an analog old coot in a digital world.

 

[Sgt Nambu]

^^^^ True! If you didn't grow up on 'puters, you probably type a lot slower than you write. I know I do!

 

[thorborg]

I can see the usefulness and convenience of your endeavor. If I was 25 again could be onboard. I'm on my second three ring binder of archived loading info and were it to burn I'd be definitely depressed.
On the other "web" side, after surviving two computer intrusions (so far) stealing or ruining all my pictures and documents, also two thefts of credit card info (Target & Eddie Bauer) fortunately paid by the credit card companies, and every time I buy something on line am spammed with lots of junk mail, I'm not so fond of computers, the internet, or the banking system when it comes to security.
I applaud your inventiveness though and hope you succeed.

 

[FordPrefect]

I can see the usefulness and convenience of your endeavor. If I was 25 again could be onboard.

Does it count that I am 43? I know that most people may not be attracted to this. I know that issue you have with the storing stuff in the cloud. I think that has happened to everybody at one time or another. One of the things I am trying to do with it is make it minimally invasive to collecting any personal data. Basically I would need a First/Last name (could be made up for all I care), a valid e-mail (so I could enable password recovery), and a unique user name.

Not trying to say anybody's way is the wrong way to do it. I understand wanting to keep paper records. I wish I could say that I am good with paper records. I usually find a way to screw them up and wish I had done an electronic way. That was my main impetus, I know me too well.

 

[AMProducts]

I just got started reloading earlier this year when I picked up my 500 Smith. I got tired really quickly of needing to write everything down on a ledger form (paper, card, whatever). Don't get me wrong, when I am loading I still write everything down that I am doing so I don't fsck up anything, but for "long term" storage and having the ability to look up data, I decided to write a simple personal one for me and that got me going on a bigger more secure one.

I've written notes on things for years, however given that they're analog they're not easy to replicate, and as such they're also easy to lose. The Page I PM'ed you is actually from an internal mediawiki site, I've done my best to digitize all of my notes, and keeping track of stuff on the wiki is so much easier. However it's worth noting that I've been a unix guy since I was in HS. So installing and running web-applications locally is pretty easy to do.

3 x 5 index cards in a file have worked for years in my "boom room". In my case a "file dump" would mean picking up a mess on the floor. It can be pretty uncomplicated being an analog old coot in a digital world.

It's all about work-flow. Create a digital record, and then print it to labels you can stick on your cards and ammo boxes. The real advantage to using digital records is preventing loss. The second is being able to track change over time in that you have a system that essentially forces you to document things.

I can see the usefulness and convenience of your endeavor. If I was 25 again could be onboard. I'm on my second three ring binder of archived loading info and were it to burn I'd be definitely depressed.
On the other "web" side, after surviving two computer intrusions (so far) stealing or ruining all my pictures and documents, also two thefts of credit card info (Target & Eddie Bauer) fortunately paid by the credit card companies, and every time I buy something on line am spammed with lots of junk mail, I'm not so fond of computers, the internet, or the banking system when it comes to security.
I applaud your inventiveness though and hope you succeed.

Time to put the grandkids to work doing data entry!

Honestly, it sounds like you may want something like this, and also a NAS to back up your data to.

Does it count that I am 43? I know that most people may not be attracted to this. I know that issue you have with the storing stuff in the cloud. I think that has happened to everybody at one time or another. One of the things I am trying to do with it is make it minimally invasive to collecting any personal data. Basically I would need a First/Last name (could be made up for all I care), a valid e-mail (so I could enable password recovery), and a unique user name.

Not trying to say anybody's way is the wrong way to do it. I understand wanting to keep paper records. I wish I could say that I am good with paper records. I usually find a way to screw them up and wish I had done an electronic way. That was my main impetus, I know me too well.

I would drop the first/last, and just go with an e-mail and an account name and password.

 

[thorborg]

Does it count that I am 43? I know that most people may not be attracted to this. I know that issue you have with the storing stuff in the cloud. I think that has happened to everybody at one time or another. One of the things I am trying to do with it is make it minimally invasive to collecting any personal data. Basically I would need a First/Last name (could be made up for all I care), a valid e-mail (so I could enable password recovery), and a unique user name.

Not trying to say anybody's way is the wrong way to do it. I understand wanting to keep paper records. I wish I could say that I am good with paper records. I usually find a way to screw them up and wish I had done an electronic way. That was my main impetus, I know me too well.

I'm more carved in stone than I am un-attracted to the web Idea.
With two finger typing it would take days to transfer my data.
Weeks on learning the new system.
Months remembering where And how I stored what I wanted to find.
Plus, I gotta say The computer is not for the long lived unless one loves to be a computer expert. If computers were really user friendly and smart, everything you learned to do on a computer would be added to the new and improved version along with any modern up grades, instead with each new rendition one is required to scrap the old and learn the new. Frankly I am tired of that, when paper stands timeless. When the power goes out and I'm out of rifle powder I can still look up my loads using shotgun powder as a replacement. I've got data I saved on 5 1/2" floppy some of it got transferred to 3 1/2 in hard disk, then to 4 3/4 " CD's and now to little flash drives. stuff I put on the earlier storage devices and did not transfer are not available to me even if I had the drives as the new systems can't read them. I can however still read my writing from the second grade. And, anything that finds it's way to WWW no longer belongs to you unless of coarse someone wants to hang something on you then its all yours.
I'm not trying to squash your efforts, you are right inline with modern technologies albeit I would save your notes and paper scraps as a back up.

 

[evltwn]

So...can you still save to the "cloud" on a sunny day???

 

[FordPrefect]

So...can you still save to the "cloud" on a sunny day???

Yep. That's the good thing about it. Though here in the North Wet it's just about time for the six months of rain to start

 

[Crohnos01]

I consider myself to be fairly computer savy for an old fart in the modern world. I built my first computer from parts and pieces in 1981, and until last year worked as an engineer/IT manager for the engineering firm I worked for.... that being said, my load data is on paper. I get tired of dealing with the software and hardware changes required every few years and when I am reloading and/or shooting , I am doing so to relax. Dealing with the @#&^/ computer would be counterproductive in that goal... but that's just me and I am probably getting crotchety in my old age.

 

[FordPrefect]

I get tired of dealing with the software and hardware changes required every few years

I understand. I kind of approached this as a solution in search of a problem so I didn't expect much enthusiasm. for it. One thing though, with the way that I am doing this, there isn't any software to install on your computer. It is going to be a web application, i.e. run in your web browser. Eventually I would like to make smart phone apps as well, but that would be a future state and out of the current design now.

 

[Crohnos01]

I wish you the best of luck. No doubt others will be more enthusiastic than I. I'm just kind of anti-cloud for a variety of reasons and as I mentioned earlier, kinda becoming a grumpy old man....