http://unclutterer.com/discuss/forum/technology The community for people interested in home and office organizing. en-US Mon, 13 Feb 2012 19:03:02 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 q http://unclutterer.com/discuss/search.php http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/filofax-help#post-46092 Tue, 31 Jan 2012 14:43:59 +0000 Poorva 46092@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>So after many unsuccessful tries at web/computer-based organisational tools I think I'd like to give paper a try. It's helping that I'm getting a lovely Personal Metropol soon.</p> <p>Except... after years of online systems, I'm a little intimidated by how complex the Filofax is. So many inserts and so many options! Does anyone have any tips for how to use a paper planner to organise one's life? I've looked around the interwebs but I figured asking here couldn't hurt. </p> <p>(FWIW, I'm in my early twenties, single, and will soon be starting the job hunt. Any specific tips will be lovely.) TIA! </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/help-to-organize-telephonecontact-list#post-43325 Tue, 10 Jan 2012 10:08:57 +0000 MixinItaly 43325@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>I have an organizational problem with my address book and I am hoping somebody can give me some ideas on how to make it easier to manage. For years I had my addresses written down, until things went electronic. Then I had all of my contacts and addresses in an Excel sheet, which was easy to access and follow. This worked until I realized I had the same file on my home computer and work computer, thus creating problems. Somebody's information could be updated on one file and not on another, whilst on the other file maybe somebody else's info was changed, and I would never know which version really was the complete updated one. I even tried putting just one file on a USB key, but could never remember which key it was on. I don't have an I-phone, and although I am computer savvy I don't find the idea of updating and having this info on my phone to be a great idea. I went back to writing my info in my Filofax, because at least I know where the info is when I need it. But it still doesn't feel like it is as user-friendly as it should be.<br /> How do you all manage it? Do you have any particular programs or apps or methods that might work for me? </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/taking-a-home-inventory-group-by-category-or-location#post-45212 Thu, 26 Jan 2012 10:58:16 +0000 RC7502 45212@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>I want to use Evernote to start taking a home inventory. My wife and I both have a lot of boxes and its impossible to find anything because we don't know what box it is in. The road block I am having is that I don't know whether to create 1 note for each category of items or 1 note for each location. </p> <p>I was thinking if I wrote a number on each box then I could have a note for each box that lists what is inside. But what about things that aren't in boxes? Take for example the video games in my living room. Should I create a note called video games? Or a note called living room? If I do it by category I can see all like items at once, but if I do it by location things would be easier to find.</p> <p>Does anyone have some suggestions that would help me out?<br /> Thanks in advance! </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/video-games#post-37552 Sun, 30 Oct 2011 08:55:30 +0000 BraveHeel 37552@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Newbie, so be gentle.</p> <p>I have a life long love of computer and video games. I've managed to keep my games culled - no time to play much with all of life's responsibilities and other activities (including not staying on the couch or chair all day staring at a screen). Still, enjoy playing and have some video games (XBox360) that are part of a series &lt;Mass Effect, Dragon Age&gt; or just special. That said, I hate all the space taken by the boxes. So I've thought about doing what I did with my DVDs, CDs and computer software and using CD folders/sleeves. Obviously, if it is a game I do not plan to keep, keep box and give away/trade in/ whatever.</p> <p>Love getting rid of box clutter, but wonder if any issues to worry about as far as storing the xbox games this way. Now my sons and daughter have games, these boxes just taunt me laying all over or occupying so much space to hold essentially a DVD. Any other ideas that might be better?</p> <p>I've just become so focused on stripping away all the superfluous "packaging" everything has, but do not want to go too far..... </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/a-excellent-geeks-unclutterer-project#post-45075 Wed, 25 Jan 2012 09:18:13 +0000 emrold 45075@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Check out this post from Paul Thurrott, describing the execution of his New Year's Resolution.