Sanctum mekkanicum

Why a Great Pen Makes All the Difference

2009-03-20T15:18:00.000+01:00

At Stepcase Lifehack, David Pierce has written a short article about how great tools makes life easier:

I’ve started to realize that the particular pen you use, or any given tool, really does make all the difference, and has a huge effect on how you feel about what you’re doing, and how well it gets done.

I am a certified gadget freak, so buying a brand pen or notebook comes as second nature to me. However I have had that nagging feeling that discussing brands and makes of pens are slightly, well, over the top. But it can't be denied that David is right, it makes all the difference taking notes in a Moleskine than in a no-name notebook for instance.

There's always time to launch your dream

2009-03-17T13:42:00.001+01:00

David Heinemeier of 37signals has written a short and to point article:

...I’m sick and tired of hearing “no time” as an excuse for why you can’t be great. It really doesn’t take that much time to get started, but it does take wanting it really bad. Most people just doesn’t want it bad enough and protect their ego with the excuse of time.

So true. I realized this a couple of years ago, and since then I have never used the "I don't have the time" argument. It's just a matter of priorities.

And also, don't let the task ahead daunt you. Every long journey starts with one step, followed by another. Focus on the single most important task that needs to be done now and do it. You will find that you have the time for it.

The High Priests of IT — And the Heretics

2009-03-15T17:33:00.002+01:00

Image via CrunchBase

Cory Doctorow writes in Harvard Business an truthful article named "The High Priests of IT — And the Heretics":

The dirty secret of corporate IT is that its primary mission is to serve yesterday's technology needs, even if that means strangling tomorrow's technology solutions. The myth of corporate IT is that it alone possesses the wisdom to decide which technologies will allow the workers on the front line to work better, faster and smarter — albeit with the occasional lackluster requirements-gathering process, if you're lucky.

My own experience from my current corporate work only confirms (sadly enough) the article. I want an Apple iPhone as my company phone! But will the IT-dept let me?

Terry Pratchett: Making Money

2009-03-14T09:33:00.001+01:00

Image via Wikipedia

I have just finished Making Money by Terry Pratchett. As usual, a great read but not as entertaining as the previous book about Moist von Lipwig, "Going Postal". As one reviewer at Amazon writes:

But for a Discworld novel, "Making Money" lacks Pratchett's usual shoot-from-the-hip-and-mouth-and-other-body-parts originality. Maybe Moist von Lipwig, former Postmaster General and current trouble-shooter at the Royal Mint, is too slight a character to have the weight of two Discworld novels resting on his shoulders. Maybe his antics at the Mint are too similar to his antics at the Post Office.

But then again, I always have very high expectations on a Pratchett book. I have already started on next book, Wintersmith.

100+ resources for GTD

2009-03-10T20:38:00.000+01:00

Well, the years has passed by but Getting Things Done is still my major productivity tool. For those of you who like productivity p0rn just as much as me, the below link is a gateway to hours of unproductive browsing.

GTD Toolbox: 100+ Resources for Getting Things Done

GTD in 2009 (Flickr)

Ha! The corpse is alive!

2009-03-09T13:19:00.002+01:00

Ok, my blog is now officially reanimated from the dead.

I promise to start bloggin again mother!

Moleskine sighting

2006-10-23T08:12:00.000+02:00

While watching a Schweppes commercial I noticed a couple of, what seems to be, Moleskines on the bar counter. Here it is at YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKZqLo7pTRA

And, if you want to get Moleskine inspiration, visit Moleskinerie and the Moleskine Flickr Photo pool.

GTDrawings

2006-09-05T08:57:00.000+02:00

I just want to link to these wonderful illustrations of different GTD concepts. David Allen, buy these to illustrate the next edition of "Getting Things Done"!

GTDrawings: " Joan M. Mas
Location:Illes Balears"

To Get Things Done, you don't need GTD tools

2006-07-25T00:57:00.000+02:00

After following the Lifehack/GTD scene for almost two years, I have come to the conclusion that David Allen's "Getting Things Done" is not a set of rules or the ultimate guide book. It is a very, very good starting point for setting up your own personal productivity system. All of the suggestions in the book is solid, but to make it work for you, you'll need to write the final chapter yourself.
We have to realize that the book originally wasn't intended for, well, everyday people. It was written for the busy, high performance, CEO in the business world. Someone with many contacts, reports and travelling time.

Thats why we see so many different successful implementations of GTD. Lifehackers tweak the system so it fits them and the tools they have at hand. For instance using GMail or Backpack instead of Tracks or GTD TiddlyWiki. Writing in Moleskine's instead of using DIY Planner cards.

So, when you decide that GTD just might be the hack your life needs, don't start by searching for the perfect GTD tool. Build it yourself. Start with what you have in front of you and work from there. Try to fit GTD into your life, not the other way around. The chance for success is much greater, and it is much more fun.

My wallet, Jimi style

2006-07-19T12:11:00.000+02:00

Almost a year ago I got myself a smaller, sleeker wallet. It was a Smartcaze Urban FX Flipover Gold which I was (and still are) very pleased with. However, a couple of months ago I was drawn to the Jimi walle t, "The wallet for people who hates wallets". Since then I have been carrying the Jimi and yes, it is even better then my old Smartcaze. The Jimi is thinner but can still carry slightly more, even bills, something the Smartcaze can't. So I give the Jimi two thumbs up for design, but only one thumb for price...

The hypnotic power of the progress bar

2006-07-16T22:16:00.000+02:00

Why is it that whenever the progress bar show up on the computer screen, I just shut down and sit and stare at it? Maybe I can't multitask, but the computer sure can so it is with just willpower I manage to tear my eyes from the slowing moving bar and do something else..

I think it is a defect from my old days with Apple System 6.

Moleskine Reporter DIY pen holder

2006-07-14T13:18:00.000+02:00

A pen holder for my Moleskine Reporter. Here seen with a BIC Velocity Gel.
The basic idea for this pen holder is not mine, I know that I have read it somewhere in the blogosphere a long while back. My "improvements" are a transparent sheet of thin, hard plastic and a thin elastic cord. It is actually a lamination sheet that I run through the lamination machine without anything in it, it makes a perfect thin, cuttable, and sturdy sheet of plastic.
The cord is run in spiral through three small holes in the sheet. Together they make a holder that is almost invisible. By adjusting the cord this holder can accomodate two pens one on each side of the sheet.

All your GTD Next Actions belong to Word

2006-06-18T00:27:00.000+02:00

Flexiblefine has posted his dead simple method to organise his Next Actions lists:

I don't recreate my list every day, I just update it. My Word document is two pages of two columns, printed front-and-back on one sheet of paper. The "front" side has my contexts labeled Work Compuer, Work Office, E-mails, Calls, and Waiting For, plus an agenda for my boss. The "back" side has Home, Online, Errands, Read/Review, Anywhere, an agenda for my wife, and an agenda for a work committee that never meets.

I cross items off as they get done during the day, and update the list during my morning processing session. This way I have a clean, legible list to work from each day.

Go to the post at 43Folders board and take a look at Flexiblefine's screencap of his two-page Word document:

Next Actions - 43 Folders Board

No need to save your PowerPoint presentation as a show

2006-06-12T21:28:00.000+02:00

Lifehacker shares this Office productivity tips:

Most people save them as a PowerPoint Presentation (PPT). A PPT shows the slides and the work that can be done on the presentation. By saving as a PPS (PowerPoint Show), when you double-click it, it will auto launch into the show mode.

However, you don't need to save your presentation as a PowerPoint Show (thus creating another file), just rename the file from ".ppt" to ".pps" and presto! it is a Show. The only difference between a Presentation and a Show is the different filename suffixes. Also, if someone hands you a .pps file, just rename it to .ppt and you can open and edit it normally.

Save your PowerPoint presentation as a show - Lifehacker

Google Browser Sync

2006-06-09T19:23:00.000+02:00

There have been many times when I wish I could take my open webpages with me to work or home to continue reading. The best solution would be something that sychronizies my open tabs between home and work PC. Well, today Google Labs came to the rescue with Google Browser Sync. It not only sychronizes open tabs (thus making SessionSaver obsolete) but also bookmarks, history, persistent cookies, and saved passwords.

I tried it and it works fine. For those of you who are paranoid of having your encoded passwords floating around on the internet, you can turn that feature off.

