Over the past few weeks, we’ve talked about the different program categories I think are essential for organizing your digital life. The fact of the matter is that for each of the types (e-mail, calendar, notebooks, Cloud Service), multiple different programs will work with what you are looking to accomplish. The trick for you now is figuring out how to make all of those programs work together. Program Ecosystems are a simplistic way for people who are just trying to get everything together in one spot.
Everything is within your grasp (don’t have to search far)
In today’s world, the ecosystem is everything. Having functionality which allows for everything that you could want, across any platform you could use is to the benefit of both the users and the developers. It’s useful for the users because a package deal means you only need one account, and therefore it’s a “one-stop-shop.” It’s useful for the developers because the users, knowing they can come to your product for anything, typically, will. If you don’t have to spend too much time searching for and testing new products, then you can spend more time being productive.
Don’t have to search for multiple tech support
Every program out there has a “help” button. Aside from that, if you go online to the website of the program you’re using, there is likely some contact information so you can get help. I don’t have a problem with that. I have used this service on several occasions for many different programs. The trick of it is that while each program has a way to help you, the fix is not always the same for each application. The programming can be so different to the point that the help people are not able (or not allowed) to help you figure out how to work a program from a different company. This is where working in an ecosystem comes in. If you have an issue with Microsoft word (And I’m just using Microsoft as the example here) and you contact Microsoft, then they will be able to help you. It’s also likely that they will show you how to save your document to OneDrive. Within the ecosystem, the help people will be able to fix any problem you have assuming you’re working within one umbrella. This can make things infinitely more manageable for you simply because you won’t have to chat, e-mail or phone multiple different companies to try and fix all your problems.
“one-stop-shop”
Just as you can get the problems with current problems fixed in one spot, you can also add programs in one spot. Most major ecosystems don’t want you having to go somewhere else to get things done. To ensure that you don’t have to go outside the company’s exosystem, they will provide all the services you need. Currently, Microsoft is doing a hard push to promote their todo list app. This was built off the Wunderlist platform. For my long term readers, you will remember that Wunderlist is/was my choice for todo lists. Full disclosure I’m in the process of changing over to a new tool — more on that in a later post. For now, know that if you are with a prominent provider, it’s likely that you won’t have to look too far to find the tool you need.
I’ll be honest. There are times when I’m able and willing to work in an ecosystem. There are also times when I find it more convenient to work with a cobbling of programs and apps from different areas and providers. It depends on what it is I’m looking for. Working in an ecosystem is great, but existing outside of one is also possible. The argument is that if you are looking for a quick solution and a one-stop-shop, working within an ecosystem like Microsoft, or iCloud is the way to go. If you are not 100% satisfied with the solution and want to tweak the options, using different programs which don’t necessarily work together is still a decent solution. The best part is that there is no correct solution; there is only the solution which works best for you.
Which do you prefer? Working within an ecosystem or not?
Let me know in the comments section below. If you like this blog post and want to see more, you can follow me on Social Media (LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook @jasonlovefiles) or Subscribe to my blog to get new content delivered directly to your mailbox.