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How Do You Organize Your Gear?
truffle writes "Like many geeks, I have acquired a large amount of items and gear over time, including miscellaneous hardware, cables, and such. I have books, papers, Lego, and more. I generally store most things in roughly sorted cardboard boxes, which is neither efficient nor attractive. For the non-messy geeks out there, how do you organize and store your geek stuff? Is it possible to have a clean organized grown-up home, without throwing everything away?"
I personally prefer separation of the different internal computer parts and cables into tupperware type containers. I also have a much smaller one just for all the different types of screws that can be used in a system. The tupperware gives it a very organized look, and still allows me to just throw the stuff in there in typical geek fashion -- a bonus for me.
dmiessler.com -- grep understanding knowledge
I have a cheap ass wardrobe from Ikea that works great. the top shelve is for hdds, keyboards and other weird shit, while I use the coat hanger rod for cables and other wiring. the bottom shelf works great for extra cases and small parts in shoe boxes.
this was actually given to me and has solved so many problems since I got it. it's cheap, but it's been a great solution.
Creationists are a lot like zombies. Slow, but powerful and numerous. And they all want to eat our brains.
The only problem comes when guests arrive.
Then each pile goes into a box, which is kept in the basement until they leave.
My mom says I'm cool.
I go to the container store and buy 20 gallon plastic tubs that have the lid. I put all my stuff in there. I give it a year and if I don't dig into it I donate it.
Turns out a charity in my area had several old machines donated to them from another charity and they could use the 4 speed CD burners and old memory I had.
So store your stuff, give it a reasonable amount of time and if you don't use it, donate it. Get some good karma generated in the process.
O wait... for any techie, that would be the entire house.
Rubbermaid makes stackable tubs and various other things for organization. Once you have that in order, look to store VERTICALLY (ie - build shelves) not horizontally.
If you want great ideas, tune into TLC channel and watch a show called "Clean Sweep" were extremely cluttered people learn how to organize and redesign rooms to bring their life back in order.
Good quote, too many chars. Seriously, the slashdot 120 char limit sucks!
I write this, as my wife throws another PC carcase I left out at my head.
Why worry? Each of us is wearing an unlicensed "nucular" accelerator on his back.
Sig changed for readability by G.W.
I went out and bought some cheap-assed, modular draws like these. Papers in one drawer, cables in another, etc. Stack them next to your desk and you're good to go.
For some strange reason my piles of crap and boxes of who-knows-what got organized real quick soon after.
Added benefit of this organization technique is that it comes with a free "relationship" thrown in. Did I say "free"? Whoops.
John.
has got to be in a big pile on the floor. When you run out of floor space, that's nature's way of telling you to find a bigger apartment or get rid of some stuff. Either that, or just pile higher.
I tend to store my lego [an absurd amount, but there are people with more] in flat, clear tackle boxes I get from Walmart. $5 Canadian and you can store another couple sets of lego.
I don't own anything else.
Am I really the only one who thinks that "Rubbermaid" sound a little... well... you know?
BE very careful of static with plastic tupperware. YOu could very easily fry your gear.
I'm moving appartment and I'm finding bits and pieces all over the place (I usually keep the stuff I need in a couple of drawers). Since I cant remember putting it there I am just assuming I have no further use for it and its going out with the garbage. Simple and effective.
Do not try to read the dupe, thats impossible. Instead, only try to realize the truth
What truth?
There is no dupe
I use two things heavily:
Sterilite storage bins, and WireTech wire shelving.
For the storage bins, I make heavy use of the clear storage drawers and bins. See this page for all storage options. Quite a few places sell Sterilite.
The other huge thing is WireTech shelving. It's very heavy-duty coated steel wire shelving in chrome, white, or black, that looks great and is very strong - each shelf can support 300 pounds. It can also be organized in nearly an unlimited number of ways. Take a look at Sensible Storage's site, click "Products", and then see Shelving Kits, Custom Shelving, and Accessories. I strongly recommend checking it out. WireTech is the only type that I have found that is like this. They work great for everything from equipment rack type setups, entertainment center towers, making really complex shelving setups, or just plain old storage.
There are a bunch of different places that sell WireTech, but there is one, and as far I can tell only one, place that sells everything online: Great Ace WireTech shelving. It's actually an Ace hardware store in Chicago, but I've ordered various WireTech things from them a couple times before and I've been happy with the results.
You'd be surprised how much the right tools help with the job, even for things like storage. Good luck.
I like to spread everything out all over the place, that way I can see anything I might need once in a blue moon and not have to waste time looking in containers.
tip: just make sure you leave a small walking path, so you don't step on your things!
There is a container for everything...
There is a show on TLC called "Clean Sweep." The whole idea of the show is to take someone who has amazingly disorganized and cluttered rooms, and to make their rooms organized and uncluttered. Watch a few episodes of this, and you should come up with some great ideas. I know I did, and it worked great.
