Sarah Morgan
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I’m a list maker with limited access to wifi because I don’t have a Blackberry. I can hit up the internet on my env2 but it’s a pain. I don’t know that things like Evernote would help me. I do have an iPod Touch so I try to make lists on there. But I seem to still be stuck on paper. I’ve tried Remember the Milk and integrated it into Gmail but again – I think I’m missing something. Thoughts?
I think you have to think about what works for you. Don’t necessarily convince yourself that paper is bad because it’s old. I’m the biggest tech luster in the world – but for some things, I just need paper.
Don’t give up on checking out different gizmos. Remember the Milk, Resnooze, Jott, Memo to Me, Outlook tasks – there are a million of them.
But don’t think of using paper as a failure. It’s just a preference. Plant a tree if you feel that guilty. :)
As for me: my lists go everywhere. There’s a magnetic pad on my fridge, a planner in my purse, a notebook on my desk, a million Google Docs… what would life be without lists? Don’t beat yourself up about how your way should be cooler. If it works for you, it’s super cool.
Also, have you heard of Zotero? It’s a Firefox extension that is like Endnote – it keeps track of your bibliographical info for later reference. I’ve downloaded it and am waiting to try it out when I actually have a reason.
I had not heard of Zotero before but I am instantaneously and passionately envious that I didn’t have it while I was writing my master’s thesis. Dr. L. would have had a much happier grad student.
And what do you have for me on wikis?
I ain’t got nothing on a wiki. But I’ll tell you this, when I want to know where to start, it’s the first place I go.
I believe wholeheartedly in the goodness of the whole, of the self-correcting nature of the crowd, of the power of the masses. However I also have had beaten into my head the English major’s proper footnoting and the journalist’s double sourcing.
Wikipedia may not be the answer, but it’s a pretty darn fantastic signpost to the answers.
Lists rock and the only way I can manage this is on good old fashioned paper. I’ve tried a million different electronic ways of getting organised. The paper to do list seems much more official to me – no annoying alerts or beeps to tell you when and what to do (even though you asked the system to do this for you) – they simply just don’t stand out against all the other annoying alerts and beeps that are abundant in my life. My paper to do list is nearly the only thing that I write down anymore – so in a funny way if gives it more prominence and importance. PS I love Wikipedia as well and it is nearly always my starting point (I’ve never made a contribution to it though)
What a great point – what we commit to paper becomes more important in its deliberate and retro way! Love it.
(And this is why I love that it’s just about Christmas-card-writing time. Same reason.)