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Found: Rules of Thumb 2
Merlin Mann | Mar 6 2005
Last month, I mentioned a series of books by Tom Parker that I had loved in college, called “Rules of Thumb,” and I’d lamented that they were out of print (since I couldn’t find my old copies). Imagine my delight when a bit of closet refactoring turned up this dog-eared veteran. Here are a few of my old favorites:
RoT2 has 930 of these little gems of guesstimation, and, frankly, I think I could read them all day. The books are available used on Amazon (see below), but, man, I wish Houghton Mifflin would reissue all three of them as a single big volume. I’d totally buy it. 23 Comments
POSTED IN:
 "Deciding What You Want -...Submitted by JD McMillan (not verified) on March 6, 2005 - 11:03am.
“Deciding What You Want - If you don’t know what you want, it’s probably sleep.” Simple and brilliant. I’d love to hear more of these if you have the time to share them. » POSTED IN:
 That's a classic JD, and...Submitted by Merlin Mann on March 6, 2005 - 11:07am.
That’s a classic JD, and it’s so true. I’ll try to add a few more a bit later. » POSTED IN:
Just bought all three books...Submitted by Jonathan Horak (not verified) on March 6, 2005 - 3:01pm.
Just bought all three books at Amazon (via your Associates links) on the cheap. If they are filled with even just a few more insightful nuggets — in addition to the above — their purchase will be justified. » POSTED IN:
I love "Shite's Unoriginal Miscellany"...Submitted by DasFreak (not verified) on March 6, 2005 - 3:03pm.
I love “Shite’s Unoriginal Miscellany” (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1843170817/) for the same reason. Lot’s of stupid and interesting information. Like the names for different size flowerpots and so on. Great for a giggle as well as informative. » POSTED IN:
AlwaysWoW - Rule of Thumb...Submitted by Andreas (not verified) on March 6, 2005 - 5:48pm.
AlwaysWoW - Rule of Thumb 1: Read 43 Folders before you start to work to ensure a productive day ahead. AlwaysWoW - Rule of Thumb 2: Don’t read 43 Folders before you go to bed. You won’t be able to sleep since the easy and great recommendations would keep you awake. You would just wait to get up and read the next entry before you start to work the next day. » POSTED IN:
Awesome! My HS driver's...Submitted by Menolly (not verified) on March 7, 2005 - 3:59pm.
Awesome! My HS driver’s ed class was full of this sort of tip, but I forgot most of them before I finally got my license. (The one I recall is that, when stopping at an intersection with a crosswalk, you’re in about the right place when the far line is barely hidden by the front of your car.) » POSTED IN:
You mean like "stop your...Submitted by fixedgear (not verified) on March 8, 2005 - 9:30am.
You mean like “stop your car so you can see the rear tires of the car in front of you?” This always leaves enough room to go around the car if it stalls or just decides not to proceed. Or when following another car, you can measure following distance by counting in ‘Mississippi’s’ when the car in front of you passes a stationary object like a telephone pole. Three Mississippi’s works at any speed. Try it. » POSTED IN:
You might also like The...Submitted by Louise (not verified) on March 10, 2005 - 5:03am.
You might also like The Practical Guide to Practically Everything (link to Amazon) - your friendly neighborhood librarian ;) » POSTED IN:
That "Passing a Car" rule...Submitted by Rich (not verified) on March 10, 2005 - 5:21am.
That “Passing a Car” rule of thumb was actually on the CA driver’s license exam when I took it. » POSTED IN:
rules of thumb I must get...Submitted by silk and spinach (not verified) on March 6, 2005 - 12:10pm.
rules of thumb I must get myself a copy of Rules of Thumb 2! (I always wondered why my potato salads never turned out quite right…)… » POSTED IN:
http://home.avianto.com/quicklinks/200503.html#001963 43 FolderSubmitted by linkages - avianto's quicklinks (not verified) on March 7, 2005 - 3:32am.
http://home.avianto.com/quicklinks/200503.html#001963 43 Folders: Found: Rules of Thumb 2 (One word: Classic!)… » POSTED IN:
Rules of thumb "Fan of tiny...Submitted by Lifehacker (not verified) on March 7, 2005 - 4:39am.