Google Browser Sync

How many is really mastering GTD?

2006-05-27T21:55:00.000+02:00

There is a thread at Google Groups : 43 Folders regarding "How many is really mastering GTD?". No one can be a master of GTD IMHO. Maybe with the exception of Rev. Allen. Being a GTD follower since 18 months, I have found that those that are successful with their GTD implementations are those that have stopped trying to fit their life into GTD, and instead tried to make GTD fit their life. I belive this is one of the reasons why many struggle with GTD; they try to implement it "by the book" which is in most cases impossible.

Getting Things Done, GTD, is not a goal in itself. It is one tool (but a very, very good one) of several.

Schedule your GTD Contexts

2006-05-07T12:08:00.000+02:00

This article by organizational guru Julie Morgenstern (I have her books in my Amazon whish list) caught my eye. The advice is solid;

Simply put, a Time Map is a budget of your day, week, or month that carves out distinct times for each of the key departments of your life.

...but one of the examples reeked of Getting Things Done:

See? This person has scheduled his GTD @contexts; Errands, Friends, Phone, and also 3 hours for the weekly review, Prep for Week.

For me it makes sense to schedule some of my contexts, at least those that tend to pile up.

Julie Morgenstern: Taking Control of Your Days with a Time Map

I Love My MX-5

2006-04-17T14:14:00.000+02:00

My pal has started a blog about his favourite subject, his beloved Mazda MX-5:

I Love My MX-5

GTD LoFi HiFi Whitepaper

2006-04-04T00:28:00.000+02:00

GTD LoFi HiFi Whitepaper: "I have come to the conclusion that anyone that can use a PDA for GTD isn’t busy enough. What I’ve found is that in spite of these devices being digital and therefore super extensible, they are completely limited in the freedom of motion that they give the user. You are at the mercy of software updates, developers in the marketplace, and hamstrung by limitations in the devices themselves that make it very difficult to manage multiple projects concurrently."

Oh, that explains why I didn't get my GTD/PDA combo working and instead rely on my tweaked Filofax. And I couldn't have said it better.

Robot Exhibition - a photoset on Flickr

2006-03-16T16:00:00.000+01:00

I am just back from a robot exhibition. Kids ages 8-9 has created fantasy robots from junk. The creativity they show is really inspiring. Take a look!

Robot Exhibition - a photoset on Flickr

podSites

2006-03-03T08:56:00.000+01:00

I knew that you can put simple texfiles on your iPod (called Notes), but what I was completly unaware of was that iPod recognizes basic HTML for linking. You can not only link between notes, but also to songs, pictures and maybe even videos.

This open the possibility to place miniature websites on your iPod, called podSites.

I came stumbled across this name on a blog, but a quick search on Technorati showed that podSites has been around for almost a year.

For a more detailed description of the inner working of a podSite, and to download some examples, visit podSites.com

Star Wars miniatures wall decoration

2006-02-26T20:49:00.000+01:00

A new DIY, a nice way of framing your Hasbro miniatures. This time I put the guide at Instructables:

Star Wars miniatures wall decoration

Moleskine Notebooks v Filofax

2006-02-17T23:20:00.000+01:00

In the last couople of months I have started to use my old Filofax more and more. And finally I have a trusted system for my GTD that acually works! More aboout this in a future post. Meanwhile, study the thorough cost comparison between Filofax and Moleskine, or binder and a notebook as it is. PigPog Michael has all the details:

Moleskine Notebooks v Filofax - Cost Comparison @ PigPog

DIY Planner 3.0 is released

2006-02-12T14:57:00.000+01:00

Douglas Johnston and his tam has released the latest version of the DIY organizer templates. And this time it totals almost 200 pages of forms and a handbook!

D*I*Y Planner 3.0 (Classic/A5 Edition)

Burdens of the Modern Beast

2006-02-08T18:42:00.000+01:00

Washington Post: Burdens of the Modern Beast

So, we carry around all this stuff because we are insecure? Hmm, maybe thats true...

Also, visit my previous post, What's with that bag?

Communication Nation: Visual thinking practice: Letting go

2006-02-06T12:38:00.000+01:00

Back att Communication Station, Dave Gray wants us to let go when sketching. I am myself a doodler, and often draws in the margins of my notebook when I sit at meeting. I still listen while my pen draws something all by itself. Some om my best ideas is born that way, and I know it is because I let go and let my subconcious guide the pen instead of my mind (who is still busy listening).

My collegues on the other hand calls it a mind "screensaver" that goes on when my mind goes off.

Whatever..

Communication Nation: Visual thinking practice: Letting go

The Human Option

2006-01-24T21:19:00.000+01:00

The Human Option | D*I*Y Planner: Given our reliance on computers for most things, attempting an analog --and more human-- option is a worthwhile endeavour, if only to discover what is possible in a technological age.

Hear, hear!

Top 10 GTD tips

2006-01-21T00:36:00.000+01:00

Over at murtworld blog is a list of 10 good GTD tips written by a Getting Things Done acolyte. My favourited are "Simplify" and "Process frequently".

murtworld: My top 10 GTD tips

My new laptop bag

2006-01-20T13:32:00.000+01:00

Yesterday I aquired a Targus Global Executive Standard laptop bag. This bag is better suited for traveling since the laptop has its own compartment. I can easily pull it out for security check without having to dig it out among paper, cables and other stuff. It has integrated waterbottle holder and a pull-out holder for passport and boarding-cards and a removable accessory pouch.

It will soon be tested since I'm going to Germany in a couple of weeks.

For more views on bags, follow the trail starting with Whats with that bag?

Friday screensaver

2006-01-20T13:29:00.000+01:00

I have started to use Slickr as my screensaver, and have it showing photos from the Annotated Workspaces Flickr group. When I look up at my screen I get a glimpse into someone elses world. Fascinating.

Speaking of screensavers, I recently discovered the Pong Clock from BVKS. I want one. Meanwhile you can download the almost as cool Pong Clock screensaver.

Keeping Your In-Box “Real”

2006-01-15T19:35:00.000+01:00

I know this article has been blogged by others, but getting my e-mail inbox from 234 to zero was THE best thing that Getting Things Done (GTD) helped me with. If you have a overflowing e-mail inbox, read Julie Daniel's Keeping Your In-Box “Real”.

Chandler Personal Information Manager

2006-01-13T11:05:00.000+01:00

Via BoingBoing:

Chandler is a free and open personal organizer being developed by the Open Source Applications Foundation, with design by Andy Hertzfeld of the original MacOS GUI team. Eventually it's meant to integrate email as well as calendaring and to-do items, but for now it's just the latter -- that said, the latest release, 0.6, is finally something in shape that's usable by civilians.

I have installed this pre-Alpha release and my impression is that this is a very promising product. I hope that a full version is not far away in time.

Chandler homepage ->

Whats with that bag?

2006-01-12T14:48:00.000+01:00

This post on D*I*Y Planner, Whats in a bag?, reminded me of my old posts regarding bags (Whats in your bag?) and my own exercise to lessen the amount of clutter in my own bag (What should NOT be in my bag?). Some good advice is also offered:

Plan ahead.
Style matters.
Try before you buy.
One open space or a million pockets.
Price and fabric.
Ergonomics.

Link ->

The Annotated work spaces

2006-01-10T10:03:00.000+01:00

This is very cool, the Flickr pool Annotated work spaces. The group is started by Dave Gray of Communication Nation. The photos is not only annotated, but also of photo studios, train engineers, music composers, TV control rooms, artists and so on. Loads of inspiring and creative stuff here.

Getting a Life by GTD

2006-01-07T18:41:00.000+01:00

I would like to go back to my post from December, The same amount of work done in less time, then relax. I wrote:

From what I read on the different GTD blogs it seems that people use GTD to squeeze even more productive hours out of their life. Hey, Steve Pavlina even changed his sleeping pattern! Once again, "get a life".

And Steve Pavlina replied:

The whole point is actually to get a life and to enjoy it.

Well, sorry Steve if my words sounded harsh. Hey, I even tried changing my sleeping patterns myself based on your earlier experineces! But polyphasic sleep is over the top IMHO.

Anyway, the key phrase in my post is "it seems that people use GTD to squeeze even more productive hours", and I just want all new GTD followers to relax. The point is, as Steve says in his comment:

The idea isn't to work more and more but rather to get more and more value out of life. Nothing wrong with playing video games if it provides value for you. The right game can be a lot of fun.

