Computer filing disaster!

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trishacupra

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Hi,

My files on my computer are a complete mess. Some files are like 6 directories deep or something ridiculous.

Thanks goodness for the search function in Windows, but this has got to stop!

How do you organize files properly in a computer?

And in Outlook - I have so many folders it's crazy.

What's the magic solution???

Trisha
 
Do not trust computers.

trishacupra said:
What's the magic solution???
Click to expand...
1. Reduce the number of files considered critical.
2. Backup. Make print-outs.
3. Do not trust computers. They may fail. They may be hacked.
4. Relax. Enjoy the sun and the blue sky.
TesTeq
 
A few little ideas

Hello Trisha,

trishacupra said:
Hi,
How do you organize files properly in a computer?
(...)
What's the magic solution???
Trisha
Click to expand...

Nice coincidence, I am fighting with the same issue this days.

Regarding email, I converted from Outlook to GMail, which completely solved the problem for me. No folders, no pain. I just archive everything and use Search to retrieve older emails.

Regarding files on my computer, that's another story. I am just in the process of developing my own system, and here are some of my experiences:

1) At first, I moved all my data folders into the new directory I called "-Archive", so I could start with an "clean" disk. After several weeks, I realised how sparsely I need to go there - it seems that I don't need much of which I stored on my disk previously

2) I took inspiration from Gmail and GTD, and created a root folder with the name "@Inbox". All downloads, attachments and files I temporarily work on will go to that folder first. The intention is to not impulsively create some sub-sub directory, put the file there and then forget about it. From this @Inbox, I either delete the file or put it somewhere else. If I am not sure where to store the file or if I will ever need it later, I keep it there for a few more days, and more often that not I realize that I don't really need it and delete it.

3) Another folder that works for me is called "!Projects". Here I create subfolder for each active GTD project I work on, which has some working files.

4) Regarding reference files and various information from the web, I usually don't save them to my HDD. I just bookmark them with proper tags at http://del.icio.us .

greyman.
 
Let's see....

Email related to a particular project or client goes into an appropriate folder. Almost all general email gets tossed as I process my Inbox. Attachments that I expect to want after the project is over get saved out to reference files.

Reference files are sorted by topic, using the broadest possible headings. I would love to have a desktop equivalent to deli.cio.us/Furl/et al. Any suggestions?

My own deliverables and invoices are filed by client. My file tree has folders for Word documents, spreadsheets, etc., but in practice almost everything ends up under the Word tree with the main deliverable for the project.
(That is, I'll have a folder called Word/ClientName/ProjectName, but it actually contains images and spreadsheets as well as the main Word file.) A reorganization is order the next time I have time for productivity puttering.

Anything that's readily available online gets tagged and Furled instead. I also use CiteULike, which is a deli.cio.us-like tagging service for technical papers.

Hope this helps,

Katherine
 
Spurl is very good for managing web references and accessing them over the web (similar to del.icio.us and furl.net). It's for bookmarking and assigning tags and categories to your bookmarks. But it also lets you search the *contents* of the web pages you have bookmarked and to mark a bookmark as private if you like.

http://www.spurl.net

For files on my Mac, I use Quicksilver for searching, quickly appending (or prepending) text to files, etc. Maybe someone knows what the Windows counterpart would be - this is what it does:

http://docs.blacktree.com/doku.php?id=quicksilver:what_is_quicksilver
 
I don't bother organizing anymore. I just drop everything into My Documents and use Copernic Desktop www.copernic.com to find it.
Other tools such as X1, Google desktop or Windows Desktop serach will do it as well.
Why bother filing when you don't have to?
CK
 
Tagging files with project names

Ideally, I think there would be a tool for the file system that would allow you to tag files with a project name, like the GTD add-in does for Outlook. Windows does allow you to do this crudely in the Properties tab, but there's no convenient way to view the files by project. Does anyone know of such a utility?

Copernic, Google Desktop, and the new MacOS allow you to search the whole filesystem, and MacOS even allows you to set up "folders" that shows the results of one of these searches, but this often results in more results than I'm interesed in.

There's always a kludge, prepending the project name or number on the file, but then it gets complicated wif you're working with others who have their own naming system. Quick tagging with one or more projects would be perfect, since you could keep all of the files for active projects in a single folder, and move them en masse to an archive when the project is complete.

Looks like there's something new on the Someday/Maybe list (just in time for the weekly review)
 
Odd?

Not once has anyone mentioned implementing the 43 folders method on thier computer or some dervative there of. Interesting...
 
Why implement a 43 Folders system when one can use a computer-based calendar with the appropriate file attached? As I recall, that's what DA recommends.
 
