I have been using Launchy for many months. It’s a great little application and saves me time every single time I use my computer.

Intro to Launchy

Launchy is an application launcher. It will automatically figure out what applications are on your computer and with a (configurable) keyboard action, will allow you to start them.

Launchy is open source, and it is free.

Configuring Launchy

Launchy has many features:

• Configurable launch sequence. You can choose the keys that you want to use to bring up the Launchy screen. It is a full keyboard complement.
• Configurable suggestion list. The GUI can be set to show as many or as few options as you wish.
• USB mode. The program can be run from a USB drive, making it a great launcher for portable applications.
• Configurable catalog. You can set and exclude files from the catalog of files it will launch. For example, I added a couple of directories off my thumb drive, and the directory that contains my self-programmed utilities.
• Plugins. Launchy allows you to start websites with configurable search strings with the plugin Weby. Runny allows you to run items like the command prompt. There are many plugins available.

Launchy really does make working easier. My hands never have to leave the keyboard to start another application, and I find myself using the mouse much less.

Photo by stringflickr

I am a fan of Robert Fulghum (Books by Robert Fulgham), and his blog is one that usually has me thinking, and often chuckling. A few weeks ago he posted an article, “Reflection at Winter Solstice”, with the “Mother Questions” (sorry, the article is no longer available on his site – he doesn’t seem to keep archives more than a month). These questions made me stop and think, because I have said them as a mother. But as an adult, they take on another set of meanings.

The Mother Questions

What on earth have you done?

• Mother’s take: My mother used to say this to me when I screwed something up royally.
• Adult take: What have you done on the earth? Have you been a good steward? Are you working for those who live on the planet? What are your accomplishments?

What in the name of God are you doing?

• Mother’s take: This one was issued when my mother caught me doing something…usually before I managed to destroy or injure something. I believe the thought was that invoking deity would stop me in my tracks.
• Adult take: What are you doing for the higher good? Are you practicing what you believe?

What will you think of next?

• Mother’s take: This was issued after I had a crazy out-of-the-box idea. I believe the thought was to bring me back into conformity, so I wouldn’t stick out. It was also used after doing something off-the-wall (see the two points above).
• Adult take: What is your next big idea? Where are you going? What are you learning? What are your plans?

Who do you think you are?

• Mother’s take: My mother used this one to make sure I didn’t get too big-headed. Keeping my place was a good idea, in her mind, because those who rose above their place were often the target of jealousy.
• Adult take: Who are you, deep inside? How do you define yourself? What words do you use to describe yourself? What are your beliefs, your emotions and your thoughts?

These questions really made me stop and think about where I am.

Photo by christophercarfi

My mother is slowly becoming technically adept. Since she lives half a continent away from me, it isn’t possible for me to pop over and help her with her computer. (And the teenager I used to ask to do tech support is in college.)

Since you are reading this article, I am going to assume that you know a bit about how to use a computer. What I hope you will take from this article is a list of things to help people you know who are not so computer-savvy be more self-sufficient.

Here are four things I think everyone ought to be able to do on a computer (pcs only):

Uninstall Software

No one uses the same software forever. But if you don’t clean up unused programs, then a lot of space will be taken up on your computer. Liken this to cleaning out the junk drawer. And even the most computer-savvy of us forget sometimes (see Decluttering Firefox).

Learning to uninstall software using the control panel is crucial to getting rid of software. This is the first place people can go to start getting rid of junk.

Removing Junk From the Computer

Uninstalling programs is a first step, but often leaves behind stuff. Learning to use a tool like Glary Utilities or CCleaner helps keep the computer cleaned up.

Cleaning the Computer

This is more of a what-not-to-do. Cleaning the computer case and monitor is not like cleaning dishes or windows. (I caught someone spraying Windex on her computer keyboard to clean it up.) Learning how to care for LCD monitors and keyboards properly will make computer equipment last longer.

