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Archive for June, 2005

A Million Monkeys Typing has The Beginner’s Mind, a Zen riff on too much organization getting in the way of living an actual life: Why did I need to have several versions of a contact list, in three different forms? One is enough. Did I really need two ways of tracking projects, and did I [...]

Internet telephones – FAQ

Posted by Minimalist J on June 30th, 2005

I like the idea, but haven’t done it yet – I get free long distance on my cellphone, and since I’m a social recluse, I just don’t talk that much anyway. Our landline has the ringer shut off since we only use it for DSL. But I know that eventually we’ll go with VOIP, if [...]

Handhelds/PDAs replacing laptops? I think not.

Posted by Minimalist J on June 29th, 2005

Brighthand recently ran an editorial titled Handhelds vs. Laptops — How to Lighten Your Load in One Easy Lesson. Well, that’s an appealing premise – I’d love to lighten my load, but I still take my Thinkpad with me when I need something more than my cellphone. It isn’t because handhelds and PDAs aren’t amazingly [...]

IMAP is better email

Posted by Minimalist J on June 29th, 2005

IMAP lets you have the best parts of a corporate email server for your personal life. Jennifer Berger at MacWorld recently saw the light – you should take a look. As she says: IMAP lets me keep all my e-mail on my company’s e-mail server, along with any custom folders, and my Sent items. I [...]

Consolidate your computer and TV

Posted by Minimalist J on June 28th, 2005

This is a great way to save on clutter and expense. We live in an apartment, so the computer is right where an entertainment center would be anyway. Rather than buying a big, heavy, expensive TV plus a big, heavy, expensive monitor, put all the cash into a nice LCD monitor. You’ll need a TV [...]

The anti-minimalist zippo lighter case

Posted by Minimalist J on June 28th, 2005

The very un-minimalist Uncrate (“Uncrate is a web magazine for guys who love stuff. Our team finds the best gadgets, clothes, cars and more so you can blow your rent money easier.”) has a pointer to the Zippo Cargo Case, which allows you to stow your indispensible Zippo lighter in your checked luggage. Hmmm. Now [...]

It costs less per day than your coffee!

Posted by Minimalist J on June 27th, 2005

How many different services advertise that they cost less than your daily cup of coffee? Of course, they don’t mean Folgers drip in your skanky old mug – they are referring to the $3-4 coffee at one of the ubiquitous coffee shops like Cairbou or Starbucks. Still…that doesn’t seem like much cash. But especially for [...]

In defence of idleness

Posted by Minimalist J on June 27th, 2005

AlterNet is running a Mother Jones interview with Tom Hodgkinson about his theory that idleness is a good thing. I was skeptical of some of his points, such as: I had lunch with these French people who said, “Travailler moins, produire plus.” In other words, the less you work, the more you produce. The problem [...]

“The Joys of Clutter” – Oh, the horror!

Posted by Minimalist J on June 24th, 2005

Loyd’s basement office sounds like my worst nightmare: At times, it can be difficult to navigate through piles of hardware. With various PC cases littering the floor and every tabletop surface holding heat sinks, CDs, manuals, game boxes, and other assorted small hardware, the basement lab will often look like the Tasmanian Devil just whirled [...]

Do Zen Monk Robes Have Pockets?

Posted by Minimalist J on June 24th, 2005

Similar topic to our Jedi robes post a while back. Celsius1414 talks about getting rid of all the junk in your pockets. Save your back from evil thick wallets! That said, I don’t think I can give up my cargo pants yet. Via 43 Folders.