5 Ways to Increase Desktop Usability (and Productivity)

Usability is the study of how you interact with your computer – and how to make the computer work easily and simply, the way you want it to. You can increase the usability of your own desktop yourself, even without modifying code or otherwise feeling “stuck” with what the software designers give you.

Here are some simple ways to increase usability (and thus productivity!):

1. Color terminal windows. This was mentioned yesterday, but it bears repeating for a general reason: with different color backgrounds, you can see at an instant which window you are on and where the window is that you want.
2. Cascade windows that go together. For example, when using multiple screen sessions, if you cascade them – that is, overlap them so that the top and left sides are visible – then it becomes easy to pick one at random. The windows can then be large as possible but still reachable at an instant. For best usability, make sure that there is a good amount of window visible when it is fully covered by other windows (I figure about 1 inch – 2.54 cm). This makes it possible to hit the window with the mouse very easily, and acknowledges Fitts’s Law.
3. Maximize windows when possible. This helps you focus on the current topic, and allows you to make use of the “infinitely large” window edges. If you are using Synergy, make sure to turn on the “lock to current screen” capability to make best use of this.
4. Use full screen viewing when possible. This is most often relevant to browsers (use F11) but is also true for PDF readers and terminal sessions. Unfortunately, most readers will default to “full page” viewing in full screen mode; some won’t let you change it. As far as terminal sessions go, if you are using only one, it will be most useful in full screen mode.
5. Use multiple desktops. This will allow you to move irrelevant windows outside your focus, and will permit you to switch to them with ease. For Windows, I use Dexpot; Linux comes with pagers built into KDE and Gnome and probably everything else. Dexpot has a very interesting feature that you can use to further increase usability: you can hide windows you almost never use to the system tray.

If you do these things, you’ll find that your productivity will go up and errors will go down – and your time with the computer will be much more stress-free.

Use Terminal Colors to Prevent Errors

As administrators, we often are working on more than one system at a time. If you use screen as much as I do, you may find that all screens are indistinguishable from one another. This becomes a perfect place to separate the different systems into one or more xterms with different colors. You could try to use GNU screen colors (by adjusting the termcap and terminfo entries) but using xterm’s color set is easier.

Using multiple xterms (or rxvt terminals) you can color them in different ways to represent different systems. With different xterm windows, you can also separate the windows in space by putting them in different areas of the screen.

You can also set the backspace key when you start up an rxvt session. Use the –backspacekey option with the appropriate string (such as “^H”). Combined with the background and foreground colors, you could start rxvt with a command like:

rxvt -bg LemonChiffon -fg Black --backspacekey "^H"

The names of the colors can be seen in the file rgb.txt included with X11; in Red Hat Enterprise Linux, it can be found in /usr/share/X11/rgb.txt. For some reason, Ubuntu doesn’t have this file; it seems to be expected by many programs in either /etc/X11/rgb.txt or the previously mentioned /usr/share/X11/rgb.txt. For some strange reason, the folks at Ubuntu refuse to load it into the base; here is a bug report that showcases some of the back and forth on the topic. You can download the current rgb.txt and put it into the correct path if you have to.

My favorite colors for backgrounds – easy on the eyes, easy to read black text – are these:

• LemonChiffon
• SkyBlue
• PowerBlue
• IndianRed
• Plum1
• PaleTurquoise

There are complete lists of X11 colors on the web, such as this page or this page – or this sortable table of colors.

You can also see the colors through the use of the programs xcolors and xcolorsel, both of which do similar things. Both are available as packages for Ubuntu and both require rgb.txt which is probably missing. There don’t seem to be RPM packages for Red Hat Linux (and variants) xcolors or xcolorsel for some reason, although both OpenSUSE and Mandriva look like there should be some current packages for these programs.

The Benefits of Time Tracking

Time tracking is an area where admins (and others) often have strong feelings – perhaps because one has been required to keep track of time for multiple different ways, having to enter similar data every day or every week – or perhaps because the time tracking was so detailed that one could easily spend more time tracking time than doing anything worthwhile. However, when we are recording time just for ourselves – perhaps we can resolve all of these problems ahead of time and use time tracking to its fullest potential.