So, you who have just found out about GTD, personal productivity and lifehacks, keep a cool head. Keep a life. With a proper personal productivity system in place you can sit down and play a game and feel good about it.

Most popular posts 2005

2006-01-02T13:27:00.000+01:00

Time to summarize my first blogging year. Over 100 posts of varying quality, most of them about Getting Things Done, GTD, lifehacks, HPDA, Hipster, notebooks, pens, Moleskine and my precious Sony PSP.

The most popular posts are (drum roll...):

Google Maps on PSP, it is still visited daily mostly via Google searches.
Zipster, my Hipster clone. Putting specially designed index cards in a Iomega Zip case is still drawing attention. As featured on MAKE Magazine blog.
Terry Pen-Holder hack. I'm still getting e-mails from people who want to know where to find this gadget. I still don't know any retailer. Do you?
Make a Fliptop Hipster PDA in two minutes.
Notebook Note-Holder hack. As featured on Moleskinerie.

Looking at the list I realize that my hacks is more interesting then my posts, at least in the long run. Anyway, I'm always surprised that anyone finds any interest in my ramblings.

Looking forward to another year blogging, and this time I aim to double the number of posts!

Looking back at the Last Years Promises

2005-12-21T22:35:00.000+01:00

New Years Eve is coming up, and at that time most of us like to make a New Years Promise. I read recently that it is a good practice for our mental health. Making a promise makes us feel that we are still in control of our lifes. But often we find at the end of the year that we broke the promise that we gave ourselves 12 months ago.

This year I would suggest that we, even before New Years Eve, look back at the year that have passed. Sit down for a while and make a list of all the things that you have accomplished, everything from painting the fence to learning a new language. Looking at the final list you will see that the last 12 months has not been wasted, and that broke your promise wasn't that bad after all.
For a more comprehensive guide to making the list, read McGhee Productivity Solutions.

Introducing the Projects HPDA

2005-12-21T22:22:00.000+01:00

For those of us that likes to have our life organized the analog way, Javier Cabrera of Emaginacion have a suggestion. A special card for your Hipster PDA, Filofax, whatever, where you collect your goals and Next Actions for the coming week. A nice way of tying together the Next Actions that you have spread around on different projects.

He also suggest a three month card where you have long-term action and also life values that you want to develop or master for that three months.

If you are a analog type of person, check it out.

Link: Introducing the Projects HPDA

Find and use your personal flags

2005-12-16T13:17:00.000+01:00

Jason Sweeney has a very simple but effective way of remembering things to bring/do before leaving home next day, what he likes to call my blindingly obvious lifehack of the day: find and use your personal flags.

Now, why didn't I think of this? Lately I have forgotten my wrist watch in the mornings, the obvious solution is to place my glasses at the same place. Heureka!

The same amount of work done in less time, then relax

2005-12-14T23:13:00.000+01:00

It is now over a year since I started to do GTD. Yes, I have certinly been Getting Things Done but I have still far to go before I reach the ultraefficient nirvana so may other GTD bloggers apperently have managed. My first feeling is "failure", but I reminded myself that I have been doing this for over a year and have no intention to stop and that is a achievement in itself. My next feeling was "please guys, get a life!".

I suspect that many GTD afficionados sometime do totally unproductive things like watching a rerun of Star Trek or play Unreal Tournament. They just don't mention it since then you would be "unproductive" and wouldn't be "moving towards your lifegoals".

From what I read on the different GTD blogs it seems that people use GTD to squeeze even more productive hours out of their life. Hey, Steve Pavlina even changed his sleeping pattern! Once again, "get a life".

For you who are new to GTD and personal productivity here's an advice: relax! You may get the impression that GTD and other productivity methods is meant to get more work done in the same amount of time as previously. That is true, as long as you don't define "time" as "all hours I am awake". I suggest that you set the goal to "get the same amount of work done in less time".

Getting the same amount of work done in less time sounds like a much better goal. If I am more productive I will get some more time to goof of, eat good food with friends or watch another episode of Lost. Your new personal productivity will immediately reward you with more possibilities to relax.

Don't feel bad when you take some unscheduled time off to do totaly unproductive things. As long as you feel good about it and you get your work done in time you are truly Getting Things Done.

Make your left brain understand your right hand

2005-12-13T23:29:00.000+01:00

In Merlin Mann's latest entry at 43 Folders, My txt setup, he talks about using text files and how to name them in a logical way. He uses a system of meta-symbols and data fields. When I read this I was reminded about something similar that has been on my mind for awhile.

Whatever system you ultimately use for handling your "Getting Things Done", you will always make short notes to your self. You may write them on Post-Its, in a notebook or in your PDA. These notes end up in your inbox to later be processed during your review.

I have found that I have a very hard time writing complete sentences. My notes are often terse, just a couple of words quickly scribbled down. One recent example:
In my notebook was one entry: "ProcessTamer"
What it really should say was: "Download and try out ProcessTamer when you get home"

I usually figure out the meaning when I later read the note. The words trigger my memory and I remember what I was thinking when I wrote it. Handy but not quite up to GTD standards since it's not completly out of mind. I still depend on my memory to hand me all the details later.

Merlin Mann's entry made me think about how I write, and maybe I could use some system of icons, meta-symbols or tags to add information to my notes. A kind of GTD specific shorthand?
My above example could then be:
"H: DL ProcessTamer"

Another good thing with using tags is that you can quickly scan your notes and find those that use similar symbols.

Ten Rules for Web Startups

2005-12-01T16:02:00.000+01:00

Evan Williams, CEO of Odeo and co-founder of Blogger, has written down his Ten Rules for Web Startups. Good solid advice, in particular a passage in rule #10 that caught my eye:

Nature requires balance for health—as do the bodies and minds who work for you and, without which, your company will be worthless. There is no better way to maintain balance and lower your stress that I've found than David Allen's GTD process. Learn it. Live it. Make it a part of your company, and you'll have a secret weapon.

Hear hear!

Windsor Castle

2005-11-30T20:03:00.000+01:00

I'm back after two days in the London area, one of the highlights was a visit at Windsor Castle. The photo is taken with my Sony-Ericsson K750i, which I managed to drop shortly afterwards and after that the camera stopped working. Bummer.

Google Analytics stops accepting signups

2005-11-21T14:59:00.000+01:00

According to the Google Analytics sign up page, they have temporarily disallowed new accounts. They also removed the "Add new profile" link from inside analytics which previously allowed a single account to track up to 40 different Web sites.

Well, it seems I beat the sunrise rush...

read more | digg story

Google Analytics

2005-11-15T14:22:00.000+01:00

In case you haven't noticed, Google have released a webstatistics tool free of charge. There are several statstool that is free, but I have yet to find one that gives the same amount of data as Google Analytics.

Actually it's Urchin Software, a company Google bought this March, and the service used to cost $500/month.

Way to go Google!

The joys of sensory deprivation

2005-11-07T10:51:00.000+01:00

There is an intersting thread at Google Groups : 43 Folders regarding sensory deprivation (i.e. less RSS, IRC, IM, e-mail and WWW) to enhance daily focus. Some quotes:

Basically I read this article about sensory deprivation chambers and I was thinking about how oversaturated I am with information and cognitive simulation throughout the day, so much so that I'm always ooperating in this state of panic that I'm missing something critical. Thinking about this, I posit a way to do this with electronic information, focusing your zone of perception on one thing at a time.

And so, I decided to go on a diet. I'm cutting out media for the month of November. ... David even says that GTD is designed to remove the burden of your tasks from laying heavy on your mind, but that doesn't mean we should be filling it up with other crap.

And some links to people who are cutting down on their info diet:
Chris Thompson
Blackrimglasses.com

The last couple of months I have been thinking myself about my infoconsumption. How did I get by 20 years ago? Now I often find myself consuming information without digesting it. So it is actually time wasted since I never let myself reflect on the information, just letting it sweep through my mind.

Just as your body needs a diet, so does your brain.

Project planning, the forgotten chapter?

2005-11-06T23:50:00.000+01:00

One of the chapters in David Allens "Getting Things Done" is "The five phases of project planning". To me this was one of the most important chapters in the book, and the model described for project planning is something that can be used outside of the GTD system. This is a part of the GTD-bible that is hardly ever mentioned by the lifehack community. We talk a lot about Next Actions, and that they are grouped into Projects but never about how we actually define a project.

