I guess it’s very interesting to acknowledge that people use computers for quite a while but don’t have automatic methods for dealing with data. For instances, can you easily access any file in your computer? Do you remember where did you put that file? Is your desktop organized? Do you frequently backup your data? Have you lost important files due to a Windows failure or hardware malfunction?

Looking back, when you had your old computer with DOS and a tiny disk, you had to be organized! I had to know all the main directories by heart (which was a way to keep everything in place) and since I hadn’t much disk space, I couldn’t afford to collect trash (which made me collect only the right data). Since technology offered me a low liability, I had to backup frequently.

Some months ago, I decided to keep things organized. After reading lots of articles, reading again GTD and several experiences, my model is the following:

• Two Disks: one for Windows and Programs Files and the other for data;
• My Documents should be a folder in the data disk (such as D:\MyName rather than C:\Documents and Settings\MyName\My Documents);
• Keep Music and Video organized (it’s faster to add a new song in the right place rather than losing hours trying to find it) – iTunes and Picasa help a lot, for free;
• Keep a temporary folder – for downloads, temp installation files, sand-boxing, etc – and delete it every week. If you have troubles deleting it, create another folder called “limbo” and pile things here;
• Keep personal data very well organized.

Remember that many files are only useful as future reference. Keep them in one place, but never mix them with the ”hot ones”.

One good strategy is thinking: What would I keep in case of a fire? :) This is one way of thinking: How many folders would I have to browse to collect every important file?

This makes you think what should be backuped. Keep a list of the most important folders and get a backup tool! Even Windows XP has one! Read this article about Backup Made Easy and start your backup strategy NOW!