Nick Pendrell discusses his unhealthy fascination with the contents of other people’s computers in his post Confessions of a Secret Screenshot Voyeur;
But it wasn’t this that interested me at all – it was the other information that the screengrabs showed me that fascinated me – the windows that they had open; the programs that they were using. It was like taking a little glimpse into their secret lives.
It’s the same when someone is presenting something to me on their laptops. I’m hardly paying attention at all to whatever it is that they are supposed to be showing me. Instead I am looking at all of the other stuff that they have on their computers.
…
Why not post your own screenshot somewhere and I will try and analyse you as well?
So I am taking up the challenge here’s my desktop in the middle of the day;
- 20 inch widescreen monitor connected to a laptop so I also use MSVDM to give me 4 virtual windows.
- My I’d rather be here wallpaper showing the Perhentian Islands from a now distant Malaysian holiday
- Beta software such as Google Chrome
- SOE Tools: Ghost, HP USB Disk Storage Format Tool, rawwritewin.exe
- Audio tools: Switch Sound File Converter, WavePad, Audacity
- CAD tools: Autodesk Design Review, DWG TrueView 2008
- VideoConf tools: Handbrake, ScreenStream, Skype, {just noticed I haven’t reinstalled Polycom PVX!}
- iTunes open listening to the TWiT podcast
- iPaq connected and synching to the Exchange server
What does that say?
Whoa! The first thing it says is that you are a King Geek who is waaaay out of my league and always will be! There was tons of stuff on your PC that I’ve never heard of before and probably never will see the likes of again!
What are those multicolored dot things at the end of your taskbar? They look incredibly geeky!
Observations:
I reckon that you travel quite a bit (not internationally – just locally). I see you as either working freelance, or as an independent contractor, or working remotely for some company.
You’re either some kind of software engineer/designer or some other kind of engineer. Definitely something highly technical and if you described what you did in detail, my eyes would start to glaze over and I would never fully understand it anyway!
I think you need the laptop to make quite a few presentations to clients or co-workers and that you need to keep in touch with them through a lot of videoconferencing when you don’t get face-to-face meetings with them.
You are a serious music nutcase! Loads of different music programs on there plus Limewire. Like me, you probably never work in silence – there are always some toons playing on your laptop or iPod.
I was very interested with all of the audio-editing programs you had on there. I don’t see you as being a professional in that particular area, but I think you probably make your own podcasts.
Although you are big on communication, I don’t think that you are a person who uses their computer to screw around with a lot (i.e. not a real gamehead). I think that means you are probably either married or in a serious relationship.
I am guessing you are in your thirties – not some kid, but not an old middle-aged git (like me) either.
I imagine that you live in Northern California and you are an avid subscriber to Wired magazine.
I wrote all this without reading through your blog (because that would have been cheating!)
So tell me, how did I do?!
Yes, I probably score pretty highly in a geek rating system *chuckle*
What are those multicolored dot things at the end of your taskbar? These are the MSVDM (Microsoft Virtual Desktop Manager) control interface.
I travel quite a bit (including some international). I work as an IT Operations Manager in the education sector; this involves software evaluation, hardware specification, system design, videoconferencing, AV support, project management, research support … you get the drift
You are a serious music nutcase! I like my music, and I am a DJ but now only do the occasional job for fun. I also like Old Time Radio and have an amateur radio licence
I don’t think that you are a person who uses their computer to screw around with a lot (i.e. not a real gamehead). I think that means you are probably either married or in a serious relationship. – you hit the nail on the head here. At home we do have 5 dedicated gaming platforms but these are mainly the domain of the kids.
I am guessing you are in your thirties – good guess
I am actually living in Australia, and don’t subscribe to Wired. I do regularly read the Wired Geek Dad blog.
So tell me, how did I do?! Very well actually, I’ll give you 9/10