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Resolutions for 2007? 106

Posted by Cliff from the have-you-thought-about-yours dept.
JoeCommodore asks: "It's that time of year where many of us review our last year and look at ourselves in the mirror, checkbook balance, and/or social schedule (EPs, stats, and skills, for those who relate to RPGs) and make resolutions to improve ourselves. One of my resolutions is to stop my increasing diversionary tactics when working on my many projects at home. You know, instead of working on some problem problem I turn to the internet (Slashdot), games, snacks, and so on. Either I need to get better at controlling my diversion habits or turn them them into something positive. So what have you thought of doing for yourself in 2007?"
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Resolutions for 2007? More

Resolutions for 2007?

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  • Spend less time refreshing /. and more time working on my graphic novel.

    Gotta go!

    • In other words... (Score:1, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward
      More anal sex with CowboyNeal!

  • My new year's resolution? (Score:5, Funny)

    by Deacon_Yermouf ( 900678 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @02:38PM (#17489534)
    1024x768!

  • 100 dpi. (Score:5, Funny)

    by Yaztromo ( 655250 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @02:38PM (#17489536) Homepage Journal

    I resolved many, many years ago to stop making resolutions.

    It's the only one I've ever kept.

    Yaz.

    • Re: (Score:3, Funny)

      by Rakshasa Taisab ( 244699 )
      New Year's resolutions are for people who want to procrastinate for a few months.

    • Re:100 dpi. (Score:4, Insightful)

      by networkBoy ( 774728 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @08:45PM (#17492954) Journal
      I make one's I know I can keep. Last year was: be fat and happy.
      you know what? I am not too much heavier than last year 243 vs 235 and sure as hell I'm actually happy :-)
      This year it's enjoy caffine and my kids, while attempting to smuggle in a handful of Cuban Cigars. If I get caught I'll raise a constitutional discrimination issue out of it. (our congress critters can import up to 100 at a time at-will, without the prerequisite of having traveled to Cuba, mearly leaving the country is sufficent).

      See easy to keep resolutions are good for you.
      -nB
    • That's your whole problem.... The first sign of success, and you give up!

  • 1280x720 (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Junta ( 36770 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @02:41PM (#17489590)
    Was last years resolution too (if I would have waited, maybe my 2007 resolution would have been 1920x1080...
  • Get an LGM in every trade in DAOC and get the rest of my characters to level 50, CL10, ML10. With my main character reaching RR5.

    • Re: (Score:3, Funny)

      by pimpimpim ( 811140 )
      I didn't get any of the acronyms, and I'm perfectly happy with that. I just have one question for you: will it hurt?
      • Mentally from sitting at the computer the amount of time that it requires.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by hab136 ( 30884 )
          Mentally from sitting at the computer the amount of time that it requires.

          When I sit at the computer a long time, it hurts at the other end.

  • The Simple Route (Score:5, Interesting)

    by superdan2k ( 135614 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @02:42PM (#17489606) Homepage Journal
    This year, rather than make specifics, I went with one thing: be more awesome.

    Crazy, right? In the last year, I started doing everything I needed to do to have a great life. This year, I want to keep doing those things and stay consistent. And even try a few new things. No point in making concrete goals -- the goal is to be more awesome in everything that I do.

  • Not posting on slashdot. (Score:5, Funny)

    by Spazntwich ( 208070 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @02:43PM (#17489612)
    ...shit

  • subject goes here (Score:1, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Resolutions are meaningless. Oh, I'll get around to installing Linux and configuring X or whatever desktop environment that's flavor of the month and finally abandon Windows. That stack of culturally important books will be consumed by the end of the year. Sure I'll propose to my girlfriend of three years once I have enough money to support us. The check is in the mail. I'll see you in church.

