I’ve got a bunch of shell scripts that I use to help me with development of Every Single Shot. Some of these scripts, like starting up a new server instance or redeploying an application, can take a while (10 to 15 minutes). I’ll typically launch a script and then start working on something else, forgetting that the script is even running, only to come back an hour later and realize it completed 50 minutes ago. I needed an easy way to remind myself that scripts are running, or better yet, to alert me when the scripts finish. Specifically, I wanted something audible that would grab my attention right away, so having a shell script send an email won’t cut it in this case. Then I realized how easy OS X makes sound playback from the terminal.

There are a few ways to get your shell scripts to beep or speak. They range from utilitarian to fun, so choose wisely.

Note: I’m using these on OS X – your mileage may vary on other platforms.

Terminal beep

This should work even if you don’t have speakers installed on your system. It’s pretty basic, and often times I don’t actually hear the beep, so I don’t really recommend this option.

If you want your script to beep at you annoyingly, just type printf "\a" and hit enter. You should hear a single beep (are your speakers on?). Of course, that almost never gets my attention, so I usually wind up with something like this is my scripts: printf "\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a\a" That’s a little better, but we can improve and have a little fun at the same time.

Use the say command

Did you know you can open a terminal on OS X, type in say hello world! and OS X will speak back "hello world!" to you? You can’t get much simpler than that. So instead of using the printf command above, just replace it with something like say every single shot has been deployed to production

If you want to really impress those VCs you’re recruiting, I highly recommend the Trinoids or Zarvox voices (see all voices available in System Preferences -> Speech), as they definitely lend some nerd credibility to your build process. Those VCs will start throwing money at you (this is the part of the blog where you make millions) as they wonder in awe at how you were able to design such a complex system. They’ll be throwing your series B funding at you just as fast as you can say -v Trinoids system is running at peak efficiency or say -v Zarvox Skynet has become self aware. Initiating self defense subroutine

Warning: don’t use the Whisper voice unless you want to be freaked out, especially if you’re working late at night.

Say the command yourself

Or better yet, have your spouse or kid say it for you.

You can use the afplay command to play MP3s or WAVs from the command line. Just record a few messages like "production instance is running" using Audacity (free), save them as WAV or MP3 (you’ll need the lame encoder to save as MP3), store them in the same directory (or maybe a /sounds subdirectory) as your shell scripts with the same names as the scripts except with a .mp3 file extension, and then make the magic happen with afplay redeploy_to_production.mp3

If you don’t want to record your voice but want something a little more personal, you can download free sound effects (I haven’t tried but I assume you can get them in MP3 or WAV format) from Freesound.

If you have ideas on how to accomplish some of the above on Windows, Unix/Linux, or another platform, please leave a comment below!

I gotta run…it sounds like my build just finished!

Starting a business is a lot of work, especially when you’re doing it all yourself. I need all the hours I can get in a day, so I came up with a handy little practice that’s really increased my productivity. Yes, I’d even say it’s doubled it (hmmm…does that mean it was abnormally low to begin with?). Your mileage may vary, of course, but if you follow this advice and stick to it, it’s just about impossible to not see your productivity go up.

The Trick

So what is it? What is the miracle of productivity tips that has naught been divined hence?

Simple: when you sit down to work, set a timer. Work your butt off until that timer buzzes, then take a break. Lather, rinse, repeat until it’s time to go home. Let me explain.

I find I can concentrate steadily for about 2 hours at a time. So I set the timer for 2 hours. Once the 2 hours is up, I take a 15 minute break (using the timer), during which time I’m checking blogs, twitter, Facebook, or most importantly – playing with the dog. Lunch time is a little different – I typically take 45 minutes to an hour. I get in four quality 2-hour work sessions every day with little to no distraction. This, in my opinion, is awesome.

How it Works

Why does this work so well? For me, it’s the assurance of knowing I’ll be able to goof off soon enough. That way, I feel compelled to concentrate for 2 hours because I know I’ll be immediately rewarded at the end of it. But during the breaks, anything goes, and since I’ve just worked for 2 hours, I don’t feel guilty goofing off a bit.

Timers to Try

If you want to give this a try, I can recommend a few timers. If you’ve got an iPhone or iPod touch, just use the Timer app that comes with it (make sure you turn the volume up so you can hear the timer go off). If you run OS X, give a timer dashboard widget a try. There are two that I like: Stop It! (my fav) and Tea Timer. If you run Windows, uhhhh…do you own an egg timer?

Bonus

Bonus tip: write your todo’s for the day down. Tackle the tough creative ones in the morning (especially the ones you’re dreading). You’ll feel a since of accomplishment and be motivated to do the boring stuff. Do the administrative stuff and email after lunch.

Bonus bonus tip: don’t do personal email at work!

What do you think? Do you have any easy productivity tips of your own you’d like to share? Comment below!