At the end of the experiment, the control group had cut its navigation time in half. The Mozart mice did even better, cutting their time by 8½ minutes. But the hard rock group did much worse — taking 30 minutes to complete the maze, bumping into walls, staggering aimlessly about.

It gets worse: This is the second time Merrell tried the experiment. The first time, “I had to cut my project short because all the hard rock mice killed each other. None of the classical mice did that at all.” This time he kept the mice separate.

The same experiment is now mentioned on various websites. You can read a summary, “About Mice and Music“; and there is a longer explanation of the experiments over at The Schiller Institute.

A critic might say, “True, but people are not mice.” And so it is. But neither are mice fans of Mozart. How do we explain the mice’s increased performance with the classical music? At the least, the experiment suggests that music may affect brain functions of animals. And if that is so, it probably affects our own as well.

At a broader level, it suggests to me (and to others) that the civilization associated with classical music, and the hedonism and sociopathic behavior associated with the more aggressive forms of pop, are not cultural coincidences. In music history, the correlation between music forms, music purposes, and culture are striking. (As the Richmond Times-Dispatch article says in closing, “Who ever heard of a classical pianist choking to death on his own vomit?”) At some level music seems to influence and/or reflect mental and emotional states, and behavior, each type of music relating to a special group of thoughts and feelings.

Here is a mini-view of the chart. (The PDF version is much larger, designed to print on 11 x 17 inch paper.)

As you can see, the top section — everything above the green line — describes the actual, literal festivals in the Jewish calendar. The bottom section repeats the same festivals, but shows how they met their fulfillment in the various events of the Gospels and Acts. The chart includes Bible references for each event.

The autumn feast section of the chart is presented from a Seventh-day Adventist perspective. The October 22, 1844, date seen in the chart is derived from the 2300-day prophecy of Daniel 8:14. Perhaps I will include that information in a future version of the chart. The names mentioned as “trumpeters” are probably unfamiliar to most Christians, but would be familiar to those who have read the history of the Second Advent Movement, especially as described in the book The Great Controversy.

Adventists, like most Christians, believe the antitypical events associated with the dates of the spring feasts fell on the exact days of those feasts. However, with respect to the autumn feasts, we believe the order of events is important, but not the exact, literal days.

Church conflicts — whether over doctrines, matters of lifestyle, or policies — are often described as conflicts between “conservatives” and “liberals.” Given the Bible’s call to unity, this factioning of the church should be cause for concern.

The factioning of the church into conservative and liberal camps is a fascinating process. To the casual observer, it may seem that the many specific points of contention between the two camps are over unrelated issues. For example, what does a theological position on the human nature of Christ have to do with the length of women’s dresses? Though both are conservative positions, a studious observer would find little direct relationship between the points. Indeed, there are many who freely hold to only one or the other of those two points, and see no contradiction in doing so. Yet despite widespread exceptions over specific points, there is a noticeable polarization. Something draws church members towards either of these two groups, each representing a collection of diverse issues. In the end, people tend to adopt a collection of related ideas and practices, which could be classed as either liberal or conservative. Put another way, people who hold doctrinal views deemed conservative also tend to adopt conservative lifestyle choices and policies. Those who favor liberal church policies tend toward liberal theological and lifestyle stances. Of course, individually people tend to take various exceptions to their party platform.

Somehow all this gathering into factions occurs without a formal platform on either side dictating what is offically a conservative or liberal position. Evidently there are forces at work — whether attitudes, cultures, or other influences — that beneath the surface affect how we evaluate a wide range of important decisions. We may be unaware of these forces, yet their influence is there.

The purpose of this article is to explore what these forces are, in the hope that it will help us find common ground with those on the other side of the fence, whichever side that might be.

Disclaimer

Because the words “conservative” and “liberal” are relative, it is impossible to attach any absolute merit to one approach or the other. We cannot say something is right or wrong merely because it reflects a conservative or liberal approach.

An additional caution is that we must distinguish between the more general uses of these terms, and their special usage regarding differing viewpoints in the church. For instance, someone who is theologically conservative may be quite liberal (financially) in supporting mission projects — statistically, that is often true. Being generous does not make a person liberal in the sense that we are talking about here. For another example, someone who enjoys liberal worship styles may be quite conservative (emotionally) in their personality. Being quiet by nature does not make a person a conservative member of the church. In a sense we are detaching the words “liberal” and “conservative” from their broad meanings, and using them somewhat abstractly to represent opposite poles in a multi-dimensional space that represents the church. (This is not to suggest the terms have no significance in themselves; however, for now it is best to simply think of them as two opposing points on a spectrum.)