</p> <p><a href="http://www.windowsitpro.com/article/storage/data-storage-floppy-disk-cloud-142021" rel="nofollow">http://www.windowsitpro.com/article/storage/data-storage-floppy-disk-cloud-142021</a></p> <p>He's describing almost to a letter what I'm about to embark... going to start diving in this weekend!</p> <p>I especially like this line:</p> <blockquote><p>But the big thing that's differentiated this year's cleaning is that I'm not setting aside piles of stuff to deal with later. Judgment is immediate, and final.</p></blockquote> <p>E.</p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/how-do-you-make-sure-social-media-sucks-up-all-your-attention-bandwidth#post-38087 Tue, 08 Nov 2011 18:43:58 +0000 Robin 38087@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Hi! </p> <p>My interest is both professional and personal. Professionally, I'm a community manager for a startup in SF called Ming.ly. It's a new service (in beta!) that gives users a better way to connect with contacts and conversations across social networks, without leaving the inbox. </p> <p>The point of the application is that people are busy but you have to stay on top of your personal and professional relationships. We created Ming.ly so you can stay in touch without being stuck in the quagmire of endless social media updates. </p> <p>Personally, I feel sometimes like social media channels use me, not the other way around! It can be exhausting but it can also be thrilling. I think I use it to procrastinate, to be honest. </p> <p>What are the pitfalls you experience in having to stay across your social networks? What are you using to get around the noise? How do you know when you've struck a balance?</p> <p>Many thanks, </p> <p>Robin Ahn<br /> Mingly Community Manager </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/thinking-forward-to-2011-how-to-organize-my-digital-records#post-40858 Thu, 15 Dec 2011 08:37:32 +0000 robhixkg 40858@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Hello all,</p> <p>As I sit thinking forward to 2011, I realize that my digital records are a nightmare when it comes to organization. Ok, what really happened was I tried find something last night on the computer from 2007 and could not.</p> <p>I have been trying to come up with a way to consolidate all of the information, or at least links to the information in one place so I can find it, my wife can find it, and, if needed, anyone else could find it. We scan almost everything that comes into our house, and for the most part I try to keep notes, records, etc. electronic. The information has to be readily available to any computer on our network, it has to be easy to find related records that might be in other places (using tags, etc), and it has to be, for the most part, paperless. I have come up with two ideas:</p> <p>(1) Set up a web server using an older computer I have at home and serve the information from there.</p> <p>(2) Use a program like Microsoft OneNote to keep notes and hyperlinks so they can be accessed easily.</p> <p>Using either of these ideas, I am a little at a loss as to how to structure the system. I know what I have done in the past has not worked well.</p> <p>I figured I would ask here to see if anyone else has any ideas. I am open to ideas of how to set up either of the above two methods, or even different methods. I would appreciate any help here. I would even enjoy readin long descriptions of your own personal record keeping system.</p> <p>Thanks in advance,<br /> Rob </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/what-do-you-do-with-your-old-gadgets#post-40429 Fri, 09 Dec 2011 23:36:09 +0000 ntsing 40429@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Hello Unclutterers, I've come to realize I've got some pretty old gadgets and software lying around. I just discovered some of my old electronics boxes and am going through them. I'm pretty sure most of what I've got isn't all that useful anymore, it's all stuff that seems rather obsolete at this point such as copies of Windows 98, XP, Office 2000, Norton 2002, that sort of thing. Also plenty of old gadgets too, an old computer monitor, PDA, old laptop, GPS, etc. </p> <p>So should I just toss everything, or what? This is all stuff I've accumulated throughout the years, and I kept because 'you never know' but considering it's probably been at least 4-5 years since I even looked at any of this I wonder if there's any point in keeping it. Is there any value to this stuff, or should it all go in the recycle bin? What do you do with your old technological clutter? </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/making-realistic-to-do-lists#post-494 Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:53:03 +0000 MsDasha 494@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>I have trouble making realistic to do lists for the day ahead. There's always more on the list than I can finish, and if I try writing down the time I think things will take, it inevitably takes longer.