The collection of my writings.
Notes
173 items under this folder.
Johnny.Decimal
The Johnny.Decimal system helps to manage information across multiple systems. It use a central index to reduce the question of, “Where do I store this?” to one of clearly identified locations. More information can be found at the johnnydecimal.com.
IMatch to Socials
The IMatch to Socials system automates the addition, update and deletion of images between IMatch and flickr or pixelfed. I created it to reduce the time taken updating and managing photos across all three platforms. Features Uses metadata directly from the IMatch database and formats it (to my liking) for sharing with others.
My Spotify Setup
The whole family is on Spotify for our music streaming1 Mobile Play of Out-of-Catalogue Items I have some old CDs and some which will never be on a streaming service. Playing them in the house via the desktop app is not a problem. The CDs have been ripped to flac format using fre:ac and are stored in my Windows Music folder for easy access and recognition by Spotify.
Mediabank
Mediabank is the name given to our family Photography and video archive. It collects all digital media assets (hereafter media) into a single location managed by IMatch. As of March 2024 there are close to 38,000 items being catalogued and managed consuming 525GB. Storage LocationPurposeS:\memories\assetsFinal storage location for media in YYYY\mm -MMMM\ folders.S:\memories\databaseLocation of the Mediabank.imd5 file.S:\memories\database\Pack & GoPeriodic backups of the Mediabank environment using IMatch Pack & Go1.S:\memories\home videosVideos from when we had a video camera.
IMatch
IMatch is the software used to manage our family library of photos and videos called Mediabank. It has supported the family’s Photography in all forms for many years. I’ve owned every version since IMatch 3 over many years. It is a powerful digital asset management application. During that time the built-in features of the application have become more powerful and what I once needed scripting for, is now built-in.
Astrophotography
For sure this page is a bit of a mess. Instructional guides Astrophotography 101: A Lesson Series on Photographing the Milky Way – Lonely Speck - large MOC with multiple articles to work through on all topics Planning Light Pollution Light Pollution Map for Bendigo - I have this app on my mobile phone.
Calibre
Calibre is a cross-platform eBook management tool. It allows you to manage the metadata present in your eBooks. I use Calibre because Digital Rights Management is Unhealthy and share the database with calibre-web because I like its interface better.
Organising Digital Knowledge Across Multiple Systems
Digital knowledge comes at us in all forms and it can be a challenge to manage. This note describes how I manage information in my Personal Knowledge Management system. My system works when.. I am easily able to find something I’ve saved I am confident nothing important is missing Knowledge and Records It has taken many iterations of many systems to realise there is a difference between knowledge and records.
Personal Knowledge Management
Personal Knowledge Management or PKM is the art of taking personal responsibility for the knowledge that you need to refer to in going about your daily life. It is a skill and discipline similar to what a librarian or museum curator may perform in their role, but differs because personal knowledge management has to reflect your personal view of the world.
Photography
My interests are Astrophotography, Landscape Photography and Panoramas. Digital Asset Management Mediabank My Photo Dating Strategy for Uncertain Dates IMatch - digital asset management application Equipment My Photography Gear My Camera History Resources My Photography Teachers The Goldfields Track - A bike ride in Buninyong, Victoria Map of Public Land Color Filters for Black-and-White Photography: A Complete Guide | PetaPixel Shutter Speed Cheat Sheet.jpg Tools Lightroom Show Focus Points Plugin for Lightroom Jeffrey Friedl’s Blog » Jeffrey’s “Smart-Collection Sync” Lightroom Plugin .
Tags Are Not Knowledge
Tags, or other similar metadata, added to resources in a Personal Knowledge Management system are not content. They are best used to help you curate resources and can answer questions such as: What was written in July 2023? (add a date) Where are all the references to books? (add #book) What am I currently working on? (add to-develop) When used as markers for the content of a resource - exactly like keywords - an issue arises where one tag can mean multiple things.
calibre-web
calibre-web provides a web interface into Calibre. I prefer it for quickly reviewing my library and marking books as read. This software is installed on my Synology DiskStation DS920+.
Heading Level Guidelines
Within a note, headings start at Heading 2. This is because, when displaying notes using Quartz 4, the title of the note is set to Heading 1 and to have a second Heading 1 breaks the structure of the document. Use CSS styling to distinguish headings from the displayed Title of a document.
Maps of Contents Guidelines
The Library of Congress Classification is used as a guide for the Map of Contents naming strategy used here. Map of Contents can take any form necessary to assist with the organisation of data. The default storage location for Map of Contents is \Atlas\Maps in accordance with the design principles of the ACE Framework.
Obsidian Sync
Obsidian Sync is a paid sync service from the developers of Obsidian. It is the most reliable sync solution I've found. Fix Uninitialized Sync Error This caused me all sorts of hell syncing across 3 systems. Each time I restarted Obsidian the sync was lost. The fix worked for me on Windows 10. This seems to be a rare error that we haven’t yet nailed down a pattern for.
Personal Knowledge Management Systems Must Be Flexible
Any Personal Knowledge Management system must be flexible. It needs to accommodate: changes in taxonomy - knowledge is not fixed, and certainly our interpretation of knowledge is open to change. That comes from Being a Learner. changes in document format - knowledge comes in many forms and it’s frequently a low-value activity to convert from one format to another, unless converting into a searchable format from one that is not searchable.
Property Guidelines
By convention, as there is no way to enforce this, the properties added to file should be in this order. As I read them, this puts the most important information at the top. RankNameCommentMultiple Values1.aliasesNote link aliases within Obsidian.Y2.css-classesNote formatting changes within Obsidian.Y3.tagsNote tags.
Tag Guidelines
These are guidelines, not rules. They recogise that Personal Knowledge Management Systems Must Be Flexible. When to tag Before starting, become familiar with the concepts in The Difference Between Good and Bad Tags. Tags are used for: State tracking Throughout the life of a note it may change state multiple times, across multiple areas.
Tagging Journal Entries
These are the tags I apply to Journal entries. They are a means of quickly bringing related entries together so that I can see themes. Journals can have more than one tag. I'm slowly working through all past entries checking they are correctly tagged and doing things like adding a photo when I know there is one of relevance.
