| Why you need the RecordsKeeper! |
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Because most of us keep records of things in various ways and in various formats, and because we often find ourselves looking through files and binders to locate information, there is more and more of a need to be able to keep a reference to everything of interest in one place. If you look for software to help you do this, you will find that many specialize in one area or another (physical assets, financial transactions, and family lineage) but few provide the ability to keep track of virtually everything.
In many instances, family members and heirs are simply unaware of the existence of a myriad of things (accounts with unclaimed assets, insurance policies, heirloom collections, and so on) and they are often not properly recovered, and either lost or claimed by governments. The instances of situations like this are well documented, and emphasizes the need to keep better records of your assets, and keep them in an accessible way.
The following quote from State Farm Insurance says it all regarding the need for a home inventory. "An accurate inventory and proof of ownership at the time of a loss can make claim settlement easier and faster. The inventory will take time to compile, but the time and frustration it may save you later will more than make up for it. This checklist will help you compile your home inventory. A good home inventory includes a detailed list of your possessions including receipts, descriptions and photos of your home’s contents." To see the State Farm Insurance check list referred to, click here. You may also like to view what the American Home Inventory Protection Association has to say on their website about the importance of a home invontory. To do so, click here. Finally, the Insurance Information Institute provides additional insight and another checklist at their website. To view it, click here.
In today’s world of computers, there are so many more things to keep track of (licences, sign-on identifications, passwords, web-sites, web-pages, and so on) that it is becoming more and more necessary to keep better records, and records that are easily organized and accessible.
Having medical records (past and current conditions, family members' conditions, medication regimens and important health measure indicators) well documented and organized in easy to read reports can be beneficial during visits with physicians, when dealing with insurance companies, and when traveling.
Having well organized records about a myriad of things that are important to you but which would not likely be included in a will because of their nature will help family and estate executors with understanding, locating and disposing of your possessions. Finally, as computers are used more and more for almost everything (shopping, paying bills, investing, banking, etc.), not everybody in a family or group may have all the details needed to carry on affairs should someone or a main user become incapacitated, or be absent for some period of time. With this system, things of importance can easily be passed on to others. However, passwords do protect information that one does not wish to pass on.
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What you should use it for! |
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RecordsKeeper is meant to keep records that are relatively static in nature, that is, records that do not change much or infrequently. Records of insurance policies, stock and mutual funds, bank and investment accounts, wills, contracts, certificates and the like are all candidates for the RecordsKeeper.
RecordsKeeper does not replace your high transaction systems, but it can be used to keep a record of where those systems are, how to access them, and how to use them.
The one dynamic area where you will find it useful is for keeping a record of time measures for things that are important to you. In this area the system provides you with the ability to keep track of targets and limits as well as the measures themselves. It also provides the ability to portray the data in meaningful charts with trend lines. Examples might include keeping track of your weight, your cholesterol levels, or the number of miles or hours you run or jog each week, month or day. | |
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What you should Not use it for! |
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the RecordsKeeper is not meant to replace other systems or database applications that are designed for specific transaction processing, such as financial transactions (Quicken, or MSMoney), or spreadsheets (Excel) that are very dynamic. Instead, the system simply points to those applications and keeps notes about them (how they are used, why they are used, where they are, what they contain, how to access and use them).
So for example, if you have a collection of photos, it might be best to use photo management software to manage them, and then this system to identify their existence, purpose, location and so on. The same goes for a collection of music, financial records and similar items. | | |
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So!
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So, think about your family or executors and what they will have to go through trying to sort things out if you do not have a thorough and disciplined set of records to help them.
So, give yourself some peace of mind by knowing that you have instant access to virtually everything you might want to recall at some point in time.
So, give it a try. There is very little to lose except a bit of your time, but a lot to gain in being better organized. Only your imagination will limit what you can do.
So, have fun!
Home Inventory, Cataloging, Record Keeping and Personal Information Management Software for your PC |
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© Copyright Reserved, RecordsKeeper Software, 2009
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