Thursday, June 9, 2005
Are folders on the way out?
Although this WIRED article is about an Apple technology (and we all know what an oxymoron I think that phrase is), it raises a great question: Why are we still using the folder metaphor to find things on our PCs?
Having been a Google Desktop Search user for several months, I think that its quick search method is so much more simple and efficient than browsing through folder after folder after folder in Explorer.
Maybe the article makes too much over the death of folders. I don't think folders are any different functionally from tags or Gmail's labels.
So, to me, desktop search tools and folders/tags/labels aren't mutually exclusive. I think one is better at finding information and the other is better at getting/keeping it organized. I think that they can continue to coexist.
While we're on the subject of organization, Esther Dyson's Release 1.0 has an interesting article titled "Ontology is Overated: Categories, Links, Tags" (free registration required) that is definitely worth a read if you're interested in this topic.
Although this WIRED article is about an Apple technology (and we all know what an oxymoron I think that phrase is), it raises a great question: Why are we still using the folder metaphor to find things on our PCs?
Having been a Google Desktop Search user for several months, I think that its quick search method is so much more simple and efficient than browsing through folder after folder after folder in Explorer.
Maybe the article makes too much over the death of folders. I don't think folders are any different functionally from tags or Gmail's labels.
So, to me, desktop search tools and folders/tags/labels aren't mutually exclusive. I think one is better at finding information and the other is better at getting/keeping it organized. I think that they can continue to coexist.
While we're on the subject of organization, Esther Dyson's Release 1.0 has an interesting article titled "Ontology is Overated: Categories, Links, Tags" (free registration required) that is definitely worth a read if you're interested in this topic.
¶ 7:24 AM 
About Shawn Morton
Married father of 4, social media specialist, consumer electronics enthusiast, hair metal aficionado.
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