Notes on Systems – Sequencing

This is a brief note on Systems Thinking. Once a totality of functional interaction is understood, that is the key moving parts to a system and how they may interact, then it is important to device the most effective sequence of events to bring that system to fruition. Totality of Functional Interaction By totality, we ... Read more

Future Proofing Note Taking / To Do Lists

After the fiasco with Evernote (which I loved for a time) and now Wunderlist (again, a temporary sweetheart), I tried a few options, including ToDo.txt. Now, I have finally determined an excellent set of note-taking tools. There is the need to future-proof this, which as far as I can tell means keeping notes and to-do ... Read more

Windows 7 Applications

I got a new Asus Zenbook with Windows 7 in order to future-proof myself against Windows 8 (I'll wait until Windows 9, or Ubuntu 14.10, thank you very much). This was back in December, 2012. I've since sold this (two months ago), but have kept this post, for posterity. Installed Applications Here are the applications ... Read more

Tim O'Reilly: Create More Value Than You Capture

This is a nice talk by Tim O'Reilly on Creating More Value than you Capture httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njpGH_IHjFg Lessons Do Less Trend and theme to minimize interaction with the user, if the apps and devices can do things on their own without intervention Embrace Hardware Software Above the Level of a Single Device Came from David Stutz's ... Read more

Goodbye Windows

This past weekend I parted with my last Windows device. Actually, my last Microsoft Operating System device (though I reserve the right to get an xbox at some point in the future). This is after flirting with the idea of the Surface device (before its underwhelming acceptance in the marketplace). Goodbye Windows (3.1, 3.11 for ... Read more

Importance of Domain Names for SEO

Domain names are not the end-all and be-all for SEO, certainly. Keywords in Domain Names However, it can be seen as an accelerator and an ace in the hand. You still need a good hand. That said, the value of a domain name tuned to two or three important (high volume and relevant) keywords, should ... Read more

The Antisocial Life of Information

I was one of the (apparently) skeptical few when hearing John Seely Brown's job talk at UC Berkeley in 2001, ostensibly on his book The Social Life of Information written with Paul Duguid. Rumor was he co-wrote the book as an exit strategy out of Xerox Parc, the spectacularly failed think-tank. He eventually ended up ... Read more

Exercise Goals – Simple, Measurable, Achievable

Goals can get way out of hand. I see this a lot in the running community in Google+. One would think everyone is an olympic athlete the way complexities and details are passed around and analyzed. This is a bit much, for two good reasons. Goals Need to Be Achievable Goals need to be achievable, ... Read more

Productivity in 2013

Yes, the first week of the new year is reaching its conclusion. What follows are a few current thoughts on productivity. Two-a-Day Two-a-day workouts for a total of two hours per day are transformative, and this is the level of input needed to make change in the body. 66 Repetitions to Create a Habit A ... Read more

Scribus – Open Source Adobe Indesign

Update May 2024 - I can't recommend Scribus due to their model of very long time between releases, the fact that only two programmers work on it in their spare time, and the advances to Inkscape (mainly supporting multi-page SVG / PDF). Yes, I'm sure the programmers are working hard, but they've got an inherited ... Read more