Tyler Reinhard wrote about his system for notes:

I needed something with a long lifespan, that requires little maintenance, and allows for an efficient weekly review. A system I can trust with my low-rent schemes, project-related brainstorms, and moments of epiphany. And, it has to prime those things for future use and next-actions.

This is an extremely nerdy article.I loved it. What really hit home for me was this bit:

I only keep about 50-100 notes in circulation at a time. When I’m done with a note, I archive it. If you find that you need a substantially larger number of notes (a swipe and a tap away at all times) you should permit yourself to have them. Certainly, Semantic Notes can handle it. However, if you merely decide you need thousands of notes, without really considering the ramifications thereof, or GTD method, or to your ability to review them … well, to be frank: you may unknowingly be subtracting years from the end of your life.

Those who follow me on Twitter, or who listened to this past Friday’s episode of Shawn Today, know I’m in the midst of a note system rework or my own. In part due to some syncing bugs I’ve been encountering between Simplenote and nvALT and also because I just think it’s smart to look at your workflows and systems from time to time and see if what you’re doing is the best (then, put your head back down and get to work).

My main goal has been to research and possibly find a new set of apps for mobile and desktop note syncing. But Tyler’s article has also given me some ideas for rethinking much more than just the apps I use, but my whole system. I make a lot of little notes, and any improvement to this area of my life would surely reap stellar dividends. I’ve got nearly 400 notes in my Simplenote database right now, and I know for a fact that many of them could be archived into a folder of plain text files.

I don’t know if all the details and obsessives of Tyler’s incredible system are quite what I’m looking for, but there are some great ideas that have me thinking of definite ways I can improve and clean up my whole notes system.

(Via Gabe Weatherhead, naturally.)

Khoi Vinh:

It’s not just an additional place to post photos, but a different kind of venue for different kinds of expressions and interactions. In fact, it’s a reminder that competition, when it is robust, directly translates into added functionality at the consumer’s disposal.

Agreed. Flickr doesn’t have to replace Instagram, and I for one don’t really want it to. I check Instagram for random photos of my friends’ kids and pets; I check Flickr for high-quality photos (usually). Respectively, that’s where I post those same types of photos myself — the photos I’m proud of are all on Flickr.

What Flickr needs is a strong mobile presence and proof that it’s a thriving, relevant service. The new iPhone app is a fantastic step in that direction.

Great piece by Ellis Hamburger for The Verge comparing the consumer-paid costs of using free apps to that of paid:

Free apps are dangerous, yet free is the dominant business model most mobile apps are taking these days. The roadmap is simple: grow as quickly as possible, then insert ads of some kind or get acquired. For consumers it offers a crummy set of choices: either losing the countless hours you put into the app or have your private data sold to marketers — since as well all know, when the product is free, you are the product

I am a big advocate of paying for the apps, services, art, and content streams I get value from — as are most of you, I presume. You’re probably familiar with Kevin Kelly’s famous article on 1,000 true fans. In short, the hypothesis is that if an artist can gain 1,000 true fans who will support his or her work, then that artist can keep on making art for their fans — everybody wins:

One thousand is a feasible number. You could count to 1,000. If you added one fan a day, it would take only three years. True Fanship is doable. Pleasing a True Fan is pleasurable, and invigorating. It rewards the artist to remain true, to focus on the unique aspects of their work, the qualities that True Fans appreciate.

As an artist myself, I believe this is a reachable and sustainable goal. And as a fan of other people’s work, I do what I can to rally behind a few folks whom I get great value and enjoyment from the work and art they produce and become one of their “true fans” by throwing my financial and vocal support behind them so they can keep on being awesome.

We’re back from the holidays… slightly heavier; slightly more determined. We have goals. We have resolutions. And we will make them happen.

… we think.

Sure, clearing out your inbox is a great intention — but finding a sustainable solution for business collaboration is better. While it might be tough to change the way your teams work together, now is the right time to move past the frustrations of yesteryear.

Bring your documents, versions and conversations together in one place. Get an intranet you’ll actually like.

Try Igloo.

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My thanks to Igloo for once again sponsoring the RSS feed. Sponsorship by The Syndicate.

Mike Vardy and Mike Schechter were kind enough to have me as a guest on their aptly named podcast. We talked about “intentional living” which really just boils down to having a goal and making it happen.

How fun does this look? Almost enough to make me want to move to Canada.

A couple years ago Matthew B. Crawford wrote this great essay for The New York Times as an adaptation of his book: Shop Class as Soulcraft: An Inquiry Into the Value of Work. I haven’t yet read the book, but the NYT essay is just fantastic. In the process of sharing his story of how, after finishing his Ph.D. in political philosophy, he decided to start a motorcycle repair shop, Crawford talks about the good, the bad, and the stereotypes of a trade job versus “knowledge work”.

And, though this block quote certainly doesn’t “encapsulate” Crawford’s essay, it is too clever not to highlight:

It is a rare person, male or female, who is naturally inclined to sit still for 17 years in school, and then indefinitely at work.

(Thanks to reader, Justin.)

I did. And it’s because there’s a bug (or feature?) in iOS that will apparently work itself out this coming Monday. Before then, you’ll have to manually disable Do Not Disturb (or don’t, and let your holiday vacation keep on rolling). (h/t J.D.D.).

I’m not really sure what’s going on in this picture, but so what — it’s awesome. You can see all VSCO’s favorite portrait shots here.

Over at Tools & Toys, we put together a list of our favorite, ahem, tools and toys of 2012.

It’s a great time to get your own server. The promotion includes a fully loaded server with 16GB of RAM, SSD and hosting for a year in a high-end data center.

Save $546 with the 2013 Promo.

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My thanks to Macminicolo for sponsoring the RSS feed this week.

Blain Hogan:

You’re looking for something, but you don’t know what it is yet. A lot of us stop here. It’s too hard. It’s frustrating. We call it “writers block” or “I just don’t have anything anymore,” or, “I’m not inspired!”

We stop before we really even get started.