Probably no one fits neatly into one stereotype conservative or liberal position. Humans are complex creatures. Life is complex. Individual may be so conditioned to a certain way of life in one area that they cannot part from it, even though it may contradict their overall course of thought and action in other areas. Thus a liberal may retain some conservative qualities, and vice versa.

The factions within the church are not two distinct camps. Rather, they form a broad space between two poles. These poles seem to magnetically pull people one direction or the other, yet there are other forces of attraction and repulsion at play as well. Many church members consider themselves “moderates” — neither liberal nor conservative. We will look at this position later.

Agents of change

What influences cause people to see things so differently? Why are most of our major differences within the church usually described (or argued) as two-sided, instead of being split among three, five, or a dozen competing groups?

Culture. Culture is blamed for much of our church strife. Indeed, the church today is composed of many diverse cultures. By definition, people from different cultures will have differing expectations, traditions, customs, and manners. The ways they socialize, conduct business, and evangelize are different.

However, upon closer scrutiny, culture does not completely answer the question. Within just about every culture we can find the same liberal-conservative split. Historically, time seems more significant than culture. That is to say, churches within our relatively liberal First World cultures (such as the United States) were closer spiritually in the past (such as the 1700s and 1800s) to the more conservative Third World nations today, even though culturally the people of those respective nations were further apart at those points in time.

To say it another way, liberals and conservatives across cultures do not have so much cultural similarities as they do doctrinal and lifestyle similarities. There seems to be a force that transcends culture.

Tradition. Tradition is also frequently put to blame for causing liberal-conservative rifts. It is obvious enough that many doctrinal and lifestyle issues can become traditions. Examples would include Sabbath-keeping practices, methods of presenting Bible truths, and what church-goers wear.

Yet tradition is also an incomplete answer. For example, conservatives are the ones usually decried as traditionalists. In this usage it implies stuck in a rut, hardened in formalism, and so on. But the facts bear out that many conservatives are anything but traditional. Many are new believers who have broken from other religious faiths (or nonbelief) that have no relationship to church culture or traditions. For those believers, their conservativism is radical, not traditional. And liberal believers can be just as guilty of traditionalism as their conservative brethren — which is why many conservatives think liberal worship styles “are all alike.”

In short, there is no direct relationship between conservative values and traditionalism, nor liberal values and radical or free thinking.

Extremes. Both factions tend to think that the other group is extreme. Conservatives tend to look at liberals as compromising and worldly. Liberals tend to see conservatives as Pharisaical, fanatics, or just sadly uneducated. But is it really possible to say that one faction is more extreme than the other? On what basis do we judge extremes?

When we look at the history of God’s people, from the story of Adam and Eve all the way through New Testament times and beyond, it appears that following God has always been rather extreme. Few, if any, of the great believers of the Bible have lived “normal” lives. Jesus Himself often presented the Gospel call in a way that could easily be described as extreme: leave all, sell all, enter the narrow (unpopular) way, take up your cross, and so on.

Of course, both factions can claim that they offer God’s extremes. The liberals offer extreme mercy-grace: “Hey, don’t sweat anything, God loves you.” Conservatives offer extreme obedience-grace: “You can be perfect, today — and if you will please God, you must be.” Liberals have extreme celebrations and rallies; conservatives have extreme Bible studies and diets. On what basis do we decide which extremes are worthy?

Yet the Bible is clear that following God is “wisdom.” Wisdom means discernment, and implies that life cannot be navigated through simple polarized thinking. In that sense godliness is a very middle-of-the-road position. There are dangers on both sides. We cannot point to the existence of extremes as a reason for or against either position. When we realize that the Bible is the arbiter, or test, of wisdom, we have a basis to decide which extremes are God’s calling and which are man’s folly.

Spiritual qualities. This is the most heated type of explanation. “Liberals are worldly.” “Conservatives lack love and the Spirit.” It is also the most frivolous. While it is certainly true that members of both camps suffer from spiritual ills, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. It is helpful to remember at this point that we are dealing with a spectrum, not two precise camps. There are worldly conservatives. There are happy, loving conservatives. Their are self-sacrificing liberals. There are bitter liberals. And many other variations exist than we could possibly name here.