The five phases, or The Natural Planning Model is:

Defining purpose and principles
Outcome visioning
Brainstorming
Organizing
Identifying next actions

Notice that "Identifying next actions" is the last step. Just realizing that we need to use more than one Next Action to accomplish the task (thus making it a Project) is not enough. Not even deciding upon the next atomic thing we need to do to move the project forward is enough. If we let it stop there we will have to decide upon the next thing to do over and over until the project is finished. Wouldn't it be better if we already had decided that beforehand?

By just Identifying Next Actions you are moving the project forward, but as a car with deflated tires. Don't skip the four very important steps that comes before Identifying Next Actions. It will take you a bit more time to organize your thinking and get moving on your next actions, but it will pay in the long run.

My list of reading and listening sources

2005-10-31T23:14:00.000+01:00

No blog worth its name can be without somekind of list. Here is not one but two(!) lists for you to disregard:

First up is a list of the sites that I try to visit and read every day:

Boing Boing - A never ending source of articles and links that will steal your time.
43 Folders - The personal productivity/lifehack site.
PvP Online - My favourite online comic.

I have a lot of other sites on my list, but these are the ones that I prioritize. And I use Bloglines for reading.

The other list are my favourite podcasts:

Diggnation - Kevin Rose and Alex Albrecht comments on the weeks top stories on digg.com. Hilarious!
Mashup of the Week - Great music delivered to your doorstep.

Note to podcasters: Keep the length of the show down! I have stopped listening to This Week In Tech and The Daily Source Code because of this. I can stand Diggnation's 40-50 minutes because it contains a lot of information. But 40+ minutes of tech guys who talks unstructured in each others mouth (Twit) or a ex-VJ who talks mostly about himself (DSC). No thank you. On the other end of the scale we have Merlin Mann (43Folders) who started a new podcast were the shows is around three minutes. Perfect!

Productivity points

2005-10-27T12:34:00.000+02:00

If you remember my post regarding The Printable CEO, you remember that this is a system that rewards you with points for completing different types of tasks.

I have just installed MasterList Pro that calculates "Productivity Points". Another way to pat yourself on the back.

Speaking of MLP, this is a GTD-centric task- and projectmanager:

MasterList Professional is a Windows desktop application for successfully managing your professional and personal projects and tasks. Unlike time management programs, it focuses on giving you oversight, control and dominance over all of the competing claims on your time and energy.

I will try out MLP and see what it can do for me.

I'm a Wordpress blogger

2005-10-26T23:10:00.000+02:00

I got my invite from Wordpress today, so I have created a WP account and started to play around with it. Me like. I have yet to decide if I like WP som much that I'm willing to give up Blogger. We'll see...

Lotus Notes and GTD

2005-10-26T22:58:00.000+02:00

In my post @Contexts and Real-Life(tm), Mike of BrownStudiesBlog commented and mentioned that he had rearranged his Lotus Notes years ago, and written about it on DavidCo's forum:

Here's what I attempted with reasonable success at my last job in blending GTD with Notes. Keep in mind I'm still a GTD novice and that Notes was strictly for work-related stuff; I adopted a few strategies I had seen elsewhere on this board. So, mail arrives in the inbox. I may have 5 to 10 long- or short-term projects in play, and I have specially named folders for them...

[DavidCo Forum]

Interesting way of using folders, and I particularly like grouping in projects. I have folders, but they are grouped in more general areas and because of that may include messages pertaining to several projects. This in turn makes archiving impossible.

Thanks for the tips Mike!

The proximity candy jar

2005-10-21T13:02:00.000+02:00

It's scientifically proved, a clear candy jar in arms reach is emptied faster then a opaque jar out of reach.

Secretaries ate an average of 7.7 kisses each day when the candies were in clear containers on their desks; 4.6 when in opaque jars on the desk; 5.6 when in clear jars 6 feet away; and 3.1 when in opaque jars 6 feet away…
[Boing Boing via 43Folders]

So the reverse should be applicable, if we need to establish a good habit we should put it "in arms reach". This ties to my previous post, where I wrote that I am worried that tasks in my Next Action lists disappears in the pile (read "is forgotten"). A regular reviewing process should help, but the problem still exists in the time between.

The candy jar experiment tells me that the Overprofilic Alpha Geeks that Dan O'Brien (father of Life Hacks) interviewed did the right thing. A simple window with the most current tasks always on the desktop. That is their clear candy jar, their radar screen.

Flock: A social browser

2005-10-21T11:07:00.000+02:00

I downloaded the new Flock browser yesterday to give it try. If you haven't heard of it, it is a browser based on the Mozilla codebase, and with a lot of social software a integrated

Flock includes a built-in RSS reader, which allows a user to read all of their favourite blogs in one place, without the need to separately navigate to each one. Various Web sites and software programs already provide this functionality, but Flock is one of the first to integrate it into a Web browser.

The browser also facilitates blogging by the user with a "Create a blog post" button located in the main navigation bar. The button launches a sophisticated blogging tool which integrates on a drag and drop level with Flickr, a popular online photo management and sharing service which was recently acquired by Yahoo.

Flock integrates with a number of popular blogging services, for example, Wordpress, Six Apart and Blogger, according to Decrem's own blog.

[ZDnet]

This is however a developer beta, so expect a lot of rough edges and bugs. I was mostly interested in the built-in blogging tools, but I couldn't test it since Flock freezed up when it tried to connect to Blogger. Ah well, there is still a lot of good stuff in it, like Favourites synced with del.icio.us, the Shelf which works somewhat like Scrapbook for Firefox and aggregated RSS reader.

I found Flock very interesting, but I can't help thinking; "couldn't this be done in Firefox?" Flock may be riding the wave at the moment, but I expect that the same functionality will appear in Firefox eventually. Meanwhile, try Flock.

[Screenshot from Ramblin' Gamblin']

The Printable CEO

2005-10-19T13:51:00.000+02:00

David Seah has develop a ingenious paperbased method for battling procrastination and staying focused, The Printable CEO.

This reminds of my old post The Whip and The Carrot where I promoted keeping a log to track progress and rewarding yourself for making progress. David has ingeniously combined the both in one nicely designed system.

Additional links:
[The Printable CEO Revisited]
[The Printable CEO Remixed]

@Contexts and Real-Life(tm)

2005-10-17T10:59:00.000+02:00

Contexts
Short story: I use Lotus Notes at work (it's a bloated piece of software cursed with elephantisis, but I have to use it) and most of my tasks starts as an e-mail in my Inbox.
As the GTD follower that I am, I use Notes "Copy to To-Do" button to transfer the e-mail to my To-Do lists. I have several To-Do lists sorted by the well known "@Office, @Agenda, @Internet" and so on.

Not what, where!
Now, when I have used this system for awhile, I have noticed some problems.
First of all, looking at my contexts I notice that they have become "what to do" instead of "where to do it". I have @Office, @Internet, @Computer, but they are all actions that I do in the office. I should really have one @Office Next Action list.

Wheres the summary?
I have also NA:s that are of different priorities. Some are more important than others, but they are spread out over a group of To-Do lists so I have no overview. Another problem with Notes is that I can't connect NA:s to Projects. I also have the nagging feeling that Actions that I put in my To-Do lists disappear in the pile. They get sucked up and there is no reminder, signal, that tells me what to do, with what, and the importance.

Solution?
Apart from redesigning my contexts, I would really need a tag function in Notes. With tags I can slice and dice my NA:s any way I want. TAGS! Do you hear me IBM?

If I where a Mac user I would try Kinkless GTD.

I have planned to stop using To-Do lists and instead move to an all e-mail version using folders for contexts. I already archive e-mails in different folders for my projects and areas of responsibility. This article, CNN:Seven rules for a tidy Inbox, gave me some ideas.

Organizing your e-mail with a folder for each project you're working on may seem like the obvious choice, but it's not the most efficient way to plan your workday. This type of arrangement makes it impossible to look at e-mails quickly and decide what to do next.

(Read the article, its good)

Until next time...
Since I plan to rearrange my Notes, I might just as well try this solution. More about the results later...

