Originally appeared in the Computer User

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You may not need to pin this up over your PC. It is just a handful of reflections, along the lines of "Everything I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten," by Robert Fulghum.

It takes a person years to realize you get more done doing just one thing at a time. Twenty minutes of work writing, or researching, or chatting makes a nice pile of one thing. Mix them all up, though, and after twenty minutes all you have is a crumb of each.

As H. L. Mencken accused Warren G. Harding of writing in the margins of his Bible: "How true." How many times have you dithered over a document, adding borders, fonts, indents, clip-art, when all you needed was to hand it to someone to read. Prioritize. Do what is important and then move one. The people you need to deal with will feel you've respected them, and you can get on with your life.

Shoemaker, do not thank the elves. Just keep them supplied with leather and nails. I used to feel guilty leaving my PC on overnight -- wasted electricity, and that anxious, the endless spinning of the hard disk! Now I just switch the monitor (to save on current), and leave the mind processing around the clock. Things get done -- somehow -- in the background.

Your bookshelves and cabinets may groan from all you've saved, but that is not where your true wisdom resides. All that really matters is what is currently in you. When all else falls, the static stands. Memorize principles. Backup the rest. And save your disks in a safe, dry place.

Into every life a little rain must fall, and none of us is exempt from the occasional catastrophic failure. When it happens, as it must, power down, go for a walk. Breathe in, then out. Trying not to think about elephants, begin again.

Life's little instruction book can be obtained at the checkout aisle. But the toil of your back and the sweat of your brow cry out for salvation. You would not leave a child in the forest for the wolves. Neither should you stick floppies to your copystand with refrigerator magnets.

The blinking lights of the world are really flames drawing us to our destruction. The path to damnation is a steep upgrade. Happy the user who is content with his setup, and does not seek continuously to improve it.

When the chilly winds blow through your machinery, don't expect the machine to supply warmth. The thinking mind cannot out-think itself. There is a time to all things. If you are human and you need help, seek out a human friend.

The pilgrim's progress is marked by false signposts. All say they have your best interests at heart. Some say they have something they want to share with you. Some will say, "General protection fault," and imply that the fault was yours. Some will offer you a cookie. Be of stout heart, and plod onward.

America's Best-Loved Technology Writer(TM), Michael Finley has a free gift for visitors to http://mfinley.com.