SEMI OFFICE

i have all emailed/fax communication in my email on my pc as well as on email server (I also have separate email that only purpose is to copy my main one), copies of rate cons and bol on separated (by brokers) folders. Original paperwork, mostly bol are in file cabinet along with all other companys paperwork. On all of my scanned bol or rate cons I place date in filename. And I have log of trips in spreadsheet. So yes, I have 3 backup copies of some documentation. It takes me just few min to find info for the past trips and show it up on my screen.

 

Good. Lots of folks out there that would lose everything in one fire.

 

I do have on my phone them as well, it just a bit faster for me to do it from the laptop. In case I forget my laptop at home, I'm totally covered with the similar apps in my smartphone. I just like to use things on bigger screen.

 

Yeah, I don't want to put all eggs in one basket.

 

I did almost everything on my phone, but I did a lot of oversize and cross-border stuff so some paperwork has to be printed (permits, customs, etc.).

 

Permits and blind shipments are why I got an HP Officejet 250. Comes in handy not having to deal with finding a printer near the border or on tight schedules.

 

I think I paid $35-40 for my HP 2540 (on sale at Staples or Wally World). That's the cost of what, two truck stop faxes? Three? Plus, like you said, avoiding the aggravation... priceless.

 

How else can it be done for a single independent owner, as if not from the cab of the truck? That makes me think, how did independents go about it 20 years back? Truck stop payphones and faxes...stopping a few times day, must have been much harder, I guess. What about the concept of a load board back then..was there even any? Or rather did they have to know a limited bunch of brokers and work them only? Someone could write a book "The Modern History of North American Trucking" ...best if illustrated.

 

They had a free load board at the bigger truck stops; a TV, where all the loads just kept scrolling and scrolling. There were also cork boards with brokers numbers. And a buttload of phones.

 

I guess back then 20-30 years back, after the deregulation, it was really a challenge to figure out what the rates and lanes were on average. I can imagine some were running the same lanes with quite different rates...or else it did take the market much longer to adjust as to what lanes should pay what. Kind of interesting staff, the old - pre Internet times.