I have this Yahoo! widget* running on my desktop:
Every 15 minutes it chimes on the quarter hour, and every hour it chimes once for every hour. What I love about this widget, besides the steampunk look of it, is how it is resetting my notion of time back to what it used to be and what I think is better.
I also have this widget on my desk:
It is a timer that allows me to keep focused on a task. With all the distractions that my computer generates, having this timer allows me to focus. (E.g. I will spend 20 minutes on email, and when the timer goes off, I will quit that and work on producing a report for 30 minutes). While this approach is good, I find that time becomes very fluid. It is less fluid than allowing myself get distracted by every pop up that occurs or open tab on my browser, but it is something I control and sometimes let slip by.
What I love about the steampunk clock widget is that it implies that time is independent of me. Time is important. Each hour, each quarter hour is important, and it tells me it is important by announcing it. It makes me appreciate time more as a thing in itself, and not something that I slosh around, 10 minutes here, 20 minutes there. It also makes me appreciate the order of time: there is a quarter hour, and then three more and that takes us to the top of the hour. Time marches on with the first widget. Finally, I think 15 minute intervals of time are best. We are always trying to squeeze more out of time: a quick minute here, a five minute break there. The steampunk widget says: no, 15 minute intervals are best for dividing up the day, and anything worth doing will need 15 minutes at least. It changes the pace of the day.
I like playing around with time. I feel like I am always aware of it, and how it is speeding by. What I like about the steampunk widget is how it is reshaping my approach to time.
* Yes, I still use Yahoo! widgets. In fact, I use quite a few of them. I find them very helpful in making me more productive. I think the tools that Yahoo! provides are underappreciated. I hope that will change and that more and more widgets are developed.
Smart People I Know 
Cool!….Some very good, time management tips here! ; D
Thanks for taking the “Time” to write about this important, and oftentimes all too elusive topic!
P.S. Just one question…what do the letters on the left-side of the widget represent? …”S,H,A,L,M,P” ???
Glad you like the steampunk clock/calendar, there is a new version coming up that will do a bit more. There is also a couple or other widgets planned, one is underway, the Steampunk thermometer
Yay! That’s good to hear! I think the clock is a great widget. More would be better!
S = screen up
H = help
A = alarm
L = Loud
M = Mute
P= Pendulum
You can see the steampunk cpu/gpu thermometer widget here:
http://lightquick.co.uk/index.php?option=com_mmsblog&Itemid=228
It is not yet ready for download.
The steampunk thermometer is now working and may well work on your PC (or not as the case may be) note it is still in beta.
http://lightquick.co.uk/downloads/steampunk-cpu-gpu-temperature-monitor-yahoo-widget.html
yay!
The thermometer widget comes on in leaps and bounds, lots of work behind the scenes, although it looks roughly the same at the front end. You can now select any sensor to display. The full instructions for the Steampunk CPU/ GPU Thermometers are here: http://lightquick.co.uk/instructions-for-the-steampunk-cpu-gpu-thermometers.html, download from the usual place: http://lightquick.co.uk/downloads/steampunk-cpu-gpu-temperature-monitor-yahoo-widget.html
Yay! Good stuff!
You may also the like the steampunk color picker, they are coming thick and fast:
http://lightquick.co.uk/jdownloads/steampunk-colour-picker-widget.html
This new widget is a simple interface to the standard colour picker as provided by Windows or the Mac OS. A single click on the colour ball causes the colour picker to appear. When you have chosen the colour to use, the widget displays the hexadecimal value of the colour so that you can copy/paste that value into your website development IDE or other tool.