<br /> How do you deal with this? </p> <p>(I'm not sure if this is in the right forum!) </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/cable-clutter-suggestion-please#post-38807 Mon, 21 Nov 2011 10:12:58 +0000 greeny 38807@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>What do you do with all those cables for devices you still have? The camera charger, the cable to connect to the computer, the Kindle cable, the ipad, ipod, phone cable/charger, the toy chargers and cables etc. etc. </p> <p>I've got them (well, some of them) labeled with a label tape. But how do you store them? I've got mine in a drawer...not so great to find the one you want, or to get rid of them when a device gets replaced.</p> <p>I saw an idea to use empty toilet paper tubes taped together and put in a shoebox. One cable in each tube. Sure they are all in their own place, but I'm not so fond of using it as a permanent solution. </p> <p>Any ideas?<br /> Thanks! </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/contacts#post-35758 Mon, 26 Sep 2011 14:28:03 +0000 Stella 35758@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Hi all,</p> <p>How do you all manage your contacts? Is there a contact management software you would recommend?<br /> I have hundereds of private contacts but they are scattered all over the place - phone numbers on my phone, emails in my address book and facebook, etc. </p> <p>Do you have any great way of decluttering all those and syncing them together in one nice neat place? </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/grrre-book-format-issues-or-death-to-drm#post-36482 Sun, 09 Oct 2011 06:21:02 +0000 mili 36482@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Sorry, I'm a bit pissed so this will be a bit of a rant along with a legitimate question.</p> <p>Okay, so around the second half of 2008 and the first half/eight months of '09, I bought a bunch of ebooks. Because this was before I bought my iphone, at a time where there was little prospect of being able to buy one since it was only available in this country through a carrier about which I had some very serious concerns of an ethical nature, I just selected the best way to read the ebooks on my mac without much concern about file format compatibility with the iphone. And in any case I thought at the time the iphone would be too small for comfortable reading (just shows what I didn't know lol, as nowadays I read on the iphone more than other formats - for me the draw is the easy availability as well as the portability because for most books I'd have to wait weeks for them to arrive because few of them are available locally - I have to buy them online). </p> <p>Now, these ebooks were made to be read on the rather heinous Adobe Digital Editions application, another bloated, irritating offering by Adobe. If you try to open them with any other app, all you get is a blank page...or scrambled letters. That pisses me off, because it means that while I technically paid for the books, I can't do with them most of what is built-in with a print edition, like reading on the bus or in bed. That's also true of the kindle apps, but given they have them for like every device, it's a lot less noticeable. </p> <p>Now I'm in the process of decluttering my files/tidying up my computer, and that includes getting rid of apps I don't like, such as Adobe digital editions. However, there are quite a lot of books there that I want to keep (as in, to re-read them). Ideally, I would be able to transfer these ebooks to a format that can be read by the Kindle app. I already know (in part from reading this forum!) that this is probably impossible, so instead, I'll bring it down a notch and say that I want to be able to read these on my iphone in some way, even if I have to download another app, even a paying one (I already have Stanza btw). That way, the books are 'liberated' in that I don't have to be chained to my desk to read them, even if I will still need to pay attention to issues of obsolescence so as to take action before the books are lost. </p> <p>Of course, a simple solution would be to just re-purchase in Kindle-friendly format (or even in paperback! no drm at all there lol) but right now that's not an option - we're talking about more than a handful of books, so it would really add up to quite a lot of money especially with shipping! Ultimately I want to do that with the ones I like the most and really want to keep (getting the physical copy I mean) but meanwhile until I gather the money I want to at least be able to re-read them without being stuck to the laptop. </p> <p>Thanks :-) </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/automatic-document-feedphoto-scanner#post-203 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 11:14:19 +0000 molsballou 203@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>The Unclutter praise for the Fujitsu ScanSnap has had me drooling for ages. But somehow, I can't bite the bullet and buy this thing. My problem is that most of my paper clutter is not like that of a typical home office; they are photos, drawings and pages saved from magazines. (I am a graphic designer, and I hate to part with the things I find visually inspiring, but I'd rather save them digitally than physically.) So back to my question. From reviews I've read, the Fujitsu ScanSnap seems to be best for office papers rather than things that should be scanned at high resolution.