The Quantum Operating System
‘Quantum OS is my operating system which in no way suggests I am a computer. Rather, it is a set of notes that describe the rules and standards I have determined are best to manage my digital information as I see fit. CORE CONCEPT Organising Digital Knowledge Across Multiple Systems describes in detail where I store documents and how I organise them.
Astro's Playroom
A great little PlayStation 5 game that really showed off what the system and new controller could do. Fastest Platinum Trophy I’ve ever completed.
Donkey Kong Jr.
This has to go down as my first computer game. A perfect Christmas present when Game and Watch devices were all the rage. Craig and Jamie got a game as well. I always thought mine was the best. At 999 points the game started again, but faster. This was called “clocking it”. My best was to clock it 3 times in the one game.
Maquette
Maquette is a recursive puzzle game was free as part of March 2021’s PlayStation Plus game subscription. It was clear right from the start this game has somethng unique to offer - starting with a song and teasers about a relationship. At present the story is involving me in recollections about the initial stage of the relationship.
The Goodies
Where do I start explaining how much Tim, Graeme and Bill mean to me. The Goodies was a staple of my childhood, airing regularly during the early-80s around tea time. I was drawn to the use of language and witty banter that was a hallmark of the show. Only on later viewings did I come to appreciate the slapstick routines set to music in the middle of each episode.
Canon R50 Mirrorless
Santa brought me a Canon R50 camera for Christmas in 2023. It's a noticeable improvement on the Canon 400D for Photography. Compared to the 400D, this camera gives me: Live view on the back screen More focusing points +/- 3 stops of exposure bracketing instead of +/- 2 ISO significantly greater than 1600 Lighter body 4K video recording More pixels of the mega kind Interface and technology that is 17 years further forward Hi-res viewfinder Sensor SizeResolutionPixel Pitch1APS-C6000 x 40005.34 µm Lenses Refer My Camera Lenses for a list of the lenses I have available to me.
My Camera Lenses
Lenses for my Canon R50 and Canon 400D Photography. LensMin. FocusFilterLens HoodCanon RF-S 18-45mm f/4.5-6.3IS STM0.20m @18mm (AF)0.15M @ 18mm (MF)ø49mmEW-53Canon RF-S 55-210mm f/5-7.1 IS STM0.73m at 210ø55mmET-60BCanon EF-S 17–85mm f4-f5.6 USM)0.35m @macroø67mmEW73BCanon EF 50mm f1.8 STM0.35mø49mmES68.
My First Steps as a Philosopher
Whenever I’m asked what I would do if I didn’t have to work, I’ve answered, “I’d be a philosopher.” Those who know me nod in agreement and don’t question it. Although I know deeply intuitively this it the correct answer, I haven’t been able to articulate why. My Mission Statement defines me as a scholar of life seeking wisdom.
My Photo Dating Strategy for Uncertain Dates
Digital photos have the date and time taken embedded. Scanned prints, negatives and slides do not. This is a problem in Photography when the original non-digital image is scanned and there is no record alongside it of the date the photo was made. Digital Asset Management software such as IMatch or Lightroom requires a date.
My Backup Strategy
I value backups of my data and systems. Having them means a level of security if something is lost, damaged, hacked, breaks. I may be over-compensating in some areas with multiple on-site and off-site backups. Where I do that, I’m also considering the other aspect of backups which is speed of restoration.
Completed TV Series
A list of the TV series where I've seen every episode. There are many more TV seasons I've finished, but not the whole (yet!).
Babylon 5
I only ever saw a few episodes of Babylon 5 on TV when it first aired so my first full watch through was on DVD. Smart science-fiction with a planned arc over 5 seasons is still rare in TV even now.
Band of Brothers
I first saw Band of Brothers on TV, then DVD, then Blu-ray. A 4K version would be visually amazing. This is a TV series I could watch all day long. It is engaging and scary at the same time. Episode 7, “The Breaking Point” is the most outstanding commentary on leadership failure I’ve ever seen. Sadly, The Pacific, as a sister series was not as good.
The Watch
A dramatisation of Discworld’s Night Watch. It took me a long time to get through this series and I would tackle only a couple of episodes at a time. It’s nice to be in Terry Pratchett’s world even if it’s not a 1:1 match to the books. Vimes was my favourite character.
Trek to Yomi
Artistic, black and white, side-scrolling, button-mashing, samurai fighter. Short at about 5 hours to play. That’s enough. Here’s a screeshot.
My Camera History
My earliest memories of Photography come from my Dad and the 35mm SLR camera he had when I was young. The detachable lens, film canister and dust blower all fascinated me. I’m pretty sure it was a Canon as I’ve always associated that with cameras. See My Photography Gear for gear I'm currently using.
Commodore Amiga
During my time at University, I owned a Commodore Amiga. I can’t remember exactly where I got the money (may have been selling the family Commodore 64). Mum drove me down to Geelong one afternoon to pick it up. I had an Amiga 1000 which was much more exciting than the later Amiga 500. At some point I wanted to get chips upgraded and put some more money into a program that was going to do that, but it never eventuated.
Getting Things Done with Obsidian
This article is about how I have implemented the Getting Things Done Methodology (GTD) within the Obsidian note taking application. It is not commentary on how to follow the GTD methodology, nor will it necessarily reflect the methodology in its pure form^[Those familiar with GTD no there is no such thing as a pure implementation.].
Ontological Shift
A long lasting change in someone’s Way of Being.
R U OK at Christmas?
I posted this to my work colleagues in December 2022. It was as much for me to set myself up for a break as it was for others. My 18 Days Until I Can Fully Rest was something I directed at myself. Then, in February 2023 I had time off due to burnout. Day 1 - Permission This is the first in a series of posts leading up to the Christmas Break designed to help you get the most of your time out of the office.
RAW Photo Developing
The workflow I use to develop RAW photos.
Astronomy Connects Me With a Greater Sense of Self
There is something special about looking up at the planets, stars and galaxies and the sense of purpose and humility it engenders within me. It is spiritual. Never do I feel so connected as I do when I turn my mind to the vastness of space.
Telescopes I May Want to Buy
Alongside my Celestron SkyMaster 20x80 Binoculars I’m will keep an eye on telescopes with a view to purchasing one in the future more suitable to my needs. That could be for deep sky viewing with my eyes or Astrophotography. Celestron Edge HD 8 review Best Affordable Telescope to Start Astrophotography in 2021 Best telescope mount to start astrophotography in 2021 Five tips to polar align your telescope mount like a pro – AstroForum .