Tracking your time can be of benefit, especially if you are self-employed. Even if you are not “self-employed”, to some extent we all are self-employed: you provide a service to your employer and your continued employment hinges on the value you bring to the employer. Even if you are looking for work: your job is to provide quality job searching prospects to yourself. Tracking your time can show you where the time went – and how much of it was really useful. If you are focusing on one area and the more important projects are sliding behind, then tracking will show this.

Remember: this tracking is only for you; so no fudging and no fear of what others will think – be honest in your tracking.

Tracking time does not have to be a minute by minute process (albeit some employers may make you do this, at least down to the five minute level). Tracking may be best done on a 15 minute basis; nor do you have to give up if you forget to record one start time – most applications should allow you to track your time retroactively (don’t abuse this capability!).

Time-tracking applications is one of those areas where there are a hundred different applications with different features. For whatever reason, no open source variant is a hands-down winner in this area; if you investigate you will find numerous versions of “time tracking” software, some of which are quite simple and some of which are very complex and all-encompassing.

For the purpose I am describing, a simple system is best. I recommend for Linux one of KTimer (included with KDE), GnoTime, or Project Hamster (now included with Gnome). For Windows, there is Baralga – which is also platform independent as it is Java-based. All of these are perfect for personal time tracking.

Many time tracking applications are designed for massive projects, for teams, or to provide everything to everybody. Programs such as those mentioned will provide the basic time tracking without all of the other things that get in the way – permitting you to boost your productivity every day.

Building a Checklist

When you are undertaking an invasive and complicated process, you should have a checklist to go by. This will help you make sure you cover all the bases and don’t forget anything. I’ve written about this before.

However, how do you build a checklist that will be of the most assistance?

First, “build” is the right term: in the days or weeks leading up to your process (system maintenance, for example), come back to the checklist over and over. Review it several days in a row, or better yet, several times a day. You’ll think of new things to add to it, and you’ll be fleshing it out until it is comprehensive and complete. You might want to leave it loaded in your workstation so you can come back to it whenever the mood strikes.

Secondly, break the checklist down into major sections. For example, in patching a system you might have sections for: 1) preparing the system; 2) patching the system; 3) rebooting the system. Other processes will have different major sections. These major sections should be set apart on your checklist, preferably with titles and bars that segregate the checklist into its component parts. I recommend a different color background and a large bold font to set it apart.

Thirdly, there should be a “point of no return” – which should be at a major section break. This is the point where you cannot turn back and return to the way things were. At this point during the process, you have to choose: have things gone smoothly enough that completion is likely – even inevitable – or is the process in such disorder and disarray that a return to the status quo would be better? At that point, one must choose.

With such a checklist, your process will be much smoother, and you won’t have to explain to the boss why you missed something critical. It’ll also document what you did (along with the notes you take).

Pair Administration

One particular aspect of agile programming caught my fancy this last week or so: the pair programming concept. Specifically, agile programming includes the idea that programmers work in pairs, thus reducing bugs and increasing productivity. (Note that this is just one part of agile development.)

I thought to myself, that would be perfect for major maintenance projects as well. For instance, if you have to reboot a server, and make sure it comes back up with its plethora of services – why not work in pairs?

The more junior system administrator could be the driving administrator, and the seasoned professional could watch over their shoulder to make sure all is well.

Since human error is the number one cause of errors, this seems like a good way to reduce errors and increase server uptime. One of the benefits of pair programming is to reduce errors; perhaps pair administration would result in the same. The oft-repeated quote says that “many eyes make shallow bugs”; perhaps “many eyes make better uptime!”

If you try it, let us know your experiences.

One-Time Checklists: Planning Ahead

Have you ever done something as simple as reinstall an operating system – only to find you missed something important? What if you have to apply patches? Upgrade databases? If you forget something simple and critical…. this is definitely not something you want to do. What can we do to avoid such scenarios?

Several days ahead of time, make a checklist. Keep adding as you think of things that need to be done during the process. If it is a reinstall, do you need to copy SSH keys? Install third-party software like sudo and rsync? Reconfigure the kernel for your environment? Put all of these down on your checklist.

Break your checklist down with titles – so that you know what step you are at and so you can find it easily. For a reinstallation, you could use headings like:

• Preparation
• Reboot and Install
• Postconfiguration

…and so forth.