Polyphasic Sleep

2005-10-17T00:04:00.000+02:00

After my own experiments with my circadian rythm, I recently found Polyphasic Sleep. It's also know as the Uberman Sleep Cycle and is a method in which one sleeps 6 times, every 4 hours, for 20 minutes, during every 24 hour period. Why? Well, only sleeping 2 hours a day instead of 7 or 8, give you 3 extra months of awake time each year! The blogger Nick Busey is attempting to live under this sleep schedule, and is logging it all in his blog Ubersleep.

The Noguchi Filing System

2005-10-12T23:47:00.000+02:00

A rather unconventional filing system, proposed and used by Noguchi Yukio. Instead of filing A-Z it uses "frequency-of-use sorting" which solves several problems with a conventional classify-and-file system.

I like Mr Yukio's way of thinking, so I just might try this.

read more | digg story

More anti-procrastination hacks

2005-10-11T22:32:00.000+02:00

In my last post I mentioned three different anti-procrastination hacks that shared several similarities. Now, 43Folders has two new variants

Jeff Covey, a 43Folder reader, shares his method, The Progressive Dash. It's the original Merlin Mann Dash combined with a system that automatically picks out next item that gets the 10 minutes treatment. Iterate until satisfied.
Merlin Mann presents his variant, (10+2)*5, where each 10 minute dash is followed by a 2 minute break. Repeat 5 times until the hour is up.

I wonder if this constant starting and stopping is good? When will you let yourself sufficient time to get into the Flow? For more important tasks I feel that D. Keith Robinson suggestion of 60-120 minutes for each task is more appropriate.

Doing it in dashes or butterfly strokes

2005-10-11T00:09:00.000+02:00

When you browse around in all the different blogs regarding GTD and personal effectivity, you'll sometime find suggestions that have a common core. One I have found recently is methods to overcome procrastination.

In 43Folders Merlin Mann suggests The Dash, a short burst of focused activity during which you force yourself to do nothing but work on the procrastinated item for a very short period of time.
D. Keith Robinson suggests in his To-Done blog something he calls Butterfly Stroke Productivity. He reserves 60-120 minutes while he does nothing but his most important task. Same thing as The Dash only his time frame is longer so he will be able to get into the Flow.
Mark Foster has a different twist, he suggest that you do 10 minutes of concentrated work on your most important task first thing in the morning.

All three suggests concentrated work within a given timeframe. Keith R. and Mark F. also says that you first have to decide what your most important task/project is. Mark F. also suggest that we do it first thing in the morning, before phones, e-mails or IMs has ruined our concentration.
None of three suggests that we complete the task, just that we start and at least move it a step on the way. This is taking the granularity of GTD one step further, doing the Next Action incrementally.

In summary: Doing something is better then doing nothing at all. Giving yourself a fixed timeframe makes it easier to start the work since you know there is an end. Try to do that work during a undisturbed time of day. And finally, when you at last manage to get that heavy train of thoughts rolling, you may find that it's hard to stop.

Yay! Comments!

2005-10-05T20:37:00.000+02:00

Kudos to Ross Hollman, Strategize, who told me how to turn on "word verification" for comments.
I missed that setting, proberly because I was too angry at the time. Maybe I should RTFM...

No more comments

2005-10-05T08:48:00.000+02:00

The #%&¤! comment spammers has started to infest my blog with their dumbass "advertising". Since Blogger doesn't have any tools for blocking users from commenting, I have to close down comments completly.

I totally hate this guys, it's like having grafitti painted inside your apartment.

Stockholm Subway map for PSP

2005-10-03T12:11:00.000+02:00

A website owner published a JPEG image of the New York City subway, so Sony PSP owners could load it and have it hand. Now the New York City MTA wants a charge the website owner $500 for this obvious public-interest service.

Since then Engadget.com has started to collect PSP ready subway maps from all over the world. Naturally I pitched in with a map over Stockholm subways.

Download the JPEG image here ->

As a side note, calling the maps "PSP ready" is a bit wrong. They are after all normal JPEG images and you could properly use them on a iPod Photo/Nano or any other portable gadget that can display images.

Intelegent?

2005-10-02T15:38:00.000+02:00

I found this in a toy store the other week. It contains games so kids can practice different skills. Spelling is obviously not one of them...

iPod Nano scratching

2005-10-01T22:52:00.000+02:00

Kudos to John who pointed out the Make article about restoring the iPod Nano with Brasso. The article writer, Todd Daily, writes:

I don’t think the nano has a problem with being excessively prone to scratching.

Todd basicly means that things get scratched when you use them, get over it. That is true of course, but I still think that the iPod Nano is prone to scratching. I have a Sony Ericsson K750i phone that I got about a month before the iPod Nano. It has had the same type of treatment, I put in my pockets, some times together with other things. No scratches. None at all.

Apple says that the Nano has the same material in the case as earlier models. My guess is that the combination of black shiny plastic and a tiny format made scratches on the iPod Nano more visible then on earlier, white, iPod models.

Looking at my Sony Ericsson phone and my Sony PSP, I suggest that Apple pay a visit to Sony and get some tips on high quality material for the case.

Google Calendar very close to launch

2005-09-30T14:25:00.000+02:00

It looks like Google is really close to launching their rumored calendar service. A subdomain is already working, which is exactly what happened before the launch of Google Talk and Blog Search.

read more | digg story

Nano Nano!

2005-09-25T22:47:00.000+02:00

I have seen reports on the Internet regarding how easily the iPod Nano is scratched. I can only confirm this sad truth. Back from Hamburg, having owned my Nano for just two days the case is scratched. I have been very careful but still, there are scratches. The case is also harder to keep clean than my Sony PSP. Besides, polishing the iPod Nano with a cloth will properbly just scratch it more. Pity for such a great product, and I hope Apple changes the material in the case ASAP.

Be all the GTD you can be

2005-09-25T22:40:00.000+02:00

I found this encouraging quote in the latest "Productivity Principles" newsletter from David Allen:

But even if you have all kinds of things that you’re avoiding, don’t want to think about, or just don’t have the energy to tackle, you can still “be GTD” about it. Just get a big box and label it “Stuff I Don’t Feel Like Dealing With,” put all that stuff in it, and review it often enough to satisfy yourself that’s still true for you about everything in there. You’ll be free!

Wohoo! That made me feel much better. Resently I have been embaressed about all the stuff at home I haven't processed and made into Projects and Next Actions. I felt like a failure, but now I realize that I am still "GTD" about it as long as I know what I'm avoiding.

iPod Nano goodness

2005-09-19T22:39:00.000+02:00

I just couldn't help it. While walking through Hamburg I came acrossa store that sold the Apple iPod nano, and I just had to buy a black one. I love it.

Packing things for Hamburg

2005-09-19T08:57:00.000+02:00

I'm currently in Hamburg to attend a conference for a couple of days. The trip from Sweden was uneventful and the hotel here is very nice. Most importantly, wireless broadband, woohoo!

Since my last trip to Detroit I realized that I needed a checklist for packing. I always forget some item that would be needed. So before this trip I sat down making my canonical "PackingList". I still forgot a few things, but now they go directly in my list so I won't forget them next time.

A great site to visit if you intend to start your own list is UPL, Universal Packing List, that generates a list based on duration, weather, type of traveling and so on.

Google Blog Search

2005-09-14T14:54:00.000+02:00

Google Blog Search is up and running. Naturally I started by searching myself, and found Google had all my posts indexed. I'm impressed.

After you have tested this, go read the short story The Nine Billion Names of God...

No soup for you!

2005-09-13T08:19:00.000+02:00

What's this?! In this day and age? I was surfing around (using Firefox of course) for a deal on a mobilephone and followed a link to a online store in Denmark. Instead of welcoming me as a customer I was greeted with this:

Instead of shopping I get a "sad computer" and a link to Microsoft...
The number of Firefox users are increasing so Shop4All.dk must be loosing more and more customers everyday. Customers that, like me, wont return.

The title of this post is a quote from the "Soup Nazi" in Seinfeld. If you didn't do exactly as instructed, you didn't get to buy any soup. Well Shop4All.dk, no money for you!

Doing GTD with a notebook

2005-09-12T00:51:00.000+02:00

As you may have noticed, I am using notebooks. But I can't get myself to use a notebook for Getting Things Done (tm). To do this I have to divide the notebook into areas for Next Actions, Stuff, Context lists. That is to rigid for my taste, I like to be able to move things around, shuffle the lists. On the other hand, using a completely loose leaf system is not my cup of tea either.

