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Getting Things Done (GTD) and what I made of it

I finally got to read the book “Getting Things Done” by David Allen. I have read quite several books on time management and related topics, so I was almost surprised that it took me so long to get to this particular one, which is considered by many as a classic. I got to this book more or less by mistake. A while back I started using a command-line task management tool called TaskWarrior, another old Linux tool that has been known to anyone but myself for decades. This tool referred to the “Getting Things Done” methodology that was taught in the book, so I ended up reading the book as well, out of appreciation for some of the features that were inspired by this book.

I am not going to summarize this book now, nor the GTD methodology. There are dozens of write-ups about it by now. I am also not going to describe that TaskWarrior program, because this would not be the best use of your time or mine. Instead, I will discuss my most important findings: those relatively novel ideas of task management that I adopted from either the book or the software, or even just from my own experience with the two (even if not directly taught by any of these). So it’s not really a book review, but just my own takeaways that were either written in the book or were somehow inspired by the book, or by the software that I am using.

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Recommended: A Corporate Anthropologist’s Guide to Product Security

I recently read a good essay by Alex Gantman titled: A Corporate Anthropologist’s Guide to Product Security. It’s a year old, but I did not notice it before, and in any event, its contents are not time-sensitive at all. If you’re responsible for deploying SDLC in any real production environment, then you are likely to find much truth in this essay.

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Book review: "Permanent Record"

The book “Permanent Record” is best known for its author, Edward Snowden, the whistleblower who released enormous amounts of secret NSA documents to the press, alleging that the intelligence community in the US violates the rights of citizens for privacy by implementing wide-reaching programs of wholesale surveillance. This is the second book I review that discusses Ed Snowden and his revelations; the previous book I reviewed was “No Place to Hide” by journalist Glenn Greenwald.

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Book review: "Data and Goliath"

After sitting in my reading list for years, I finally got to read “Data and Goliath” by Bruce Schneier. Overall, this book is as well written as all of Schneier’s books, and is just as scientifically accurate (to the best that I could tell). However, whoever the audience for his book is, they may find it missing essential parts that make it not just a pleasant read, but also a useful one.

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Book review: "No place to hide" by Glenn Greenwald

I just finished reading the book “No Place to Hide“, by the journalist Glenn Greenwald. The book talks about the revelations from Edward Snowden on the actions taken by the NSA, as well as about their implications. It is not the  book you can’t take your hands off, but it is certainly a worthy read and conveys a very well elaborated message.

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Book review: Little Brother

I have just finished reading Little Brother by Cory Doctorow. This book presents the story of a typical but tech savvy teenager who falls victim to harassment by the Department of Homeland Security and the police state, where every citizen is constantly tracked and monitored as a potential terrorist. The story is fictitious, of course, but those who follow the reaction of some nations to the terrorism threat and the ever increasing amplitude and sophistication of wholesale surveillance, cannot miss that while the story is factually fictitious, it is not at all implausible.

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Book Review: Liars and Outliers

I finally got to read Bruce Schneier’s new book: “Liars and Outliers". The book is pleasant to read, but truth be told, I was slightly, just slightly, disappointed.

The book is written in Bruce’s style, which I like and appreciate. Like all of his books and essays, it is crystal clear, and is extremely well-written. It is written in a way that makes it comprehensible by absolutely everyone. Not too many people with Bruce’s knowledge can write in such clear style.

What I less liked about this book is its overall triviality. Bruce Schneier is excellent in using trivial down-to-earth facts and notions to get his point across. This is one of the best features of his texts. However, in “Liars and Outliers” I feel it went a bit too far. The book does not take you from the trivial to the “Wow!” but mostly repeats the discussion of trivial phenomenons that bring to trivial conclusions. The discussions
are interesting, and the points made are valid and worthy, but I cannot avoid suspecting that the book could be cut down to half of its length without losing much of its substance.