Jason Lotito
I throw out all the packing materials, but keep all the extra cables, driver disks, replacement rubber feet, instruction manuals, disposable headphones, and other cruft in separate ziplock baggies. All sizes; the 1 Gallon freezer bags can contain a spare five-port ether hub, a DC brick, and two short cat-5s. Then I can toss the baggies into a crate without worrying about them getting too intermingled. I have dozens of clear stackable containers I use for everything, including such electronics junk. And I mean, everything. http://www.halley.cc/pix/?f=portraits/naptime
[
...enough my Mom just comes and tidies it up. I use the same method with dirty clothes. And if I'm hungry she just makes food. So why are you asking on SLashdot. Everyone has a mom don't they?
Doesn't it make you feel good to know that our freedoms are protected by politicans, lawyers and journalists.
I've taken to buying a bunch of Storage contains from target, like the 4 Gallon one. I fill each with junk until it's full and then put it into Gorilla Rack shelving in the garage.
The trick is to enter into a simple text file the location of each piece of item, taking care to fill in enough detail to search for it in the text file. Each of the containers is numbered.
If I take something out of the container, it doesn't have to go back into the same one, I just move its description from one location into another.
This saves me from the heartache of trying to sort stuff. Sure, I keep cables and stuff like that sorted, because I have so many of them. But... for those odds and sods, it makes more sense to just put them in any old box, and keep track of them with a text file.
I put it all in a big box that retracts into the wall, so I can quickly hide it when girls come over. Wouldn't want my chances to be killed by the sight of that Commodore 64-powered particle accelerator, now would I?
The coolest voice ever.
"Is it possible to have a clean organized grown-up home, without throwing everything away?"
No. No, it is not. Just ask my wife about the morse code transceiver in the bathroom linen closet.
Throw it all away. The 'it might come in handy one day' never happens, until you throw it that is. And if you do need it, you can go buy a new one, helping the economy and giving yourself a 'retail boost' in one foul swoop.
- You have regular sex (vasectomy is suggested in these cases - no, it doesn't hurt you wussies)
- your wife will make sure all of your 'junk' (yes, we all know it is) is in the basement or the attic - where it's definitely out of sight.
- You get kids (yes, they are fun)
- You get a housekeeper (ok, help with houskeeping)
- You get a friend for life
Of course, some of the key points are based on finding the right man/woman - which I guess means cleaning your place up."I can't give you a brain, so I'll give you a diploma" - The Great Oz (blatently stolen sig)
Better than zip ties:
Get yourself some 1/2" Spiral wrap. Cut off pieces of 1" - 3". Use these to tie bundles of cable together. They're reusable, easy to take off without tools, and hold well enough without binding.
You should be able to get 10' of the stuff for $5 or less, in black or clear.
Anything is possible given time and money.
I took the bold and unpopular move of getting rid of everything I didn't really need. It was rough and I wouldn't really have done it if I wasn't moving to a much smaller place but the fact of the matter is that most of the stuff you have around "just in case" is never actually going to be useful. 2 gig SCSI drive when I haven't owned a computer with a SCSI card for 2 years? Gone. Boxes for gear costing under $20? Gone. Quick reference card for my router? Didn't need it when I set it up 3 years ago, don't need it now. Receipt and warrantee info for something that's been out of warrantee for 2 years? Into the shredder.
I highly recommend a paper shredder BTW, less because I'm worried about the security of my trash and more for processing mail I don't need so that you don't end up with those piles of envelopes that are 99% credit card apps and that one bill you actually need.
The hardest part for me was getting rid of books, I've never done that in my life. When going through them though I found a suprising number that not only had I only read once, I didn't even really like them. Got a few books I really wanted instead of 50 I hated from my local used bookstore.
For things that I actually do need to store I use white plastic crates with hinged lids. They stack well, keep dust out and you can label them with a dry-erase marker.
My mother does all my organizing for me, you insensitive clod!
You could get a bunch of Rubermaid containers, or some of those plastic shelving systems.
If all else fails, get yourself a bunch of identical boxes, like banker's boxes, and label them.
Whatever you do, if the containment system can be kept neat, the collections won't appear to be junk."I'm not impatient. I just hate waiting." - My Dad
True organization can only be had with extreme discipline:) That being said...
Maximum PC had a two page dealy on getting a tackle box for your PC needs. It's been working great for me. At the office and at home, I tend to be a bit of a maniac when it comes having things in their place, so here is what I can pass on:
1. Don't loose items sitting out. Just put them away in a place that makes sense. Categorize and place-- even if it means the broadest category ever. At least you'll remember where you put it ("Oh yeah, I put that with the other unrelated
thing because I figured...").
2. Don't let other people touch your stuff. Plain and simple. Get pissed and let them know it's your territory. You didn't spend all of that time organizing to have someone else crap it all up.
3. Buy a couple of cheap plastic file cabinets. The ones that you see at Target are great for this stuff. Use them for parts, parts and more parts!
