iPoke fun

Displaying two Word docs on two different screens

Ever been working with two Word documents and been frustrated by the fact that Word insists on using a Multi Document Interface, which puts both documents into the same window, so you can't make full use of a desktop that's been extended onto a second monitor?

I've just discovered that if you click the "View side-by-side" button in the View ribbon (this is Word 2007 I'm using), it has the useful side-effect of putting each document into its own top-level window. One window can then be dragged onto your second screen, and both can be maximised to make full use of your two screens.

Irony

In my iGoogle page just now:


Well, I thought it was funny.

Evidence

Alright, I admit, the evidence isn't on my side.

But look at the right-hand end - yellow then black. Maybe I've just been lucky in choosing the right end so far in my life.

There's a limit to the quantity of additional evidence I can collect, so if you buy a packet yourself, please post your findings here...

Fruit Pastille colour order

I've just asserted to a few colleagues that a "tube" packet of Fruit Pastilles always begins with a yellow followed by a black, and that it doesn't matter which end you open the packet. They didn't believe me. I've searched the web for evidence, and failed to find any, and I'm now doubting my sanity...

Come on, somebody back me up here...?!

My desk - conclusions

All told, the desk and filing cabinet took around six months of evenings and weekends to complete. I didn't keep track of exactly how many hours it took - next time... The blog postings about it have taken rather longer... :-)

As for the cost, after the initial outlay for the materials, there was a stream of extra purchases - the dowel jig, a set of forstner bits, extra reels of edging strip, two tins of danish oil, etc. I didn't keep track of all the costs (next time...) but the total must be somewhere around £350-£400, which is less than a third of the cost of the estimate I'd had from the professional furniture maker.

I haven't paid myself for my time though. If I had, and I'd paid a reasonable rate, that would surely have made the professional route cheaper.

It's not constructed as well as the professional would have done it either, though you have to look closely to tell. It's by far the most professional-looking bit of DIY I've done.

There were moments when I wished I hadn't started it, but not too many. Most of the time there was good progress throughout and few hurdles, which made it easier to continue, even in the early stages when the end seemed a long way off.

The end result is immensely satisfying - it's exactly what I wanted in terms of size, shape, colour and texture, and best of all I made it myself.

My desk - the matching filing-cabinet

The filing cabinet was constructed with all the same techniques as the desk, with one small difference - the drawer sides were made 5cm lower than the drawer fronts, and an 'L' cross-section piece of aluminium strip fixed along each side, for suspended files to hook over.

Notice how the clutter has increased dramatically in the five weeks since the desk-only photo was taken: