The Synoptic filing-system

Abstract

Manual documentation systems - both punched card and card-filing systems - have always one and the same and in view: to save human memory from the effort of storing data. As regards their storing capacity these systems may substitute and even surpass that of the human brain, but do not possess at all, or only to a small extent the associative ability of the human brain.
Data filing systems can only be used as data sources if - according to given viewpoints - certain data or groups of data can be retrieved, in other words, only if they are endowed, to some extent, with what has been described as associative ability.
The SYNOPTIC filing-system is fulfilling this requirement, is easy to handle and ensures rapid retrieval.
The main formal characteristics of the system are: the upper edge of the cards fits into a plastic card-holder. By means of card holder-shaped grooves it hangs from a table-stand so that it may be moved. Small plastic tabs of different colours may be fitted into the slots of the card-holder so that identical charactaristics of a document are marked with tabs of the same colour and placed in identical positions. Thus, the selection (retrieval) can be dona by a simple glance.
Using the simplest possible marking system, cards of A/6, A/5, and A/4 size permit a number of 370, 510 and 711 marking positions respectively. By adopting a coding system these numbers may easily be multiplied.
The markings can simply be modified by shifting the tabs. The SYNOPTIC-system is thus very suitable for registering not only permanent, but also changing data.
Special SYNOPTIC cards, furnished with pockets, may well be employed by registers working with numerous enclosures. Ths system is particularly suitable for revealing the interrelationship of data stored.
A few examples are given on the wide-range applicability of the SYHOPTIC-system: as in the UNESCO Library in Geneva; the Paris Radio Centre, the Renault Motorcar Factory and in the French Blood Transfusion Center.