4. Keep stuff. I use the spindles that CD-R's come on and label them according to their category (OS, UTIL, GAMES).
5. Visit your hardware store. Any gearhead will find a ton of great ways to organize tools, screws, etc. I personally love the vitamin organizer jobbies that you can keep smaller screws, shunts, etc. in.
and that's all.
How's my programming? Call 1-800-DEV-NULL
Heh, for a moment there I thought you were going to finish that out with "all the used ones in a sticky mess"...
I have not lost my mind... it's backed up on disk somewhere!
As I count myself as a member of the Hardware Geek Guild I feel your pain. When we moved into our apartment I built a unit out of timber stock that contained ten box files mounted horizontally. Box files make great (cheap) storage boxes and the eventual result is reasonably neat.
Cables are sorted into different types and then stored in supermarket carrier bags behind the cupboards. Use a permanent marker to write the cable type on the bag.
Books are stored on the bookshelves (duh!!)
Consider rack mounting your gear, it avoids various boxes all over the place and keeps the cable runs short.
One final note that may be of use for those geeks who live with a significant other. Store all your stuff in one place and then hide it behind a pair of double doors / cupboard fronts / curtains. This will help reserve the peace.
Ed Almos
The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws. - Tacitus, 56-120 A.D.
1) Think before getting new junk. Yeah, that old Mac SE might look tempting for $10 at a garage sale, but really, after you boot it up once or twice, what are you going to use it for? This applies to new things, too...
2) Refactor, Refactor, Refactor... in this case, be relentless in getting rid of stuff you don't use. And don't sweat getting rid of something you *might* need someday... the value of a clutter free life is much greater than the misc. computer cable you might need to buy again.
3) For the stuff you do need, organize it just like your file system. Large plastic containers (computer cables) can hold smaller plastic containers (categories of cables)...
4) This is something that seems to come naturally for the ladies, but if you don't use something very often but can't bear to get rid of it, get it out of your normal workspace. Find some storage in the basement or closet and keep your day to day workspace as clutter free as possible.
"Stuff" doesn't make you happy, it just accretes around you. It's crap, you shouldn't bother buying it in the first place, but since you have, get rid of it when you're done with it.
You think you might need it next week, or next month, or maybe next year? You may think it's worth something... Believe me, it isn't and you won't. It's just shit that'll just clutter up your life.
Government of the people, by corporate executives, for corporate profits.
Organizing your stuff takes a long time to actually get to the point where you stick with it. What you have to do is analyze the stuff to space ratio and minimize the stuff as best you can to get started:
Start with your desk. As a geek, that's where you spend most of your time anyway, so the rest of the space doesn't really matter. Go through the crap on your desk and figure out what needs to be there. Create a filing system (I use a set of 10 clipboards, 4 notebooks, and a single binder for my critical stuff) and stick with it. The more complicated the better, because you'll start to realize that it's more efficient to just do without than to deal with trying to file the next document you have. Store the system just out of reach of your desk, to make sure you have even less incentive to file it. Also, make sure you have a large garbage can or can easily reach the window (try to get a window on a side of the building that never sees the sun)
Write small. I use a 0.3mm mechanical pencil, and can get between 1500 and 2000 words on a single page of 8.5*11. This helps in two ways: Decreases the number of papers you need for a given document, and makes it much easier to ruin it by dropping Easy Mac on it. To avoid this last problem if necessary, simply make sure to use the filing system mentioned above.
Become an alcoholic. Drink heavily at your desk. The more often you knock a beer over on your stuff, the more often you'll get rid of stuff that you no longer need. Nothing important will be destroyed, because that stuff will be filed as above. Also, if you're plastered, you won't notice how much of a craphole you actually live in.
Moving on from the desk, minimize the space you need in your apartment. As a geek, all you need is your desk, some degree of bookshelf, a futon, and a microwave. If you're an especially talented geek, just pull the futon up to your desk and you can eliminate the need for a chair. Resist the temptation to use the fridge in the kitchen, as you will forget the stuff you put in there until it's too late (as an aside, this fridge can generally be unplugged and used for extra storage for your other stuff. Same with the stove).
Take note of all of your extra space and the stuff you have. Rank it all by how cool it is and by how often you actually play with it. Find a retail store and get all of their old empty boxes you can. Fill these with your stuff, filing it carefully into such unused rooms in the house as the kitchen, bedroom, dining room, and the shower in the bathroom. You really don't need any of these. Organize it all compulsively, making notes of where everything is. Put these notes into the filing system. Resist the urge to get rubbermaid containers, as the next time you burn the popcorn the sprinkler system will come on and relieve you of the storage problem.
I recently attached RFID tags to everything I own. I took a digital photograph, and entered each item into an object oriented database.
Now, I look up my stuff in the database, download the RFID ID into the reader, and wander aimlessly around the house until my RFID reader starts beeping.
No really, I am not kidding, I swear...