</p> <p>Has anyone tried the Epson Perfection V500 office scanner? (online here: <a href="http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/consumer/consDetail.jsp?oid=63084659" rel="nofollow">http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/consumer/consDetail.jsp?oid=63084659</a> )<br /> From the product description it seems like the best of both worlds (Automatic Document Feeder/High resolution.) But is too good to be true? </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/fujitsu-scansnap-scanner-scans-backwards#post-36155 Mon, 03 Oct 2011 18:32:35 +0000 Squint92583 36155@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Help. My Fujitsu S1500 works great, but I can't get it to resort the documents automatically. A five page document appears in reverse order: page 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. My previous FI 5110EX2 scanner let me scan a multiple set of documents from the last page first to the first page last and then present them on the Organizer is the correct order. So far I can't do this with the S1500. I have have to reverse sort the collection of documents so they show up page 1, 2 etc. to the end.</p> <p>Any suggestions? </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/fujitsu-scanners-under-the-hood-details#post-13437 Wed, 20 Oct 2010 13:40:47 +0000 Ripr 13437@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Fourmites,</p> <p>I am seeking "under-the-hood" info on a couple of Fujitsu scanners to help a buy decision. My search for the most inclusive scanner features I desire has necked-down the choices to two in the Fujitsu product line. I have read a bunch of reviews and forums (the info on Unclutter is great!) and learned much. But after absorbing the info, I still have some specific questions I would love to have answered. </p> <p>I have attempted to find a local business who would have a floor unit to test some of my documents with, but, to date, to no avail. </p> <p>At this time, I am not interested in outsourcing the scanning. I have a Epson Perfection 4490 Photo which can handle my high resolution requirements. With Photoshop I can merge scanned images based on tiles from very large documents if necessary. </p> <p>I am looking to manage the bulk of my holdings in a reasonably expedient time. A flatbed is just too labor intensive - and duplex means 2x scans!</p> <p>Needs/Scan Material</p> <p>1) B&amp;W (grey scale) photos on heavier stock paper. Capture notes on reverse side. Some are only 2" x 2".</p> <p>2) Historical documents - Genealogical info</p> <p>3) Color prints (~4"x6" or 5"x7") - contemporary color print paper</p> <p>4) Contemporary business documents</p> <p>5) Duplex capability</p> <p>6) Auto Feed</p> <p>7) WinXP SP 3</p> <p>Fujitsu Scanner Capabilities</p> <p>S-1500 and FI-6130 </p> <p>- Can one obtain 300 dpi output images (color and/or gray scale) regardless of original image size while using ADF from both scanners?</p> <p>- Are both output formats (JPEG &amp; PDF) available at all resolutions? (Actually would prefer TIFF for the imagery, but that's a desire that I'll by-pass)</p> <p>- Do both scanners provide full-duplex at 300 dpi resolution for both sides of a document? (Some reviews impute the back side of documents are at a lower resolution.)</p> <p>- Are there any design features to minimize bleed-through on documents? (I have correspondence between my parents during WWII that is on very thin "airmail" paper where both sides were utilized. I have a Plan B to resolve this issue but it is complicated.) </p> <p>- What are the paper feed mechanism pro &amp; con (reversible roller or pad) of each unit? (It is my understanding that other than scanning speed, this is the chief difference between the FI-6130 and the S-1500. The reviews of the 6130 impute superior jam-free handling based on the reversible roller feature. I further note that this performance differential doubles the unit price. Is it worth it?)</p> <p>- Can one bypass software/hardware pre-set configurations or are some factory combinations immutable? (Can I force grey scale on a B&amp;W image? @ 300dpi?)</p> <p>- What software permits the most flexible scanner control? (SilverFast/VueScan/Fujitsu ScanSnap Manager v. 5.0? I'm not sure that SilverFast offers Fujitsu compatible software. Ditto VueScan. The inability of Fujitsu to recognize TWAIN leads to some other limitations. Fujitsu Rack2-Filer, while probably OK, does have a proprietary data base.)</p> <p>I welcome any and all comments/observations/experience to assist me in my decision making.</p> <p>TIA<br /> Rip </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/scanning-options#post-10167 Mon, 23 Aug 2010 20:43:48 +0000 robhixkg 10167@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Hello all,</p> <p>I am getting very frustrated with my scanning. I am basically doing it once per week and it is taking over all my time on those days. It is just too much.