Spring cleaning applies to your digital home, too
Issue date: 5/17/09 Section: Technology
(ARA) - Warm weather signals the time to get clutter under control. A time traditionally spent cleaning out nooks and crannies in the home, this season the trend is to organize your digital world, which as most of us know, can be a huge mess.
According to a recent survey conducted by Microsoft, 60 percent of those polled say their online lives sometimes feel more disorganized than their physical lives.
Crystal Hornsby, a construction project engineer from Vancouver, Wash., is feeling the need to get digitally organized this year.
"I have two mobile phones, two e-mail accounts, hundreds of digital pictures, separate online calendars for work and home, and I'm an active Twitter, MySpace and Facebook user," she said.
Hornsby's experience is far from unique. According to a Pew Internet & American Life Project study last December, the share of adult Internet users who have a profile on at least one social networking site has more than quadrupled in the past four years from 8 percent to 35 percent.
Lorie Marrero, certified professional organizer, founder of ClutterDiet.com, thinks there's still hope for people like Crystal who feel overwhelmed by their online lives and the idea of organizing it all.
"Our kids, jobs and shrinking budgets give us plenty to juggle in our offline lives. Now, with so many people using various online services, it's no wonder that many are overwhelmed at the prospect of getting digitally organized too," she said. "Although it can be daunting, it's a necessary step toward gaining the extra free time we crave, and finally feeling in control of our lives -- both on and offline."
To get even the most scattered computer user started on the road to freedom from digital clutter, Marrero recommends five tips that can help make digital life seem more manageable:
1. Organize Online Activities
Have too many social networking and online accounts to keep track of? Consolidate online activities in one place with Windows Live. Partnerships with popular sites -- including Facebook, Twitter and Flickr -- allow you to aggregate activities from these third-party sites -- such as digital photos, tweets and status updates -- into your Windows Live 'What's New' feed, so you can easily share content with the people in your network from one site.
According to a recent survey conducted by Microsoft, 60 percent of those polled say their online lives sometimes feel more disorganized than their physical lives.
Crystal Hornsby, a construction project engineer from Vancouver, Wash., is feeling the need to get digitally organized this year.
"I have two mobile phones, two e-mail accounts, hundreds of digital pictures, separate online calendars for work and home, and I'm an active Twitter, MySpace and Facebook user," she said.
Hornsby's experience is far from unique. According to a Pew Internet & American Life Project study last December, the share of adult Internet users who have a profile on at least one social networking site has more than quadrupled in the past four years from 8 percent to 35 percent.
Lorie Marrero, certified professional organizer, founder of ClutterDiet.com, thinks there's still hope for people like Crystal who feel overwhelmed by their online lives and the idea of organizing it all.
"Our kids, jobs and shrinking budgets give us plenty to juggle in our offline lives. Now, with so many people using various online services, it's no wonder that many are overwhelmed at the prospect of getting digitally organized too," she said. "Although it can be daunting, it's a necessary step toward gaining the extra free time we crave, and finally feeling in control of our lives -- both on and offline."
To get even the most scattered computer user started on the road to freedom from digital clutter, Marrero recommends five tips that can help make digital life seem more manageable:
1. Organize Online Activities
Have too many social networking and online accounts to keep track of? Consolidate online activities in one place with Windows Live. Partnerships with popular sites -- including Facebook, Twitter and Flickr -- allow you to aggregate activities from these third-party sites -- such as digital photos, tweets and status updates -- into your Windows Live 'What's New' feed, so you can easily share content with the people in your network from one site.
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