Miscellanea, etc. / 21 Mar 2016

Inbox Zero is one goal for many in this digital age, but what about Browser Tab One? I'm terribly guilty of having a million browser tabs open in several themed windows. I cringe every time someone else uses my computer or when I have to bring it in for service. What if someone accidentally closes a tab I really needed? But then again, did I really need that webpage if I opened it several months ago and have yet to look at it? 


Seeing that sea of tabs every time I open my browser gives me a certain shock of stress ("Am I missing something important?" or, "There's so much I need to get through! Information overload! Let me look at my email instead...").

On a whim, I googled "browser tab one" and came across a smattering of articles, some with hilarious headlines and some downright practical. Many use the argument that simplifying internet behavior leads to singletasking and mindfulness, buzzwords for the age.

So in this week's edition of miscellanea, some articles for and against Browser Tab One:

Some background: The Atlantic's James Hamblin waxes metaphorical on tabs and their relationship to life in his charge for singletasking and the #TablessChallenge.

Some science: Want evidence? Here's some from Buffer.

For: Catherine of The Blissful Mind went a month with a single tab and came out saner than before.

Against: John Ness took on the Tabless Thursday challenge and just about had a panic attack. A cautionary tale? (with Fast Company's follow up on the challenge)

Practical: One Tab, a Google Chrome add-on that collapses all your tabs into one and saves on memory.

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One of my goals for this year is to simply, so perhaps I will try the Browser Tab One challenge. If I do, I'll let you know the results.

Have you tried using a single browser tab? What are other ways you've attempted to simplify and de-distraction your life?

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Don't fall too far down the rabbit hole, though.