</p> <p>Is there a scanner/scanner software that will let me basically load the scanner, push a button and it takes care of scanning the document and saving it somewhere (preferably as a PDF)? All I want to do is stick the document in the scanner and push the button. I will go back periodically and rename the files produced by the scanner to something more meaningful to me.</p> <p>I know this functionality is more software than hardware, but most scanners come with their own software and I was wondering if anyone did this.</p> <p>Thanks in advance,<br /> Rob Hix </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/off-site-backup-help-would-like-to-back-up-everything-#post-35580 Fri, 23 Sep 2011 17:33:41 +0000 mili 35580@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Hey there :-)</p> <p>the backup system I have right now iis pretty good actually - it's the Time Machine application that comes with every mac, and as I have it plugged in all the time, I do feel like I'm getting the most out of it (haven't had to use it to restore the whole drive so far *phew* - just a file or two that I was too quick in deleting, that kind of thing).</p> <p>But I'm still a bit insecure because of how much important stuff I have on here, so I would love the ability to have a comprehensive off-site backup, too. Especially because the external drive I'm using for these backups is only a cheapie WD passport, which have been known to *gulp* fail! (at the time I started I foolishly doubted whether I would really continue with this, so I chose one of the lower-end options! But now I'm stuck since I have backups there from the earliest days of this computer :-/)</p> <p>It doesn't have to be as effortless/automated as the Time Machine thing, or nearly as frequent; about once a week, twice if I'm creating a lot of new content, should be enough. But what I would like to have, if it is possible, is the ability to just back up my entire home folder, rather than manually select files. Which means that the kind of service that offers a few gigs of space isn't gonna work - my home folder is about 85 GB as it stands. </p> <p>Is something like that even possible? If so, how do I go about it please? </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/organizing-your-kindle#post-35721 Mon, 26 Sep 2011 05:28:04 +0000 Stella 35721@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Hi all,</p> <p>I wonder how everyone organizes their Kindle?</p> <p>I have a lot of books on Kindle and I like to use the "collections" option, so that the books I am currently reading (or samples I am trying out) are in Home page, the rest is in collections.<br /> But if you do make collections, what do you call them? I have a bit of a problem with that because I don't want to have too many collections. So far I have Free Fiction Classics, Free Non-Fiction Classics (all meaning older classics), Novels, Self-Help, Non-Fiction, Fairytales.<br /> This system just doesn't seem right. Hope someone has a better idea!</p> <p>Also, do you delete your books? I know they can be in Archive, but sometimes a book is so bad, I want it gone, gone - so I delete it completely off my account. Does anyone else do that? I wish I could pass them on to someone (without sharing my account) </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/uncluttering-your-internet-time#post-34086 Mon, 05 Sep 2011 03:38:53 +0000 Stella 34086@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>Does anyone have any tips or has found a good schedule to keep your internet time uncluttered?</p> <p>Any advice is appreciated. </p> http://unclutterer.com/discuss/topic/how-does-everyone-back-up-their-data#post-34202 Tue, 06 Sep 2011 07:34:28 +0000 Stella 34202@http://unclutterer.com/discuss/ <p>I wonder how everyone does their back-ups.<br /> I am really worried about losing my digital photographs (everthing else I could live without I suppose), so I back-up everything on 4 external hard drives that I keep in 4 different locations. </p> <p>I back up my photos on all external hard drives, but I back up my work documents on one, my private documents and some essential software on the other 3. </p> <p>As for private documents, I only back up my scanned documents and some other bits and pieces (like my e-books, finances etc.), not much data. (and less since I discovered Evernote where I put all my browsing bits and pieces.)</p> <p>I wonder how everyone else approaches the back up task and how often? </p> <p>Do you replace old data with every new back up or do you back up per month?</p> <p>(sometimes I will back up my documents and then delete stuff from my laptop, so the next time I back-up, I will keep both back ups. This doesn't seem like the most efficient system though. The reason I do this is because I like to keep my laptop clear of clutter and I only ever store things on it I actually do currently use, but still, it is making my back-up a little cluttered) </p>