--- Generation X: The first generation to have SIG lines inferior to their parents... ---
First, let me point out that this is not anything particular to geeks; some people simply have trouble throwing stuff away.
... :)
Second, no storage solution by itself will succeed in the long run; retained junk will increase to fill any available storage space. It's like hard drives, except that you don't have the option of swapping out your old basement/garage and putting in a bigger one.
Third, storing old stuff is not really 'free'. There are costs in terms of messiness, increased difficulty of finding what you want, and lost storage space for stuff that might matter more than your 10-year-old computer power supply.
Fourth, seriously consider the replacement cost of any item you intend to store. I've seen fully operational pentium PCs selling for under $50 in used PC stores; when you need an old part, just buy one and cannibalize it to your heart's content.
I do wish I could practice what I preach though
Imposing Libertarian views on everyone online since 1992.
Use old glass jars with metal screw on lids. Affix the lids to any low ceiling(basement); a couple of sheetrock screws will work just fine. Then you can fill the jars with anything you like; screws, nails, RJ45 jacks, etc. and screw them to the ceiling.
SINARS is not a recursive sig
However, I stick with clear storage (although it's not as pretty, when people are looking at the stuff inside, but it doesn't look that disorganized, as I stick with smaller containers, so you just see the repetition of 18qt containers.)
Unfortunately, the 18qt containers are just a shade too large to fit 3 wide on a 36" shelf. [it's a press fit, and the middle one goes in last]. As for the Wire Tech shelves, I use the same, and have consolidated multiple sets to get better shelf density. [I've been collecting them at Target when there are sales...although they don't tend to have the 24x48 ones anymore]
Anyway, one of the important things to consider is what the size of the items you're looking to store, and the bulkiness. To put things into perspective, the 18qt containers fit the parts for a rebel blocade runner with room to spare, and it's a damned tight fit for the imperial star destroyer.
But I find that with too large of containers, I'm in no better situation then when I started for computer parts -- using the 18qts, I have one each for scsi cables, power cables, audio/visual, mice and peripherals, internal drives, internal cables, misc. cards, etc. I have 24 bins crammed into 18"x36" shelving [8 shelves], and I have another set of shelves for random computers and larger stuff.
I've also gone to the trouble of labelling the bins, so there's no confusion -- I highly suggest Brother P-Touch, especially the 3/4" TZ tapes, as you get the most color choices [I use bright yellow]. Although the computer printer one lets you print the most varied stuff, for organization, you just want to be able to grab it and get a label, and the ones with the built in keyboard do better for that. I've also labeled power bricks, so I have some clue what they're for [both stored, and when I need to pull something to free up a plug on the power strip, so the ones in use, as well]
Oh, and for some reason, all of my home improvement projects seem to involve security [replacing doors], or adding shelving. I've also adapted the crawl space that's accessed from my basement so I have an extra 16' x 4' of storage that takes the long term storage, which I keep in the 70qt containers [stacked two high, and two deep, so I could fit lots more, if need be, but I need to better organize, so I don't have to pull out 5+ of 'em next year when I'm searching for halloween stuff again]
Build it, and they will come^Hplain.
A 4-drawer plastic storage unit from WalMart for storing printer stuff. A drawer each for ink carts, plain paper, photo paper, and labels.
Another slightly smaller one for thin manuals and warranty info; never know when you might need them.
A multi-drawer container (like the ones you store nuts and bolts in) for small parts like cable ties, rails, nuts and bolts, etc..
An old used chest-of-drawers for larger parts (stored in their anti-static bags), CDs, larger cables, larger manuals, hard drives, old motherboards, etc..
A table behind me for old cases, monitors, and printers; the plastic storage units mentioned above are under it, too.
Yeah, it's a total mess. I never throw away anything I think I may use again, but I work on systems for friends and family, so I need all those spare parts!
Q: What do boats and kids have in common?
A: They're the most fun when they belong to someone else
It is by the juice of the coffee bean that thoughts acquire speed, the teeth acquire stains. The stains become a warning
Never underestimate the dark side of the Source
I get these five gay guys to come in and organize it for me, as an added bonus they ridicule my pr0n collection.
sic transit gloria mundi
How do I make my bed?
How do I brush my teeth?
How do I dress myself?
What do other Slashdotters use that roll of paper next to every toilet for?
It is by the juice of the coffee bean that thoughts acquire speed, the teeth acquire stains. The stains become a warning
I had the same problem for a while. I had accumulated some five or six boxes of stuff that I moved three times even though I hadn't opened most of them since they were first packed. After the third move I consolidated down to only two boxes. After I got married the stuff was some of the first to go when my wife and I moved in together :) The point is that it's easy to convince yourself that you need things that you really won't miss. (and for all of you that think I'm a complete wimp, in exchange for my boxes she had to donate five bags of old clothes to charity)
-= alphaFlight =-
1) DEVELOP STORAGE AREAS.
You'll need some place to KEEP the stuff that you want to store. It could be an attic, it could be shelves in the garage, it could be wherever you happen to have room. Here's a couple of quick thoughts - Divide your storage needs into LONG TERM and SHORT TERM useage. LONG TERM gear that needs to be stored can be put in out of the way places, like the attic, garage, under the bed. SHORT TERM usage should be kept close to where you need to work. This is where you'd store crucial stuff - cords, extra batteries for that cordless mouse, whatever.
Once you've identified your STORAGE areas, you'll be better prepared to deal with what kinds of METHODS you'll use to store stuff in those areas. (If you're going to store stuff under your bed, you can't use boxes that are too big to fit!)
2) USE A STAGING AREA.
We see this all the time on Clean Sweep. For those of you who haven't see it, they take all of their stuff that needs to be organized, and RE-PILE it into smaller piles - Keep, Sell, Throw Away. You can do the same kind of thing. Decide what gear goes into LONG term storage, SHORT term storage, whatever.
3) STORAGE METHODS.
Here's where most people jump to - but if they don't consider the first two options of WHERE to store stuff, and WHAT to store, they'll end up wasting a lot of time.
CHEAP options (so you can spend more money on gear):
- if you're going to use cardboard boxes, go to your local grocery store, and get some BANANA boxes. They're large, they're sturdy, they're free, they have handles, and they're all the same size. They're excellent for storing bigger items. You could probably fit an mid-range sized server in one of them!
- if you are looking for good ways to store small items for free in a small space - go to BURGER KING. Ask if you can have a bunch of their PICKLE BUCKETS. Burger King uses 5 gallon plastic buckets to ship their pickles. Get 5 of them. (they shouldn't charge you a cent if you ask nicely) Next, cut off the BOTTOM 4 or 5 inches of 4 of the buckets... and then use some cardboard to make subdivisions inside of each one (like the inside of a wine box). Then, those bucket bottoms will STACK INSIDE of the fifth bucket - and you'll be amazed how much STUFF you can store. Perfect for Legos.
A suggestion: wash those pickle buckets REALLY WELL with bleach - and if you can, let them sit in the sun's UV rays - it will really help get rid of the vinegar smell.
Hope those thoughts help!
G.B.Y.L.B.T., PastorEd
Ever wonder why you have all that crap?
It's all out there. Lego, books, etc. Old computers and everything. Fuck your private museum, and the clutter that goes along with it.
I took all my out of date - but still valuable - books to the Library. They were grateful, and who knows how many future geeks will benefit from my old Linux and Cisco admin books?!
All those Apple ]['s, Macs and C 64's ain't worth a hill o' beans. Lose 'em. There's a reason why you are the only one who picked them up - they're useless. NEAT-O, but utterly useless.
Make room within your apartment, and YOURSELF for better, more valuable information and maybe - just MAYBE, you'll set yourself free from whatever it is that's been keeping you from getting a date.
It's a vicious cycle: No date, stay home and eat pizza and fiddle with VIC-20. Get fatter, so chance of date decreases, self-image goes down, fewer dates (fewer reasons to go out of the house period), more pizza, more VIC-20s, fewer dates, more pizza, more Amigas, and so on.
WHY?! Because you're a geek? Get a damned GEEK PRIDE tattoo! Hell, get the Apple I schematic tattooed as a swingin' back-piece! A portrait of a PPC Amiga 4000! A friggin' Data General if it makes you happy.
Just. Let. It. Go!
When I got married, my wife got together with my mom and pitched all my magazines: comics (many first editions), 10 years worth of National Lampoons and, of course, all my pr0n!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!
Now, I have all my terrabyte or so of pr0n on DVD, with full backups stored in a secured location.
Live and learn...
For those, I recommend those CD binders. The Walmart in my area has ones that can hold 280 CDs for $25. It ends up being a lot neater and more compact than 1000 jewelcases (or even individual sleaves).
-no broken link
and don't forget that after you've donated that stuff, get a receipt saying you donated "printer, monitor, etc.". I used to think it was a waste of time, but at the end of the year you can claim that you donated $500 in computer hardware, and that can be a tax deduction. You'll still donate the same stuff, but at the end of the year you'll give less money to the government (whether that's good or bad is debatable... I happen to enjoy not giving away so much of money to the IRS, ymmv).
Organization is only a small part of the show. The biggest part is that everything in the affected rooms gets taken out and stacked in the driveway. That's furniture, papers, everything.
The homeowners go through the pile with an unbiased third party and sort their stuff into a "Keep" pile, a "Toss" pile and a "Sell" pile. By talking packrats out of stuff they really don't need, they usually end up putting less than 10% of the stuff back in the house. That's the big secret: get rid of crap.
Aside: While we were evacuated during the SoCal fires, my wife and I sat in a motel room, with our photo albums, laptops, hard drives from our desktop and important papers in the car, and realized that we weren't really 'out' anything if the house burned down. The insurance company would buy us new TV's, DVD players, furniture, dishes, etc., but all that stuff in the basement that took a 26' U-Haul and four trips with a longbed pickup to get there didn't mean a thing.