Darkside by Tom Stoppard
Commissioned by the BBC for the 40th Anniversary of Dark Side of the Moon, I first heard this radio play around 2015 and only the once. It was pulled from Spotify not long after. Every now and then I’d look for it on streaming to no avail. So, I finally ponied up the money and ordered a copy from Discogs where I’ve had success finding some Dodo & the Dodos CDs.
Panoramas
General info on panorama Photography. Tips to Shooting Panoramas Ideally use a tripod, but can be done handheld. Get the exposure right Set to shutter priority so that ISO and aperture don’t change Set white balance to anything other than AW Focus Set focus to manual so it doesn’t change Shoot with plenty of overlap .
A Font of Google Fonts
Instructions on how I added Google Fonts to Obsidian Publish.
Don't Duplicate Public Knowledge
Within a Digital Garden it’s very easy to get caught in the trap of duplicating public knowledge that can be found elsewhere, or is otherwise known. For example, The Lord of the Rings is made up of Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King. There is no benefit in me re-creating that structure here.
Business has a soul
A business has a soul just as people do. Souls on a plane. Should we ask how many souls rather than employees work in a business?.
Combinational Creativity
Metadata:note-makingLYTvideo presenter:: Nick Milo, Anne-Laure Le Cunff url:: www.youtube.com/watch Anne-Laure Le Cunff came to the field through discovering the Generation Effect. Creativity does not come from a muse. It all comes from combining pre-existing ideas. That’s important because it means you can make a process out of being creative.
Generation Effect
This reminds me of the common theme I’ve heard from Personal Knowledge Management over the last 2 years. That is, make notes in your own words. Research has shown you remember better your own notes. I’ve experienced that this week in how I’ve slowly approached Ontology of the Human Observer and created my own definitions.
How I Apply Ratings
There are as many systems to apply ratings as there are things which can be rated. Ratings are applied as keywords beginning with #rating/ Anything can be rated. This Digital Garden uses a 5-star scale applied as follows: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ — Life defining. Part of my identity. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ — I am certain to recommend this enthusiastically to people I think would be interested.
The Map is Not the Terrritory
This concept is an attempt to get people to remember there is more than just the map. Yet, maps show relationships. In the case of a road map, it’s the relationships between A and B and importantly how to get there. Concept Mapping and Map of Contents do the same thing. Provide an abstraction level across the territory of knowledge.
Digital Rights Management is Unhealthy
I read an article many years ago, that I can no longer find, which discussed the fear of blank videotape and how it would destroy the home-video market. Instead it created a market that was of a size unforeseen. Bottom line, digital rights management (DRM) is more of a hindrance than a protector. Amazon and Kindle Books DRM Books purchased through Amazon are protected against copying and distribution by a level of digital rights management that can no longer be bypassed.
The Nightclub Model of Privacy
Too many businesses collect personal information from individuals for their benefit. Under the guise of “providing better service” private data is held, often insecurely, well beyond it’s need. If it was ever really needed at all. I’d like to see business subscribe to the “Nightclub Model of Privacy”. Check credentials at the door and allow or deny entry.
List of my Favourite Music
This is a list of the albums or artists I come back to time and again. You can pretty much guarantee that if artists release new music, I’ll be listening to it. Albums Tubular Bells .
List of my Favourite TV
This is a list of the TV shows that I would watch any day of the week if put before me. Most have some link to my identity. SeriesBand of Brothers ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Blackadder ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Doctor Who (2005) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️The Goodies ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.
Comparing Digital Gardens to Blogging
A Different Audience I am the primary audience of my Digital Garden. When I’m blogging, the audience is primarily an external reader. Writing for myself means I’m happy leaving something half-baked knowing I may come back it later. When I blogged, there was a different pressure and everything needed to be done before publishing.
My Photography Teachers
There is a growing list of people I’m following on YouTube who are my go-to for learning about Photography. They are all people I can imagine spending the day with. PhotographerWhat I’m LearningHenry TurnerMore than anything Henry provides enthusiasm for photography. His tips are always set against the background of joy for what he’s doing.Ian WorthIan has a lot of practical “in the field” tips.Mike SmithMike has taught me a lot about taking panoramas.Joshua PegJoshua provides reflection on his own learnings in a relatable way.Mark DenneyThough I don’t like the results of Mark’s editing tutorials (his creative choices result in picture that look unreal to me), his other videos are full of practical advice.Simon d’EntremontA Canadian wildlife photographer with many years of experience on the finer detail.Alex KilbeeAlex has a strong photographic art background and the non-landscape lens is another way for me to understand the concepts.Nigel DansonA good balance of in the field and after tips.
A Plague Tale: Innocence
Synopsis In A Plague Tale: Innocence you play Amicia, a teenage girl who goes on a journey to save her little brother Hugo from an unknown affliction and the power hungry Church. It’s a supernatural story set against the background of 14th Century France. Review When a game’s name keeps popping up over time, that is usually a sign it’s worth playing and I’m very glad I listened to that advice.
Video Games
All things video games and the platforms I play on.
Canon 400D DSLR
Info on my Canon 400D camera.
My Photography Gear
A summary of my current photography gear (cameras, lenses and accessories). With a bit of a wishlist as well 😉.
Roam Research
Roam Research is a Personal Knowledge Management tool that gained significantly in popularity by word-of-mouth in 2020. The key benefit comes from the way it treats blocks of text and Backlinks are Important. In January 2021 I moved from Roam to Obsidian. Training resources I found useful www.roambrain.com/ - information hub How to Use Roam Research: A Complete Guide [Complete list of keywords and markdown](www.roamtips.com/home/the-complete-list-of-roam-research-keyboard-shortcuts What is a block in Roam Research (and what are block embeds)? Block reference - creates copy, edit original updates copy, but not vice-versa, click to go to original Block embed - creates a copy, edit any updates all, can’t click to go to original Query language How to query in roam Roam as a task manager Lesson 6 - Queries .
DUST
DUST is a wonderful and wide-ranging collection of short science-fiction stories on YouTube.
Celestron SkyMaster 20x80 Binoculars
I have some very beefy binoculars for stargazing.
List of my Favourite Lists
These are all of my favourite things.
List of my Favourite Authors
The authors on this list are those whose books I come back to time and again. You can pretty much guarantee that if a new title is published, I’ll be reading it. Brandon Sanderson Stephen King Mark Lawrence .
The Five Love Languages
The Five Love Languages is a model that says we have a preference for how we mark love as received and how we prefer to show our love to others. The languages are: Words of Affirmation Gift Giving Acts of Service Physical Touch Quality Time Relationships may break down when two people show their love in a language that is not preferred by the other.
My Decision to Stop Blogging
I have blogged on-and-off since 2002, always with the purpose of sharing. As a model of writing, there was pressure to perform and write something of value. My style has been to freely share what I know but there were times when I couldn’t write because the topic was too close to work life. Blogging is inherently date bound.
Designing The Quantum Garden
Background I have referred to my personal knowledge management system as a Digital Garden for several years now and it makes sense this online presence reflects that. Originally I used the term to mean tending the noise of digital records, but have now moved towards a place for the growing of ideas. My evolution is not uncommon as explained in this Maggie Appleton article, A Brief History & Ethos of the Digital Garden.
About
Welcome to The Quantum Garden, a site where I share what interests me in the hope you’ll find it interesting as well. Time spent in the garden is all about cultivating possibilities in life. Often the possibility is already there and waiting to be seen. My name is David Buchan and if you need to contact me, send a message using one of the links at the bottom of this page.
Digital Garden
A digital garden is a form of website where the author creates and curates ideas in public. As they collect information and write, notes are published in various stages of completeness (tagged Seedling, Budding or Evergreen) so that others can benefit from what’s there and then, without the burden of having to finish an article.
Gaming Teaches
There is a lot computer gaming can teach us if we step back from the gaming and take a look at what is really going on. Gaming Teaches - Perspective Gaming Teaches - Learn From Others .
LEGO
Jumping off point for all things LEGO.
Map of Contents
Maps are ways to access notes quickly, in a context. Much more than just an index, they organise and relate, include searches/tags even for quick access. TIP Visit this site’s List of Maps of Content. The three phases of a Map of Contents creation are are: Assembling ideas together in one place Colliding ideas.
My Mission Statement
The behaviour and decisions in my life are made in accordance with this mission statement; the essence of which is grounded in the principles of truth, beauty, goodness and unity. I help people take powerful action to enrich their lives. I am responsible for my feelings, attitude and actions at all times.
Obsidian
Obsidian is primarily a note-taking tool that uses Markdown files for speed and flexibility. The official site is obsidian.md/. Within Obsidian I document and link: Personal journal entries Digital Garden notes My consumption of books, movies and TV shows This website is published directly from Obsidian using Quartz 4.
My Platinum Trophies
To achieve a Platinum Trophy on a PlayStation means completing a set of trophies representative of fully completing the game.
Quartz 4
Overview of how I use Quartz to display this digital garden. Includes a list of customisations I've made.
Wordpress to Quartz
For the last year or so I’ve been publishing my blog on Wordpress. I began using Ulysses.app to write in Markdown and publish to Wordpress, then about March this year I started publishing directly from Obsidian. Either way, there was practical and cognitive friction in the process. Multiple steps to go though, and writing was sitting somewhat external to Obsidian.
Adventures in Metadata
I’ve been wanting to document and share my Photography workflow — from camera to archive — for a few weeks now. The introduction of Adobe Lightroom into my workflow recently has meant a delay which has ultimate turned out for the best. I’ve changed my workflow significantly several times over the last few weeks as I manage two applications that do similar, complementary, yet quite different functions.
Tap Water or Rust
Tomorrow I take delivery of my CPAP machine and have been researching what water I should use in the humidifier. The prevailing wisdom for CPAP machines is that one must use distilled water. From my research tonight I put this in the same category as “You must drink 2 litres of water a day”. Sounds good, but is incorrect.
Rescuing DNG Files
This afternoon, as I was importing DNG files into Lightroom, I found way too many that it won’t import. There is some kind of corruption in the DNG file. Likely caused by something I’ve done in the past converting from one format to another (and quite possibly back again). Thankfully, IMatch is able to read the files - or at least appears to do so.
Scripting Templates in Obsidian
Here be some dragons. This is a quick post to explain how Javascript can be used eliminate the need to update multiple pages if the structure of your metadata changes. Using Javascript comes with risks. Enter at your own peril. dd Within Obsidian, the combination of the Dataview and Templater plugins can make for a powerful way to access and organise your notes using metadata.
Will sleep come?
The Apnea-Hypopnea Index (AHI) is an average measure of how many times you have a full or partial loss of breath for more than 10 seconds. It’s not hard to imagine this is not a good thing if it occurs too often. My recent sleep study resulted in a AHI value of 45.1. I knew I was constantly tired, and have been feeling the negative impacts for too long.
Through the Viewfinder Again
This week I pulled my Canon 400D DSLR out of the cupboard and clicked the shutter button a few times. I’m through my camera gear and familiarising myself with everything Photography again. Emotions say I need to upgrade. Brain says no. There are a few features that would be nice to have but all the controls I need are there.
A Model of Trust
Trust involves making a ongoing series of Assessments that you will take action which takes care of me, including not taking action to harm me. That someone “can be trusted” is not a matter of fact. Otherwise we would not have the situation where I believe someone is trustworthy, but you don’t. If trust were fact, this situation could not exist.
Letters with Jason
In June I took part in a social experiment with Jason Becker as part of his Letters Project. He has been corresponding with people using email, in letter form, for many months now. We each posted our letters online. How I First Learned About the Project - 29 January 2023 This morning I read a series of letters between Robb Knight and Jason Becker.
Looking into Logseq
Logseq has been appearing a lot in my Mastodon feed lately as a Personal Knowledge Management solution. Many sing its praises over Obsidian so with a slow afternoon at work yesterday I thought to take a look. My first impression is that Logseq is the offline version of Roam Research; the tool I used before migrating to Obsidian.
The Problem Behind The Three-Body Problem
With notice that Netflix has made a series of The Three-Body Problem I’m revisiting the novel as an audiobook. Though I read it first only 18 months ago, I only have the barest memory of the story. Written by Chinese author Liu Cixin, the first two chapters of the book are heavily influenced by the Cultural Revolution and its immediate aftermath.
Sure Doesn't Feel Like a Year Off
Monday will be the first King’s Birthday public holiday. It’s not feeling like a typical long weekend for me. Maybe I’ve had too many public holidays and they are all the same. That got me thinking… From the start of my professional working career up until 2013, I had 10 public holidays a year. From 2014, that increased to 11.
Thoughts on my Habits
I’m reading Self-Discipline: a guide to taking control of your mind, your time, and your life by Mark Manson and it’s given me cause to think about my habits. Following on from The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg, he reminds us that habits are built from flowchart LR cue --> routine routine --> reward and attaching routine to a cue is the way to build rewarding habits.
Reputational Reliability
A cornerstone of my career reputation has been built on my reliability. When others learn that I deliver what I say I will, on time and to the standard expected, they form a positive opinion of my work practices. In turn, that contributes to their assessment that I can be trusted. I take very seriously the promises I make to others and my ability to meet them.
Gaming Teaches - Learn From Others
This note is part of the Gaming Teaches series of observations about what gaming can teach me when its use as a lens on life. So this is interesting. I watched a video a week ago about “How to Get Faster as a Sim Racing Beginner”. One single comment stood out to me. Set the wheel degree of rotation in the PC control panel and then set Assetto Corsa Competizione’s (ACC) setting to match.
My Fight With Metadata
For the last 2 weeks I’ve been working with metadata and the information that I want to track in Obsidian. As my Digital Garden, keeping information about the books I read, the movies I watch and the games I play, creates a full picture of my life (hey, maybe one day someone will be interested). Two factors triggered this latest dive into an all to familiar rabbit hole.
Replacing Goodreads With Obsidian
I have been a Goodreads user for many, many years. It has provided me the means to track my reading activity alongside a list of books I want to read. The past few years I’ve been an avid Kindle reader, topping 20,000 pages read each year. Goodreads integration with the Kindle has made it very easy to mark a book started and finished.
Mastodon is Broken. There are no Ads.
Clearly Mastodon is broken as a social media platform 😄 PlatformConstant nagging adsFacebookYesTwitterXYesInstagramYesYouTubreYesMastodon (and other Fediverse platforms)NO 🎉 And it gets worse. The lack of ads make it possible to actually read what other people are writing. Even to respond back and forth to each other.
Gaming Teaches - Perspective
Gaming teaches us the usefulness of chasing our perspective if what we are doing isn’t working for us. I use sim-racing to help explain.
Covid-19 - 3 Years on
It’s just over 3 years since the impact of Covid-19 entered my world. I’ve been reflecting this week and one idea has me horrified beyond the direct impact of Covid-19 itself. Three years. If you told me it was four I’d believe you. That feels more right. Tell me it’s five and I’d question you but only because I was convinced it was four years.
You Know What I Mean?
My daughter and her friend have started a podcast called “You Know What I Mean?”. Two new adults who have just started university, chatting and laughing about finding their way in the world. If you need some lightheartedness in your day, you can’t go wrong. Check out the first 3 episodes.
I’m Replacing Instapaper With Omnivore
I have been an Instapaper user for many years. From the time it was free, to paid, and then free and paid. For a while I was feeding Instapaper articles through Readwise to Obsidian. I couldn’t get Readwise to pull in comments from Instapaper articles that I’d archived. From memory I’m not even sure it could see them.
The Muscle Memory of Conversations
This week I’ve returned to playing Elden Ring. Movement, combat and management of weapons, armour and spells, is all handled by a “controller”1. Games will generally ease you into which button to press when but after a while you end up not having to think about what to do and you just do it. The thing is, every game is different.
The Resident Evil Experience
Today I spent some time playing the original Resident Evil. Games have evolved since 1996 in many more ways than graphics alone. To me it felt a lot like the text adventure Zork I with graphics. The storytelling structure and gameplay is highly similar between the two. There isn’t enough there to keep me going and I’ve already deleted it.
Holding Yourself to the Right Standard
Let’s say I’m measuring my behaviour, success, etc. and I fail to meet the ideals of the standard I’m comparing to. I will either: Feel inadequate because I am not good enough. Put unrealistic pressure on myself to close the gap. There is a third choice. Almost always overlooked. Adjust the standard to something that’s realistic for me at this point in time.
Discworld
I'm listening to the complete discworld series of audiobooks. All 40 were released across 2022-23 and it will take me much, much longer to listen to them all.
Forspoken
This game got a lot of negative press just before release. It was a game I’d been looking forward to since it was first announced at around the time of the PlayStation 5 launch. I thoroughly enjoyed it and achieved the Platinum Trophy on 24 February 2023.
My Document Toolkit
I curate a lot of digital documentation for myself and my family. Within this Personal Knowledge Management it is important to remove as much friction from the system. There are so many demands on our time, that the smallest resistance can easily provide an excuse to switch on Australian Idol or Survivor and do nothing.
The Search for Clarity
More and more, I’m finding my role in conversation is to help others reach clarity. Despite their best attempts to avoid it at all costs.
Rabbit Holes
Earlier this week I received notice mastondon.au was being shut down (since taken over by someone else so staying). That lead me to thinking: Am I now on the best Mastodon server I can be (aus.social)? Should I stand-up my own server? Hosted and I have to pay for it? Self-hosted and I can I deal with all I have to learn? Should I return to mastodon.au Then today, something similar with bookwyrm as an alternative to Goodreads.
Mastodon is dead. Long live Mastodon.
The first I knew was an email saying my $5 donation to running the mastodon.au server was refunded. I inquired to be told the server was scheduled for shutdown in 3 months. I’d have been happy for the moderators to keep the money, but that’s the nature of Mastodon over Twitter. One refunds the money, the other wouldn’t even tell you it was turned off.
My Mission Statement Teardown
Early 2000 and I was in London and a newly promoted manager within Arthur Andersen, Business Consulting division. During some new-manager training, we were encouraged to develop our own personal mission statement. I’d never considered such a thing before then. Business mission statements have always felt hollow to me (still do - more about marketing than actual values).
Alternative Day Names to Save Time
My proposed list of alternative day names to help us organise time easier and avoid confusion across the week.
