Complexity Brings Stress Into Your Life
March 27th, 2008 Fokke KooistraCategories | Contributors | Getting Started | Getting Things Done | Implementation
Productivity 101
Story By Fokke Kooistra
Due to a job change I had to switch from OSX to Windows XP. On the internet you can find info for switchers from Windows to OSX . You can find info on that path here and here.
To be honest, after 6 years OSX it is ….. well, hard. I will not go into Windows bashing because I can get the work done. A system is a system and not the Holy Grail. David Allen has taught me the basic ingredients of a good system to stay productive. I now think switching to paper will keep me as productive as I was on my Powerbook. It isn’t the system that makes you productive but some key elements like getting everything out of your head and maintaining a good set of lists. This will help you use your head for new ventures and opens up creativity.
Pondering on what makes it so hard brought me to this conclusion: the main thing that bothers me is the complexity of Windows. Windows has just too many options, toolbars, buttons, menu items and possibilities. The sad thing is that I don’t use most of them. And frankly I guess not a single person has never used all of them.
So here is a golden tip for all you Windows users: strip as much functionality as you can. I did it: eliminate toolbars, uncheck extra features and look for ways to make using Windows just simpler. And learn as much shortcut keys as you can. I just invested an afternoon to get this sorted. And it really pays off.
I would like to point to two utilities that really helped me the last weeks: fingertips, a time saver like Quicksilver for the Mac and Virtual Desktop Manager, a Microsoft Windows XP PowerToy.
If you have any tips on using Windows more effectively, let me know in the comments!
You raise a good point and the other side of it is that you just have to think of any computer as another tool. Linux, Windows, and OS X all have their advantages and disadvantages. It’s a matter of how you are able to leverage their strengths and compensate for their weaknesses that gets us all by.
You may also want to look at Enso’s Launcher http://www.humanized.com/enso/launcher/ I’m told it’s similar to quicksilver, it’s out of beta and it’s free.
Aaron: I will try Enso’s launcher, thanks for the tip.
Fokke
Fokke,
Coincidentally I recently had the same experience going the other way after leaving windows. I changed from Windows to Mac and realized how little of all the options I really needed to in a computing environment. I have no desire to tinker with that stuff any more. Perhaps its the 80-20 rule. The one exception is a small app to aid in my website navigation using Safari that helps me jump back and forward using my mouse.