Break the checklist down into specific tasks: an item like Configure Server is insufficient: what items need to be configured? How? Make the items specific and detailed.

Use the checklist during your maintenance, and keep notes on the sheets as you do them – and as you find things that you might have missed. Write them right on the checklist – and keep the checklist. Next time you do something similar, you can start with the original checklist.

In this way, you will miss nothing – and people who come after you will thank you profusely. Just keep the old checklists in places people can find them. A three-ring binder would be just right. Date the checklists too, put a title on them (“Reinstall of HP-UX 11i v3) and put them in some kind of order.

Productivity: Going with the Flow

When you write down your things to do (you are writing down your things to do aren’t you?) then you need to keep them front and center at all times. If you put them into your PDA, then checking your PDA daily has to seem like second nature. If you write them onto a sheet of paper, then checking with that sheet of paper should be a daily reflex. If you use an Internet site such as ToodleDo or Nozbe (my two favorites!) then you have to check daily.

The important thing here is to go with what is natural; don’t attempt to change your habits but work with them instead. When someone gives you something to do what do you reach for? If writing down a to-do item takes too much effort, it will be skipped or avoided. If checking your list takes too much effort, you will avoid it.

Once you have your list of things to do, put it into your “trusted system” as David Allen calls it. Don’t leave them hanging out there. This “trusted system” has to be the one you check daily. Putting things into this trusted system also requires habit and requires paying attention to the effort required: make it as effortless as possible – which will reduce or eliminate the tendency to avoid it.

Where possible, use your natural tendencies to make your system work for you; this will make you more productive since you are checking your tasks daily and doing them rapidly.

Webware 100

CNet has released their 2009 list of the 100 Best Web applications in 10 categories, plus the editor’s choice for the best Web applications that weren’t otherwise included.

There are quite a few, including just about every major browser on the planet. There are a few that are not in the lists, but should be. Here are some of my favorites that are and aren’t included:

Zoho

Zoho (a winner in the Productivity section) is unlike any other documentation suite online: they have everything – and the most interesting stuff is free. I keep wanting to use them, and would if my work was web-only. One of the most important reasons I like Thinkfree Office is the seamless integration between the desktop and the web; Evernote (another entry) does this too.

Evernote

Evernote was one of the Editor’s Picks. Evernote is essentially an electronic collection of notes that gets synchronized with their servers and made available to you online. Thus, you can work at your desk with desktop speeds, and let it update to the web so you can look at your notes on the go.

Pidgin

Pidgin (a winner in the Communications category) is the former GAIM instant messaging client, and supports a variety of services, as well as plug-ins. What makes Pidgin so nice is that it runs on everything – it really does. There’s versions for Windows and Linux, a version called Adium for Macintosh, and a text console version called Finch. What’s not to like?

Wikipedia

Wikipedia (one of the winners in Search and Reference) is an online encyclopedia that you can edit. If you find a mistake, don’t just complain: fix it! I edit regularly – any time I find bad English, I correct it – doing my part to make Wikipedia an excellent resource.

Not only that, but there is also the French Wikipedia or the Russian Wikipedia – or numerous others that could also use your help – even an Esperanto Wikipedia!

Thinkfree Office

How did they miss Thinkfree Office? This is one of my favorite applications, and I use it daily. I bought the Macintosh version ages ago (before web synchronization was as nice as it is now).

Not giving Thinkfree Office a place in the awards is a real mistake.

Data.gov

This is brand new – perhaps just too new for the awards – but the United States government put all the public data they had available onto Data.gov and made it easily available to all. Certainly, it is of most interest to United States citizens – but a lot of the data should be interesting to others as well.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn, to me, is a social networking web site for adults. Professionalism is paramount, and connections can truly be useful and helpful. You can get back in touch with old colleagues and catch up on what they are doing, and more. Not including LinkedIn was a real surprise for me also.

SpiderOak

SpiderOak provides excellent backup service with multi-platform support: Windows, Linux – its supported. Old versions of files – and deleted files – can be retrieved from the user interface on whatever platform you are using. Very simple, and very easy.

