Augment the reality of your mobile office

Disclaimer of shameless self-promotion: You thought I was going to suggest some outrageously difficult process to produce a cool augmented reality work space.  I am truly sorry, but my suggestions here are really meant to provide some of the tech-averse professionals whom I know with a way to bridge the gap between their beloved physical user interface (paper) and the digital reality of their professional lives.  That said, I love the idea of augmented reality and highly recommend visiting places like AugmentedReality.org for an overview of this interesting blending of the physical and the virtual.

How do you define your mobile work space?  When we are on the go, we all have our favorite set-ups.  For example, I like to travel light (as shown in the photo).

What about paper products, though?  Do they have still a place in our mobile lives?  For me, the answer is a resounding "yes".  I have multiple notebooks (I admit to being a bit of a Moleskine fan.) that I use to jot down fast meeting notes, ideas, project deliverables, etc.  I know, I could use note taking apps on my iPad or iPhone, and I do when the situation requires them.  However, sometimes I'm in a situation where paper is preferred, namely, in outdoor locations or times when I need to conserve device power.  When I return from the hinterlands of digital hostility, I then have to hunt down the note and search for any scribbled reference to a particular web document.  In order to solve this annoying interruption to my workflow I have considered the three main options.

1. Find a hardware solution: I have used an older version of the Livescribe smartpen in the past.  The previous iterations of this device used a pen with a special IR camera that could record writing and recorded audio through the use of special stationery with special coding already in the paper.  The newest versions of Livescribe's device , the SkyTM, is an impressive device that syncs via wifi.  While this sounds excellent, the downsides are the cost of the device (starting at $150), the cost of the special stationery, as well as the fact that you need to keep the device charged. 
2. Find a stationery solution: Another viable option is to find a paper option that easily scans with a mobile device and has augmented reality-esque features.  The folks at Moleskine have an option for this issue that has been available for some time now.  Moleskine's Evernote Notebooks allow you to add special stickers, sticky notes, etc. to your notes, and the paper is optimized for the camera feature within Evernote.  This option, though less complicated than another device, still requires the purchase of "special" stationery.
3. Augment normal stationery: My solution on this problem does not require special purchases.  I use a tried and true way to bridge the physical to the virtual, the QR code (The one here is to an old chemistry Facebook page that I created for students in my former days in the traditional classroom).  

"Groan!", you cry, "QR codes are so annoying!  And some of them found in public spaces are downright malicious!"  

True, these little digital gems can hide serious dangers within the public sphere, but that doesn't mean you should throw them out entirely.  When you generate them yourself, you can use QR codes to mange your projects or augment your tried and true handwritten records for easy recording of information at a more convenient time.

I generate my own codes through a QR code generator, aptly named, The QR Code Generator.  I plug in the links to specific documents, blogs, or other important project that I need to track.  Once the code generator makes the QR code I save the image as a PNG file.  I then copy and paste these codes into a template for printed labels. (see the example below with disabled codes), et voila, an inexpensive means to "augment" my old fashioned stationery. 

I print these codes out as labels and attach them to whatever notebook contains the written material.  I can then stick the QR code to a page that I have written in one of my notebooks.  If I leave room on the label for a brief written note or reminder, I can make sure that my writing goes to the correct location. (see next photo).

In the end, you will have to discover the method that works best for you.  Until then, play around with this inexpensive means to make sure your writing can be easily sorted.