Saturday, March 1, 2008

Google Notebooks

www.google.com/notebook
Today I'm busy setting up a google notebook system for myself. It's a way to keep track of research and notes inside a series of notebooks. Basically I'm setting up a notebook per goal. One of my first goals is to redesign my workspace. I have 3 work areas in the house.
1. Upstairs Alcove. It's a great space but I'm giving that up because my husband is beginning to enjoy computers and sharing a space doesn't work for me. I don't like sharing bookcases or having someone else move what I'm working on. It's also beside the bedrooms so I have to mute the computer and not use the printer if anyone is sleeping. When I was in Halifax, I was forced to make the conversion to laptop so it's no sacrifice to give up the older computer.
2. The Dining Room. This works best for joint projects - especially with kids. There's lots of space to spread things out and room for two computers so one person can be doing something else if producing at different paces. Because it is in a public area of the house, it doesn't work for information you aren't prepared to disclose to anyone who happens to come to the door. It's also the best area for working on creative projects.
3. My Upstairs Office. This is a total disaster. I'm always relocating it because I'm using empty nest bedrooms but the birdies keep returning. Originally it was set up in Peter's room but he now needs his own productivity space. So I moved it across the hall into Paula's room when she when from residence living with summers at home to renting a house. For major holidays when everyone is home, I need all the upstairs rooms and the living room for sleeping areas. I could have a designated office, when we were a family of 6 but the family could easily double in size quickly.
The only solution to my problem is to move as much as possible online and find a confidential spot for what can't be put online for security reasons. The stuff that isn't private needs to be summarized and stored on a site like google rather than eating up my computer memory. Plus it feels more secure than having everything on a laptop that could disappear.

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