Brent said:
Why implement a 43 Folders system when one can use a computer-based calendar with the appropriate file attached? As I recall, that's what DA recommends.
Click to expand...
I did say derivative... and that's exactly what you suggest. I was just trying to bring to light using GTD (analog or digital) methods in designing a system that works for a person.
 
2 Suggestions

ckennedy said:
I don't bother organizing anymore. I just drop everything into My Documents...
Click to expand...

I understand why a total search application like Google Desktop or QuickSilver is appealing...but I have two reasons why you may still consider organizing your digital files.

1) Creating project backups is easy if everything is in a specific directory/folder. If you need to use the material for a future project, it's waiting in one place for you.

2) Additionally, if you have a separate partition on your drive that is *only* for the OS and your major applications, you can upgrade your OS without fear of data loss (stored on a second partition). You can even schedule the data partition for regular backups! Nice.

Hope this helps,
TC
 
Digital organization

This issue is always a challenge and I can sympathize. In the past I've had too many file folders and to many subdirectories in a hierarchy. The fact is that folders and subfolders are not the solution. We quit using hierarchical databases in IT a long time ago (well except for legacy systems) in favor of relational databases. Unfortunately, about the only places we still rely on hierarchical data structuring is in our file systems and in application folders such as those used by outlook.

I use a combination of things that help tremendously. I'll start with outlook and the GTD add-in:

I have an archive.pst file that has a directory structure that looks like this:

calendar
email
@action
@deffered
@waiting for
reference
sent mail
tasks

Instead of deleting stuff from my completed action lists they get moved to the archive folder. (I know there are people who think this is nuts, but I need an audit trail). Anything that is reference material only goes into refernce, and all sent-mail goes into sent mail.

If I need to find e-mail related to a project I either look in the reference folder and search by the project tag, or I use google desktop.

For desktop files, I use a combination of file naming conventions and high-level directory structures. Everything I work on stays in My Documents or a top or second level directory under my documents:

My Documents
MailAttachments {contains files stripped from e-mail by EZDetach}
My Archives {archives of last years documents}
My Direct Reports {sub-directory for each direct report}
My Expense Reports {contains PDF's of all expense reports until paid}
My Financials {quicken data, PDF scans of receipts, tax records}
My Itineraries {travel itineraries}
My io Documents {documents created by logitech digital io pen}
My Maps {Mind Manager Maps/Brainstorms}
My Music {MP3s}
My Outlook {My outlook PST files including annual files}
My Pictures {photographs}
My Presentations {Powerpoint presentations & speaches}
My Projects {1 subdirectory per project}
My Reference {Reference files (no subdirectory)}
My Software {palm apps, GTD add-in etc. 1 sub directory per}
My Status Reports {monthly status reports}
Scratch {Temporary directory}

Naming conventions:

I typically name files as follows:

20050612_StatusReport.doc
20050609_[Project_Name]_MeetingNotes.doc
20050609_[Presentation_Title]_Presentation.ppt
20041231_[Course_Title]_TrainingSlides.ppt
20050514_[Trip_Title]_ExpenseReport.pdf
20050516_[Client_Name]_Proposal.pdf

This usually helps me search by project/client/content area as well as document type and date.

I've only recently started using google desktop and it has really increased my ability to manage things in this way as it searches both my desktop files and my email folders....

hope this helps
 
GTDish Filing

I used to put each current projects in its own folder, organized in turn into folders by focus area (20K level of organization). Each focus area folder (I did not think of them that way at the time, but that is what they were) contained both completed and active projects. That did not work well, because the percentage of active projects in each folder continuously decreases. Too much to look at, similar names, et cetera.

Now I have a folder for completed projects and for active projects. Completed projects are subdivided into focus areas for easy reference, but active projects are not. I genererally put a reference date in the folder title ("GSC June 05 Review"), which works well for both active and archived projects. I also have a reference folder, which has subfolders. This has all worked well, since it parallels the organization of material on my palm. I will probably start a someday/maybe folder soon, as a place to park materials for future projects, organized by focus area.
 
trishacupra said:
Hi,

My files on my computer are a complete mess. Some files are like 6 directories deep or something ridiculous.

Thanks goodness for the search function in Windows, but this has got to stop!

How do you organize files properly in a computer?
Click to expand...

I used the power of the alphabet. Just like the general reference file for the physical documents i store i've set up 26 alphabatised folders under "My Documents". Inside folder "T" i then have a subfolder for anything relevant ie. "Training". Couldn't be simpler.

