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Originally Posted by Trey
They may fall out into several different contexts, depending on what they require to be completed.
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Some certainly may, but most definitely not. Most of them require my computer and to be online, which is pretty much all of the time for me. And again, in many of these forums (as well as other GTD-related forums) there has been a big push to not get carried away with contexts too much. And again, that is where I started - a long list of specific-contexts. It just didn't work for me, because realistically, they were all the same (computer, online).
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Originally Posted by Trey
Your third point above is in the "Reference" context—perhaps even a specific context for that particular reference file.
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Surely you are not siuggesting I create a context for every single reference material I may need...
a) that woudl be grossly unmanigeamle, even with software
b) it smacks of project labels and context labels being the same, which typically indicates the contexts are not correct.
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Originally Posted by Trey
Mmmm.... I think you're trying to wrap contexts around "scenarios" or "use cases" or something that they're not. Once again, a context is: the circumstances necessary and sufficient for completion of a particular action (not including willpower and/or time). This, and no more.
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I'm not sure I agree with you here. In fact, even in your reply above you say I am trying to wrap a context into a "scenario", yet then you define it as "circumstances necessary". Not sure there is a difference there.
I understand the concept of a context to be the physical environment needed to perform an action. Furthermore you are also supposed to consider time required, energy level, and priority; which in the GTD book are defined as part of the overall context. The book mentions that all of these together determines your actual context at the time. Of course he does not recommend that we mange our lists that way, because he also wants the system to not get unmanageable, or require sophisticated software.
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Originally Posted by Trey
The three points above don't express what's necessary and sufficient for completion They're too vague. Do you need a computer? A paper and pencil? Some peace and quiet to think? Those are contexts, not "things I could do at the office", "things I could do at the office or at home", "things I could do with a reference file". Those last things are expressions of characteristics of the action, but they aren't contexts.
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I'm not convinced of that (yet). As I started at the top of the post, I always have my computer and am online if I am at home or the office. So if it is Office, it is assumed I have comnputer, online. And I have seen many people move away from overly detailed context lists.
For me, office implies work-related projects. However, I work at home a lot. Most of (but not all) of my job can be done equally in either location, because I always have the tools I need available.
What is a pencil anyways?
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Originally Posted by Trey
It sounds to me like maybe you do have 95% of your actions in one place—but they're not in "Office", they're in "MacBook Pro".
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Could be. That is an assumption I just make, because my MacBook is always with me. I use the office context because they are work-related actions (as opposed to personal or pro-bono actions I do with my MacBook Pro).
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Originally Posted by Trey
(Can they all be done offline? If not, there you go right there, make an "Online" context and winnow that way.
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Not really. I find there is very little I can do productively offline. Not saying there is nothing. But very little. And I don't think (at this time) it is worth the effort to separate the two.
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Originally Posted by Trey
Do some actions need peace and quiet too, and do you sometimes work in public? Add a "Thinking" context, and there's another avenue to winnow with. And so on....)
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I'm not sure how I see that is different from what I have done:
- a office context (strict requirement of being in the office)
- a office MacBook context (office-related actions that can be done at home or the office)
- a office MacBook context (as above, but with a reminder to grab a reference file first)