Dads Are Human First
I regularly see posts in the Life of Dad Facebook group that inadvertently suggest you’re not a real dad unless you are always putting your family ahead of your own needs, and making large sacrifices for your family. I know they are trying to be supportive. I believe these kind of posts set unrealistic and unhealthy expectations.
The Indicators of my Impending Burnout
In October 2016 I attended a session for HR professionals where the topic of the day was mental wellness. The idea was someone could be mentally unwell but not necessarily mentally ill. The audience were asked to call out signs which could indicate a person was mentally unwell. I had 11/14 and found another 5 when I got home.
Everything, Everywhere, is Too Much
Last night I watched Everything Everywhere All at Once and this morning followed up with a The Terror of Everything Everywhere All at Once, a commentary on the movie by Thomas Flight on YouTube. Listening to Thomas I realised I’m suffering the same malaise the movie puts forward. That is, overwhelm from multiple shifting fragmented and widely different cognitive responsibilities all crying for my attention.
Don't Just Communicate, Converse
When employees in the workplace complain about a lack of communication, what they really mean is a lack of conversation with a capital C. Conversation is Collaborative; requiring people to come together with an openness to joint mutual benefit. Controlled; focussed to achieve outcomes in the world. Continuous; we are almost always in some form of conversation, be that internal or external.
Building the Batman Tumbler in LEGO
This is a record of my effort building the LEGO DC Batman Batmobile Tumbler (76240). It has a total 2049 pieces. Finished it is sized 16 cm (6”) high, 45 cm (17”) long and 25 cm (9”) wide.
Stray
A game where I get to play as a cat. With 2 cats in the house, have to say it’s animated very realistically. Catinum Trophy I have the Platinum Trophy on Stray. It took an effective three play throughs. I finished the main story a little over a week ago and have spent a couple of evenings and some time today cleaning up the remainder of the trophies.
Carrie Versus Carrie
This morning I finished Carrie the book and this afternoon I watched the 1976 movie. Book Carrie is by far the stronger of the two. She has a purpose and drive that isn’t in the movie. She also has an awareness and control of her telekinesis power not at all evident in the movie. The book interposes the Carrie timeline with observations of friends, police and scientists.
Why Have All the Backups Failed?
I woke this morning to a slew of emails informing me of backups that had failed due to insufficient space on the target drive. Why had they all failed? Well, it was because one had succeeded. I use Macrium Reflect to image the main home PC each night. One the first day of the month a full backup is taken and throughout the month there is a rolling series of differential and incremental backups.
How Covered is the Earth?
When I find myself waiting in the car to pick someone up, I often play a mental game of working out how high the Earth would be covered if everything humankind has made were flattened and spread out. In a sense, melted. My estimate is less than 10cm covering the land and I would not be surprised if it was way less.
The True Scale of a Billion
I watched Avatar today, in preparation for a likely weekend trip to see Avatar 2: The Way of Water at the weekend. Both films have now taken over US$2 billion dollars. As making over a billion at the box office is now commonplace, it’s worth considering the difference in scale between 1 million and 1 billion and from there to 1 trillion.
Do you ever get distracted?
Me, earlier this evening… “I’ll go to the supermarket and get bread while you’re out” Ah, my Amazon order of Forspoken hasn’t arrived yet. I want to be home when it comes. I’ll play Stray instead while I wait. Start up Playstation. Alarm goes off. It’s bin night. Take bins out. Green waste bin almost empty.
Is Forspoken Spoken For?
This week sees the release of Forspoken, a new RPG for the PlayStation 5 and PC. My copy should arrive in a few days and I’ve been looking forward to it since I saw the trailer alongside the original PS5 release. If you read the press, Forspoken is anything mixed quality at best to the worst game of 2023! I played the demo, which apparently was full of issues that I didn’t note, and am still looking forward to the game.
A Short Sennheiser Momentum 4 Review
For the last 4-5 years I’ve used my Sennheiser 4.50BTNC headphones every day. The BTNC stands for Bluetooth and Noise Cancelling. For Christmas 2022 I was gifted a pair of Sennheiser Momentum 4 headphones. They are two generations newer and a level above the 4.50BTNCs. Differences: better fit on the ears not as tight on the head wider soundstage clearer sound improved bass better noise cancelling insane battery life (close to 60 hours) .
20000+ Pages Read in 2022
My 2022 reading stats are in and this year I clocked 20,871 over 46 books. Since first purchasing a Kindle some years ago my reading has increased substantially, and my annual target is 20,000 pages. My new favourite author is Brandon Sanderson. 9/46 books were authored by him, and approx. 7,000 pages. There were two series involved.
Under the Dome
I’ve been a fan of Stephen King since I first read The Bachman Books and IT in 1988. Under the Dome is the darkest of them all. It’s not the supernatural horror but the human greed that brings about the downfall of so many people and places them in horrible situations. Many times I had to put the book down.
It's (Not) Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas
Around this time each year people start to say how the Christmas/New Year break is just what they need as a holiday. This year it’s different. Everyone I speak too who is working is completely tapped out mentally. It isn’t the usual “end of year” slowdown, but something deeper. I’m not sure a couple of week’s break is going to be enough.
18 Days Until I Can Fully Rest
I’m now down to 18 work days before I get 2 weeks off work over Christmas/New Year. It’s important that I relax and look after myself. It’s tempting to think of all the: Books I can read TV I can watch Movies I can watch Video games I can play Kilometres I can walk Places I can visit Miniatures I can paint Photos I can categorise but the risk is I spend my holiday busy.
The Perfect Mail Merge
We have a state election on Saturday. One local candidate sent a letter to our household today. We have four that will be voting. They could have sent a letter each. They could have sent it to “Dear voter” Instead, they sent one letter to all four of us, by name and the address had “The Buchan Family”. That is the best mail merge I have ever seen.
Half Way To Go
Each time I hear the Sun is 50% through its life and only has 5 billion years to go, I feel sad. If we’re not off Earth and into the Milky Way Galaxy by then it’s all over. Colonising the Solar System is not enough. For humanity it’s less time than 5 billion years. The Future of Earth, gives us a billion years to get the job done at best before the Sun has expanded its influence and engulfs us.