Around comes PigPog with a brilliant solution; keep the lists out of the notebook. Just use the notebook for collecting and processing. This insight plus a simple but very visual way of bookmarking with Post-it tags makes it into perfect solution.

But what about the context lists? You must be able to carry around at least one Next Action list? Here I intend to use an idea from Jeff Torgerson. He uses a Moleskine and tape DIY Hipster PDA pages into it. I don't particularly like to tape pages into the notebook, so I intend to use my holder hack (or a variant of it) to keep loose DIY Hipster PDA pages.

So by combining PigPog PDA, Torg's Moleskine, DIY Hipster PDA and Holder Hack I think I will have the perfect analog GTD system for my needs. More later when I have this Frankennotebook in my hand.

My circadian rythm, one month later.

2005-09-09T00:01:00.000+02:00

After experimenting with my circadian rythm for a month, what is the result?

I still need my alarm clock to get up in the morning.
I have been using the silent hours on early Saturday or Sunday mornings to:

Take walk while listening to a podcast on my MP3 player
Reviewing my "stuff"
Read articles that I wouldn't have time for otherwise
Do some planning for my next week at the office

My wife loves this, because I have the breakfast ready when she wakes up
My collegues at work thinks I'm crazy

Lately I have found myself slip back into night sessions by the computer, but I still find myself more productive in the morning than late at night.Thinking and planning is much easier in the morning when you and your brain are relaxed.

So the result of the experiment is positive. I will continue for another month and recommend you to try it too, at least for a month.

I forgot!

2005-09-06T07:46:00.000+02:00

Yes, I forgot two things that I should do, they totally slipped my mind. Thats really embarassing when you are a GTD follower. One item should have been done within a certain timeframe, the other on a certain date. I missed them both. Sorry...

As I mentioned earlier, I have two GTD systems, one for work and one for home. The system at the office works fine, but at home... Obviously it doesn't work at all. The problem is the classical GTD trap, no regular review process. I would have catched both items if I only had a proper review process in place.

I don't want this to happen again, so I have started to do a weekly review every Saturday morning. Thanks to my experiments with my circadian rythm I have a couple of totally undisturbed hours in the morning. Something I very rarely had before.

So, I have found out the hard way that there is no shortcuts around the review process. Lesson learned.

Syncing to paper at Litwack.org

2005-09-04T06:35:00.000+02:00

Geoffrey Litwack has a very interesting post about his experiences after a year of GTD. Some it is the same as mine, like finding out that a PDA doesn't quite cut it, experimenting with wikis etc.

I’m like 12% more efficient. But I’m 80% less worried about what I have to do, and that’s magic.

Exactly how I feel regarding my GTD system at work, I'm slightly more efficient but totally unworried since I have it all in my system.

Hm, it's been a year of GTD for myself now so maybe it's time I write a report as well.

Link

Viva la Pencil!

2005-08-31T12:30:00.000+02:00

Pencil Revolution is all about pencils. And wooden wisdom.
Great blog, makes me wanna start using a pencil again.

Playing around with the Sony PSP browser

2005-08-31T12:01:00.000+02:00

I have updated my PSP to firmware 2.0, and have been playing around with the new built-in browser ever since. I think it works surprisingly good, even though graphic intensive webpages can give "out of memory" error. The PSP has also locked up a couple of times. I have also found that there is a big speed difference if you set the WiFi power-save off or on. When off the browser is much faster, but batterytime is shortened. The only thing that is really annoying is that the browser almost grind to a halt when it's downloadin a webpage. Since you can have up to three tabs, I would be great if you could scroll one webpage while another is loading.

My favourite website when browsing on the PSP is Bloglines. Their mobile version works perfectly, and I can get my RSS fix anytime without having to open my laptop. When it comes to productivity I found that Backpacks mobile version is fully functional. The only that is not working (as far as I can see) is creation of new pages and sections.

My wish for future versions is a more streamlined and faster code, and if Sony could possible squeeze Java and/or Flash support into it.

Hacking my circadian rythm

2005-08-26T00:14:00.000+02:00

When I read Steve Pavlinas post "How to Become an Early Riser" something clicked inside. I recognized the pattern he described with an uneven sleep pattern. His solution to stay productive but still sleep enough each night to regain full strength is very logical.

The solution was to go to bed when I’m sleepy (and only when I’m sleepy) and get up with an alarm clock at a fixed time (7 days per week). So I always get up at the same time (in my case 5am), but I go to bed at different times every night.

I get up early every morning five days a week to get to work, so why not get up early on Saturday and Sunday too? I've decided to give this method a month, and I started August 1st. So far I'm very pleased, those hour on weekend mornings can be very productive. I'll get back with a report next week.

METER: Methodical Approach

2005-08-16T23:44:00.000+02:00

In his latest blog, J Wynia talks about METER - Measure, Evaluate, Test, Evaluate, Repeat as a method for evaluating and improving situations or solving problems. While reading Getting Things Done, The Money or Your Life, Hackers Diet or even Purpose Driven Life I have noticed that they all boil down to the same basic steps:
Collect information, Analyze it, Use the result, Feedback

What it all says is really: You should repeatedly take time to analyze areas of your life that need improvement, collect information and make smart decision based on these.

Combine the METER method with SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timely) goal setting and you have two very powerful tools in your lifehack utility belt.

Screenshot to Sony PSP using AutoHotkey

2005-08-16T21:41:00.000+02:00

In my earlier post, Google Maps on Sony PSP, I described the steps for placing a screenshot of a Google Map on Sony PSP memorystick. What I basicly do is take a screenshot of the currently active (focused) window, paste it into IrfanView and save it to the memorystick.
A couple of days ago I realized I could automate the process using AutoHotkey. AutoHotkey is a free mouse and keyboard macro program with hotkeys.

My AutoHotkey script is activated when you press Win+Alt+G, and it takes a screenshot (Alt+Prtscr), starts IrfanView, paste the screenshot and saves it on the MemoryStick as a .JPG image with a unique timestamp. Zoom! All with one single hotkey.

If you decide to use the script you will have to edit the path to your PSP/Memorystick. I have a subfolder in PSP\Photos called Screenshot. You may also have to edit the path to the IrfanView executable.

Download the script here -> psp.ahk

Stop juggling and catch the important ball

2005-08-15T23:49:00.000+02:00

Have you ever heard someone say that they "juggle" several projects/responsibilities at the same time? Some people see this as a proof of their efficiency at work. The analogy with juggling is very good, but maybe not in the way they think.

I can juggle with three balls and I am childishly proud of the few tricks I can do. Juggling is also relaxing (unless you are learning, then it is frustrating) and gives your upper body a good workout. When you juggle each ball is in your hand for just a fraction of a second. You have to throw it quickly and in the right direction so you can catch the next ball. This means that most of the time the balls are in the air, out of your control and your view.

I believe that the situation is the same when you "juggle" projects/responsibilities at work. You can only regard each for a short time before you have to take care of next. Most of the time your projects are "in the air" out of your control. Wouldn't it be better to have just two balls, one in each hand? As long as they are in your hands you control them to 100%.

Most methods for personal organizing is all about identifying the important balls and let the less important fall to the floor. You know where they are and can pick them up later, when you are finished with the more important ones.

So stop juggling, identify the most important balls and let the others rest. Since you can work more efficiently with each project in turn, the amount of effort is the same or even less then if you try "juggle" them all simultaneously.

Pens! Who need them?

2005-08-15T23:37:00.000+02:00

When you decide to start using a Hipster PDA there is one big problem.
Where do you keep your pen? You can easily put the index cards in your back pocket, but the pen? It's hard and pointy and you can hurt yourself with it when sitting down.
My solution? Recently I stopped carrying a pen at all times. I realized that I am surrounded by pens. There is a pile of them on my office desk, at least two different places on each floor at home, and a couple in my car and in my bag. So I have almost always a pen somewhere in my vicinity. Unless you are very particular about always using the same pen in your hPDA, this is a workable solution.

Eat that Frog

2005-08-11T22:08:00.000+02:00

You may have noticed that "Eat that Frog" as showed up in my list of books (look right, a bit down). I have just started reading it, and so far I'm satisfied. It is list making (oh, how we all love making lists!), and prioritizing the tasks based on future goals. Full report when I'm finished of course.