Toodledo

Toodledo is a To Do List manager: simple, clean, and easy to use. It integrates with iGoogle, with Firefox, and others, along with numerous export and import capabilities. If you are willing to keep your To Do list online (sadly, I wasn’t), this is a must – especially for GTD adherents.

ReadItLater

The Read It Later application is no less than brilliant – every time you see a web site you want to read – don’t read it (wasting otherwise productive time): save it and read it later. This is a wonderful idea, and I use it all the time. Now if only I could remember to actually read them….

Wolfram Alpha

WolframAlpha, the new offering from Wolfram is absolute genius. It is like a fact-based search engine – like a cross between Wikipedia, Google, and the CIA World Factbook – but even that doesn’t cover it all. If it has to do with facts or computation, WolframAlpha can handle it.

And that doesn’t even cover Wolfram’s other offerings, like: WolframTones, free computer-generated tones for your mobile phone; Wolfram Demonstrations, explaining and demonstrating mathematical concepts at all skill levels; Wolfram Mathworld, a one-stop resource on mathematics; and even more!

At one time I seriously considered a carreer in mathematics; this site is a mathemetician’s dream come true…

Powered by ScribeFire.

Working from Home

As a system administrator, you almost certainly will find yourself working from home. Are you productive at home and concentrating on your work? Or is the home life intruding on your work time?

Lifehacker points out a delightful post from Lynn Truong over at Jonathan Fields awake@thewheel blog. In this post, Lynn describes how to separate your work from your home time – even while working from home, and while still making time for the little ones in your life.

Some of the suggestions will be familiar if you’ve considered this at length; in any case, it is a nicely written piece that covers a lot. Go read it!

Powered by ScribeFire.

Email Productivity: Smack Down that Email!

I believe I have a somewhat unusual approach to email – at least, unusual in that it doesn’t seem to be discussed much. It works for me, and might just work for you.

I get a ton of emails – mainly because I either a) have notices and warnings and logs coming from systems I manage, or b) subscribe to way too many newsletters, mailing lists, and so forth. At work, I get notices; at home, I get mailing lists…

This is what I do.

Sort everything!

If you can quantify it, put it into a folder. Nothing should be in your inbox except mail you’ve not had a chance to quantify yet – or haven’t seen before.

Create rules to sort things automatically. This is the crux of the system: everything is sorted as it comes into your mailbox. Also, if necessary, force the rules to sort only once: once the rule is triggered, it should quit and stop processing rules. Thunderbird does this automatically; Outlook has to be told.

As you create the rules, most email clients will allow you to create a folder at the same time. Use this capability.

Many clients also have the ability to create a rule from a message – sometimes even to the point of automatically creating a filter on a sender or on a mailing list sender: use it. Both Thunderbird and Outlook will provide much of this capability from a right click on the message to be sorted.

Also remember to apply the rules as you create them to all messages currently in the inbox: that is the whole purpose. Before the rule was created, they couldn’t be sorted – so sort them afterwards.

Here are some examples:

• Mail from the boss. Move it to a folder with his name.
• Mail from the system administration mail group. Put into a folder named according the the group’s name.
• Newsletter from a system manufacturer. Move to a folder named according to the newsletter name or the manufacturer’s name.
• Automatic log messages sent by mail from a system. If these are “alarm” type messages, separate them. System messages could go into a folder named after the system, or into a folder according to the monitor tool reporting.

The last example brings up the next point:

Use saved searches to sort in different ways.

For example, all automated messages from a system could go into a folder by system name. Then created saved searches that show all messages from a particular monitoring system (such as Nagios or HP’s EMS).

Add alarms for vital mail.

In contrast to what others have said, I believe in message alarms: however, only use them for mail that is truly important. For example, when the boss sends you an email, you’d better look it, yes? Likewise, if you are responding to help desk tickets, you’d better know about it right away.

The general suggestion still holds however: turn off global message alarms!

Change view of inbox to only show unread mail.

This is how I achieve Inbox Zero (I cheat!). I do still create rules as much as possible for everything that comes in – but there are stragglers.

Create a list of favorites.

Lastly, create a list of favorites. Outlook allows you to mark a folder as a favorite; KMail has a similar capability. This provides you with a way to sort everything but only see (directly) what is most important.