Two ways of determining truth

As compared to the church as a whole, I am a conservative. You might say in some ways that I am very conservative. One day I was thinking through a particular issue. I realized that I knew of no direct Biblical or inspired counsel on the subject. Yet the principle seemed clear to me. While I had convinced myself, I knew the very suggestion of my application of this principle would sound ridiculous to liberals I know personally.

While I could envision in my mind how the conversation between myself and a liberal on that particular topic would go, it was not immediately obvious why we would see it so differently. Gradually this conclusion formed in my mind: Conservative thought and liberal thought ultimately distill down to two different ways of evaluating reality. The more I thought about it, the more obvious it seemed. Here in a nutshell is the sum of that day’s musings:

• Conservatives are idealists, who take the high road on principle; they stick to the tried and true.
• Liberals are realists and pragmatists; they tend to experiment.

Conservatives are people with high ideals, who also maintain a high regard for orthodoxy. As such, they have high standards, they attempt much, and they feel a strong burden to protect doctrinal pillars and foundations. Liberals in the church tend to look to the past as the time of darkness and ignorance, and are always pushing for freedom to explore new options. I feel there are points of merit in both views, but both can be carried to extremes.

Generally speaking, conservatives evaluate the merits of something based on the principles involved: “Is mustard known to irritate the stomach? Yes? Then I won’t eat it.” Liberals evaluate things based on effects that can be seen or experienced (a view known as pragmatism): “I’ve eaten mustard many times. Has it ever bothered me? No. Plus I like the taste. Pass the mustard, please.”

Liberals, of course, do not disdain all principles. But the question is whether they will accept a principle as an absolute guide, in itself, and especially on the word of a third party (by inspiration, for example). Liberals will generally accept the same principles that conservatives accept, when the significance of doing so is obvious and profound. For instance, nearly all church members oppose drugs, alcohol, adultery, and stealing. We can see the effects of these things. In many cases the damaging consequences are almost immediate.

But where effects are not immediate or obvious, but where the principles are known (or where in the Bible a rule is stated), strong differences of opinion exist. Conservatives will tend to see the principle or rule as a divine law; liberals will tend to find it hard to swallow and attempt to explain it away on one pretext or another.

Another food-oriented example: A conservative may hear that science through several studies has substantiated that chocolate contains substances known to impair judgment and adversely affect health. Since there is no compelling reason to eat chocolate, a conservative may find it obvious that it is best left alone. A liberal, on the other hand, may hear the same facts. But since there is little perceptible difference in the health, intelligence, or morality of an average chocolate-eater versus an average non-chocolate-eater, the liberal will tend to conclude that it does not really matter.

In this the conservative approach has advantages: It realizes the limitations of human perception, and accepts the divine principles as a wise guide. It also grasps the fact that synergy is a principle of evil as well as of good. Many little influences, inconsequential as they may seem, can add up over the course of a lifetime (or over the course of a nation’s or planet’s existence). Many interactions and reactions may exist of which we have no knowledge; therefore, if something is known to be a little bit bad, it may be very bad in ways we have not discovered yet. This applies not only to food, but to clothing, speech, lifestyle, and even matters of doctrine.

Of course, it could also be argued that the liberal approach has advantages, too, since it does not lead one to bind up himself with rules that lack a clear, compelling, rational basis. It does not make mountains out of molehills, or lead to perfectionism.

There are pitfalls on both sides. Personally I feel that liberals are wrong about doctrinal and lifestyle issues a larger percentage of the time. But conservatives can be cranks or cranky, and that’s not good. Still, there is a deep pragmatism in the view that, in a spiritually dangerous and conflicted world, there is wisdom in leaning to the safer, less licentious side.

Moderates in the church

From a very conservative standpoint, a self-proclaimed moderate is someone who knows the truth but has made some compromises. From a very liberal standpoint, a self-proclaimed moderate is a somewhat enlightened individual who is unfortunately bound by Pharisaism or tradition. However, these perceptions belong especially to those who have strongly gravitated to one end or the other of the church spectrum.

Moderates make up the largest percentage of church membership by definition. However, there is somewhat of a dichotomy in how individuals view themselves. Nearly everyone regards themselves as middle-of-the-road (which could be a definition of a moderate); on the other hand, many pride themselves on their conservatism or liberalism as compared to others (in that sense no one is a moderate). Individuals generally like to feel they have reached a higher sphere, but not that they have branched away from what is mainstream. Obviously there is a paradox in that.

