4 Linden Aachen: from chaos across many devices to an organised digital home.
Over more than 40 years, Andreas Dilthey has created a unique sanctuary of architecture, art and nature on his farm in Aachen-Vetschau. What was missing was the digital order behind it: logins, files and emails were scattered across several computers and smartphones. We brought everything together before anything new was built.
Starting point
A life’s work spread across many devices
The 4 Linden farm in Aachen-Vetschau is a place that has grown over time: a community house, a studio, workshops, animals, orchard meadows. Andreas Dilthey has been building it since 1979, several generations live and work there today, and a support association carries the public-facing work. As organically as the farm has grown, the digital side was just as scattered: over the years, login details, files and email accounts had ended up spread across several residents and several devices.
Before anything new could be built, we needed to know where the digital world of 4 Linden actually lived. The logins to the web host, to the mail accounts and to the social media profiles had been handed out to different residents and helpers over the years. Files, images, plans and texts were spread across two computers, a laptop and a smartphone. Nothing was in one central place. Everything existed several times over in different versions.
“Andreas has built something unique over more than 40 years. But when you work on your life’s work every day, you have no time to also maintain a clean digital archive on the side. That was not a failing on Andreas’s part: it is completely normal when a place grows over decades.”
Talha Sariyürek· Managing Director, KonzeptCode
What we did
Four areas, one organised foundation
Andreas had got to know us at an open day on the farm. We were impressed by the atmosphere and the vision, and offered to take a look at the situation. At the first meeting it quickly became clear: before you build anything new, you have to put the foundations in order. Here is what we did:
- A complete inventory of all digital logins. We called everyone: web host, mail provider, social media platforms, domain registrar, and reset every password. Today Andreas has a complete, central overview of every one of his logins.
- Over 650 GB of files centralised. Texts, images, plans, correspondence, farm documentation: almost 200,000 files brought together from hard drives, computers and smartphones and structured in one central, encrypted archive. What previously existed in three copies in different versions now has a single source of truth.
- Synchronisation across all devices. Andreas now works on a laptop, two computers and his smartphone, and sees the same state everywhere. Whatever he opens at his desk in the morning is with him on his phone when he is out in the afternoon.
- Email accounts restructured. Several addresses, several providers, several devices, all moved into one clean structure, so that Andreas has reliable access to his complete correspondence on every one of his devices.
The crux
In person on site instead of remote support
A task like this does not work from a distance. For months we were regularly at the farm with Andreas: looking at devices together, sorting data, discussing content, explaining things step by step. Some of our best clients did not grow up with technology. They created something else. Our job is to take the digital stress off their shoulders, so they can focus on what they are truly good at.
Instead of tickets and phone hotlines: appointments on site, tea in the kitchen, working at the screen together. Instead of jargon: plain language and honest explanations. If a photo did not sync, we come over and take a look. If a browser will not open a URL, we work through it step by step.
Result
An organised digital foundation for the next 40 years
Andreas now has his entire digital world in order: logins managed centrally, over 650 GB of data encrypted in one place, four devices in sync on one state, emails structured. On this organised foundation we are now working together on the support association’s new website, step by step, with the same principles.
The collaboration continues. We look after the systems, keep the devices up to date, and are reachable when something goes wrong. One contact person, in person on site, with no handovers.
Trust
Today Andreas finds everything he needs in one place. We take care of the rest.
If something breaks down, he calls. If a new device is added, we set it up. From a single source, in person on site, with the same contact person since day one.
Konzeptcode built a new website for 4Linden as a place of hope and inspiration, capturing the atmosphere, the vision and the content we want to convey with the project really well. Konzeptcode immediately understood what this project is about and found an appealing, convincing and practical solution to communicate our message through the right media.