Related to this i have a GTDtiddlywiki page that i used to store all manner of little bits of information about things (it also contains hyperlinks to very commonly used files). I also use "AppRocket" to search for things.
(ALT-Spacebar, type "Purchase orders", [Enter] : and that's me found what i want)
 
I'm fairly sure that on the FAST CD, David recommends your basic paper 43-file-folder setup. That's what I started using after hearing the CD, and I think it works great. Wish I had been doing it years ago.
 
Three-letter codes

I save everything in My Documents to make it easier to back up that one folder and its sub-folders to an external hard drive.

Within My Documents and the sub-folders, I try to start every file name with a two- or three-letter code, like MGT for business management ideas, FIN for financial, TAX for tax, QB for QuickBooks, ML for mailing labels, etc. I have some duplication and I'm planning when things slow down to maybe consolidate all my documents into one folder and sort by the codes and see what duplicates I have and what I want to delete, and clean it up a little. For now, I'm pretty happy with the codes, and if I want to I can do a search with the codes and always find whatever I need. Under My Documents I have other folders: Maps to client's addresses, Music, Photos, QuickBooks Data, Tax Data, and folders for each client as needed. I try not to have individual files under My Documents--they all need to be in a folder. I feel like at least my computer is organized, although some other things in my life aren't. I use the codes for reference files, not actually for data files.

For data files, I start filenames with the date, in the format yymmdd so everything will sort automatically by date, with everything for a particular year together, instead of using the mmddyy format, which doesn't really sort things by date, but by month. Took me a couple of months to get used to the yymmdd format, and I don't like it for other purposes, but I really did need some way to label and sort dated information, and finally just gritted my teeth and stuck it out and finally am comfortable with it.

Also I've re-named my frequently-accessed folders so the names start with a ! or @ so they will appear at the top of the directory listing in windows explorer and in file open windows, so I don't have to scroll through the directory listing so much. At one point I had ten or so folders beginning with those characters, and the top of the foler listing was getting crowded, so I suggest if you try this you just have five or six.
 
Wow, thanks everyone!

I love the idea of starting over by putting all the current stuff in an Archive folder, and starting fresh.

I'm also considering using my slave drive for all my data files now. First my Dad recommends I do it, now I read it again here. Someone's trying to tell me something...

And keeping it all in the My Documents folder makes sense. At the moment I park all the important folders on my Desktop for quick access. Unfortunately, I also park everything else on it like an overflowing inbox...

The alphabetical system is interesting. But couldn't I just use the Arrange Icons By Name, then Show in Groups view in Windows (I have XP)???

Having an Inbox folder didn't work for me in the past - I have about 5 different ones floating around full of unprocessed old stuff. That was pre-GTD, though... I guess right now my Desktop is the latest Inbox. :P

Having project files makes a lot of sense. Adding a symbol to the beginning to show whether it's active or now reference is an idea...

I've started using Basecamp as part of a team that I recently became a part of, for work. I am a contractor for this company, and most of the work I do is for them. But I also have my own separate projects which I'd like to keep separate from the other company projects.

I use EverNote to capture webpages and other small bits of info, and the search function is good on that. I don't use many of the features - I need to really have a good look at it to use all it's potential.

Someone spoke about how the folder system uses a hierachy while the IT industry has been using relational systems for a long time, I think. Is there some kind of trick to making the folders more relational - like cross-referencing and stuff?

I've tried using shortcuts to put things in more than one place, but it's ridiculous trying to find the 'real' folder when you want to add an attachment from it to an email, for instance, because Outlook won't show up shortcuts in its browse window.

Anyone got any more inspiration on a system that would work for me?

Thanks,

Trisha
 
Being a school principal, I have quite a few documents that I need to update and print about the same time every year (student handbook, faculty handbook, awards day script, etc.) I have a folder on my computer called "Monthly Ticklers." The folder contains 12 folders labeled Jan.-Dec. At the beginning of each month, I go to the appropriate folder and handle everything in there. At best, I knock the whole thing our in one sitting. If I can't, I add a task to Outlook to remind me where to pick up.

One teacher in particular at my school saw the idea and adopted it. She organizes her year around various themes and can tell you exactly what the students will be doing each month. The monthly tickler idea puts all of the letters to parents, worksheets for students, instructions for her, etc. all in one place.

Frank
 
Trisha,

Most responses were geared toward files, so here's a suggestion for your Outlook folders.

After trying to create and delete folders for various projects, and creating them for various types of messages (e.g., personal, administrative, client-based, marketing-oriented), I'm now down to folders of non-actionable messages that I want to keep: Sent and Saved. I don't bother with my Sent; all of my sent messages go in there. For all messages I receive, after I've processed them, and after I'm done with all of my actions related to them, I put them in Saved. From there, either a simple search or an advanced search will always find a message if I need to refer to it.
 
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