Comments on: Strategy for dealing with information overload http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/02/24/the-solution-to-information-overload/ The blog of John D. Cook Sat, 11 Feb 2012 22:42:11 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Jaidev Deshpande http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/02/24/the-solution-to-information-overload/comment-page-1/#comment-128001 Jaidev Deshpande Thu, 05 Jan 2012 15:19:27 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=1609#comment-128001 Shirky definitely enables us to think of information overload in simpler terms, but is that really a solution? This strikes me as a reductionism of sorts. In other words - to what extent can the information overload problem be addressed simply through better filtering? Not that thinking about it as a filtering problem isn't a greatly satisfying approach. But then again, to what extent? Any ideas about how to cope with the sheer 'singularity' of the information? Very interesting post, nevertheless. Shirky definitely enables us to think of information overload in simpler terms, but is that really a solution? This strikes me as a reductionism of sorts. In other words – to what extent can the information overload problem be addressed simply through better filtering?

Not that thinking about it as a filtering problem isn’t a greatly satisfying approach. But then again, to what extent? Any ideas about how to cope with the sheer ’singularity’ of the information?

Very interesting post, nevertheless.

]]> By: Mohammad Elsheimy http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/02/24/the-solution-to-information-overload/comment-page-1/#comment-55685 Mohammad Elsheimy Wed, 15 Dec 2010 19:20:56 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=1609#comment-55685 You made me rethink about my study. I'm getting too much information, but actually it's not that! I just want to learn everything in this world, therefore, I can't focus in anything! This is too bad especially if you don't have that one who guide you to the right way, you actually spend a very long time in useless things, and after a while, you begin to realize that all of this was, .... nothing! You made me rethink about my study. I’m getting too much information, but actually it’s not that! I just want to learn everything in this world, therefore, I can’t focus in anything! This is too bad especially if you don’t have that one who guide you to the right way, you actually spend a very long time in useless things, and after a while, you begin to realize that all of this was, …. nothing!

]]> By: John http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/02/24/the-solution-to-information-overload/comment-page-1/#comment-14041 John Tue, 03 Mar 2009 12:02:49 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=1609#comment-14041 A related issue is filter trust. If you've got a filter but keep checking up on it to evaluate how well it's doing, the filter isn't going to help your sense of overload very much. At some point you have to accept your filter's error rate in order to let it reduce your overload. A related issue is filter trust. If you’ve got a filter but keep checking up on it to evaluate how well it’s doing, the filter isn’t going to help your sense of overload very much. At some point you have to accept your filter’s error rate in order to let it reduce your overload.

]]> By: Zac http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/02/24/the-solution-to-information-overload/comment-page-1/#comment-13839 Zac Fri, 27 Feb 2009 02:31:53 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=1609#comment-13839 Hi John In Timothy Ferriss's <i>4 Hour Work Week</i>, he makes many good points about filters. For example, do we <i>really</i> need to obsess as much as we do over the news? Some people spend hours glued to CNN when something is "breaking news", then they watch the re-runs, the analysis and then the weekly summary. Ferriss is extreme - he doesn't watch or read any news. He figures if anything is really important, people will be talking about it. (Too extreme for me, but interesting to consider.) I find that the filters in gMail really help me with overload. For the stuff that's not really important, out of site/out of mind is bliss. Hi John

In Timothy Ferriss’s 4 Hour Work Week, he makes many good points about filters.

For example, do we really need to obsess as much as we do over the news? Some people spend hours glued to CNN when something is “breaking news”, then they watch the re-runs, the analysis and then the weekly summary.

Ferriss is extreme – he doesn’t watch or read any news. He figures if anything is really important, people will be talking about it. (Too extreme for me, but interesting to consider.)

I find that the filters in gMail really help me with overload. For the stuff that’s not really important, out of site/out of mind is bliss.

]]> By: Jon Swanson http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2009/02/24/the-solution-to-information-overload/comment-page-1/#comment-13756 Jon Swanson Tue, 24 Feb 2009 21:22:30 +0000 http://www.johndcook.com/blog/?p=1609#comment-13756 great non-reactive, thoughtful corrective. Thanks. great non-reactive, thoughtful corrective. Thanks.

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