Being back at school means we’re back in classes, back in club meetings and back in the library. We’ve constantly got things going on, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed by it all, but it’s also easy to stay in control of — if you’ve got the right tools. Luckily, all of the right tools are available online, and they’re absolutely cost-free.
The way I see it, you need three things: a place to store your documents, a place to manage your daily commitments and a place to capture and classify the many thoughts floating around your brain each day.
You need tools that are easy to use, free ­­­— I mean, come on, we’re in college — and easily accessible. From class to coffee shops to our homes, the tools we rely on have to be as mobile as we are.
In my opinion, three tools fit this bill. Together, they will make a bulletproof system that will keep your life organized, keep you from being overwhelmed and make sure you’re on top of things this semester.
The first tool, a place to store all your stuff, is the most important. You’ll need a way to organize your class notes, projects and everything else you do this year. Dropbox (www.getdropbox.com) will your best friend here. Simply install Dropbox to your computer. It will create a folder in your Documents called, “My Dropbox.” Move all your files into the Dropbox folder, and they will be protected and available to you everywhere — all you need is an Internet connection. Any file saved there will automatically get synced and backed up to the Web. Whenever you’re away from your personal computer, just log in to the Dropbox Web site and all your files will show up, ready to be downloaded and used.
Next, you’ll need to figure out what you actually need to do everyday and where. Remember the Milk (www.rememberthemilk.com) is a free, useful task manager that will take all the guesswork out of your daily life. Enter all of your tasks and commitments into Remember the Milk. You will be able to set due dates and organize classes and other events by tags — one tag per class, that’s how I do it. Remember the Milk allows you to make simple to-do lists and powerful project managers, depending on what you need. It even plays nicely with the applications you already use. It lets you see and manage all your tasks right in your Gmail window. We’ve all got things to do and brains that are terrible at remembering them — let Remember the Milk do it for you.
Still, on any given day, you might promise a friend you’ll e-mail them something. You might hear about an assignment in class or if you’re anything like me, remember something important just as you’re getting in the shower — that’s when you do your best thinking, after all.
To keep it all straight, try Evernote (www.evernote.com). Evernote is a free note-taking application, and it’s greatest strength is its portability. Whenever something comes into your head — something you need to do, or something you want to remember, maybe the phone number of the girl you just met — put it into Evernote via your cell phone, your computer or your e-mail. That way, you’ll have everything in one place, where it’s easy to search, organize, find and edit your notes. Like Dropbox, Evernote is also a great place to take class notes. Before an exam, being able to search for a particular entry is a huge time-saver. As an added bonus: All your notes will be available on your computer, on the Web and on your smartphone.
The system is simple: Everything you write, create, or type up, goes right into Dropbox. Weed through your mountain of daily tasks and add them to Remember the Milk. Then put anything you need to remember to do or to reference into Evernote.
The tools are all free, available online wherever you are and will keep you firing on all cylinders all semester.
David’s column runs biweekly Thursdays. He can be reached at d.pierce@cavalierdaily.com.