A personal organizer, day planner, personal analog assistant, or personal planner is a small book/binder, designed to be portable, usually containing a diary

Diary (stationery)

In stationery, a diary is a small book containing a main diary section with a space for each day of the year with room for notes, a calendar, and usually various pages at the beginning and end containing various pieces of reference information, which may include maps and telephone codes, and pages...

, calendar

Calendar

A calendar is a system of organizing days for social, religious, commercial, or administrative purposes. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months, and years. The name given to each day is known as a date. Periods in a calendar are usually, though not...

, address book

Address book

An address book or a name and address book is a book or a database used for storing entries called contacts. Each contact entry usually consists of a few standard fields...

, and other sections usually including blank paper. It may also include pages with useful information, such as maps, telephone codes. It is related to the separate desktop stationery items that have one or more of the same functions, such as appointment calendars, rolodex

Rolodex

A Rolodex is a rotating file device used to store business contact information currently manufactured by Newell Rubbermaid. The Rolodex holds specially shaped index cards; the user writes the contact information for one person or company on each card...

es, notebook

Notebook

A notebook is a book or binder composed of pages of notes, often ruled, made out of paper, used for purposes including recording notes or memoranda, writing, drawing, and scrapbooking....

s, and almanacs..

For some the function of paper-and-binder personal organizers, a 20th century innovation, is being assumed by electronic personal digital assistant

Personal digital assistant

A personal digital assistant , also known as a palmtop computer, or personal data assistant, is a mobile device that functions as a personal information manager. Current PDAs often have the ability to connect to the Internet...

s (PDAs) and personal information manager

Personal information manager

A personal information manager is a type of application software that functions as a personal organizer. The acronym PIM is now, more commonly, used in reference to Personal information management as a field of study...

 software on personal computers. Some personal organizers attempt to bridge the gap by featuring holders for PDAs.

See also

• Day-Timer
  Day-Timer
  Day-Timers, Inc. is a corporation based in East Texas, Pennsylvania. The primary product line consists of various styles of calendars and dated planners but they also provide many other products with a focus on time management and personal productivity...
  
  
• Filofax
  Filofax
  Filofax is a company based in the UK that produces a range of well known personal organizer wallets. The organizers are traditionally leather bound and have a six-ring loose-leaf binder system. The design originated at Lefax, a United States company based in Philadelphia who exported products into...
  
  
• Franklin Planner
  Franklin Planner
  The Franklin Planner is a paper-based time management system created by Hyrum W. Smith. It is marketed by the FranklinCovey company, and promoted by Stephen Covey. Physically it consists of a ring binder holding specially designed loose leaf pages...
  
  
• Getting Things Done
  Getting Things Done
  Getting Things Done is an organizational method created by productivity consultant David Allen, described in a book of the same name....
  
  
• Circa Notebook
• Task list
• Time management
  Time management
  Time management is the act or process of exercising conscious control over the amount of time spent on specific activities, especially to increase efficiency or productivity. Time management may be aided by a range of skills, tools, and techniques used to manage time when accomplishing specific...
  
  
• List of personal information managers
• Hipster PDA
  Hipster PDA
  The Hipster PDA is a paper-based personal organizer, popularized by Merlin Mann. Originally a tongue-in-cheek reaction to the increasing expense and complexity of personal digital assistants, the Hipster PDA simply comprises a sheaf of index cards held together with a binder clip...