Run Antivirus

There are a lot of antivirus packages out there that are easy to use, but you have to be able to update them and run the scans. Luckily many programs will do this automatically, but the user should still check periodically to make sure it is running appropriately. My last check on my husband’s computer showed an error, where the virus definitions hadn’t updated in over a week.

These are the things I consider essential to someone keeping their PC healthy. What are the things you consider important for people to be able to do?

Photo by Robert S. Donovan

“What is your life purpose?”

Darned if I know.

I really dislike that question. I don’t have, and have never had, one thing that dominates my life, driving decisions and goals. I’ve always admired people who make it seem easy — you know, the ones that know what their college major is while attending high school. Or who set out lofty goals (become a doctor, invent a time machine, perform at Carnegie Hall) and then tick them off one after another.

Nope, I’ve never been able to see the big picture of my life like that. Not even in retrospect, where my life appears to be more like a crazy quilt than a woven tapestry.

Steven Covey starts the 7 Habits with having you write a mission statement. David Allen has you set your 50,000 foot level. Me? I tried the mission statement. I looked at the high level. And both produced the same results: a nagging sense that I was missing something big; that without figuring this out, I would have an empty and meaningless life.

This is not to say that I drift through life aimlessly. No, I do lay out projects — many projects — and work on them. I have many irons in the fire at any given time. Is it bad? I don’t think so. Especially if I think that my life’s purpose is to experience life and pursue interests and skills.

This is a secret I’ve never shared before. And I probably wouldn’t have, except for a podcast I was listening to recently — Stever Robbins (Get-It-Done-Guy)’s “How to Find Your Life Purpose“. What I really liked was the message he delivered: a life purpose is supposed to get you to fulfillment and meaning. So he asks himself what the next thing he can do that is fulfilling and meaningful.

So the message of the day is that if you have a life’s purpose and know what it is, great. If you don’t, don’t sweat it. It may be that your life’s purpose is simply to be you. Find fulfillment and meaning in what you are doing, and don’t worry that you’re missing something.

Photo by Gattou/Lucie/Back later

Someone asked about a daily routine, and the first response was “When I read that, my first thought was, ‘Yes, I wish I knew that too.’” Small Notebook talks about “My Real-Life, Practical Daily Routine”.

Adult learning can be a drag. Especially when the authors of books appear to get paid by the pound, rather than the content. The Conscious Life has an article about “How to Make Adult Learning as Addictive as Games”. Some great points.

Dumb Little Man has an article on ideas for finding your passion. If you hate trying to figure out what you want to do when you grow up, check out this article. It can help you find the next meaningful thing for you to do.(Article)

Objections to hyper-productivity are laid out over at the Illuminated Mind. If you feel like you are on a hamster wheel and feel guilty when you are not working on your lists, take a look at “Why People Hate Productivity”

Some folk maxims from the Dutch are spelled out in Stepcase Lifehack’s “Reaching Your Goals – Dutch Style”. I like folk sayings, and this article has some great ones.

Photo by AJU_photography

I have tackled and completed the challenge of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) the past two Novembers. It had always been a dream of mine to try writing and I had ideas that had been brewing for years. So when I came across NaNoWriMo I decided to go for it.

I never thought about how I managed to find the time, until I was asked to write this article. I don’t know that I did anything original or unique – it was mostly common sense, which is often in short supply in my life.

I was squeezing NaNoWriMo into a busy work schedule and a hectic family life (my wife and I have a 6 year old and 2 year old triplets). Here are my 5 steps to fit an ambitious new project into your life.