    Why not look at what actually got done during the year rather than make unreasonable expectations?
    • Why not look at what actually got done during the year rather than make unreasonable expectations?
      Because unless you set goals for yourself, you might get all the way to 2007 and find yourself still using Windows, and unmarried. Has that happened to anyone you know? :)

  • Less stuff (Score:4, Informative)

    by mccalli ( 323026 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @03:05PM (#17489856) Homepage
    Not a resolution as such, but a general aim I've had for a while now. Time to rationalise and purge a lot of kit.

    In our household there's currently a bit of an Apple-fest: MacBook Pro, a MacBook, a Mac Mini, a Power Mac G5 tower, a G3 Blueberry iMac and ye olde SE/30. There's also an Atari STe with SM124 monitor, a C64 with 1541, two SNES consoles (one PAL, one NTSC), a Wii, a Gamecube, a Playstation 1, a Playstation 2, two Gameboy Advance SPs, and an ancient P100 laptop that does duty as a disk drive for the C64. Oh, and currently I have three RAQ 4 servers of varying spec as well. A Series 1 Tivo (I'm in the UK) too, and a work-issued laptop rounds off the collection.

    It doesn't take a genius to see that this is a bit much...

    However, it's easy to say it's a bit much but actually paring it down is much harder. The MacBook Pro is my main machine, the MacBook is my wife's. The G3 has been handed to my 5 year-old daughter and does good service as a learning machine. The Power Mac...well, that can probably go although I do have one last PPC-only app (QuadraSID, a music plugin so Rosette is out). The Mac Mini? Nope - that's getting an expanded role next year as a DNS/svn/postgres/iPhoto/iTunes server. The SNES? No Streetfighter II Turbo on the Wii's virtual console yet so one at least will probably stay. The RaQs can all go now. The SE/30? Undecided - never used but there for nostalgic reasons rather than use. The STe? Llamatron. The C64? Over my dead body will that go - SID music plus all the great games. Emulators can only do so much - sitting in front of a real C64 is still a different experience to using the excellent Power64 emulator. The Playstation 1? Worms - the PS2 doesn't get the resolution quite right and the game looks better on a PS1. The PS2? Revz, Tekken 5, Grand Tourismo...can't emulate that yet. The GBAs? Maybe one - my three year-old son is getting into that a bit at the moment (mainly Spiro). The ancient P100 laptop - probably yes as I've sorted out a Flash-based interface for the C64 now. The Tivo? EyeTV on the Mac isn't good enough yet, so nope - the Tivo stays.

    So I'm left in this daft position of having kit coming out of my ears and yet being unable to get rid of most of it since it all still has a purpose. Still feels like I should do some rationalisation though.

    Cheers,
    Ian

  • Two resolutions (Score:5, Funny)

    by cperciva ( 102828 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @03:17PM (#17489980) Homepage
    I resolved to eat less (than an elephant) and exercise more (than a sloth).

    So far I'm succeeding.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by mdfst13 ( 664665 )
      I've resolved to eat more and exercise less.

      I'm hoping to have the same success with these as with past resolutions. If so, I could lose twenty pounds, easy!

  • my 2006, 2007, and future resolution (Score:3, Funny)

    by ifnkovhgroghprm ( 687862 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @03:23PM (#17490048)
    2 chicks at the same time.
  • I've resolved to lose weight. And it's going great. I must have lost the same pound at least four times this year.
  • Unfortunately I wrote the explanation why in Dutch, see: http://tiouw.com/serendipity/index.php?/archives/3 06-Slechte-Goede-Voornemens.html [tiouw.com]
  • A while ago, I got annoyed at new years resolutions. I could have said as my resolution, "stop being antisocial in meatspace" or, "stop looking at the internet 24/7." But instead, I broke both of these by saying, "I'm gonna never make a new years resolution again and instead save my december 31st thought-power for random online comments." I'm glad, too. I'm sure that few of you can actually keep yours. Today I continue following it. The moral of the story: Stop swearing to do impossible things and i