Summary

My denomination, compared to others, is quite conservative. This explains the popularity of “conservative values” in certain circles of my church. But being in a church that hangs close to the conservative pole can be a dangerous crutch. We can become deceived in our own smugness. Conservative Christians cannot judge themselves by what other Christians believe or do; the Bible is our guide. We will never enter heaven because we were “less heathen than others.”

It is all too possible that our “conservative” denominations, and we along with them, have become quite liberal — or worldly, as the Old Guard Christians might have put it. The shifts in thinking and practice across centuries can leave us far away from what was once the conservative harbor, while we still congratulate ourselves that we are not as liberal as others. Today’s staunch conservative could be yesterday’s flaming liberal, or vice versa.

There is a danger in allowing ourselves to be drawn into political ways of thinking. If we find ourselves saying or thinking, “That is wrong, because that is just what a liberal (or conservative) would do,” then we know we’ve broken away from principle-based thinking and have slipped into political prejudice.

So I think it is important to apply the human mind to the Bible, to understand the principles involved. It is the bane of conservatives to get wrapped up in laws (applications of principles), rather than knowing and upholding the principles themselves. We can cite all kinds of verses to back up what we say, and point out the lack of verses to justify any other course — and still be wrong.

The Bible calls us to moderation (Philippians 4:5). But it also warns against “lukewarmness” (Revelation 3:15-19) and comparing ourselves with others (2 Corinthians 10:12). There is no safety in gauging our spirituality based on herd instincts. Only the wisdom of God, found in His Word, can lead us to the moderate, levelheaded position that is not ashamed or afraid to obey God’s extreme call.

Here are some free resources I’ve been using lately.

• Livemocha: Practice Spanish (and other languages) with real people from around the world. They grade your Spanish, and you grade their English. It’s a lot of fun. Here is my profile.
• Coffee Break Spanish: This is a free podcast that covers the basic of the language. Each lesson is about 15 minutes long. The hosts are professional and fun. Download to your computer, or put it on your iPhone or iPod touch.
• Google Translate: Use this to quickly check your usage, learn new words and phrases, etc. Note: Sometimes it may not understand your usage correctly, and therefore can give a poor translation. But usually it is square on, and often lists alternate ways to translate the expression. There is a button that allows you to quickly reverse translating English-to-Spanish or vice versa.
• Free classes may be available in your area. I was happy when a free class was recently launched at my workplace. It is great to be in a classroom setting where your questions can be answered, and you can hear other people practicing. Check schools, classifieds, Google, grocery store bulletin boards, etc., to see what may be available.

Using surface textures from NASA and a bump map from another online source, I created a fully rotatable, 3D globe of the Earth in Photoshop CS4 Extended. It can be viewed or lighted from any direction. There is also a separate cloud layer I can turn on, edit, and move around. My master file is a very large image (6000 × 6000 pixels), more than ample to fill a full spread at 300 ppi.

Photoshop CS4 also has built-in features for creating red-blue anaglyph images. Below are a couple sample images I made. You will need a set of red-blue 3D glasses to view them correctly (you can also make your own glasses, using markers or red and blue transparencies you may have — or request a free pair (alternate link)).

This is the second version I made, with clouds added:

The 3D features in Photoshop CS4 Extended are a little tricky to learn, but once you get the hang of them, you can do some pretty amazing stuff.

I had the good sense to clip it from the magazine and file it, and just recently found it again. It deals with three specific legends that have circulated in the scholarly world and washed over into popular culture:

• Did Martin Luther base the hymn “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God” on drinking songs? (which is a topic I’ve dealt with before)
• Did medieval Christians debate how many angels could dance on the head of a pin?
• Did those medieval Christians actually believe the Earth was flat?

According to the article, the answer to these questions is no, no, and no.

The last one is, of course, the consummate example often cited in support of ancient Christian superstition and ignorance. But, alas, it is baloney. Literature and art all the way back to Greek times represent the earth as round. And in the case of Columbus, the question was not whether he would sail off the edge of the world, but whether his ship could make it all the way to the other side. (Curiously, Columbus succeeded because he was wrong. No one in Europe dreamed that on the other side was a whole new world.)

It says something about the quality of critical scholarship when such nonsense continues to be peddled as fact, even today.

