The web abounds with free tutorials on applications that I use, but I don’t often have time to spend on complex lessons, which is exactly why I’m finding some of the tutorials at Expert Village useful. The site houses how-to videos that are done in easy-to-digest formats. Expert Village provides how-to content on topics outside the sphere of technology, too, but its tutorials are quite good for commonly used applications. Here are some examples of what you can get out of the site.
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Recently, I was commiserating with a friend looking for a new job about the unpleasantness of that task. I remembered the hours of fruitless toiling, sending countless resumes off into the void, along with unique, individually tailored cover letters for hundreds of positions. Days that first seem like a pleasant extended vacation eventually become a drawn-out reminder of just how little money you’re making, and just how unproductive your waking hours actually are.
Thing is, I realized that was what it was like before I became a web worker, when my ideal job was still a cozy 9-to-5 in an office somewhere, with a salary, benefits and a paid lunch hour. Once I gave up that ideal in favor of pursuing freelance opportunities online, the dreaded Job Hunting Process, which I thought was written in stone, largely ceased to exist. Sure, what replaced it wasn’t exactly a walk in the park, either, but for all its faults, it definitely beats the cold dread of Workopolis and Monster.com. Read the rest of this entry »
Microsoft made the release candidate of Windows 7 available today, if you’re a TechNet or MSDN subscriber. (The rest of us will have to wait until May 5.)
The really good news is that Windows 7 will include “XP Mode”: a fully licensed, virtualized copy of Windows XP. XP Mode will be available as a download for users with Windows 7 Professional and up. As Jeff Atwood notes:
The attraction of virtualizing older operating systems is that it throws off the eternal yoke of backwards compatibility. Instead of bending over backwards to make sure you never break any old APIs, you can build new systems free of the contortions and compromises inherent in guaranteeing that new versions of the operating system never break old applications.
XP Mode should mean that Windows 7 is completely backwards-compatible with XP, and should also mean that Microsoft can start removing the older cruft from the OS that is currently only there to ensure backward-compatibility.
I’m looking forward to checking out Windows 7. Are you?
Call me crazy, but I love to see what folks have in their gear bags. Personal computing is exactly that, personal. So I find gear bags like snowflakes: No two are alike. We all have differing needs in our travels, so that’s how it should be, right? After seeing Simon and others here at WWD spill the contents of their bags, I knew I had to jump in and share mine as well.
Unlike most people, my kit tends to change frequently. I vary the contents of my bag based on my needs, and my gear has evolved as I’ve ridden the trend from notebooks to UMPCs to netbooks and back again. Let me give you a glimpse as to what I mean, as my bag has evolved many times in the past few years.
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Just as services designed to help social media enthusiasts manage multiple online profiles are becoming increasingly popular, services designed to manage posting status updates and communication to multiple online profiles are becoming plentiful as well. Recently, I covered Ping.fm, which has now been joined by Italy-based HelloTxt, a similar product that allows users to update a host of social networking, social media and blogging platforms, all at once.
Like Ping.fm, HelloTxt allows you to update a large number of online profiles and publishing platforms through a single entry field. (They claim to support 45 “social networks” as compared to 30 for Ping.fm.) Upon registering for HelloTxt, you’re given the option to add your active profiles from a wide array of services, such as Twitter, Bebo and Remember The Milk.
The number of characters in the status entry field count “up” so that you can make sure to cut status messages off at the all-important 140 mark, to keep with Twitter’s character limit. A nifty feature included in the status entry area is the ability to “post in the future,” setting the date for a status update ahead of time.
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When working on-site, it’s reasonably easy to maintain your employer’s or client’s confidentiality. But what about security in your home office? OK, so your dinner guests aren’t likely to be covert operatives for your employer’s largest competitor, angling to steal company secrets between the appetizer and the main course. But some employers are extremely eager to ensure that remote workers are geared up to protect their confidentiality. Are you?
Some contracts will spell out confidentiality requirements, and some jobs come with a clear non-disclosure agreement attached. But what if you don’t have a written explanation of what your employer or client wants? Here are the crucial aspects I considered in making privacy my priority. Read the rest of this entry »
TechHit’s OutTwit, a free Twitter client for Microsoft Outlook, hit version 1.0 this morning. If you’re a heavy user of Outlook and like to have everything in one place then OutTwit might be worth a try.
OutTwit downloads tweets to an Outlook folder (make sure you follow TechHit’s advice to create a new folder and tell OutTwit to use it, otherwise you will end up with with a very messy inbox). It incorporates all of the standard Twitter client features, including grouping and URL shortening. Today’s release adds support for picture posting services such as Twitpic, Posterous and Twitgoo.
OutTwit works, but it feels clumsy compared to a dedicated Twitter client. I certainly won’t be switching from twhirl, as I’d rather keep my tweets separate from my email; I think they fulfill separate roles. However, some users might like keep everything in one location and be able to use Outlook to manage, archive and search tweets.
Similarly to Spreadtweet, which is a Twitter client that looks like an Excel app, OutTwit can disguise Twitter usage, so I imagine it might be popular in workplaces where Twitter might not be looked upon favorably.
Have you tried OutTwit? What did you think?
To paraphrase the famous Wes Anderson and Robert De Niro American Express ads, “My life happens here; my bag is Timbuk2.”
I’ve lived an untethered, web working, co-working lifestyle for around nine years. In my previous life as an R&D consultant, hopping between Paris, London, Leeds and San Francisco, having my “office” at my side was the only way to be productive. As such, what I carry when traveling is exactly what I have when I’m at a desk. I don’t like to carry multiple devices, chargers or files and papers.
The Bag
My pride and joy used to be the Timbuk2 Detour, which works as a messenger bag, a briefcase or a backpack. It’s tough as nails, stylish, and big enough for a 15-inch notebook. I recently replaced it with a slightly roomier Timbuk2 Commute Messenger that allows me to carry my digital gear as well as enough clothes and toiletries for an overnight stay if necessary. Timbuk2 is the “BMW of bags”: pricey, but desirable and durable. Read the rest of this entry »
Web Work 101: How To Escape The Cubicle
