Electronic Filing System

[Sievert]

Hi all,

I need to set up an electronic filing system for my own use at work. I need it to be logical and not many folders deep. Does anyone have a system that works?

At the moment I'm running.

Top Folder
----Projects
-------Project A
-------Project B

----Intersting Documents

and it's just weak....

thanks

Sievert

 

[dschaffner]

I need to set up an electronic filing system for my own use at work. I need it to be logical and not many folders deep. Does anyone have a system that works?

Sievert,

I think you need to have a system that works for you, depending on the type of work that you do.

Here is the top level items for my system (I'm a university professor)

meetings, posters, talks, symposia, courses
grants
committees
vita
papers, projects and students
archives
gtd
journal editor
consulting
scouts
reviews

As you can see it's an odd list, but it's one that has grown up organically over the past 20 years, and it's one that works for me. Everything can (generally) be only one place

A few general tips:

I try to have each folder start with a different letter, so I can navigate using the keyboard (vs. mouse).

Also I keep the directories sorted in reverse date order, so more recent folders are near the top.

- Don

 

[mmurray]

Sievert,

I think you need to have a system that works for you, depending on the type of work that you do.

Here is the top level items for my system (I'm a university professor)

meetings, posters, talks, symposia, courses
grants
committees
vita
papers, projects and students
archives
gtd
journal editor
consulting
scouts
reviews

As you can see it's an odd list, but it's one that has grown up organically over the past 20 years, and it's one that works for me. Everything can (generally) be only one place

A few general tips:

I try to have each folder start with a different letter, so I can navigate using the keyboard (vs. mouse).

Also I keep the directories sorted in reverse date order, so more recent folders are near the top.

- Don

Hi Don

Just wondering what is the difference between things separated by commas and the vertical list here ?

meetings, posters, talks, symposia, courses
grants

Also what do you do about archiving? Do you sort by years or have some kind of mirror image of this layout inside the archive folder ?

By the way you look like you are on a mac so you should be able to navigate in finder by typing more than one letter if you want to have folders that start with the same first letter.

Michael

 

[ellobogrande]

Hi all,

I need to set up an electronic filing system for my own use at work. I need it to be logical and not many folders deep. Does anyone have a system that works?

At the moment I'm running.

Top Folder
----Projects
-------Project A
-------Project B

----Intersting Documents

and it's just weak....

thanks

Sievert

Actually, this isn't too bad. I keep my electronic documents on my hard disk filed in a similar manner to paper-one A-Z alpha system. I keep a folder at the root level for a person, topic, or project; sometimes only one file in the folder. However, I do have some top-level "category" folders that help me to group related items.

Like you I do have a "Project Support" folder that has a folder in it for each project for which I have electronic support material. When I'm done with the project I might move the folders to some other location as reference or delete them. I typically don't nest more than a couple of levels deep. It works pretty well for me.

 

[Sievert]

ok

thanks folks

think i might be trying to overcomplicate things so it's good to hear others have workable fairly simple systems.

cheers

Sv

 

[clango]

thanks folks

think i might be trying to overcomplicate things so it's good to hear others have workable fairly simple systems.

cheers

Sv

Exactly. For me it's the same. I prefer to have a system as simple as it is possible. Now I'm trying to focus on the A-Z- filing system. For me it work more simple than before. I mean in term of velocity accessing to the informations I'm looking for. Than great it's Google desktop search to find what's hidden! I tried also Windows Desktop search but it seemed to me it use more resources of the system.