I took Moose's suggestion to buy some cloth/velcro battery cases from
<http://www.greenbatteries.com/nylon-battery-wallet-a-battery-case-and-digital-memory-card-holder/>
This case is actually designed to carry 4 AA batteries but is also an
appropriate size for many camera lithium batteries. The important
information from Moose was that the case has a clear plastic pocket on
the outside which can be used for a battery status indicator. That's
mentioned on the product page but I missed it. It also has a similar
size pocket on the inside of the case which can be used for similar
sized thin items.
I decided to buy 5 of these cases. After receiving them I was wondering
what to use for a status flag. I measured the plastic outside pocket
and found it to be slightly more than 1" x 2". The inside cloth pocket
is also slightly more than 2" wide but is almost 2" deep. I suddenly
occurred to me that a piece of 4x6" print paper folded in half
length-wise and cut into six 1" wide strips produces 6 1" x 2" double
sided (and fairly durable) "status flags". They just needed to have
some color added. So, from 2 pieces of print paper I made 6 status
flags which are red on one side and green on the other and 6 more status
flags which are yellow on one side and white on the other. I chose the
colors as meaning: Red - needs charging, Green - fully charged, yellow
- partially charged (maybe usable if you really need a battery right
now) and white - case is empty.
You can see them here
<http://www.chucknorcutt.com/Battery%20cases%20&%20status%20flags/>
The first of 3 images shows the finished status flags in and around the
fabric cases. (there are also 2 plastic AA cases shown also sold by
greenbatteries.com) The next two images show the layout of two 4x6
prints that when folded, back glued together and cut into strips makes
the status flags. These are just for illustration, they're too small
for printing the flags.
This page, however,
<http://www.chucknorcutt.com/Battery%20status%20flags/> give you 2 links
to download printable JPEGS that you can use to make the flags. After
they're downloaded make sure the resolution is 250 ppi to get a proper
4x6 print.
After printing fold each print exactly in half on the long edge. The
print will not want to stay folded but that's good since you need room
between the sides to install some sticky stuff. I tried gluing the
halves back to back on my first try which made a big sticky mess. On
the next try I used 3 strips of double sided tape. I pulled out strips
about an inch longer than the print for ease of handling and used the
excess length to stick the paper to the kitchen counter which helped
hold everything in place until I was done. After the 3 tape strips were
in place I pressed the other half of the print down onto the tape and
then rolled a large circular coffee mug back and forth over the paper to
press it down firmly on the tape. Carefully pry the prints off the
kitchen counter and trip the excess tape off with scissors. Remove the
first set of excess (double-sided, remember) tape pieces from the
scissors or they'll give you trouble trying to cut the next set. Don't
ask how I know that.
You will end up with two double-sided flag pieces for each case. You
can stick them into the clear plastic pocket back to back or, use the
inside pocket for the flag that's not currently in use.
Have fun,
Chuck Norcutt
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