So Thanksgiving is Clean Sweep day. Everything goes onto the patio, and 90% of it goes to the dump or to Salvation Army. We have our Home Depot card ready to get some shelving and clear bins, and we will pare the pile down to what we actually need. Looking forward to it.
...or at least pretend to. When I was growing up as an Air Force brat, we were allowed to take ONE BOX of stuff when my Dad got transferred. Cut way down on the clutter.
To me, the box type is important. They should be somewhat shallow so you can find stuff without having to dig too deep. Since I moved recently, I had dozens of those standard 1.5 cubic foot book boxes. I cut a bunch of them down from 12 inches to about 7 inches in height (cut the flaps off and turn the extra height into new flaps).
Now, organize all of your stuff into categories. If you're a real packrat, you'll have categories like 9-pin serial cables, LP record cleaning accessories, channel 3/4 video modulators, wall-warts, etc. (You might even have some actually useful categories, too.) Each category should be small enough to comfortably fit in a 1-gallon food storage bag. Fill each bag, tie it up, and put a label on it. Dutifully write down the bag's contents in your notebook.
If you have lots of circuit boards, you probably already have anti-static bags for them. Be sure to keep each circuit board in an antistatic bag, especially if putting them in any kind of normal plastic bag or container.
Organize the bags into larger categories and fill the boxes with bags. Label the boxes and update the notebook with the box contents.
Now you can stack the boxes on the floor or on shelves. I managed to cram an unbelievable amount of junk into about 20 boxes, which all fit neatly in the corner of the basement. And the best part is the whole system only cost me about $20 (mostly food bags and pricey label tape). Fancy bins from a container store have taken up more space and would have cost well over $100.
Life is so much better now that I've invested the time to organize all my stuff. In the past I'd waste countless hours trying to find some adapter or cable in random piles of semi-organized junk. Now I just reference my notebook and grab it in a few seconds.
BE very careful of static with plastic tupperware. YOu could very easily fry your gear.
For sure!
I use a similar no-no for non-CMOS electronic components. I have a huge stockpile of passive components - resistors, capacitors, etc - and things like tubes, bipolar transistors, etc. Over 20,000 vacuum tubes alone, according to my last inventory.
What I use is 4x8" generic ZipLock-ish baggies which I buy at the local head shop. The guy must think I'm a mega-dealer, because every few weeks I go in wearing a shirt and tie and buy 100 (or more) 4x8" baggies for $6.
I drop a piece of cardboard with a label into each baggie, then I stuff it with components. Then I put the baggie into a 4" wide cardboard parts tray (Bankers Box # 7353). The trays are then stored in cheap metal shelving units with 9" space between shelves. I have 6 shelves for vacuum tubes alone.
Unlike doing this with other methods (small drawers), I can simply insert a weird resistor value between standard values. I can drop a bag of #6-32x0.75" screws between the #6-32x0.5" and #6-32x1" screws. If I fill a baggie with 1k 1/4W resistors, I just add another baggie. Suddenly find a 12AX7A? Stick it in a new bag behind the 10 or so full of 12AX7s. I can take a group out, throw them into my toolbox and take them with me, not worrying that I'm going to spill them. It's very handy.
For static sensitive stuff, I use 4x8" antistat baggies which I purchase from Newark or DigiKey.
I can't claim that I invented or discovered this method - I first saw it while I was working for Litton, and I loved it.
Doesn't work for big stuff like transformers, stepper motors, complete assemblies. For that, I still have to use TupperWare (or the disposable resealable containers.)
Having an inventory of parts is useless if you can't find what you need when you need it. But it's even worse if you *can* find it but it doesn't work. Remember to think about static.
Fire and Meat. Yummy.
When it comes to being tidy I like to stick to a few simple rules :
/old useless warez (You are NOT gonna install windows 95 my friend) / old books (No, a reference to borland C++ 4 is NOT handy in this day and age).
:>
1) If it's broke don't fix it. Throw the bugger away. If you haven't found time until to to fix that broken xt you never will. It's just there collecting dust.
2) If you have ten of em, throw nine away. I myself had loads of cool (working) xts but let's fact it people : those are TOTALLY useless. You are NEVER going to use them, even if you could find old arcane network card's to hook em up to your network.
3) If it's not new in box and you have at least 2 other computers that supply the same function THROW THEM AWAY. It's not like you're gonna sit there with 4 386's alle used at the same time as serial terminals. 1 is more than enough.
4) Throw away all those crappy cover cds (winzip 5.x anyone ?)
5) Throw away your old print outs. I used to have literally HUNDREDS of these. I used to print everything I came across over the internet for further reading. After a while you know at least 75% of those papers by heart, at least 80% of them are outdated by six months & at least 20% of them are totally useless to you. Dump em. They're history. If you have to keep them store the originals on your server. It shouldn't be more than a couple of 100 MBs.