Don't touch that laptop!

2005-08-10T00:55:00.000+02:00

D. Keith Robinson over at To-Done blog has a short article about taking notes by hand instead of using a laptop.

Over the last year or so, when I attend conferences (or meetings, or anything I want to make sure I remember something) I leave my laptop either in it’s bag during sessions, or I don’t bring it at all.

I have used a laptop during a few meetings, but realized quickly that it is ineffective and a distraction not only for yourself but also for the other people in the meeting. A couple of times visiting consultants have done their notes on their laptop, and I have found it immensly irritating.
You don't know if the person that hides behind the laptop (thats how it feels) is listening to you, fiddling with the software or just playing Minesweeper.

Next time a consultant uses a laptop during a meeting I will politly ask them to put it away and give them a notebook and a pencil.

Revisited: Sony PSP and the death of the PDA

2005-08-09T20:44:00.000+02:00

I have received a few comments on my rant Sony PSP and the death of the PDA. No, I don't think that the PSP is the best device to use for your wireless online needs, the point I wanted to make was:

Adding PDA like applications to the PSP would be a waste of time and money by Sony. The only applicationt they should invest resources in is the browser.
What device we use to access our online information should be irrelevant. Smartphone, PDA, laptop, Sony PSP, as long as they have a standards compliant browser.

I also predicted PSP formatted web services, check this out: WinPSPortal

Google Maps on Sony PSP

2005-08-08T08:43:00.000+02:00

Inspired by Ian Meyer's Google Maps on iPod Photo, I decided to do the same on Sony PSP. While the iPod Photo's screen resolution is a measly 220 x 176 pixels, the PSP has a excellent 480 x 272 widescreen LCD. Ian Meyer downsized the Google Map for the iPod Photo's screen, but the Sony PSP has not only a bigger screen, but also an excellent image pan and zoom function.

UPDATE: I have automated the below process with the aid of AutoHotkey. Read all about it!

So I decided to do the opposite, make the Map as big as possible and pan and zoom it on the PSP. To do this I use Firefox and IrfanView (freeware). IrfanView is an excellent image browser and converter. The steps are simply these:

When you have the map you want in Google Maps (I use Google's JFK to Empire State Building example) make the browser window as large as possible. Use Firefox's full screen function by pressing F11.
Press PrtScr, this will place a screenshot in clip memory.
Open Irfanview and paste the screenshot with ctrl-V.
Save the image to the Sony PSP as a JPEG image.
Done

The (simulated) PSP screengrabs below show what you will see (click on images):

Full view

50% zoom

100%

Using the analog joypad you can pan the map.

With the PSP in portrait mode you can also read the driving instructions.

Thats it.

Sony PSP and the death of the PDA

2005-08-05T14:08:00.000+02:00

Sony PSP is a great little machine that I have lots of fun with. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the PSP doesn't have any PDA like functionality. No calendar, no phonebook, no To Do lists, not even an alarm clock. Not that important, but it would have made the little handheld even more useful.

Recently I realized that it is not important at all, in fact, leaving the PDA functionality out of the PSP is a great idea. The machine already has wi-fi, and after the 2.0 firmware upgrade the PSP has a built-in browser with full Javascript support. QWERTY keyboard add-ons are already announced.

With wireless hot-spots all over the place, and growing with leaps and bounds, I can imagine using the PSP to access my calendar, phonebook, To Do lists, e-mail and newsfeed over the internet. Why lock the information into a specific handheld hardware, and into a properiety fileformat (and fiddle with synchronization problems) when I can access the same information on my PSP, cellphone or computer? And if all these devices break down I can go to the nearest Internet Café or use the business service at the hotel.

I predict that the age of the PDA is soon coming to an end, instead we will keep our information on the Internet. I also predict that we will in the near time see more services on the web that offers PSP formatted webpages. And finally, I am pretty sure that Google already has it all figured out, Gmail is only a small beginning...

Let the left brain tickle the right brain

2005-08-03T15:59:00.000+02:00

In a previous post I talked about the rising interest in paper and pen as a replacement/complement to computers and PDAs. The idea was that it is tangible things in a world thats has gone more and more virtual.

Today I found another explanation that could be even better. I stumbled across a webpage called "Abacus and the Right Brain", in there Dr. Toshio Hayashi says:

The left brain is also referred to as the digital brain. It controls reading and writing, calculation, and logical thinking. The right brain is referred to as the analog brain. It controls three-dimensional sense, creativity, and artistic senses. These two work together to allow us to function as humans.

I think that we, by using computers and PDAs, doesn't use the right brain as much. The machines take care of most of the creative stuff. By using paper and pencil for keeping the To Do lists, the Calender and making notes the right brain gets stimulated, and thats why we think it's more fun but can't quite explain why.

This may also be the reason why it is so fun to create Hipster PDAs, personal hPDA clones (like the Zipster) or GTD Templates. Our right brain loves the creativity that goes into it, and the left brain gets its share of logical thinking.

Come to think of it, a understimulated right brain can be the source of the unconscious doodling that I mentioned previously.

So, keep your right brain stimulated by having paper and pencil at hand by the computer! As Dr. Toshio Hayashi says, "These two work together to allow us to function as humans."

Carry your lists on your Sony PSP

2005-08-01T12:45:00.000+02:00

When I was in Chicago I bought myself a Sony PSP. Apart from gaming I use it to watch downloaded videos and listen to podcasts. But from time to time I have wondered if the PSP can be used for other, more GTD like tasks. The PSP doesn't have any PDA like applikations like calendar or notebook (I think there is a good reason for this. More on this subject in a future article).

My GTD related PSP hack is to put your lists ready and readable on the PSP. The solution is simply to print to a JPEG image and store that image on the PSPs memory card.

In the above image is the @Groceries lists from GTDTiddlyWiki.
The software I used is PaperlessPrinter that is free for noncommercial use. I printed to standard A6 papersize. I have not made any changes in GTDTiddlyWikis CSS file, although I think that increasing the size of the typeface could be an improvement.

Above is the @Research list from GTDTiddlyWiki in PSPs portrait mode. When printing you can set the destination folder to the PSP when it is connected with USB. In Firefox I set all printing margins to zero.

I also tried printing from Backpack, and it worked like a charm:

Of course images work just as good:

The above image is zoomed in 50% on the PSP. Backpack's text is still fully readable.

Those of you who keep your lists in regular textfiles can have a look at JPEGbook (available for Mac OS and Windows, scroll down to find download links) that exports to JPEG specifically for reading on the PSP.

Now, is this really useful? Well, maybe. Printing on a paper and putting in your pocket is properbly easier, but when you don't have a printer available this can be an alternative (oh, you need a Sony PSP though). Is it geeky? Right on!

Easy coupon storage and purging

2005-07-31T15:50:00.000+02:00

Bryan Villarin at All Narfed Up has found another use for the Zipster, coupon storage:

Using the Zipster template, print the tab cards and create one for each month. Store the coupons in the month that they’ll expire. When each month passes, and you can easily trash the unused coupons.

Nice idea Bryan!

Link: All Narfed Up - Easy coupon storage and purging

I'm a doodler

2005-07-28T08:26:00.000+02:00

I'm a hopeless doodler. My notebooks are full of small, weird drawings in the margins. My friends call it my personal "Screensaver". When I relax during a meeting I will unconciously start to doodle. So you can imagine my notebooks from school...

I have saved a lot of notebooks through the years mostly for the doodles, but a couple of months ago started to clean out my desk and cabinet. I scan the best doodles before throwing away a notebook, and so far I have collected about 50. My intention is to make a digital gallery of them in the future.

So it was happy surprise when I stumbled upon DoodleArchive, it's not open yet but it will be a website for the sole purpose of showcasing and documenting the art of the doodle. Until it opens you can order DoodleCards on which you create a doodle and return to the archive. Of course I want to participate, so I have ordered mine.

Many people doodle in meetings, when speaking on the phone, during seminars. Why? It doesn't seem to have anything to do with drawing skills, a doodle can just be a collection of circles or decorating the phonenumber that was just written down. If I were to approch these people and ask them to make a small drawing they would decline, "I don't know how to draw!". So doodling seems to be something you do unconciously when you are relaxed and happen to have pen and paper at hand. Some kind of brain feedback through the eyes? Whatever the reason, don't feel bad that you doodle, it shows that your brain is fully functioning and that your creativity is flowing.

