Music is rarely heard in most traditional office settings. Of course there are many reasons for this, the most obvious being that musical tastes are subjective. Not everyone enjoys Vivaldi and some people cringe at the first notes of “Satisfaction”. Controlling the dial might become a real issue in a close office environment. One of the joys of working from home is the freedom of choice that working mostly alone allows.  Your sticky notes can be stuck to anything you want. If you are an Eskimo into heavy metal, you can keep the thermostat at 65 and the radio at 10. So home-workers can pump up the volume and keep the tunes rolling.

Ever miss the good ol’ days of when you were in school?

Not because you love to learn, and not because you necessarily miss Algebra, Statistics, English, or other nemeses of many a youth.  No, do you ever miss your old school days because you had a group of practically built-in friends and a core of regular activities, with little or no effort or creativity required of you, who would rather just know people than “get to know” people?

If you look carefully at Lifehacker’s Coolest Workspace Contest winner photos you might notice something interesting. There are neat, messy, playful, serious, shiny, orange, do-it-yourself, and expensive workspaces. But something is definitely missing from practically every photo. That thing is …life. More specifically plant life. Those green, leafy, oxygen producing, beautifying, stress reducing, decorating accessories that adorn so many offices and homes. Why not the home-office?

This article is for folks who are somewhat computer savvy but who don’t always know the best way to keep their computer running tip-top. I believe I have found a good system for keeping my personal computer Nice, Efficient and Tidy (NEaT). I share my information here in the hope of helping a few folks.