I woke up one day and realized I had collected a bunch of email accounts over the years.

Now having lots of different accounts in your email client isn't so much fun (to setup or use). There's a lot of clutter, and even more so if you are smart and use IMAP (instead of POP3).

Plus I have this cool domain name(glenn-roberts.com) going to waste. Why have an email address like roberts.glenn.1235.blah@gmail.com?

So I consolidated them, giving me these benefits;

1. A single IMAP access point for all incoming mail. (Using my Gmail account with IMAP for incoming)

2. Automatic labelling of messsages downloaded by Gmail (to help identify where mail came from)

3. Advanced IMAP controls (via the Google Labs goodies)

4. Outgoing from a different email account (I choose my new glenn-roberts.com email server for outgoing mail)

5. Automatic back ups (if you choose "Leave a copy of messages on the server in Gmails POP settings for the other accounts)

So now all my (personal) mail comes in via one of my many accounts, but I now consistently reply via one account, and all replies come back to me via Gmail, but Spam filtered (twice, in fact).

"... one does not accumulate but eliminate. It is not daily increase but daily decrease. The height of cultivation always runs to simplicity." Bruce Lee

The folks over at New Leaders posted a very interesting article about how they divide their day, which basically entails;

  * 9am -12am - Heads down, get sh*t done, no distractions no email.

  * 12-1 - Chow down

  * 2-6 - Admin/Meetings

  * 6-10 - Personal time - clock off - go pet your lizard.

  * 10-1am - [optional] log-on and remotely get shi*t done.

"If programmers got paid to remove code from sofware instead of writing new code, software would be a whole lot better." - Nicholas Negroponte Billy Hollis warns of the danger of software addiction;

I've been a user of the "Password Gorilla":http://www.fpx.de/fp/Software/Gorilla/ (I use OS X) with an automatic backup of its (encrypted) password database with "DropBox":http://www.getdropbox.com/ . (Kudos to "Joel S":http://www.joelonsoftware.com/items/2008/09/11b.html for this idea)

I'm not a great fan of Password Gorilla's (PwG) UI, and am tempted to go to a purely OSX app. But being a Java app, I do like the ability to install/run PwG on a windoze box at short notice if the fit does ever hit the shan.

Another issue for me is the encryption strength of the PwG database. I read of several users syncing TrueCrypt volumes to DropBox instead, which is a damn fine idea. Any suggestions for a multi-patform PwG-clone with a better UI / encryption ?

As a developer, you might want to ask yourself why Pair Programming is something you should be bothered doing? "Jeff Langr suggests the following;":http://langrsoft.com/articles/pairing.shtml * Awareness of other parts of the system * Resume building * Decreases time spent in review meetings * Continuous education. As someone who thinks he is a pretty hot programmer, I still learn new things every day from even the most junior programmers. * Provides the ability to move between teams. ("this team is boring," "I can't stand working with him," "that stuff they're doing looks cool."). Since this can be a benefit for management as well, they don't have to clamp down on their resources. * More rapid learning as a new hire. You don't sit and read out-of-date manuals for a week, or worry that you're going to be fired because the system looks indecipherable. If you want some out-of-date manuals to read, I have a couple lying around that I don't use anymore. Me, Im too busy Pair Programming to read em.