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Newton management (Palm works, too)
mcwitt | Sep 18 2006
I use a Newton, on a daily basis. It does handwriting like no other machine, has an excellent primitive outliner mode, and exports OPML to the desktop for easy processing later on. I use it for my dates/tasks management, brainstorming, note-taking in meetings, and so on. It's a collection place, and a place to do some processing of that collected material. I bring up my hacked method of organizing my life (or links to things I wrote elsewhere) simply to share how an organic filing system arises over a decade's use. Moving away from it now would really hurt. The links to what I wrote for another group, without any further explanation, are at: It's relatively brief in both cases, but it's how I manage my life as an academic. I'm sure you can do a Palm in the same fashion (using NoteTaker rather than the anemic memo), and my Alphasmart Dana would do much of it really well, too. Anyway, the point is to look at the system and not the hardware that I use. Enjoy! 6 Comments
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 GTD and academiaSubmitted by mcwitt on December 16, 2006 - 8:08am.
Hi, Todd, Thanks for the detailed response. Both responders are absolutely right that the part of my "system" that works is sticking to the Newton (and also to Mail). In the process, I have two locations with tasks that need doing today. The Mail-related tasks are typically one step deals - even if that's reviewing a paper, it's seen as a single step - while the Newton is where my project and advising work comes into play. Honestly, I have to re-read your post and think about it a bit before I reply in more detail. It's a question of filtering and monitoring, and the Newton really does a great job of it. MoreInfo lets me plan tasks within a project space, while applying dates for completion (these may change, but I just revise the date completed as I check them off). TimeTrax gives a fabulous view of the calendar, you're right. Wow. And then there's linked Notes, a folder called "Somedays" which contains free form planning checklists on each project, and something I need all of 20 seconds to look at as I sit down to work on a thing. For some reason, that exact same mode isn't possible on the desktop. I could do it, of course: * iCal with different calendars for each project But somehow it doesn't work that way. iCal is deathly slow to launch, and I find it far less intuitive than the Newton. Plus, it's not with me at all times. And, worst of all, it doesn't absorb synch files from the Newton ToDo soup. If it gathered in the ToDo soup, I'd be happier. Do you have a solution that, by the way? I'll spend more time thinking about organizing my projects, and see how that meshes with your RSG! scripts. I may yet come back to them! Michael » POSTED IN:
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