ADRIAN TUCKWELL BEng (Hons), CEng, MIET: April 2023

Thursday, April 27, 2023

How I automated my daily log using Power Automate and OneNote

Keeping a daily log is a great way to stay organized and on top of your tasks. I used to create a new page in my OneNote notebook every day, but it was a manual process that took time and effort.

That's why I decided to create a Power Automate flow that would automatically add a new page to my OneNote notebook every day at 7am.

Here's what I wanted my daily log to include:

The date in the title
Section for Highlight (priority task)
Section on Yesterday (What I was working on yesterday)
Section on Today (What I will work on today)
Section on Start of Day checklist (with a number of checkbox fields)
Section on Working area
Section on End of Day checklist (with a number of checkbox fields)

I encountered three problems when creating this flow, but I was able to overcome them.

Problem #1: Getting the flow to trigger on only Monday to Friday.

The controls in Power Automate give you the option to set a frequency for your flow, and my initial idea was to set it to "once per day". However, this would include weekends, which I didn't want. After thinking for a bit, I figured out that I could set the frequency to "Weeks interval 1" and then choose which days of the week to include. It wasn't very intuitive, but I was able to figure it out.

Problem #2: Adding the date to the title field.

In the OneNote "Create a page in section" block, there wasn't a setting to enter a title. It only had a text entry for any template text you want on the page. After some trial and error, I discovered that I could switch the text entry to HTML and enter a full HTML page into the editor. Using the <title> tag within <head>, I was able to automate the title. I then added the formatDateTime function, which allowed me to get the title to be today's date in a long format.

Problem #3: Adding checkboxes to the Start of Day and End of Day sections.

I really wanted to have checkboxes to check off my day start and end routines, but I couldn't figure out how to add checkboxes into the HTML. After some Googling, I found the data-tag="to-do" attribute, which gave me exactly what I was looking for. I added this attribute to the <p> tags in the Start of Day and End of Day sections, and it created checkboxes in OneNote.

Overall, this flow has saved me a lot of time and effort, and it's helped me stay organized and focused on my tasks. If you're interested in creating a similar flow, I hope my experience can help you overcome any challenges you might encounter.

Thursday, April 20, 2023

Remembering a Shuttle Launch in the 90's

Space Shuttle Lauch. Light in distance with People on a Beach

With the SpaceX launch today, and its unfortunate blow-up shortly after, it reminded me of having the opportunity to watch a space shuttle launch.

It was a few years ago when we were on holiday in Florida. It was just a typical fly-drive Florida holiday where we started out in Orlando and were just playing it by ear, booking a hotel each night in a new spot.

We ended up on the east near Cocoa Beach. We were turned down by a few hotels saying they were full. Surprised, we were eventually told that there was a shuttle launch overnight, and lots of people were in town for the launch.

After finding out more details and logistics, we eventually found a room for the night. I believe the launch was at 3 am, and we would be able to see it from the beach. We went to bed and set an alarm for 2 am. On waking, we jumped into the car and took a short drive, parked at the beach. It was busy. Lots of people turned up for the launch.

It was almost pitch black apart from the occasional torch. My memory thinks there were campfires, but I think I’m imagining that. There was a radio broadcasting the live launch so we could hear what was happening. We were told to keep an eye out across the bay to the launch site. You wouldn’t hear it, but you could see it.

Gradually, time counted down till we got to T minus 60. It was surreal standing on a Florida beach surrounded by hundreds of people in the dark at 3 am. We got down to 10 seconds and counted down, watching into the distance. In the distance, the sky lit up. Rather slowly, we could see the shuttle bust against gravity and make its way into the air. It wasn’t fast and was silent. Gradually, it gained altitude, and rather than quickly disappearing, we could see it gradually getting higher and higher and going into an arc.

One person standing on a beach at night with Shuttle launch in the distance

It then slowly got smaller and smaller. Wow, that was a shuttle launch, and all was successful. I think there was also cheering on the beach, and we got caught up in the moment. People started leaving, so we headed back to the car, the hotel, and back to bed. The next morning was a sunny, warm Florida day, and we headed to Ro Jon’s surf shop. We had seen a shuttle launch.

