I've used the P and S drives for several folders over the last two years. I found a couple of folders on the P drive that I had created and left up since 2006. I had fun deleting these folders knowing that I certainly don't need the files in them any longer.
As I was deleting these folders that I personally created, I came across many more folders that we've created in our department that we can easily delete. This exercise makes you realize how much you can do to get rid of folders and take a load off the system. This exercise also underscores the need to try to be as organized as possible when creating files and folders so that you don't have dozens of folders when you only need a few, well-selected ones to do the job.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Email Clean-Up #29 in iHCPL
I've been doing spring cleaning on my work and person email accounts. I saw my work account's quota usage drop from over 20% to .6%! I feel much "lighter" now that I don't have all those old emails cluttering up my mailbox. I went through each email and just asked myself if I needed the email any longer or if I could easily live without it. If I needed the email, I either wrote down the information or I printed it out. Then I deleted and purged and deleted and purged!
Using some of the GTD principles, I developed three folders that I could initially move emails into so that they would be "collected" in one spot. I analyzed the email that I receive and I decided to name the folders from the three main duty areas that are in my job description. Most of my email falls into one of those areas. I plan to go through my email three times a day (when I arrive, lunch and before I leave) to see if the email falls into one of the three folder areas. If the email doesn't, I will address the email by responding to it or deleting it. If the email does fall into one of those three job areas, I will move the email to that folder. Once a week (on Thursday) I will go through the folders to clear them out completely.
Using some of the GTD principles, I developed three folders that I could initially move emails into so that they would be "collected" in one spot. I analyzed the email that I receive and I decided to name the folders from the three main duty areas that are in my job description. Most of my email falls into one of those areas. I plan to go through my email three times a day (when I arrive, lunch and before I leave) to see if the email falls into one of the three folder areas. If the email doesn't, I will address the email by responding to it or deleting it. If the email does fall into one of those three job areas, I will move the email to that folder. Once a week (on Thursday) I will go through the folders to clear them out completely.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Using GTD to get things done! iHCPL #28
I enjoyed reading the principles of GTD. I've always admired people who are well-organized at work and at home. I've read books that incorporated the basic principles of GTD, but I haven't always put them into practice.
I like the philosophy of collecting the items (ie. emails, paperwork, etc.) in one place to work through. I particularly like the 2 minute rule about doing anything that can be done in 2 minutes. I recently put this concept into practice when going through email that accumulated over several days. I quickly responded to several emails that I no longer have to keep on my mind. It's always gratifying to get things like that done.
I've made a little outline of the GTD principles to put on the bulletin board by my desk as a reminder to keep paperwork or little tasks from getting out of hand.
I like the philosophy of collecting the items (ie. emails, paperwork, etc.) in one place to work through. I particularly like the 2 minute rule about doing anything that can be done in 2 minutes. I recently put this concept into practice when going through email that accumulated over several days. I quickly responded to several emails that I no longer have to keep on my mind. It's always gratifying to get things like that done.
I've made a little outline of the GTD principles to put on the bulletin board by my desk as a reminder to keep paperwork or little tasks from getting out of hand.
Friday, December 21, 2007
Week 10: #23 Is this the end?
Well now comes the fun part -- trying to summarize what I've been doing for the past three months (though most of my posts reflect that I've only been working on this a week or so...) Believe it or not, I did start this project back in September.
I'm finishing this entry at the eleventh hour, so I hope I didn't leave any exercises out. I'm glad that HCPL brought us this program inspired by what they've done in North Carolina and other libraries. I've used some aspects of these applications, but I'm sure I'd never have known how to go out and find a lot of them on my own.
I think my favorite discovery was just knowing I could post a picture on my blog through Flickr or create my own Avatar. I've gone to websites and seen these things all over but I never bothered to do this before.
This experience really shows me how much I need to do to keep up with the times. Of course, not many people know all of this material. But a lot of people obviously know some of this. This is a good time of year (i.e. end of one year, beginning of another) to assess my technological skills and make goals for future undertakings. This iHCPL experience shows me that there are ways to figure out what I need to know and what I should want to know. It's been tough at times, but I'm glad I've given it a try.
I'm finishing this entry at the eleventh hour, so I hope I didn't leave any exercises out. I'm glad that HCPL brought us this program inspired by what they've done in North Carolina and other libraries. I've used some aspects of these applications, but I'm sure I'd never have known how to go out and find a lot of them on my own.
I think my favorite discovery was just knowing I could post a picture on my blog through Flickr or create my own Avatar. I've gone to websites and seen these things all over but I never bothered to do this before.
This experience really shows me how much I need to do to keep up with the times. Of course, not many people know all of this material. But a lot of people obviously know some of this. This is a good time of year (i.e. end of one year, beginning of another) to assess my technological skills and make goals for future undertakings. This iHCPL experience shows me that there are ways to figure out what I need to know and what I should want to know. It's been tough at times, but I'm glad I've given it a try.
Week 9: #22 Downloadable Media
I don't have a computer at home, so I haven't really been into the downloadable media yet. We (HCPL) have a great collection of DVD's that I'm still going through. However, I can see how many people probably would enjoy using the downloadable media to save time and gas in going to the library.
I haven't noticed customers really asking about or using these resources much - most people seem to prefer the solid book or video/audio product. But at the rate technology is going, I'm sure we'll have folks looking into this a lot more in the next couple of years.
I didn't see any ebook titles that appealed to me that don't already have a traditional book format. So, for now, I'll still to the traditional book. However, after iHCPL, I could see myself in the upcoming year, using the ebook collection during my lunch break or afterhours if a title catches me.
I haven't noticed customers really asking about or using these resources much - most people seem to prefer the solid book or video/audio product. But at the rate technology is going, I'm sure we'll have folks looking into this a lot more in the next couple of years.
I didn't see any ebook titles that appealed to me that don't already have a traditional book format. So, for now, I'll still to the traditional book. However, after iHCPL, I could see myself in the upcoming year, using the ebook collection during my lunch break or afterhours if a title catches me.
Week 9: #21 Podcasting
I went through Podcast.net to find a wonderful series of library how-to vignettes hosted by Glasgow University Library. You get to hear great Scottish accents explaining the intricacies of "returning a book", "placing a hold", "finding a book", etc. This is definitely worth a listen. I subscribed to it on my Bloglines account. I can hardly wait to hear the newest installments by our cardigan sporting librarians.
Week 9: #20 Discover YouTube and other video sharing sites
I've been enjoying You Tube for some time now. I love the huge variety of vidoes (including clips and whole episodes from old TV shows) and the way it showcases related vidoes based on the title/subject of the video you choose. I went from viewing "Angry Librarian" video to "Angry Professor" video to "Angry Teacher" video with just a click of the keyboard.
I've been following the installments of a video called "Kalypso's New Orleans". A young girl hosts this video about living in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. There are at least 3 editions of it. She does a great job with the help of her family and some good music in the background. The only real problem I had with the video -I'd like to see it updated with more installments.
The video I saw didn't really have library features in it. However, there are lots of library related videos out there. Some are funny. Others are more serious training type videos showing what to do and what not to do as a librarian. Still others show the programs and collections of various libraries.
I've been following the installments of a video called "Kalypso's New Orleans". A young girl hosts this video about living in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. There are at least 3 editions of it. She does a great job with the help of her family and some good music in the background. The only real problem I had with the video -I'd like to see it updated with more installments.
The video I saw didn't really have library features in it. However, there are lots of library related videos out there. Some are funny. Others are more serious training type videos showing what to do and what not to do as a librarian. Still others show the programs and collections of various libraries.
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