Do the above and you'll find you have a lot more closet space that can be nicely filled with your current (useful) hardware/books. I know throwing away things is HARD, especially when they're really cool (my wonderful XTs) or have a special personal relevance to you (O that first motherboard I fried) but you HAVE to. These things only hold you back. You'll feel better when you do, TRUST me.
BTW If you have something really cool in prestine condition then (especially if you have the original box/diskettes/manuals) for the love of god DON'T THROW IT AWAY. Give it away to a computer museum or at least sell it to a retro computing store or over ebay. Then at least someone else can enjoy it as much as you did and you'll have a bit of mullah left over so you can soften your sadness by getting that spanking new laptop you've always wanten
Another thing- why is it that when you finally get up the courage to throw something away, you find you need it less than 6 months later?
This has happened to me far too often.
graspee
... You are a dealer!! How many audiophiles have you got hooked? How many tube amp junkies crawl to you begging for a hit? ... Where do I sign up?
"Consensus" in science is _always_ a political construct.
The clear plastic storage drawer sets you get from the Container Store hold up better and make more efficient use of space (less "rounded" corners and sides) than the Rubbermaid ones from Wal-Mart. They're stackable and come with wheels too.
For extra extra organization, I have mine categorized and labeled just in case I can't immediately identify the types of cables/connectors/weird stuff from the outside. It's also worth the time to untangle, roll up, and secure the cables with twist ties . That way not only are your cables organized and *useful*, but you also get rid of most of the twist ties that have been collecting in your kitchen drawer for years (the ones that come with garbage bags).
Of course, it helps to get rid of all the completely obsolete stuff you *know* you will never use again too. Here's a good rule: find everything you don't need now, haven't used for three or more years, and don't actually plan to use in the forseeable future, and list it on eBay in lots (SCSI cables, 500MB hard drives, 150W AT power supplies, 286 boards, giant ISA video cards with 2MB ram or less, dot matrix printers, those cables you acquired some years ago and never figured out what they were for, etc). Whatever meets those criteria and doesn't sell on eBay, throw away; it's junk. Trust me, you will not miss it.
-=[You cannot consistently judge this statement to be true.]=-
>Biggest tip: Give everything you own a home.
This can be overdone, especially because what you own is not what you will own. I bought a vastly overpriced and flimsy desk with shelves for every peripheral I needed.
The PC changed from a minitower to a full tower and then a server cube, neither of which fit in the original opening
The scanner left
The monitor grew from 17 to 19 inches and 21 is looking awfully tempting lately.
I replaced the $19 2.1 speaker set with a $26 stereo system, and thus no longer have little satellites fitting the space
Now I have a huge, half-empty desk that looks like it will collapse under the mass of the monitor any second now.
Next time, I'm going to get one of those heavy metal teacher's desks.
It's just like a fascist dictatorship, without the punctual rail service!
I have ADD and am somewhat OCD, so I have a few systems worked out. A big part of each system is to just throw away anything I don't need on a regular basis, unless it is very important to keep it around for reference.
1- Paperwork/Manuals/Warranties: Paperwork all gets filed alphabetically in hanging files in those white cardboard boxes. Rotate old stuff into closets. The best part about filing manuals and warranties is that it means I can throw a box away as soon as I know that the media is not defective.
2- Books: Shelve them or sell them. Be careful with this one, as it is cheaper to buy *nice* bookshelves than it is to replace old books that one sold or trashed. If you have the money, barrister bookshelves (The ones with lift-up glass doors on each shelf.) mitigate the need for frequent dusting.
3- Movies/DVDs: I don't even have a VCR, so all of my videocassettes got trashed. My DVDs are neatly organized in my entertainment center. I only buy a DVD if it is a must-have, otherwise I just use NetFlix so that *they* can store it for me.
4- Old computers: I just give them away now. This gives me more time with the new ones.
5- Cables: Everything is carefully organized and I never leave unused cables laying around. If I have a lot in one place, they are all tied back with velcro, twist-ties, or cable cuffs. I keep a few extras in a box, all of the rest go in the trash. Seriously, how many USB/USB 2.0 cables does one really need to keep now that many devices come with them?
6- CD-ROMs: Software all gets stripped of its box and case and is filed in a CD holder of some sort (Target sells CD pages that go in 3-ring binders!), or on a spindle if I won't need it often. Old video games that aren't "classics" are either traded-in or given away to the children of co-workers. Music CDs are kept on CD storage racks in cast I transport them somewhere, but for the most part I only play my music from the Nomad Zen so that I don't need to use the CDs very often.
If you have more than a few hundred CDs of any one type, just toss the cases, and alphabetize them using zip-loc bags in plastic boxes with cardboard dividers.
Another important thing to remember is to label *every* box. This way you can tell what is in them at a glance once you have fifty of them stuffed into a closet.
> Is it possible to have a clean organized grown-up home, without throwing
> everything away?"