Without a doubt, thought leaders of the past have been wrong about many things in science and theology. But in many cases they were limited by technology and easy access to information. Today we do not have those excuses to anywhere near the same degree — and so our mangling of history is all the more shameful. It is high time we ditch these and other “scholarly legends,” or at least cease to pay attention to those who perpetuate them.

New Habits for High-Tech Hearts – Online Magazine Archives – NavPress.

However, since the command is long, it would be hard to remember and difficult to type. I wanted to make an alias (a custom UNIX command) that would be shorter, but Bash (the default terminal in OS X) does not allow aliases to accept arguments (variables), which is critical to making this work.

I found a way to create a custom command that does this. Here are the steps:

1. Edit your ~/.bash_profile with your favorite text editor
2. Add this line:
   manpdf () { man -t $1 | open -f -a Preview.app ; }

   (You could call it something other than “manpdf” if you want; you may also want to add a comment to remind yourself what it does.)

3. Save it
4. Try it: Open Terminal and type:
   manpdf ping

Enjoy!

*For newbies: The “man” command lists instructions — “manuals” — for various UNIX commands. For example, if you wanted to know how to use the “ping” command, you could open Terminal and type “man ping”.

PDF: Disaster Supplies Kit Checklist

The contains its own instructions. In summary, it details the items you should have in your home at all times, as well as some special items that should be stored in a portable evacuation kit that can be quickly taken in an emergency. Many of these items you probably own already, and others will need to be purchased. It is helpful to locate the items in your home as you check them off; knowing where an item is, is just as important as having it.

This list was prepared for my church (the Thompsonville Seventh-day Adventist Church in southern Illinois), and at the end we listed important local numbers our members might need (police, insurance, the church’s number, etc.). In this version, I’ve removed most of those, but left the space so you can put in the numbers you need.

I hope this list will be helpful to you. Remember: Waiting until an emergency arrives to get the items you need is usually too late.

As a Christian I believe God cares for our needs and helps us in time of calamity; but I also believe that one way He does that is by giving us the intelligence to prepare and plan ahead.

That got me to thinking about how an iPhone (or iPod touch) could be used for nature activities in general. The iPhone has a clear advantage over the iPod touch in a couple areas:

• The iPhone is a phone, which is handy. (However, AT&T service is not available everywhere. Too bad it doesn’t work with Verizon.) But the iPod touch has wifi, so if you find a hotspot (at the lodge or wherever), you’re not too badly off.
• The iPhone has a built-in compass and GPS, which are very useful in the outdoors.
• The iPhone has a camera. Of course it’s a very limited camera. But combined with the other powers of the iPhone, it does some fancy things. (Note: If you have a cell phone that has a camera and a wifi connection for your iPod touch, you can get tricky: Take a photo on your cell phone, email it to yourself, download it on the iPod touch, and proceed as if the iPod touch took the photo.)
• The iPhone has a built-in mic (although you can buy one as an accessory for the iPod touch).

The following apps or uses require an iPhone:

• You can geotag photos with certain apps (do an iTunes app search for “geotag”).
• Record colors of natural things (myPANTONE).
• Email the photos you’ve taken on the iPhone to people, or upload them online.
• GPS Tracker (free), iMapMyRun (free), TrackMe (free), Trails ($2.99), Trailguru (free): Track your speed, distance, etc. iPhone needed for GPS tracking features.
• Metal Detector Pro (99¢), or other similar app: Could help you locate a buried tent stake.
• TopoPoint ($9.99): Find your location on USGS maps.

However, both the iPhone and iPod touch work equally well with a number of apps useful to the nature lover. The following apps require Internet access:

• With phone or wifi service, you can talk, email friends (or monitor work email, if you get the nagging feeling), send SMS messages, visit any website, etc.
• Google Earth (free): Get the lay of the land, check out other people’s comments and photos of local attractions.
• Ski Report (free), The Snow Report from the North Face (free), REI Snow Report (free): Check ski conditions.
• The Weather Channel (free), Weather Bug (free), etc.: Get weather updates.

