End of Year Digital Cleanup
Dec 29, 2008 • Uncategorized • Efren Toscano
2009 is coming. Are your folders and digital archives prepared? Many remember to do end of year clean up, but what about the computers? Here are 5 things on what you can do to get organized before the new year arrives:
- Backup if you haven’t already
There are a variety of backup methods and I won’t go into the merits of each. On the cheap and easy end, buy an external hard drive and backup your important data files to it. On the cheaper and easier end, buy some blank CDs or DVDs and burn them w/your critical files. Finally, you can go for the exotic solutions like tape backup systems or even backup online. In any case, try to make multiple copies (using a password lock, of course), also make sure you physically move your archived data to another location (a relative’s house, for example). - Loose the dead email
“Delete or File” should be your ‘end-of-year clearing-inbox mantra’. Clip your email folders that you don’t need or archive them. Once your inbox is empty, you are completely done. - Do you even read that RSS feed?
Hitting subscribe may have been a good idea at the time, but there may be a lot of feeds you no longer care about. Rather than clogging your information uptake, remove what you don’t need. Just make sure, you don’t remove TechZulu from the list! - Desktop Organization
Productive people tend to have messy desktops. Just check out Einstein’s desk in the picture above! Both your virtual and real desktops will make you more productive if you can get at the information you need easier… so clean your desktop(s)! - Scrap(book) It!
You may need that slip of paper or .txt file you are about to throw out. Perhaps you can re-use that old material into a new project. To quote a great Sesame Street line, “Trash to treasure,” says Grundgetta. “That’s the grouch way!” Who knows? You could turn into a real ‘trashion’ or even a ‘trashionista’!
Although technically not yet spring, end of year cleaning will give you a leg up on getting organized. If you are a Microsoft Office user, check out their “Spring cleaning help from Office” guide. There are also a ton of sites devoted to organizing your life such as Lifehacker and 43folders.
