Quick Links

Recent Form Updates – The 2024-25 Compact Calendar update is over on the official Compact Calendar page. The 2024 ETP Almanac is not yet ready.

Out of Stock Options for Amazon ETP – I continue to have issues with Amazon’s automated marketplace delisting my product for odd reasons. Sign up here with your email address if you would like to receive restock notifications. You can also just leave a comment.

Virtual Coworking Cafe – Since 2016! The experiment in virtual tribe building has evolved into a friendly community of project-minded regulars. Visit the Virtual Coworking Page to learn more!

Welcome to my website!

There’s a few major themes you’ll find here!

Designing Paper-based Productivity Tools – I make tracking tools like the Emergent Task Planner in the Productivity Tools section. I emphasize concrete metrics that reveal trends over time without requiring a lot of tedious data entry. I hate ugly forms, so I try to make them as nice as possible by applying principles of visual hierarchy to make information clear and beautiful.
Challenge of Creative Development – I wish I was faster/better/stronger at a lot of things, and I try to maintain a positive attitude. I find learning and making new things really hard; I think it’s good to share my experience so other people on this path might know they are not alone.
Making-Up Experiments, Projects, and Processes – When I’m stuck in a challenge, I turn it into an experiment to gather more data. Even if the challenge fails, the experiment always wins because experimental data has been acquired! Also, it’s fun to apply what I know about science, graphic design, computer programming, and psychology in novel and amusing ways :)

I strive to provide an accurate description of how I formulate and work-through challenges. Like a lot of people, I have to train myself to work through uncertainty and find my way. I believe that it’s super important to show that you don’t need to be perfect to make something cool that empowers yourself and the people you care about. Or more succinctly stated: Sharing is caring!

Virtual Coworking Cafe

Sri’s Virtual Coworking Cafe (AKA the DS | CAFE) is where I and other nerdy positive-minded people try to cultivate a good “working vibe” as we pursue our individual goals. We have a diverse range of people from around the world sharing their stratagems for figuring-out stuff that’s on their mind.

This is a working online chat room, and the general idea is to provide the level of distraction you need to have a productive day. Visitors can drop by at any hour of the day to mingle with the regulars, sort of like visiting a nice coffee shop. People engage at whatever level they are comfortable with, and can choose to partake in the vibe by joining a topical discussion room, sharing photos showing-off project progress, or doing paced work in a group audio chat room. What you get out of the experience is really up to what you choose to put in.

If you’re interested in visiting the DS | CAFE, you’ll find the details on the virtual coworking page.

Guidelines

This is an excerpt of our behavioral and cultural guidelines. The full 9-point edition can be found in our #readme-first room.

(1) Be safe with everyone’s personal info

This is a public space, so what you post here can be read by anyone who joins! Don’t post personal information for yourself or others without verifying full knowledge and consent.

(2) Practice tolerance and recognize the diversity of our community

Enjoy the opportunity to support each other. Communicate your interpretation of the IDEA without casting judgement on the PERSON or PEOPLE. In general, do not dehumanize or label any group of people for the purpose of scapegoating or “othering”.

(3) Help maintain a positive environment

People like different things and have different living situations. Do not impose sweeping observations, demand answers, or offer unsolicited advice. What may seem “joking” to you may not be clear to others

About DSri

As a kid I liked to write and draw. I drews lots of pictures of spaceships.

Later I spent a lot of time on my Apple II, learning to read machine language and draw computer graphics. For college I almost picked English as a major, but decided to pursue computer engineering and graphics design as part of my master plan to make lots of video games with spaceships.

In the mid 1990s, I was part of a tiny startup game company in the Boston area to make a game called Crixa, and after that company folded I moved to Florida to work at Electronic Arts. I soon realized that I was not a good fit for the industry, and after a lot of painful soul searching I left the business entirely to practice interactive design.

These days I work as a freelance designer/developer using video game technology for Learning Sciences research software and interactive installations, currently with Javascript and NodeJS. I also have a side hustle selling versions of my productivity tools on Amazon.

On a personal note, I’m a second-generation Taiwanese American living in Southern New Hampshire about 40 miles north of Boston. I’m transitioning from the name “Dave” to “Sri” (pronounced SREEE), which is a long story in itself. My preferred pronouns are they/them.

I really like curry, daylight-balanced lighting, hats, cats, select rodents, gadgets that work better upside-down, temperature control of all kinds, and gear that is obsessively designed to provide utility that empowers people. I especially like excellence-seeking positive-minded people who are generous, conscientious, curious, and kind.