ersatz owl // on information

I find it remarkably strange that one's own perception of purpose and justification in spinning attentions towards a novel task is usually unbalanced with what the rest of the world thinks.  Just this last week having released the public face of my latest creative conglomeration, I've been struggling with sneaking hints of self-doubt and a mis-aligned sense of why-ness.  I suppose that this has something to do with why so many similar efforts extinguish themselves after a short-lived career.  Those thoughts of uncertainty in a pursuit where one is so clearly an inexperienced noob haunt every sweep of the pen -- or in my case, adjustment of a curve-node -- and threaten to derail the project.  But it's not like we're trying to create high art here.  It's just an experiment in design, right?

"So, you think you're a cartoonist now, eh?" Neon Hawk is flipping through the small collection of drawn panels I've placed online, his browser filled with a mixed collection of my images.  "When did that happen?"

"We haven't spoken in a few weeks, I know." I shrug.  "But I've been dabbling.  I mean, it's not like this came out of nowhere, is it?  Haven't you seen the bookshelf full of sketchbooks in my office?"

ErsatzOwl's Information Management Practice (IMP) 101 : Part 1

This article is the first installment of a personal exploration of the elements of information management practice. As I write this I claim no expertise on the topic beyond my ten years of using the various systems and tools that make use of such knowledge.  I write this as a way to educate myself (and perhaps spark some feedback) on topics relating to information management as a means to better myself and others through such conversations.  In a way, you could say that while this is not quite an exploration of the topic from first principals, it is an exercise in trying to build a fundamental understanding of the topic by discussing what I know and looking for evidence to support that undertstanding.  In other words, this isn't really a course, lecture, or other educational tool: it's just me working things out on my own.

But if you find it useful please let me know.

In kicking off a bit of self-education on this topic, I considered the many places I could start.  I could have dived into the technology, and attempted to work backwards from their functions.  I could have pulled up a case study and piece by piece outlined the way I would have gone about taking a jumble of files, knowledge, and other information and organized it in a professional, useful manner.  Or I could have done what I did: taken the theoretical and philsophical approach to the study and tried to unravel what I've been practicing for many years around some solid concepts, defintions, and ideas.  So, this is how it starts...