  • Get your financial house in order! (Score:5, Insightful)

    by antifoidulus ( 807088 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @03:37PM (#17490218) Homepage Journal
    I cannot stress that enough. While money does not buy happiness, a certain amount does go a long way to giving you independence. 18 months ago I was a recent grad who through circumstance and stupidity(credit card debt SUCKS ASS!) found myself with a new job and $37,500 in debt. This month I will finally have a 0 net worth, and it is the best feeling ever. I have had to work a job I hate in a place I loathe simply because my debt dictated I take the best paying job I could find. I have been miserable, but there is light at the end of the tunnel and *fingers crossed* I will be entering grad school next year with a stipend and a positive net worth. I never, ever want to have to work a job simply because I desperately need the money.

    Save like hell, invest wisely, and keep an emergency fund of at least 6 months handy at all time. And stay out of all debt besides a mortgage(and pay that off as soon as you can). It feels so good to be able to say "no" to a boss and not have to worry about whether or not you can make next months rent. Beats the hell out of a new plasma screen or any consumer item for that matter. I loathe Wal-Mart because I have come to despise everything it stands for. To quote Tyler Derden, "We work jobs we hate to buy shit we don't need."
    • Can't agree with this more. Some additional goals:

      1) Save 15% of your pre-tax income in a tax-free account, whether this be a 401k, a Keough, or whatever.
      2) Budget to understand where your money is going. I don't follow a budget all the time, but I have tracked my expenses for a month or two so I have a pretty good idea what I spend my money on.
      3) Treat raises and bonuses as extras, give yourself (or family) a small gift and save the rest. If you get a 5% raise, increase you 401k contribution 4%.
      4) Run a sp

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by Phukko ( 841877 )
        Folks, pay attention to the previous post. It is the absolute truth!! Any of you out there who have employers who match 401k deposits, PLEASE make sure you are putting in the MAX so you can build up that 401K. Around 2002 I actually had to use my "Phuc U Fund" - savings & 401K that covered two years of expenses. It gave me time to sort out my personal life & extend my Oracle training. I can't imagine what a mess my career would be now if I wasn't able to take time out and retrain on my own nickle.

    • Re:Get your financial house in order! (Score:5, Interesting)

      by stonewolf ( 234392 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @06:03PM (#17491540) Homepage
      YES!

      I was laid off five years ago on my 49th birthday and haven't been able to find a tech job since. My income dropped from over a $100K/year to under $20k (some years under $10k). After we were married (almost 30 years ago now) my wife and I started putting 10% of our gross income into various forms of savings. As we got raises we took part of the raise and put the rest in savings. When I was laid off we were putting nearly 30% of our combined gross into a mixture of pre and post tax savings. Over the last 30 years we have both had extended periods of unemployment and sometimes we did have to stop saving just to cover our locked in expenses. But... we own our cars, own our house, and are able to maintain a comfortable life style while I retrain and start a new career. What little debt we have is due to a decision to keep investments in place so long as the return on those investments is greater than the interest on our debt.

      Save, save, save... you never know when you will need the money.

      Stonewolf

      P.S.

      No matter what you may believe, you *can* live on 10% less than you currently make.

    • Re:Get your financial house in order! (Score:4, Insightful)

      by locokamil ( 850008 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @06:43PM (#17491902) Homepage
      Man oh man... this is the best post I've come across on Slashdot today. I graduated last June with $100 in my pocket, $8000 in student loans, and (after being unable to find a job for a long while), $7000 in credit card debt. Anyhow-- I managed to get a job in October, and my only aim for the last couple of months has been to pay off my debt. The credit card debt should be gone by the beginning of February, and my "zero net worth" day will come on April 7th, 2007-- the day after I get paid, and the three days before the student loans start charging interest. It shall be awesome. I'm planning on celebrating by depositing the rest of my pay for that fortnight in the 401(K) account that has been lying unused since I started my job.