Rules of thumb “Fan of tiny improvements” Merlin Mann unearths a dog-eared copy of Rules of Thumb 2, a book which offers all sorts tidbits, like: Passing a Car - You can safely cut in front of the car you are passing when… » POSTED IN:
Rules of thumb "Fan of tiny...Submitted by Lifehacker (not verified) on March 7, 2005 - 4:41am.
Rules of thumb “Fan of tiny improvements” Merlin Mann unearths a dog-eared copy of Rules of Thumb 2, a book which offers all sorts tidbits, like: Passing a Car - You can safely cut in front of the car you are passing when… » POSTED IN:
LaLaLinks 3/3 Merlin digs up the...Submitted by //gtmcknight (not verified) on March 7, 2005 - 5:00am.
LaLaLinks 3/3 Merlin digs up the Rules of Thumb books Cameron Moll’s collection of best web design blog entries Mybloglog.com lets you easily track who clicks on your llinks Thumbnails of every CSS Zen Garden Entry List of icons found on the… » POSTED IN:
Rules of Thumb This book looks...Submitted by davidbisset.com (not verified) on March 7, 2005 - 5:48am.
Rules of Thumb This book looks like a good “guide to life” manual full of “little gems of guesstimation”…. » POSTED IN:
http://www.controllercode.com/archives/2005/03/_feeding_cockro_1Submitted by controller code ... (not verified) on March 7, 2005 - 7:20am.
http://www.controllercode.com/archives/2005/03/feedingcockro_1.html Feeding Cockroaches - Twelve cockroaches can live on the glue of a postage stamp for a week. gross. so very gross. (src: 43folders)… » POSTED IN:
LaLaLinks 3/3 Add IE5 and IE5.5...Submitted by //gtmcknight (not verified) on March 7, 2005 - 8:15am.
LaLaLinks 3/3 Add IE5 and IE5.5 to the title of your Standalone IE’s Merlin digs up the Rules of Thumb books Cameron Moll’s collection of best web design blog entries Mybloglog.com lets you easily track who clicks on your llinks Thumbnails of… » POSTED IN:
I Love Books Like This I'm...Submitted by Librarian's Rant (not verified) on March 10, 2005 - 5:00am.
I Love Books Like This I’m such a geek, but I love books that tell you how to do day-to-day stuff you wonder about. Sadly, my library does not own a copy. We do have this one, however. » POSTED IN:
http://www.yvoschaap.com ...Submitted by Anonymous on March 14, 2005 - 5:39am.
http://www.yvoschaap.com » POSTED IN:
Thumb Rules 43 Folders uncovers these...Submitted by Things I Know I Know (not verified) on March 18, 2005 - 5:26pm.
Thumb Rules 43 Folders uncovers these important Rules of Thumb: Passing a Car - You can safely cut in front of… » POSTED IN:
http://www.controllercode.com/archives/2005/03/_feeding_cockro_1Submitted by controller code ... (not verified) on April 26, 2005 - 4:23am.
http://www.controllercode.com/archives/2005/03/feedingcockro_1.html Feeding Cockroaches - Twelve cockroaches can live on the glue of a postage stamp for a week. gross. so very gross. (src: 43folders)… » POSTED IN:
Feeding Cockroaches Feeding Cockroaches - Twelve...Submitted by controller code ... (not verified) on April 26, 2005 - 4:30am.
Feeding Cockroaches Feeding Cockroaches - Twelve cockroaches can live on the glue of a postage stamp for a week. gross. so very gross. (src: 43folders)… » POSTED IN:
phosita ::: quick links for...Submitted by PHOSITA ::: an intellectual property weblawg (not verified) on April 30, 2005 - 4:24am.
phosita ::: quick links for 2005-04-29 Quick Online Tips: Absolutely Del.icio.us - Complete Tool Collection Everything you ever wanted to know about del.icio.us - some very cool tools. It is pretty exciting to see del.icio.us being used more and more - as well as how… » POSTED IN:
About Merlin MannBio Merlin Mann is an independent writer, speaker, and broadcaster. He’s best known for being the guy who started the website you’re reading right now. He lives in San Francisco, does lots of public speaking, and helps make cool things like You Look Nice Today. Also? He looks like this, answers questions, and has something like a life. |
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