PG: Disconnecting Distraction • Hacker News Board

Re: PG: Disconnecting Distraction

#51

Post by tyn » Sat, May 17, 2008, 6:25 PM UTC

marvin wrote: post #37

I'm going to say something unpopular now, so be warned. Is wasting time on..TV, MMORPGs, the Internet, senseless magazines etc. really that much of a problem for us as individuals? Procrastinating obviously robs time from "useful" activities like working, but how much use are these activities, really? Work applied correctly certainly brings humanity as a whole to new and better pastures, but I'm wondering whether thi…

I was also wondering whether web surfing is really a "waste of time". Would I be better off if I had never come to this site, never read hacker news comments and pg essays and using all this "wasted" time to become better in a programming language, instead? I know, you will probably be more succesful if you stay focused but there is so much interesting information in the internet and what the hell, you only leave once.

Re: PG: Disconnecting Distraction

#52

Post by whacked_new » Sat, May 17, 2008, 6:28 PM UTC

Oh come on people... This one was rougher than the rest. Americans watch 4 hours of TV per day? Source? (Ok, there's Google, but that's not the good-old footnoted style.) Next, a bunch of fairly obvious things (TV is a time sink, so are other forms of distractions, and distractions prevent you from doing work!), then a submarine (plug for a personal investment).

The "solution" of separating out a work machine isn't particularly insightful either. I've done this before and I bet many others have also, and its efficacy depends highly on the person. (interestingly, I would guess that those who are very good at focusing wouldn't have to employ as many tactics to prevent their distraction).

Indeed, this wasn't the peer-reviewed kind of essay that normally gets linked here, but probably an inspirational thought-stream writing. Pardon my lack of tact, but given the ever-warm feedback to all pg essays alike, this one was, frankly, comparatively bland.

Re: PG: Disconnecting Distraction

#53

Post by whacked_new » Sat, May 17, 2008, 6:33 PM UTC

nostrademons wrote: post #27

I've found that it never works long-term. Your habits just adjust to the new situation. Every year ('cept the last couple, when I've been working) I go on vacation for 2-3 weeks to my parents' summer cottage, where there is no Internet access, no cell reception, not even a touch-tone phone. I find that I'm super productive for about the first 3 days, and then I end up playing a lot of Hearts. Without the different en…

I'm particularly interested on your take on various forms of distractions, given your response to my question about frustration.

Distraction can be used to kill frustration, but there's likely a secret, a skill, or a science in utilizing it, in the sense that it takes your mind off of something enough to change your approach, reinvigorate your interest, or whatever.

You talked about working on completely irrelevant projects for "long" periods of time. That somewhat qualifies as a thorough distraction. But then you say something like you find yourself return with greater competence [1]. From experience, have you found a good strategy? As in, magnitude of problem vs. type/duration of distraction?

I'm further interested in anybody else's "skillful use of distraction"; do share :-)

[1] http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=191503

Re: PG: Disconnecting Distraction

#54

Post by [deleted] » Sat, May 17, 2008, 6:35 PM UTC

tokipin wrote: post #40

umjames wrote: post #21

What about having the other computer that's connected to the internet be physically uncomfortable to use for an extended period of time? Maybe force yourself to stand to use that computer?

i picture a chair covered with metal spikes

[deleted]

Re: PG: Disconnecting Distraction

#55

Post by whacked_new » Sat, May 17, 2008, 6:40 PM UTC

Alex3917 wrote: post #8

I think part of the problem for me is having gone through public school. When you're 13, sneaking out of the lunch room to read Slashdot in the library is literally the most productive thing you could be doing during that time period. Even in high school I would have learned more by reading Reddit, had it existed, than by doing most of the homework I was assigned. The basic issue is that when you're in school you're…

"School did so much to suck the joy out of reading that reading was simply out of the question for a good five year chunk of my life."

This is quite a curious thing to say, and I'm taking it quite literally: assuming this is true, how is it that you know so much?

Have you "made up" for your lost time after high school? Or were you actually learning, but latently? If the former, that's pretty amazing efficiency. If the latter, what part of school do you think it was that caused this?

Re: PG: Disconnecting Distraction

#56

Post by goodkarma » Sat, May 17, 2008, 6:52 PM UTC

What if your work _is_ the internet? What if I need to be connected in order to test web applications, update my sites, and commit to subversion and git file repositories?

I'm going to try out 8aweek..

Re: PG: Disconnecting Distraction

#57

Post by anirbas » Sat, May 17, 2008, 7:09 PM UTC

noahlt wrote: post #43

That's fine if you're PG and you write all the software yourself, but what if you're using a web framework or other open-source tools and need the web to access documentation or ask questions?

How about downloading the documentation to your work computer and using that local copy? If the docs fail, you can use the other computer to ask questions.

Re: PG: Disconnecting Distraction

#58

Post by mynameishere » Sat, May 17, 2008, 7:16 PM UTC

whacked_new wrote: post #52

Oh come on people... This one was rougher than the rest. Americans watch 4 hours of TV per day? Source? (Ok, there's Google, but that's not the good-old footnoted style.) Next, a bunch of fairly obvious things (TV is a time sink, so are other forms of distractions, and distractions prevent you from doing work!), then a submarine (plug for a personal investment). The "solution" of separating out a work machine isn't p…

http://www.economist.com/research/articlesBySubject/displays...

http://www.nielsenmedia.com/nc/portal/site/Public/menuitem.5...

Evidentally, 8 hours per day per household. I suspect nielsen is using their meters or whatever, which clock up time even when no one is watching. Some households just let it run nonstop.

The internet doesn't bother me so much, though I've noticed my ability to read books has shriveled up alarmingly. The 'net is better than reversi and minesweeper and computer golf, which is exactly what people did before AOL came into their lives. I remember playing Sid Meier's Civilization literally 16 hours a day for several months after it came out. Same thing.

As for drinking alone, I suspect it's better on the whole. It reduces the likelihood of violent crimes and car wrecks, anyway.

Re: PG: Disconnecting Distraction

#59

Post by mattmaroon » Sat, May 17, 2008, 7:22 PM UTC

Has anyone here pointed out the irony of the guy who wrote Hacker News writing an article about distractions? I can't tell because I'm too busy flipping between tabs of stuff I clicked on here.

Re: PG: Disconnecting Distraction

#60

Post by simplegeek » Sat, May 17, 2008, 7:28 PM UTC

I'm not sure I liked this essay. Usually, when you read PG's essay you immediately realize that insane amount of effort and thought is involved. While reading this essay, it ended where it should have begun from.