      I got lucky: I found a job that I like, and a boss who understands that I've got more in my life going on than work. Even so, the debt's been a huge burden over the last couple of months, and I never, ever want to have any again. I've started planning to buy a car-- but I'm going to pay for it in cash. Same goes for a house when I decide to get one. Save, and then buy. Debt is simply not the way to go, and I have explained it to the newly acquired fiancee. She seems sceptical, but I'm positive it's for the best.

      I've also been logging my expenses in this little spreadsheet I made, and pruning off crap that I don't need. I actually decided to stop getting a soda with lunch for a month to see how much money I would save. $100, would you believe it? I cut out the "morning coffee" stop at starbucks, and saved another $100. The guy who said that you can live on 10% less than you do now wasn't kidding: I've found that I can live on half of what I was spending before logging and monitoring my finances.

      So yes, getting out of debt and knowing _exactly_ where you stand with regards to money is one hell of a New Year's resolution. If you're only going to keep one in your life, this is the one I would suggest.

      • Re: (Score:1, Interesting)

        by Anonymous Coward
        Since I haven't logged in this weekend, I hope that you find this... Please keep in mind that all debt is not all bad. Even the richest guys in the world have debt. It's BAD debt that you need to avoid (especially credit cards). I would even put car loans into that same category for the purpose that the car depreciates as soon as you drive off the lot. However, with a house if you get a loan for 200k at 5% intrest over 30 years in comparison to investing 200k in cash at 10-15% over the same time frame

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by bergeron76 ( 176351 )
      Well said. I have a significantly positive net worth, and I did so by being financially responsible (moreso than making a lot of money).

      If you can learn to live on HALF of your income (not easy to do), and invest the rest, you'll be a millionaire in your lifetime.

      Most people live up to their means. Even before I had a mortgage, I fell into this trap. With each higher paying job, I'd get a nicer car, bigger apartment, etc. I didn't start making financial inroads, until I started saving for my first house

      • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

        by ethanms ( 319039 )

        AVOID CREDIT CARDS. You will pay 3x the cost of something just for the privilege of being able to buy it today rather than earn it. CREDIT CARDS are a PENALTY for people that don't have PATIENCE

        Another way to look at this--It's not that you want to avoid credit cards... it's that you want to avoid paying interest and fees.

        I use my credit cards for everything. As a result I'm able to get the benefit of using different types of "rewards" cards available. In particular I split between an airline card and an amex-cash card. Over the course of last year I "earned" about 10k miles for doing nothing but paying bills I would have paid anyway, and on Jan 1st I received a $210 credit from american expre

    • You have just discovered Money=Freedom. Those who don't have money are not free. Those who have money are free in proportional to their wealth. This is the paradox of the capitalism.
  • Finally get round to building a decent PC for myself or buy a mac, which ever I can afford first...
  • 1440x900...ya, its a weird one. But in all seriousness, I need to start living a healthier lifestyle, I need to sleep more, eat more (but healthier) and drink more. All while trying to get my grades as high as they have been for the past year and a half (4.0 cumulative, woot) I am known as the guy who doesn't need to eat, sleep, or drink. I need to chance that perception as well. And lastly, put more time into finishing the game me and a few classmates are working on.

  • Some offbeat ones (Score:4, Interesting)

    by BertieBaggio ( 944287 ) * <bob@manRASPics.eu minus berry> on Saturday January 06, 2007 @05:48PM (#17491438) Homepage

    Reading through the current comments, I see financial suggestions, 'organise your time' suggestions, 'clear out unwanted stuff' suggestions, and the obligatory 'don't waste time posting to /.' jokes. And in Soviet Russia, resolutions make you!