Link: DoodleArchive.com

Make a Fliptop Hipster PDA in 2 minutes

2005-07-27T14:38:00.000+02:00

Inspired by Wynia's Pierced Hipster PDA (which, by the way, was slightly inpired by Zipster) I got the idea to use a DuraClip® Clear Front Vinyl Report Cover to make a fliptop hPDA. DuraClip has a smart plastic lock that you slide over your documents to keep them in place. Slide out the black lock and the papers come loose again. Quick and easy.

How to: Get a DuraClip or similar, cut it up to size with a pair of scissors. In my example I cut a A4 down to approx. A6. Done.

Here it is with a page from Douglas Johnston's D*I*Y Planner, Hipster Edition.

Titanium wallet

2005-07-27T00:19:00.000+02:00

Just when I thought my aluminum wallet was cool... Meet The Sammy, a titanium constructed wallet manufactured by Gary Scott. It's made of titanium and military grade aluminum rivets. But über coolness comes with a price, $320...

Gary Scott USA titanium and aluminum wallets

Smartcaze revisited

2005-07-26T19:19:00.000+02:00

To answer a few questions regarding Smartcaze:

The Smartcaze brand is only sold in Scandinavia, however when I looked inside the Flipover case I saw a trademark. Searching the net I found the manufacturer in Taiwan, Symnova. So I suspect that there is other online stores selling "aluminum wallet" or "metal wallet".

Update: There is one retailer in USA, Pocketpaq, that seems to carry the same products (Thanks Mel)

How does it handle money bills then? Fold it and insert it in a pocket. Coins? Forget it. The Smartcaze is very credit card oriented and that suits me since I mostly shop with plastic. Anyway I was looking for smaller wallet so I wouldn't be able to fill it with a lot of unnecessary stuff.

My wife made me stop putting my wallet in the back hip pocket years ago. It ruined the jeans (she said) and it was ugly (she said). One of Smartcaze good points is that I can throw it in my bag without it opening up and spilling its content as the soft leather wallet tended to do. I have also done some unscientific tests and found that wearing the Smartcaze in a hip pocket works surprisingly well. Best is of course the Luxury Curve that slides down like a hot knife in butter. They are not heavy at all, and I would in fact say that the Flipover is better then my old fat leather wallet.

More details when I have used my Smartcaze some more.

Notebook note holder hack

2005-07-26T13:07:00.000+02:00

First of all, I dont experiment on my precious Moleskine (as seen in the background). It's a much cheaper softspine notebook thats is my Frankennote.

As a sidenote, I have recreated the Moleskine paper wrap with the aid of a color print-out and a bit of clear packing tape.

This idea came to me a week ago. By folding a paper in a zig-zag pattern and flatten it you'll get two, three folds that can be used to keep notes available and readable without falling out of the notebook.

The more pieces of paper you stick into the folds, the better. Even when I shaked the notebook vigoursly nothing fell out, not even when there was a single piece pf paper in the holder.

Its made of regular copier paper and fastened with scotch tape. I think this is a good alternativ to Moleskines accordion pocket, and you can keep loose notes in the notebook without having to use clips.

Smartcaze, a review

2005-07-26T07:53:00.000+02:00

I received my Smartcaze yesterday, kudos to Stylebird online store for their quick delivery.
I bought two of these, the first one is Urban FX Flipover Gold. It can hold up to 10 credit cards and looks like a tiny Samsonite briefcase.

Inside there is 7 plastic pockets that fans out when the wallet is opened, thus making it easy to find the card you need. You can fit more then one card per pocket, but the upper limit is about 10 cards. It has a snap-lock that keeps the wallet securely shut. If it had a rubber seal it would properbly be water-proof.

My business card is slightly higher then a credit card, and it could barely fit into the Urban FX so it is really as small as you can make it.

The other Smartcaze is a Special Edition Luxury Curve Leather (ooo, me like long names). Now this one is even smaller on the outside than the Urban FX.

Inside its shiny chromed exterior (decorated with fake leather) you'll find even more shiny chrome. This is what I would call a "party wallet" because you can only fit one or two cards plus a drivers license. Smartcaze says it can take 5 cards, but I doubt that.
It has a small ring in one end, so it seems that you could add a strap (like one for mobile phones) and hang it around your neck. Why? I don't know...

For the time being, the Urban FX Flipover will be my wallet of choice.

All in all, the quality in both wallets is really good, my only worry is the plastic snap-lock on the Flipover that may wear out in time.

As for using these as luxury Hipster hPDA? I don't think so, they are to small. Maybe if you are one of those who use business card sized Hipster hPDA, but the wallet is too thin so you can't carry around that many cards.

More about the Smartcaze later when I had time to use it.

Make magazine goes digital

2005-07-26T07:42:00.000+02:00

Starting from issue #3 (which is distributed now) subscribers can read a digital, multimedia enhanced edition of Make magazine. It's really neat, and works just like Zinio (which I also use) but it's all done in the browser. Zinio on the other hand uses a special reader. The technology comes from Texterity and uses SVG and XML. The only bug I found was that the multimedia refused to work in Firefox, in Internet Exploder all was well. You can also share articles with friends, and print out drawings and projects. Two thumbs up Make magazine!

Streamlined @Inbox capturing

2005-07-25T23:30:00.000+02:00

Another insightful post from Douglas Johnston regarding the capturing of the information that collects in the Inbox.

...the primary challenge is often in the streamlined capture and movement of your task-related materials.

I have tried several different ways to implement GTD, and they have all failed one way or another. I discovered that the problem was the different ways I receive information into my Inbox at work or at home. The more complicated it was to move that info into my GTD system, the more likely it failed.

At work I receive almost all information via e-mail. If I were to use a paper GTD system it would mean that I had to write manually from e-mails into my Hipster hPDA. On the other hand, at home almost no information is received electronically. If I were to use some smart software, I would have to run to my computer everytime.

The best solution for me (so far) is to have two GTD systems, one for work and one for home. At work I use Lotus Notes, and with a simple click I can copy an e-mail into my Notes To-Do list which I have setup with GTD like categories. At home I'm going 100% analog instead, paper and pencil is alwas available.

It is also a blessing to separate work from private life, this way I can better concentrate on whats relevant depending on the situation. Besides, my paper GTD is in my bag so I can access it at work, and my Notes is synchronized into my Palm PDA so I can check it at home.

Link: a million monkeys typing. The Paper Planner Inbox

RepliGo, my favourite PDA software

2005-07-25T14:23:00.000+02:00

Often when you surf newsgroups, RSS feeds and webpages you stumble across interesting articles that you want to read but don't have the available time at that moment. One trick is to bookmark it in del.icio.us with the tag "read_later". I tried that and it didn't work for me, because when I have time to read I'm not in front of a computer.

The solution is the brilliant software RepliGo. When I find a webpage I want to read later it is just one click, and the article is on my Palm PDA after next synchronization. RepliGo documents keep the original appearance, fonts, graphics, and formatting intact and provide a reflowed text view for easy reading on small screen devices. RepliGo is also installed as a printer, so you can print to your PDA from any software. I have done som unscientific tests, and RepliGo produces smaller document files then Acrobat PDF.

My PDA is almost always available, so with RepliGo I can catch up with my reading in the bus, at home or in bed even.

RepliGo reader is available to Windows, Palm OS, Pocket PC, MS Smartphone, Nokia Series 60 and Symbian UIQ.

Link: Cerience, RepliGo

Smartcaze, a better wallet?

2005-07-21T23:32:00.000+02:00

In an earlier post I talked about my bag, and how I cleaned out the stuff and streamlined it. One of the things in my bag is my wallet. I felt that it should get some kind of modernization too, but I didn't quite know how. But now I may have found a product that fits the bill.

With the catch phrase "A big wallet isn't cool", Smartcaze market sleek, hard shelled wallets made of epoxy, metal and/or leather. They have a ton of different designs, ranging from outrageous to business. I have ordered two different designs and will come back with a review as soon as they are delivered. I will also check if a Smartcaze can be used as a luxurious Hipster PDA.

Unfortunately they only sell to countries in Scandinavia, at least for the moment.

Link: Smartcaze Scandinavia