3 ms·

> The goal is to capture information passively enough that I can add context and commentary when I want to without spending more time on it than it's worth If

> The goal is to capture information passively enough that I can add context and commentary when I want to without spending more time on it than it's worth If the goal is to pull data from potentially multiple sources, then I think you should think more about how you are going to analyze the data than just how you will just capture it. I have been extensively tracking my spinal cord rehab for over two years. I use Google Forms for some of the manual daily tracking, but lots of it comes from other sources (Apple data, a bunch of health apps, some spreadsheets, etc). I use some python and bash scripts to then import it all into Elasticsearch and build dashboards: https://github.com/gibrown/es-health-tracker https://github.com/gibrown/es-health-tracker

bnj 7y ago
That’s a great point, I do need to figure out what my end goal is before I sink a lot of time into having a capture system. I come from a line of librarians and I often find myself falling into information capture and management related puzzles, and while it’s nice to build resources that can go on to fuel unexpected opportunities, it’s equally important to be able to articulate goals for a project like this. I think part of mine is a general anxiety about memory, wanting to be able to have a passive, external, searchable record that can help me hold onto context that I’ll otherwise forget. I think that having a log which is flexible enough to be the bucket into which everything can be placed will also help me solve a problem of having lots of different places that different types of things end up—it fractures my system of organization in a way that makes everything a little unreliable. Inventing this new log is just another symptom of that. How I want to use and analyze it is the next thing I need to hold myself accountable for answering.

bnj 7y ago

That’s a great point, I do need to figure out what my end goal is before I sink a lot of time into having a capture system. I come from a line of librarians and I often find myself falling into information capture and management related puzzles, and while it’s nice to build resources that can go on to fuel unexpected opportunities, it’s equally important to be able to articulate goals for a project like this. I think part of mine is a general anxiety about memory, wanting to be able to have a passive, external, searchable record that can help me hold onto context that I’ll otherwise forget. I think that having a log which is flexible enough to be the bucket into which everything can be placed will also help me solve a problem of having lots of different places that different types of things end up—it fractures my system of organization in a way that makes everything a little unreliable. Inventing this new log is just another symptom of that. How I want to use and analyze it is the next thing I need to hold myself accountable for answering.