[FairfieldLife] The 18 Things You Need for Your Computer

[bob_brigante]

http://www.slate.com/id/2202432/ <http://www.slate.com/id/2202432/>

By Farhad Manjoo Posted Thursday, Oct. 16, 2008, at 4:54 PM ET

  [Screen capture from Rescue Time.] RescueTime

A few months ago, I downloaded RescueTime <http://www.rescuetime.com/> ,
a hardworking little program that monitors everything I do on my
computer. Its ostensible purpose is productivity: By cataloging my
pursuits—how much time I spend on every application, how long I
linger at every Web site—RescueTime aims to shame me into
procrastinating less. During the last three months, for instance, I've
logged 34 hours on Slate. Thirty-four hours! Not that Slate isn't fun,
but I could have read Anna Karenina in that time. Curses, "Explainer"!
So far, RescueTime hasn't increased my productivity one iota, but its
reports are still illuminating. Since July 21, when I installed the app,
I've spent 727 hours on my desktop computer. That's 30 full days out of
just 87—one-third of my life whiled away at the screen. It's a
wonder that I haven't developed pressure sores.