Yes, mostly. Designate one area of your home as the "work area" or "mess
zone". A basement room is a good choice. Outfit it with shelves on every
wall and a table, some benches, a desk, that sort of thing (i.e., lots of
horizontal surface area). Here you can have computer components sitting
around, boxes and bins of different kinds of cables, stacks of manuals and
papers and books, and so forth. A three-drawer cabinet or two (like a filing
cabinet but with high-sided drawers made for holding things besides papers)
is a good kind of furniture for this room, too. Also, you want a couple of
easily-repositioned lamps, for shedding light in exactly the right part of
a computer case, or whatever.
Keep all your junky stuff in this room, and out of the rest of the house.
When (not if) the room starts to get awefully cluttered so that it becomes
difficult to navigate to the opposite side of the room, box up some of the
stuff you use least often. If there's no place to put the box, cart it to
the attic for longer-term storage. (Striking a balance between keeping
a high enough percentage of your stuff boxed up that you have room for
most of it in the room and yet keeping enough stuff layed out that you can
reach the things you need constantly does take some thought, but it's not
an impossible balance to strike, generally.)
Now, the rest of the house can have some computer equipment, but only in the
form of complete, working systems with covers on the cases that have some
hope of being used in any given 24-hour period. When you need to work on
a computer, or when you stop using it regularly, you bring it to the work
room. If you have family members who don't like mess, you make a bargain
with them: they leave your work room alone, and you do your part to keep
the rest of the house picked up. (Dirty clothes in the basket, and all
that sort of nonsense.)
Cut that out, or I will ship you to Norilsk in a box.
Put everything in a closet, attic or other storage space. (Boxing everything works too.) Record the date. Twelve months later, get rid of everthing still sitting in storage. If you have not used it for 12 months, you probably never will. Donate books/journals to the library (so you can still access them if you need to), and donate everything else to GoodWill or a domestic violence shelter or a school or something. Donate porn to Slashdot. For cables that you "must keep," buy a cable rack(s) and hang it in the walk-in closet behind the door. Get rid of that old incomplete 386/486/586. If it's not plugged in, you don't need it. Have a garage sale.
I use clear heavy-duty zip-loc bags for storing rolled up cables (one each for IDE, Power, Phone, etc.) and connectors. The bags are nice to stuff into a large bin because they pack well and are easy to look inside for that certain special part.
:-)
I use shoebox sized clear plastic bins so I can hold up the bin and look inside from the sides and bottom of the box, fast random access while searching for that certain connector.
I label my bins:
* RF (tv,vhf,wifi),
* Analog(audio,phone),
* Comm(rs232,ps/2)
* Power(dc adapters, converters, connectors)
I keep files (paper) for useful magazine articles (or scan to store images) and use 3-ring binders to store CDs that aren't ripped to my drive. My desk is often an archilogical site, which is when I know it's time to clean up. I try to have a place for everything and keep everything in it's place, but still believe a clean office is the sign of a sick mind.
However, my wife still isn't used to me refering to the linen closet as the "server room", But she's finally comfortable with the kitchen PC (laptop on swivle stand with WiFi) for reading morning news and looking up recipes.
Suncoast Linux - Sarasota, FL
Several local geeks swear by these things for storing their junk.
...take over the house.
First I made the Former Front Bedroom (TM) into my office. When that filled up I set up a PC in the Former Living Room and PC Anywhere'd to the original PC where all the email and files still are. The Former Living Room accumulation spread to the Former Dining Room. The kitchen counter is often the only clear space for working on the innards of computers and disk enclosures. The only places spared have been the master bedroom and the spare bedroom. The laundry area is full of boxes, too.
My Former Dining Room has made a terrific computer room, with two six-foot equipment and work tables, two 5-foot-tall 19" racks, 10KVA of 240V UPSs, a 21-inch Hitachi monitor and 8-port KVM, about a dozen computers of three different types, a parts bin arrangement, a cubbyhole arrangement that can hold many dozens of disk and tape drives, and three six-foot-tall shelf units.
Home Depot sells a storage unit billed as being a "shoe rack." It's made of chipboard, very sturdy (far too sturdy for shoes), is subdivided into 25 cubbyholes and is perfect for storing 5.25" devices when stood on a table or shelf.
The sturdy wire-frame shelf units someone mentioned earlier as being sold at Sam's Club in the wheeled version in chrome are also sold at Home Depot without wheels in chrome or black. The shelves can be substantially improved by cutting fiberboard to fit, either the thin stuff for just making the shelves solid for books and such, or the heavy fiberboard for holding massive items.
In my world, if it's out of sight, it may as well not exist, so I try to arrange things so that as much as possible is visible. Opaque boxes are bad, sometimes necessary, but always labelled. See-through bags and containers are good.
I would love to have affordable RFID tags and some form of designed or de facto homing on desired tag numbers. I use barcoding to tie items back to a 100% complete purchasing and receiving database but often the problem is that I can't find things I know I have.
Look at the bright side: there's always seppuku.