1. Make the commitment and just get started. I did not write on November 1st and was feeling discouraged and overwhelmed. I had no idea how to get started and just about gave up on it – an unfortunate tendency I have. Instead, I got up at 5:00 A.M. on the 2nd turned on the computer and started writing.
2. Find, eliminate and utilize the wasted time in your life. I quickly realized that mornings were not going work because I use that time to exercise. After the kids go to bed and I take care of chores I have a bad habit of sitting down and turning on the TV. That pretty much ensures nothing else productive gets done before exhaustion takes over. I decided to take a hiatus from TV for the month and use that time to write.
3. Recognize your limits and adjust to them. I discovered a problem. I would write like gangbusters for a half hour or so and then would start getting sleepy. My solution was to make the writing my first priority. As soon as the kids were in bed I started writing and saved the household chores for second. It was much easier to fight off tiredness while writing at 8:00 than at 10:00 or later. I also stopped writing once I met my writing goals for the day so that other things could still get done.
4. Take advantage of your existing support system. I am fortunate to have an amazing wife who encouraged and supported me in this effort. She was also willing to adjust her schedule to help me accomplish my goal. This allowed me to attend a couple of the ‘write-ins’ that were organized in my area. I did some of my best writing during these times and benefited greatly from the interaction with the other writers.
5. Recognize that some other things won’t get done. Anytime you are trying to accomplish something big or start a new project other projects or goals will have to get put on hold. I let some other things go and tried not to let them distract or bother me.

I completed NaNoWriMo, writing more than 50,000 words and finishing a draft of my Novel, maintained my sanity and did not sacrifice my family or my job to do it. That was a huge accomplishment for me and doing it has helped me apply these common sense steps toward tackling some other goals in my life.

Photo by arquera

You see, I live in an area of the United States that doesn’t get snow. Our major weather events are nor’easters and hurricanes. But no real snow — at most we may get a dusting. So no one is prepared for it. No one can drive in it, and at the hint of snow people stock up on food like they’re going to be stranded for months.

So when the weather alert came through yesterday, I kind of blew it off…after all, they promised us 9 inches of snow for inauguration day in 2009, and we got nothing.

But we got snow.

It’s now sitting at about 8 inches of snow and is being topped with a fresh layer of sleet. The weather application has been updating me regularly.

I was raised on the frozen tudra, I can deal with this. I have appropriate clothing, I own a snow shovel, and I know how to drive on ice. Unfortunately, most people here don’t. Especially the driving part.

Since the county only plows and treats major streets, it’s best if I just stay inside.

Photo by jpctalbot

OK, this subject is a strange one, but knowing the weather — at least the big events — is crucial to my feeling of comfort. Perhaps it comes from growing up in a place where sudden storms leveled a town, where the tornado sirens went off twice a day for testing (noon and 5 p.m.), and where blinding snow and dangerous windchills would broadside us during the winter.

Even though where I live now sees the weather coming, I still like to know. Even if it is just a warning that it will be raining and the people on the interstate will start driving like the road is covered with black ice.

I looked at three weather applications: the built-in application, Accuweather, and Weatherbug.

Built In Weather

The built in application had very nice graphics. It is easy to configure, but the screen shows current weather and a line each for the next seven days with the day, a weather icon, and the high and low temperatures.

There are no severe weather alerts, and no details.

Accuweather

I liked the free Accuweather application for a while. But it really gave me trouble navigating around, and the alerts were often delayed (as were the weather conditions). Most of the people who like it really love it, but I just found the inaccuracies too great.

WeatherBug

I’ve had the Weather Bug application on my desktop for years. I did pay for this application, and I like not having any ads. The interface is easy to use, and gives me all the information.

What Is Lacking

What I would really like to have in a weather application is push alerts – the data source pushing out alerts to my Touch instead of waiting for me to check. The Accuweather application supposedly has it, but it didn’t work for me. According to their support team, Weatherbug is going to have this feature some time this spring.

There are other weather applications out there, but I was reluctant to buy-and-try. Does anyone have any favorites they would recommend?

Photo by phatman

I’m now a few months into the Grand iPod Touch experiment, and I’m settling into my new system. I’ve discovered workable solutions (for me) to the fundamentals of a productivity system. Here is what I’m using to date:

Calendar

I’ve set up the Touch to sync with my Google Calendar. Since I also have my Google calendar sync with my Palm desktop (I will NOT use Outlook!), I have a three point entry to one repository. I can enter data in the Palm desktop, right into Google calendar, or on the Touch, and it appears on the other two. I like this flexibility because I have access no matter where I am.

Tasks

I am still using Remember The Milk (pro) to manage my tasks. I have a three point entry here as well; I can enter through the web interface, the Touch app, or by sending email.

I particularly like the email access because I can forward emails I need to take action on and have them appear in my task list, with all details attached.

I have also worked out a way to push everything from Bonsai to RTM via Excel and email that allows me to simplify my project planning.

Email

For a long time I was using the native Touch email application to get into my Gmail. It caused some difficulty because it didn’t really move messages to the Trash when I deleted them, so I was doing a lot of cleanup. I found the Google Gmail mobile site, though, and switched. (This runs through the Safari application on the Touch).

This application gives me full access to all the features of Gmail in a well-designed screen.

I actually have to be connected via Wifi to use this, but this is of little matter. For those rare times when I want to send and email and don’t have a Wifi connection, I can still use the native app.

Contacts

Google Contacts are a subset of email, and I use the native Touch application to manage them. My contacts, like my calendar, sync from my Palm desktop, so I have a copy in three places. Using Google Contacts also gives me the ability to auto-add people I have emailed. This had been a problem in my previous systems.

Notes

I don’t keep too much reference material on my portable devices – just useful information I may need on the go, like equipment modes, birthdays and clothing sizes. Since I wanted multiple points of entry on this as well, I chose Awesome Note for its ability to sync to Google Docs.

The sync process on this is manual, but since this information hardly ever changes it suits me well.

I’m always on the lookout for other productivity improvements using the Touch. I’m evaluating a few other applications right now, but the system seems to be working pretty well using Google applications.

Does anyone have any must-have iPod Touch/iPhone productivity applications?

Photo by Yodel Anecdotal

After my husband and I were married a few years we built our modest home and within a few short years found ourselves parents of 4 children. We were completely financially strapped. Obviously one would think that solution to this situation would be (and what most Americans do) is to have both of us work full-time to float our financial boat.

After pursuing all angles of this option it became clear to us that simplifying our lives made much better sense — both financially and for the best interest of our family. We crunched the numbers which told us that it would cost an exorbitant amount of money to have 3 children in daycare full time plus 1 in ‘before and after school’ care. We realized how much it would cost for me to commute, dress, plus all of the everyday conveniences working moms rely on. After the numbers were in black and white our decision was confirmed.

We then opted to sell a car (resulting in not having a payment, car insurance, gas, repairs etc.) The reality of this was that I even saved money from staying home and not running to store as often as I had before. I found creative ways to do everything!

I became more organized having lists of what we needed so that our trips were efficient when we did go out. Meals were planned so that we weren’t missing anything. The children learned to make their own fun instead of always being on the run.

After some time, I started hosting a playgroup at my house. Every Tuesday afternoon we would have friends over to play while the moms visited. This gave us a social opportunity brought straight to our door. This time was refreshing to the soul!

Since I didn’t have a car, I canceled my gym membership thus saving even more money. I began jogging each day and found that it kept me in shape for virtually free.

I had more time than ever before so I used a clothes line to dry clothing. I cooked and baked from scratch. I bought a few chickens, gardened, and started canning and freezing.

I soon realized that our decision to sell our car was having a wide reaching affect! I could trace back to our decision and see how I saved so much money that I never even counted on saving meanwhile creating a peaceful home for my family.

My children are now 12, 14, 15 & 18. We have since rejoined the 2 car families and I have joined the workforce part-time. I miss the simpler days yet I still practice many of the same money saving strategies that I acquired in my earlier years as a one car family.

Photo by Libertinus