We were back in Florida a few years later and went to the Kennedy Space Center for a look around. They had a decommissioned shuttle you could go on board. I was actually amazed you could walk under it, and I noticed that the switch to tell the control system the undercarriage was closed was just a twin-wire microswitch. Much like you would get in a fridge. I would have thought that there was some special multi-failsafe, gold-plated switch. But no, just a simple microswitch.

Wednesday, April 12, 2023

Todoist: The Simple and Effective To-Do App for Organizing Your Life

Staying organized in today's busy world can be a challenge, but with Todoist, it's made easy. This app has become a personal favorite of mine, and in this blog post, I'll describe how Todoist is structured, and why it's such an effective tool for staying on top of your daily tasks.

Layout

One of the things that sets Todoist apart from other to-do apps is its clean, intuitive layout. Whether you're using it on your laptop or your smartphone, the interface is always the same, making it easy to navigate no matter where you are. Tasks are organized into different views, which are accessed via the sidebar on the left-hand side of the screen.

Views

The views in Todoist are designed to help you stay on top of your tasks, and there are three main ones to choose from:

Inbox - The inbox is where new tasks are added. This is a great feature because it allows you to quickly jot down anything that comes to mind without having to worry about where it should go. Later on, you can assign tasks to specific projects.
Today - The Today view shows you all the tasks that are due today. This is a great way to stay focused on what needs to be done right now.
Upcoming - The upcoming view shows you tasks that are due in the next 7 days. This gives you a clear idea of what's coming up and allows you to plan your week accordingly.

Filters

Filters are another great feature of Todoist that allows you to organize your tasks in a more customized way. You can create filters based on specific criteria, such as due dates, priority levels, and labels. This makes it easy to see all the tasks that meet certain criteria and helps you stay focused on what needs to be done.

Projects

Projects are the main way to organize your tasks in Todoist. You can create as many projects as you need, and each one can have its own set of tasks. For example, you might have a project for work-related tasks and another for personal tasks. You can also create sub-projects within a larger project to break tasks down into smaller, more manageable parts.

Labels

Labels are a feature in Todoist that allows you to split your tasks into actual projects. You can create labels for each of your projects, and each label can have its own color. This makes it easy to see at a glance which project a task belongs to. For example, if you have a work-related project, you can assign a "work" label to all the tasks related to that project. This helps you stay organized and ensures that all your tasks are properly sorted.

Conclusion

Todoist is a simple, effective to-do app that can help you stay organized and on top of your tasks. With its clean layout, customizable filters, and project organization, it's easy to see why it's become such a popular tool for productivity. Whether you're a busy professional or a busy parent, Todoist can help you manage your daily tasks with ease.

Wednesday, April 05, 2023

Benefits of using a date-based file naming convention

If you're like most people, you've probably accumulated a lot of digital files over the years. Whether it's documents, photos, or other media, keeping track of all of these files can be a challenge. One way to make it easier is by using a consistent file naming convention.

One popular convention is to use a date-based naming convention. This involves naming files using the date they were created or modified, along with a brief description of the file's contents. For example, a photo taken on April 5th, 2023 might be named "23-04-05 - Beach Day.jpg".

Using a date-based naming convention offers several benefits:

Easy sorting: One of the biggest advantages of using a date-based naming convention is that it makes it easy to sort files in chronological order. Whether you're looking at files in a folder or using a search function, having files sorted by date can make it much easier to find what you're looking for.
At-a-glance information: Another advantage of using a date-based naming convention is that it provides at-a-glance information about when a file was created or modified. This can be especially helpful when dealing with large numbers of files or when trying to track down a specific version of a document.
Consistency: By using a consistent naming convention across all of your files, you can ensure that everything is organized in a logical and predictable way. This can save you time and frustration in the long run.
Compatibility: Date-based naming conventions are widely recognized and can be easily understood by others. This can be especially helpful when sharing files with others or when working with different software programs.

Of course, there are some potential downsides to using a date-based naming convention as well. For example, if you're not diligent about updating file names when files are modified, the date-based naming convention can become confusing or inaccurate over time. Additionally, some people may find the convention cumbersome or difficult to remember.

Overall, however, using a date-based naming convention can be a helpful tool for keeping your digital files organized and easy to manage. So why not give it a try? Whether you're working with photos, documents, or other types of media, a date-based naming convention can help you stay on top of your digital clutter and find what you need when you need it.