SSD Longevity
SSDs have a limited amount of times they can be written to. Use CrystalDiskInfo to check. DriveTotal Terabyte Writes (TBW)Kingston 480G Dumbledore C:\160TBWSamsung 860 EVO 250GB External150TBWSamsung 970 Evo 1TB Dumbledore S:\600TBWLast checked 2024-04-13, both drives with ample life left.
What’s the Real Concern?
I once heard the suggestion that a gravestone is more reflective of the people that commission it than the person who has died. It’s similar to you buying a present for someone that you’d really like to receive yourself. And that’s similar to pet owners more concerned with discussing the breed of their pet rather than how their pet is part of their life.
Observe the Music
Changing how we observe our world by becoming a different observer is powerful. A power that gives us more choice. If you ever need reminding that observing differently can make a difference to how you feel in your soul you can: Listen to a favourite piece of music in a different location, on better headphones, or in a dark room.
The Last Third?
Board members are elected for three terms, on a rolling basis. The first term… to learn The second term… to be productive The third term… to mentor the new first years. … My sense is I’m now beginning the third term of my career. I’m looking forward to it.
Missing the Big Picture
Today I recalled the tendency for my early career performance reviews to be positive, “but David, you need to learn to see the Big Picture.” I always left feeling a little stupid because I didn’t know what to do about it. I also felt frustrated because those telling me I needed to see the big picture couldn’t even explain what it was, let alone how I should get there.”You just need to learn how.” At every moment we are limited to observing only what our Way of Being allows us to observe - even if it is objectively there for another to see.
RSS Remains an Important Technology
I’ve written several times over the past 20 years that RSS feeds are important yet can be a hinderance as much as a help. RSS Gathers News and Audio to Me I use them extensively in my news reader (currently News Explorer) to go out to websites that offer a RSS feed and pull the news to me. I don’t have the time to visit every site and see if there is something new to read.
Unfinished Tales
Every now and then I use Amazon/Audible’s Matchmaker tool to see if there are any Kindle books for which I’d like to purchase the audiobook cheaply. Today I picked up Leadership and Self-Deception and The Anatomy of Peace for $9 total. I realised I need to make a list of all the book series I’ve begun and enjoyed but have not yet finished - either because I move onto something else, or because new books have been released.
Civilization VI Failure
On Sunday I started playing Sid Meier's Civilization VI. Today I lost badly and that’s ok because I was learning all the time.
Crazy Coincidence
I have a relatively new car. It’s done just over 3,000km. Here is a crazy coincidence from earlier today. The odometer read 3,000km while I was stopped at traffic lights. The odometer read 2,000km while I was stopped at traffic lights. There are not so many traffic lights where I live that this would be at all likely.
Fear of Missing Out
FOMO generates extra dollars for the gaming industry, both PC/console gaming and board/tabletop games. Two words. DLC and Expansion. Both represent additions to the base game. The call is strong. After a conversation last night with a friend about this very point I learned there is an expansion to SmallWorld I didn’t know about, and there are some expansions for Sid Meier’s Civilization VI that I don’t have.
Friendly Local Game Stores
At the edge of your consciousness you may be aware that over the past few years there has been a resurgence in board games, tabletop role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, and tabletop wargaming like Warhammer. These games, which have always been situated in the home, also take place in public at your friendly local game store.
Writing is a Concernful Activity
Sometimes, we don’t know what is important, and blogging, journalling and writing in general are ways to discover that. To go meta, these are all forms of conversation and without conversation figuring out anything is impossible.
Workflow for Importing my Old Blog Entries
Since discovering my old blog entries I’ve been developing a workflow to import them into my current Wordpress blog. Spanning 2002–2012 there is value in bringing it all together, even if it takes some time. There are a lot of ideas in there which were valuable at the time, and are still valuable now.
Expanding my Comfort Zone
I have never liked the phrase “Step outside your comfort zone”. Why do that uncomfortable or scary thing? An implication of stepping outside is that I can’t step back inside when I may need to. I have had to commit to something I don’t yet understand. I prefer to engage in being a learner and take the steps necessary to “expand my comfort zone”.
A Moment for Tea
One of those small pieces of advice I picked up years ago was “pause and savour the first sip of tea or coffee.” Every time I remember to do so it’s a moment of quiet in the day. It would do me good to find more of those moments.
Can't, Won't and Shouldn't
The other day a friend was saying to me that he’d been involved in an investigation at work, and colleagues were asking him for details (gossip). He said he’d been telling them, “I can’t say anything.” Got me to thinking of the difference between “can’t” and “won’t”. Can’t is more, “I’d like to, but I don’t have a choice in keeping quiet.” It’s a way of keeping social care of those who have asked, even if they should know better.
Digital Overwhelm
Euan Semple posted about the digital overwhelm we are facing more and more as online systems become ever more dictated yet poor interface design makes them unusable. If you’re waving at someone to get their attention for assistance, and they continually ignore you, you will submit and put up with the pain.
Tubular Bells
Tubular Bells 2003 I listened to Tubular Bells 2003 properly for the first time on 6 October 2022. I had thought it was more of a remaster until I learned it was a complete new recording. He [Mike Oldfield] had always been uncomfortable with the original recording because he had only a few weeks to record it and the technology at the time was unable to cope with all of his requirements.
Ideas are Better in Bed
Conversations such as blog posts that I write in my head lying in bed or when walking are always better than they end up when I type them. I wonder if it’s because typing is simply physical and there is less emotion accessible in the moment.
From Audible to my Ears
This is the process each audiobook transitions through on the way from Audible to my listening ears. Purchase more books on Audible than I possibly have time to listen to. Download and convert to .mdb format using OpenAudible. Automatically import into my “Audiobook” library (as Music) using Plex. Add to a series playlist if relevant.
Audibooks
I love to read, and I read a lot. In recent years however I’ve come to recognise the value in audiobooks as well. I normally only listen to audiobooks of authors I like, or books I’ve read before. There is too much time investment to do otherwise. A 1,000-page book is 40-50 hours. Audiobooks tell the same story at a slower pace and so it’s quite a different experience.
Learn Through Humility
What a great quote this is. A reminder that learning is the responsibility of each of us. You will learn quickly if you ask for feedback from a position of humility for that will let you listen to the response without being harmed.
