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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
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![]() "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. »
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. »
![]() 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. »
![]() 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. »
![]() 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. »
![]() 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.) »
![]() 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. »
![]() 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 ;) »
![]() 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. »
![]() 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…)… »
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. The best thing Merlin’s ever written is a short essay called, “Better.” |
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