    Well, I have four slightly different resolutions to what has been suggested. They have been on the cards for a while now, but I figured I'd bite the bullet and actually give them a shot in 2007. With no further prelude, here they are:

    1. Stop procrastinating / wasting time.

      At the moment I do waste *far* too much time on inconsequential diversions (hi, /. !). This is my attempt to curtail such wastes of time. It is tremendously helped by the fact I've nearly stopped playing games (besides the occasional online game with my buddies). I'm not sure quite how I'm going to ensure I stick to it, but I may try filling in a schedule at the start of each day and sticking to that (which I'm loathe to do as I enjoy flexibility). In all honesty this is probably the least important of my resolutions, and as long as I can keep down my 'wasted time' as far as possible I'll be happy.
    2. Learn Spanish

      I don't need to justify this (I have my own reasons for wanting to learn other languages), but I would strongly recommend taking up a foreign language. Barry Farber has a very good method for teaching yourself (and his words are quite motivating too) in a way that will meet your goals (eg mastery of a single language Vs casual chat in a few).
    3. Learn a musical instrument (or two)

      Again, I have my own reasons for learning to play music (guitar and keyboard); and I would similarly encourage people to try it - no matter what stage of life you are and no matter what experience you have.

    In highlighting these resolutions my point is to suggest you do something that serves two purposes: 1) it should tax you - the brain loves a challenge (admittedly I might be preaching to the choir with that one); and 2) it should be quite different from what you do for a living. For example, if you are a software engineer / codemonkey by trade, I don't think you will gain much by making a resolution 'contribute more code to OSS projects' (though of course you should feel free to do so). Take up something more esoteric instead: painting, music, or a language.

    Just my 2 bits

    • > I have my own reasons for learning to play music

      Yes, it's called "girls".

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by darkonc ( 47285 )
      The last time I took up a musical instrument, I ended up moving in with my piano instructor -- almost married her.

      About the only part of that whole thing I regret in the least is the word 'almsot'.

  • I'm betting 1080i
  • I have a few plans for 2007.

    1. finish my first college course.
    I left school when I was just turning 18. 12 years later, I have finally found a route back into college, and am studying with the Open University, sponsored by my employers.

    2. free wifi!
    having to pay for communications really irks me. This year, I hope to finally set up the first free wifi station in my area, and convince others to join in.

    3. robots!!
    I have a project I've been working on for years - a

  • Get laid (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Money for Nothin' ( 754763 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @06:27PM (#17491772)
    This is one most of us /.'ers (including me) should do...
  • Quit smoking cigarettes. Haven't smoked one in 6 days :)
  • shag more super-models and such this year!

    Yours Truly,
    Johnny Opcode :)
  • not to keep any resolutions.

  • Ob. Simpsons (Score:3, Funny)

    by Jerf ( 17166 ) on Saturday January 06, 2007 @10:49PM (#17493912) Journal
    Ah, the Internet. The cause of, and the solution to, all of our productivity problems.
  • My resolution for 2006 was to stop procrastinating and simply DO IT (whatever 'IT' happened to be). The poster should read this essay [paulgraham.com] - it sounds like his diversionary tactics result from a lack of focus/attention. The moment you realize you're procrastinating, it's easier to stop it and get that work done.

    Otherwise, it's the usual: save more, strive for happiness, learn a new skill, etc.

  • Over the years I have had tonnes of programs I want to write and many times I half start them and never finish. I have also been largely allergic to scripting languages, which I wish to overcome. (I have done a few thousand lines of PERL now and a few chapters of Ruby tutorials).

    I could make a long list of things, but more generally, I need to learn not to pay attention to my crippling low self-esteem which is largely responsible for my lack of achievement. I'm 32 and I've never written my own programming

  • i.e. a new widescreen monitor that doesnt hurt my poor eyes... or is that the porn?
  • That wasn't my resolution this year, but maybe 4 or 5 years ago, and I'm still sticking with it. My personal preference was the local Habitat for Humanity chapter. It's educational, a good workout, lots of fun, and you see the people you are helping.

    As for my list this year, it's to get a treadmill and put the mythtv in the same room. My workout routine went out the window when it got cold, wet, and dark outside. I also plan to spend some time developing some software in the hopes of building a new line
  • I've only ever made one New Year's resolution that I ever stuck to.
    That was to 'Never make another New Year's resolution again'.

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