18
votes
Signing a new credit card
I sign with a Sharpie*. Not a fine tip one either. It doesn't wear off and it's easy to read. Nobody has ever objected. We keep one around for writing on CDs and DVDs anyway.
*Sharpie is a brand name ...
- 1,422
16
votes
Dispose of sensitive paperwork
Place the shredder somewhere where you'll pass by it many times during the day. Shred a few papers every time you pass by it. It'll still take a while, but it's not such a daunting prospect when you ...
- 6,234
11
votes
How to write in a straight line without lined paper?
The easiest way to do this is to
get another piece of paper
print or draw lines set to the ruling you want (the height of the
lines) in dark black ink on that page
place that page underneath the ...
- 311
11
votes
Dispose of sensitive paperwork
Bite the bullet and find a place to burn them. It's the only way to be sure. You can plant trees all the way home from the incinerator.
- 111
9
votes
Signing a new credit card
Pens for labelling CDs/DVDs work very well for this. They won't wipe off and come in sizes of about 0.5 or 0.7 mm, around about that of a ballpoint pen.
- 1,729
8
votes
Accepted
How to remove charcoal droppings on an eraser?
You need to erase on a blank sheet of paper or a rougher surface to "sand" the dirty part of the eraser out. You can erase on your desk surface to get those dirty crumbles out. Your eraser is getting "...
- 906
7
votes
Dispose of sensitive paperwork
If you live in or near a city, you can probably find a business that offers shredding as one of its services. The ones I've found offer guarantees of privacy for your sensitive documents. The ...
- 11.5k
7
votes
Signing a new credit card
Banks and financial institutions prefer the miserly thin line you dislike. Forgers love thick lines that disguise small irregularities in a bogus signature. It's VERY difficult to forge a signature ...
- 13.8k
7
votes
What to do with left over calendars of previous years?
If you can keep them until 2026, the days will be aligned the same as they are in 2015. ie Jan 1st is a Thursday and 28 days in Feb.
EDIT : More explanation. You can use a 2015 calendar as a 2026 ...
- 1,729
7
votes
Randomizing papers
Take a well shuffled deck of cards and paperclip a card to each one in turn. Then sort them into deck order A..K spades followed by A..K hearts, A..K diamonds, A..K clubs.
- 1,729
7
votes
How can I remove gel (?) Ink from a book?
If all your attempts at removal fail or you do indeed damage the paper in an attempt at doing so, I suggest what I would have probably done instead of writing directly into the book:
Use a matching (...
- 3,196
6
votes
How to deal with eraser shavings effectively
The two items you linked to are novelty items and are unlikely to work well. The tool professionals (e.g. draftsmen) use for this job is a drafting brush like this one:
(not recommending this ...
- 6,234
6
votes
Accepted
How to remove/hide/destroy senstive information written on paper without a machine?
Ripping it up is as secure as the obfuscation you can apply to the task.
A shredder is actually not a very secure method, unless your total shredded quantity is high. Re-assembly is just a jigsaw ...
- 2,147
6
votes
How to remove/hide/destroy senstive information written on paper without a machine?
Eat it
If it's a small amount of paper, then eating it would be very effective.
- 1,884
6
votes
Accepted
Stuck photos while inside an envelope
If they are gelatin-emulsion based, as used in traditional photography (or some coated ink-jet papers), hold the back side of the pack over a steaming kettle and let the steam slowly loosen the rear-...
- 5,928
6
votes
How to COMPLETELY peel off a sticky price tag or label on a book or item without the gunky residue?
Use a hair dryer and pull perpendicular. It softens the glue so that it stays on the sticker instead of the book. Glue residue can be removed with white spirits.
However, some glues are really hard ...
- 201
6
votes
Accepted
How to write with a pen upside down?
Good that you mentioned astronauts in one of comments, because this reminded me some myth that cosmonauts used to use pencils while NASA spent lot of money on creating spece pen
This article says ...
- 548
6
votes
Accepted
Fuse / patch two papers side-by-side without noticeable seam?
Turn the ticket over and work on the back.
First, clean the desk where you will work. Use good lighting in your work area. Wash your hands thoroughly.
Carefully match the two pieces and join them ...
- 13.8k
5
votes
How to seal envelopes without licking
Use a cool mist humidifier. I discovered this by accident one day. Stuffy nose & allergies so I brought a humidifier to work. Just run the glue part of the envelope back & forth across the ...
- 51
5
votes
How to revive dried up pens
The idea is that the tip is clogged. And you want to allow it to flow again.
--
You may try to dilate the tip (and slim the ink) with heat to allow the ink to flow. Other answers have already ...
- 171
5
votes
Signing a new credit card
An engraver/Dremel. I just signed my new credit card with an engraver with a thin point, and it looks great and is visible (even without ink). I might use a thin sharpie to write over it.
A ...
- 51
5
votes
How to remove/hide/destroy senstive information written on paper without a machine?
If you have a lighter or a match stick, burning it will be a good option. Off-course, it's better to burn it on a metal surface away from flammable substances. If you can't find metal surface, you can ...
- 244
5
votes
How to comfortably carry a pen drive in any attire without risk of physical damage?
Many flash sticks / pen drives nowadays have keyring loops.
I simply carry a flash stick on my keyring - like this...
As my keys are always in my pocket if I'm outside the house, the flash stick is ...
- 1,818
5
votes
Applying identification mark on a glass trophy
Even simpler than the clear tape mentioned in another answer:
Write or draw directly on the (bottom of) the trophy with a permanent marker, remove it with rubbing alcohol or nail polish remover when ...
- 3,196
5
votes
Stop ink stains on hand when writing for left-handed people
Most left-handed people I know turn the page at an angle (which differs between individuals) that allows their left hand to slide above or below the line they just wrote.
This certainly needs some ...
- 2,976
4
votes
How can I sharpen pencils without a dedicated sharpener?
I like to use an emory board to sharpen or shape a drawing pencil. I don't expect it would work well for starting from scratch ; ) with a new pencil, but works well otherwise.
- 41
4
votes
How to write in a straight line without lined paper?
Obtain or make lined paper with extremely thick lines - if necessary you can make the black line as thick as a line of writing, and leave gap below it of the same height. If you put that underneath ...
- 141
4
votes
How to avoid answer papers being flappy under a fan?
If there are multiple answer pages, you can clip them together with paper clips, binder clips, or bulldog clips. Being bound to each other, that will limit how much they can flap around in the breeze.
- 11.5k
4
votes
What's a good way to track my correspondence?
When reading your request I immediately thought about using a tickler archiving system.
In the tickler system you have multiple folders: one inbox folder, one for each day of the month, some have ...
- 6,984
4
votes
How to remove/hide/destroy senstive information written on paper without a machine?
I often use your idea of writing over the letters with other letters. But I always write over every letter with an "8" and then an "X". That makes every letter look like exactly the same weird ...
- 11.5k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible