Mindful Ink

There’s a ton of productivity tips out there, especially working with technology, but I’ll tell you the one secret that many seem to know, but no one really talks about: creating a consistent workspace.What do I mean by this crazy “consistent workspace” jargon? Well, I mean that no matter where you are, you have the same tools at your disposal that you do anywhere else. The same bookmarks, essential files, calendars, email, etc.Since moving to Apple computers, this has become incredibly easy, but even before this I strove to achieve the same sort of mirroring on my old desktop and laptop PCs. So fear not my PC friends, it can be done. And you really should consider making sure it is done. There are, of course, some rather complex ways to do some of these things even better and a few commercial options as well - but what I want to focus on here is the simple way to do these things. Not all of us are tech-heads, after all.So, let us divide the essentials you need into a few categories and go from there. Bookmarks, essential files, programs, calendars, and email.

Bookmarks

This is by far the easiest to setup. If you’re on a Mac you’ve two major options: use the .mac service offered by Apple (available from $79 dollars from Amazon, or $99 from Apple.) This works only if you’re using Safari, but .mac also makes a number of other options so much easier on a Mac, and with the new storage allotment (and upcoming changes with Leopard) its worth it.Now, if you use Firefox on either Mac or PC (or Linux, I imagine) you have my favorite option - the del.icio.us plugin. Obviously, this does entail you using del.icio.us for your bookmarks, and I’d highly advise it - it makes bookmarks MUCH easier to deal with. You simply install this plugin, and no matter what computer you’re using you’ll have access to your bookmarks. And don’t worry, you can mark some as private. ;) If you don’t use Firefox, do not fear, you have other options available to you to use del.icio.us - they just aren’t quite as nice. For instance, here are some buttons for Internet Explorer and bookmarklets that will work with just about everything.And as an added bonus, you can use Mobilicio.us for your del.icio.us-ing to go!

Essential Files

Again, on a Mac this is very easy. With the use of .mac you simply setup your iDisk and on it place all those files that you really need to be able to get to anywhere. And think big here, you’ve got 10 gigs, so don’t sweat putting things in you don’t need all that often, but would be handy to have.Now, if you want a free option, there are some of those, too. In fact, for both Mac and PC users there is a great program called FolderShare. It’s what I used for sometime before switching to Mac. It’s not quite as seamless as an iDisk, but it’s still pretty great. Setup is quick and easy. The upside of Foldershare is there is no real limit to what you can be syncing between computers, and you can also choose to share the occasional file or access all your computers files from anywhere on the web (it goes without saying you must consider this a security risk, and a strong password is HIGHLY suggested.) I believe Foldershare is owned by Microsoft, as well. It’s also in beta, though I used it for over a year without anything more than a hiccup.

Programs

This is simple enough - try to use one system. If you use PC’s, use all PC’s; if Macs, all macs. This makes everything much easier. You don’t just want to have access to the same stuff, and be able to access that stuff, you want a consistancy of workflow. That means if you’re using Word 2007 on one computer and Mac Word 2004 on another it’s going to cause you some headaches.So, assuming you have all of one system - this is real simple, install all the relevant programs on both computers. Careful here, though, some software has rather draconian licenses and won’t allow you to legally install a program on more than one machine you own.I know this seems obvious, but you’d be surprised.

Calendars

Obviously, this only matters if you keep a calendar, but giving the demographic I’m writing for, I’m safe in assuming you do. Wherever you’re accessing your information, you should be accessing the same info. You don’t want to see that the last minute change you made on your desktop’s calendar didn’t make it to your laptop and phone and now you’re late for something.I’m kind of anal about this myself. There are a lot of webapps I’d like to be using, but they mess with my calendar consistancy and I just won’t have that. Again, .Mac makes this pretty easy as it will simply sync all your computers iCalendars. You may need to regularly sync your phone to keep it in he loop, but it is easy enough. But there are other options, both for you, and our PC friends.Whether you primarily use a web based calendar such as Google Calendars, or Outlook or iCal, you can publish and subscribe to a calendar. It’s not hard, but it can be a lifesaver. For instance, I use iCal religiously because it works with everything I do. But, I also publish my calendars and subscribe to them via GoogleCalendar so that wherever I am, I can access the calendar - either on a mobile or another computer.But wait, there’s more! Even if you’re not using Outlook or .mac on a Mac, you still have options that don’t involve a webapp. Simple publish your calendars, and then on your other computers subscribe to those calendars. It’s not as ideal as .mac since you can’t change these calendars on the go, but you can at least keep them consistent.Publishing with iCalPublishing your Outlook Calendar to the Web (PC World)Subscribe to a Google Calendar with iCal (tuaw.com)

Email

I don’t know why I fought this for as long as I did. If you’re using more than one computer, and you prefer an email client over a web-based solution (I certainly do), you need to be using IMAP. You setup an IMAP account and the email server keeps your clients in sync - drafts, sent email, incoming email. You’re not going to end up with some mail in one place, and some in the other, or re-reading it all.IMAP providers are not, unfortunately, as readily available as pop-based email but still easy enough to find (and most major hosting services have IMAP service included in their email setup. Simply create an email account, configure it on your client, and forward your existing email accounts all to this new account.)Alternatively, you could simply use a web-based option when away from your primary computer. But IMAP is really a much better option.Fastmail (a free IMAP service, but you may want to look harder)———-So there we are. I realize a lot of this sounds like a long song to .Mac and Apple, but that’s just because they’ve created the easiest software to deal with. All of these systems however, once established, are easy to maintain and have a few additional options.

1. Backup - many of these options free you up from even worrying about backup. Things are always being backed up, and more importantly, easy to sync back up simply by setting up the systems on a new machine.
2. Secondly, and this works with the one above, but when you setup a new computer you can easily get going as you simply install your software, get these systems up and running, and so those re-formats or whatever else you must do occasionally, is much less painful.
3. Third, and this was mentioned in passing above, but many of these services allow you to access your information from ANY computer, which is especially useful if you must schlep from computer lab to computer lab on campus.

So, this is how I keep a consistent workplace across the multiple platforms I spend my time. Did I miss something? Better solutions, let me know here or in the comments.

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lifehacks, Productivity, Software, study-hacks