These apps do not require Internet access:

• Use the built-in voice record, or app of your choice, to record those breakthrough insights that come in the wilderness solitude, or capture your final words for posterity. (Requires separate mic accessory if you have an iPod touch.)
• Animal Tracks (99¢): Track animals.
• Army Survival ($1.99): This is the big brother of the 99¢ Survival Pocket Ref app. Everything you wanted to know about survival, medicine, shelters, water, plants, animals, tools, environments (desert, tropics, etc.), orienteering, weather, knots. From an official Army survival manual. Includes pictures.
• Brushes ($4.99) or other drawing app: Draw what you see!
• Flashlight: Many uses. If you get one that can do signaling, SOS, different colors, all the better. Great for night games like capture the flag, too! (Use it to signal your buddies or whatever. The apps Banner or Fuzz Lites could be fun too.)
• A Free Level (free), TiltMeter Pro (99¢), etc.: For setting up your campsite.
• Guitar: Play and Share ($3.99), iRecorder (99¢), Ocarina (99¢), Pianist ($3.99), or other musical app: for those fun campfire moments
• iBird Explorer Plus/Pro ($19.99/29.99): Photos/drawings of birds, along with sound samples of their calls, regional maps, etc.
• iTrailMap 3D ($4.99): 3D views of ski locations. View from any angle. There is also a color version that is free, but not 3D.
• Night Stand (99¢), or clock of your choice.
• RiverGuide for Kayakers ($4.99): Name says it all.
• Seismometer (99¢): Measure the shockwaves.
• SkyGazer ($2.99), SkyVoyager ($14.99), Star Walk ($4.99), Starmap ($11.99), or other astronomy app: Learn constellations, get directions.
• Sol: Daylight Clock (99¢): Predict sunrises, sunsets (great for photo shoots).
• TideApp (free): Find out when tide will be in or out. Oakley Surf Report (free) is another, but requires Internet.

Always remember to bring the charging cable. You can get a cheap adapter that will give you a USB port from any power outlet. There are also hand-crank devices and solar devices that will charge via USB.

Be sure your device is protected in some kind of case. You don’t want to trip and fall and land on it, or suddenly get a rude reminder that you put it in your hip pocket while rock climbing.

Electronic devices require a little TLC, but can be very handy when exploring the great outdoors.

I first became acquainted with this work in the book Against the Night: Living in the New Dark Ages, by Charles Colson, in which the excerpt below is fully printed. That book had a profound impact on my teenage views of culture and society. I’ve read this poem so many times that I have it nearly memorized.

You can read an enlightening commentary on this poem, its meaning and origin, at Lecture 21: The Ballad of the White Horse.

The Ballad of the White Horse

(Excerpt)

by G. K. Chesterton

The men of the East may spell the stars,
And times and triumphs mark,
But the men signed of the cross of Christ
Go gaily in the dark . . .

The wise men know what wicked things
Are written on the sky,
They trim sad lamps, they touch sad strings,
Hearing the heavy purple wings,
Where the forgotten seraph kings
Still plot how God shall die . . .

But you and all the kind of Christ
Are ignorant and brave,
And you have wars you hardly win
And souls you hardly save.

I tell you naught for your comfort,
Yea, naught for your desire,
Save that the sky grows darker yet
And the sea rises higher.

Night shall be thrice night over you,
And heaven an iron cope.
Do you have joy without a cause,
Yea, faith without a hope?

* * *

I know, it sounds a bit depressing. But it actually conveys a motivational message. Why do we fight? Is it for the reward of victory itself, or because our cause is itself good? Is there danger in fighting with “too much” courage — that is, presumption or carelessness? In the epic poem itself, these words prompt King Alfred to fight bravely against the odds — and win. And those are just the kinds of wins we need in our darkly clouded world.

Create highlighter pen effects in TextEdit

12 Hours to Better Time Management – Stepcase Lifehack

* * *

A personal addendum:

I use OmniFocus in combination with iCal, which together handle most of my reminder and to-do stuff extremely well (and happen to sync with iPod touch). Things is another highly acclaimed app, which is cheaper than OmniFocus. (All these are Mac apps; sorry, Windows users.)

I also use OmniOutliner Pro, for to-do lists that don’t need to pop up on my schedule. But if you’re on a budget, you can get by with any old text editor; just type out your list and print.