Just Forget It
I’ve become conscious that “just” has crept into my email vocabulary. ”I’m just writing to ask…" "I just need to know…” When used this way, it’s apologetic and has no place in making solid requests. Contrast with the significantly stronger examples below. ”I’m writing to ask…" "I need to know…” .
Training and Education
Yesterday I was musing on the difference between training and education, wondering why training in the workplace is usually ineffective. This is my stream of consciousness on the question. Many people consider training and education the same, however they have several distinct differences. Training is the process of learning something with a goal of performing a specific skill or behaviour.
Keeping My Cool
Over the years I’ve learned to keep my cool when working on DIY projects. I’m apt to lose my cool when, despite my best amateur efforts, something doesn’t go as planned. It could be a cut in the wrong place, an unlevel hanging, the wrong screw… Our mood predisposes us to see the world in a way. With DIY that can mean everything is the target of a hammer! Saturday I was putting up a shelf in the laundry.
Measure Once, Cut Twice
Have you ever carefully considered a purchase from a store then when you got home realised there was an aspect you’d missed that made it completely unsuitable? I do it frequently with trips to the hardware store for screws where somehow I’ve managed to get the wrong diameter or length. Once, I bought the extended edition of the Belinda Carlisle Runaway Horses CD, after I already had the original version.
Do you over-aside?
I’ve noticed recently a tendency in myself and others to add layer upon layer of explanation when we are talking. Once I saw it, I realised how counter-productive it is. We think we are helping, but we’re not. Piling up information faster than the recipient can process it. I park my car a few hundred meters from where I work.
Knowledge or a Tractor?
A group of farmers was asked what they would do if they woke up in the morning to find their $100,000 tractor had been stolen from the shed. They indicated a rush of activity around police, insurance and other such matters. If all else failed they would seek to buy a new tractor. As soon as possible. When asked has a senior manager with an equivalent salary recently left the organisation - the group said yes.
Interrupting the Flow of Work has a Tax
Nobody likes interruptions (unless they are good news) but regardless, each interruption that occurs takes not only the time of the interruption itself but a little longer as you strive to get back to where you were beforehand. If you are in a flow state, this can take a long time and there is a risk you may not regain your previous level of thinking.
An Illustration of the Truth
There is an interesting passage in Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson where the protagonist, Kaladin Stormblessed has an altercation with his father Lirin. It shows what can happen when we hold an opinion as truth. An invasion has occurred and Lirin, a surgeon, urges his son to stay and help people. Kaladin, who was trained as a surgeon by his father in his youth, is caught between his father’s wishes and his natural desires to protect people using force.
Backlinks are Important
Backlinks are links on a web page/note that list other web pages/notes which refer to it. Within my Digital Garden, backlinks are critical in making connections between ideas. They are important because content does not always flow in one direction and knowing what links to a particular page can create a more informative context or open up new avenues of learning.
Building R2-D2 in LEGO
This is a record of my effort building the R2-D2 in (73508). It has a total 2314 pieces. Finished it is over 31cm (13”) high, 19cm (8”) wide and 15cm (6”) deep.
An Observational Blogger
I’m primarily an observational blogger. Throughout the day I’ll notice something and think, “I wonder if that’s an example of…” and I’ll use it as the prompt to share what I’ve observed. There are three reasons for this. Writing helps my solidify my observations Observing helps be become better at understanding what’s working for me and what isn’t It prompts thinking in other readers such as yourself.
Building the Millennium Falcon in LEGO
This is a record of my effort building the LEGO Millenniuum Falcon (75192). It has a total 7541 pieces. Finished it is over 21cm (8”) high, 84cm (33”) long and 56cm (22”) wide.
Transplanting my Brain to Roam to Obsidian
In mid-2020 I was introduced to the exciting new note-taking application Roam Research and I transferred my notes and tasks into the database, making use of the powerful backlinking and cross-referencing features of the database. Prior to that I had been using a mix of TheBrain (notes and links), Omnifocus (tasks and projects) and OneNote (mobile and synced notes).
Middle Earth - Shadow of Mordor
It’s fair to say that the Lord of the RIngs spin-off, Shadow of Mordor will always hold a special place in my gaming heart. Not only did I throroughly enjoy the game and appreciate the mechanics, but it’s the first game for which I ever achieved a Platinum Trophy something I never thought I’d be able to do.
Unexpected Nostalgia
I love things that make me feel a strong sense of nostalgia. Many of us do. Yesterday I watched The Muppets after missing it in the cinema earlier this year (twice in fact). My post on Facebook said it all. I laughed. I cried. I spent most of the movie doing both. A can of TaB took me back to my uncle’s house when my brother and I would holiday there.
Why We Like Things
I’m a couple of chapters into “Start with Why” by Simon Sinek and he’s already solved a problem I’ve been pondering. Well, not so much pondering as noting with curiosity. That is, why I love my new Macbook Pro. For years I’ve been a user of PC’s. Until July last year I’d never used a Macintosh ‘in anger’ and the last time I sat at one was in the mid-80’s.
What Dads Can't Do
My daughter is an avid reader and loves the library. This week she brought home a copy of “What Dad’s Can’t Do” by Douglas Wood. Here’s a summary from the website. There are lots of things that regular people can do but dads can’t. Dads can’t cross the street without holding hands. They can push, but they can’t swing.
Who is the Quantum Gardener?
I set my self-consciousness a task as I went to bed. To come up with a title for myself by the morning. I awoke as the Quantum Gardener. Mary Mary, Quite contrary, How do your quantums grow? With chance and opportunity, And your futures all in a row. For a while now I’ve known the Ontological Poet, the Holistiic Detective and the Electronic Janitor.
How to Trial Software Before you Buy
These days it is possible to trial most computer software before you buy it. But what does ‘trial’ actually mean. For me, trial once meant install, play around a bit and then forget. Now trial means use in anger. I’ve found in order to really try software I must put myself in a position of reliance. That is, rely on the software as if I had bought it and used it every day.
Coaching in Action Review
I walked to the middle of the circle holding my name tag in my hands. Turning around to face the other course participants I held up my name tag and declared in a voice from the centre of my being, “This is my name tag but this is me and I am legitimate!” It was late Sunday afternoon^[2002] and I had just completed Newfield Institute’s Coaching in Action program.