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I've recently started using VMs to help get me into my zone faster and keep me there longer. I keep a separate VM for each project I'm working on, and I keep al

I've recently started using VMs to help get me into my zone faster and keep me there longer. I keep a separate VM for each project I'm working on, and I keep all other activities (browsing, music, chat, etc.) out of them. I've found a few advantages: 1) Easier to get into my work. When I restore a VM, it's still in the exact state it was in the last time I worked on that project. Terminals open, commands still partially typed in, working files open, notes typed to myself, docs/references still open, etc. 2) Easier to avoid distractions. The logical sandboxing of work and play has really been helpful for me - once that VM opens up, everything else gets hidden and drowned out. There is no temptation to "just peak at HN" - I'm either completely in my work VM or completely out of it. When the divide between work and play is blurry, I err, but this keeps that divide very crystal clear. 3) It's easy to recover from distractions when they do occur (and they are inevitable). I just minimize the entire VM I'm working in, and all of my work is kept in its exact state: positioning of windows, files open, etc.

tedmiston 16y ago
I think the same idea applies to creating multiple user accounts or working on a computer you don't own. The extra bit of effort separating doing your work from consuming Internet junk food is significant. I've noticed this myself when I'm coding for school projects. I tend to be much more productive on a frozen system* in a public/private lab, rather than on my own laptop at home. *For the unfamiliar -- DeepFreeze removes any changes made to a disk from the frozen state at each restart requiring you to save work on a flash drive, Dropbox, etc.
lloeki 16y ago
I use GNU screen sessions for that. Also, I use Textmate as 'mate .' in a terminal to open projects, with a global configuration making my TM workflow/workspace stateless (no tab bar, heavy use of cmd+T).

tedmiston 16y ago

I think the same idea applies to creating multiple user accounts or working on a computer you don't own. The extra bit of effort separating doing your work from consuming Internet junk food is significant. I've noticed this myself when I'm coding for school projects. I tend to be much more productive on a frozen system* in a public/private lab, rather than on my own laptop at home. *For the unfamiliar -- DeepFreeze removes any changes made to a disk from the frozen state at each restart requiring you to save work on a flash drive, Dropbox, etc.

lloeki 16y ago

I use GNU screen sessions for that. Also, I use Textmate as 'mate .' in a terminal to open projects, with a global configuration making my TM workflow/workspace stateless (no tab bar, heavy use of cmd+T).