Besides the items mentioned in the article, I’ve found it useful to add these things to my computer calendar and/or to-do lists:

• Household cleaning tasks for each Friday
• Cleaning personal inboxes, outboxes, email regularly
• Monthly bank reconciliations, updating financial software
• Monthly computer maintenance tasks (checking that backups are running, doing routine diagnostics, checking for software updates [I use AppFresh], cleaning desktop and network folders, emptying the trash, syncing contact phone numbers to cell phone, backups to DVD, etc.)
• Updating desk calendar with important dates (birthdays, events)
• Yearly tasks: cleaning out filing cabinet, tossing old bills and statements, updating medical records, donating unused clothing/items, cleaning out expired or soon-to-expire food and medical items, cycling devices that need to be periodically discharged and recharged
• GTD-related tasks, weekly as needed

I don’t block out my time, as the article suggests. I haven’t it found it useful or necessary. But if you are really stuck with more stuff on your plate than you can seem to manage, blocking out time can really help.

For password management, I use 1Password, which is really great. It’s a 5-star app.

If you are a Mac user using the beta release of the EGW CRE 2008 software (Ellen G. White Writings, Comprehensive Research Edition 2008), you may be interested in this little app I wrote. What it does is allow you to launch multiple instances of the EGW CRE 2008 app simultaneously. This was requested in the comment thread for “EGW CD-ROM via Darwine on OS X“.

Being able to have multiple windows at once is possibly handy for heavy users of the app, but not officially supported (the main concern is that if you save settings from more than one open window, the settings from one could overwrite the other, meaning some of your settings won’t be saved). [Update: One user reported that changing settings in one instance, locked the settings in other instances so they could not be saved. Another user reported that all settings were saved in each instance, but that the instances had to be quit and relaunched to get the settings to sync. YMMV. Since I have not personally used things like notes, highlighter, etc., this has not been a problem for me. If you use those things, you just need to use them in a single instance at a time, or else do some testing to be sure your changes will be saved.]

This is version 1.5 of my “New Instance” app. This one is a little smarter: it tries to find the EGW app if you moved it from the Applications folder, it should report errors to Console, and finally it has a new fancy-pants icon (the icon is based on the official icon created by the EGW Estate). It requires that you already have the beta version (or later) installed. It requires Leopard (10.5) or Snow Leopard (10.6). You can download from here:

Download EGW-CRE-2008-New-Instance-1.5.zip

Usage:

1. You must have the EGW CRE 2008 software already installed (beta version is OK)
2. Download and unzip EGW-CRE-2008-New-Instance-1.5.zip; place it in your Applications folder or wherever you like
3. Run EGW CRE 2008 New Instance; each time you run it, it will start a new instance (a new window) of the EGW software
4. To quit a single window, click File > Exit (if you want to save settings), or the keystroke Cmd-W (won’t save settings) … if you want to quit all windows without saving, Cmd-Q

Hope you like it!

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For the technically-inclined: This program is pretty simple, but it is also my most complex app written as a shell script for Bash to date. I learned quite a bit from the process. The script uses Spotlight for some of its work, which I think is pretty cool.

The base app, PocketBible, is developed by a company called Laridian. This app is FREE. However, PocketBible is mainly just a shell for library modules that you download. Some of these are free or included, but others — such as the Ellen White writings — cost money. (Most of their libraries are Bible translations and such.)

You cannot, apparently, buy the Ellen White library from Laridian. I got mine directly from the White Estate booth at GYC. However, I could not find any information about the Ellen White library for this app on the Ellen White Estate website. They definitely carry the product, because I am using it now on my iPod touch. My guess is that you just need to contact them for information about how to buy a serial number. Once you register the serial number on the Laridian website, you then enter your customer identification in the PocketBible app, and the whole collection downloads automatically. It’s best to do this with a wifi connection, because it’s quite a large download.

Personally I found the interface a little confusing. It’s not as elegant as the Conflict of the Ages app, but it’s functional. Personally I found the method of turning pages awkward. But some people might prefer it. It’s mainly a matter of taste.

The app is fully searchable. However, it only searches one library at a time. In some ways this is good, because you usually don’t want a search to be pulling words from all the different Bibles and commentaries. However, when I first started using the app, it appeared that you could only search White’s writings book by book. In other words, you might open Sons and Daughters of God and search that. Obviously that would be very limiting. However, I learned that the key is to open the library called “EGW-BKS” (in the Other Books section of the app), and searching in this library searches all the books simultaneously.

Here is a screen shot showing a search results listing:

And this shot shows what the content looks like. Note that the Bible verse references are clickable, which is quite cool:

If you have an iPhone or iPod touch, it’s definitely the best thing out there for accessing Ellen White’s writings.