Best PPL LOG BOOK SOFTWARE???

[Holloway]

Whats the best PPL Log book software. Ive had a look at a few but they seem really cheap and dont have a nice interface to use.

Your suggestions???

[Jepp]

As 'off the shelf' logbook programs go,I wouldn't bother.

Most have horrible ( tacky looking ) interfaces, and are very Americanised ie adding in tenths of hours,info on FARs etc.

Best way is to create an Excel one of your own, I did one and it looks very much the part, even if I say so myself !!!:cool:

[Holloway]

Email it to me will ya :) he he ;)

[SunderlandMatt]

I'll have a copy too if you're offering ;)

[Ian_Wannabe]

'n me if its not too much trouble ;)

Cheers

[Jepp]

Chaps

If somebody can explain how to send an Excel program, I will gladly send you all a copy.

Regards
Jepp

[BRL]

File > Save As.... then attatch to an e-mail (I think)!!

[Fly Stimulator]

To send an attachment if you're using Outlook then just open a new email message and address it, then either:

Click "Insert", then "File" then navigate to the spreadsheet file, select it and click the "insert" button to attach it
or
Click on the paperclip icon at the top of the new mail message window, navigate to the spreadsheet file, select it and click the "insert" button to attach it
or
Drag the spreadsheet file over the new mail message window and drop it there

I too use an Excel spreadsheet which I adapted from one I found on the web. The original is by a chap called David Williams. (http://www.dmjwilliams.co.uk/) To download it, right-click on this link (http://www.dmjwilliams.co.uk/download/logbook.xls) and choose "Save target as" to save it to your own machine.

It's fine as is, but I couldn't help fiddling with it to include a facility to look up airfield names and ICAO codes. If anybody wants a copy of that just send me a PM with your email address and I'll send you a copy.

[FormationFlyer]

Well as an instructor I personally recommend

Jeppessen FliteLog

Its an easy to use program...100% configurable columns.

It is significantly freindlier than excel, supports multiple logbooks and filtering (without the need to understand excel).

I found it good for both microlights, ppl, instructing, and cpl (both se/me/sea/twin etc - copes with it all). Its not too expensive either. I wont even look at an excel spreadsheet these days...

[rosewellian]

For a CAA accepted JAR Compliant PC/Palm OS logbook try Skylog
Free 30 day trial at skylog.co.uk

[SteveR]

A usage-based on-line solution is what you want - then all the backing-up is taken care of for you, and you only pay when you use it.

I'll declare an interest - I run a website which offer just such a service and our very own Cap'n PPRuNe has been a keen user. I won't break the rules by posting a link (e-logbooks typed into a search engine should do it).

I'm also a satisfied user of my own site - I lost my logbook last month (in Le Touquet - anybody found it?) and boy was I chuffed to have a full backup available...

Steve R

[SKYYACHT]

Jepp.....if you have a copy, I too would be grateful......Formation Flyer, up to a couple of weeks ago, I would have joined you in recommending Jeppesens FlightLog, as I have been running it for a couple of years on a PC with W98. However, I recently upgraded to XP, and discovered that the programme will not run on it. I contacted Jeppesens, and asked if the new version was available as a download.....answer no. Asked girl in technical department at FRA if new version would simply upload all my old entries........two days later got an email confirming that new FlightLog would not read old files......I found this difficult believe that a major company would not build upgradeability into a programme as important as this. As a result, I contacted the tech department in FRA again, and got the same answer! I got the severe arse ache about this, and I am now considering a future programme that has a more friendly upgrade policy. Anyone know any different?

Blue skies

[Holloway]

that spreadsheet is by far the best!!!

thankyou :)

One Question. If a flight was for 55 mins do I enter that?? If i type 0.55 it comes out as 0.6hrs???

Thanks



OK, Spent a bit of time trying to work this out. The cells need to be in hh:mm format instead of a general decimel format. Does anyone have it in HH:MM format, i tried changing it but it messes everything up :(

[Fly Stimulator]

OK, due to almost overwhelming demand, I have put my modified version of the spreadsheet online.

Right-click here (http://www.theflyingschool.co.uk/FlyingLogbook.zip) and choose "Save target as" for the compressed version (120k), or here (http://www.theflyingschool.co.uk/FlyingLogbook.xls) for the uncompressed version (500k)

This one will work out the times for you given flight start and finish times in HH:MM format and will put them in the SEP or MEP columns as appropriate as long as you have set up the aircraft types at the top of the sheet.

It will also sort out the day and night entries if you choose 'D' or 'N' in column 'J' - it defaults to day if you leave this blank. If a single flight includes both day and night time then you'll just have to work out the split yourself and enter the numbers into the right columns manually.

To look up the airfield names and codes, click in the cell where you want the name to end up then press the three keys 'Ctrl, 'Shift' and 'A' at the same time. Highlight the airfield you want and press OK.

The list has most UK, French and New Zealand fields with ICAO designators. You should be able to work out how to add more of your own. If not, I will consider requests written on on the back a £10 note :)

I use it as a backup to my paper logbook and find it very useful. Your mileage may vary.

[Holloway]

YOU STAR!!!! I tried this and it all went BARMY!!!!!!!

Thanks agian :) looks puka, ill fill it in now :) :D

[Courtman]

I'm writing an Access logbook which will keep track of your 90-day landings, medical expiry, CofR expiry and just about any other thing you can think of. When I can work the kinks out of it and figure out how to make it an executable file I'll make it available on the net....

[Holloway]

sounds cool!!! :) Dont think it needs to be and EXE just a database file would do it :)

[dmjw01]

<grins> I spotted a peculiar increase in site traffic for a day or two last week. The server log showed that people were surfing in from this thread - it made my day to discover that people found my logbook spreadsheet useful!

I like the improvements Fly Stimulator has made to it! When I first created it I was still a student and thought I'd never fly more than 5 aircraft types - but I'm pushing that limit myself now. I like the automatic calculation of your flight times - and the airfield lookup feature is nice!

It's worth checking out Steve's e-logbooks (http://www.e-logbooks.co.uk) site too. He's recently added some nice new pie chart stuff in the statistics, and it's fun to be nosey and browse other people's log books.

[Holloway]

thats really cool :) the iprovements make it a lot better but the whole idea and thing was great in the first place. just needed tweeking :)

Well done :)

[Fly Stimulator]

David,

Glad you don't mind my building on your excellent foundation!

I flew a new type today (Cubair's DA40 - very nice) and in adding it to the spreadsheet discovered I'd left out some formulae.

I've corrected the downloadable ones, but if anybody has already dowloaded it, you need to highlight the row of cells from F8 to AD8 and drag them down to row 15 (calls F15 to AD15) to copy the formulae into the empty cells.

Sorry about that :O

[Coke611]

Jepp- if it isnt too much trouble, can i have one too? Cheers:D

[skydriller]

Fly Stimulator & dmjw01,

Just wanted to publicly say thanks for an excellent Spreadsheet:),

...And for making it available via pprune!!

Regards, SD.

[teech]

Fly Stimulator,

Many thanks for posting your spreadsheet, that is really a sweet solution for keeping a quality backup on my laptop. However, even with a truly microscopic Vaio, I still can't be troubled to lug it around on every flight abroad (OK, I admit it, I forget it more often than not), and rely on e-logbooks (http://www.e-logbooks.com/pilots/) to stop me getting way out of date in the tedium of synchronising electronic and paper logs.

Thanks again! :D