• Improved Productivity: A 12-Step Program

Amber shares her 12-step program for getting more productive.

• How to Handle a Narcissist

Chances are you’ve come across a narcissist at some point in your career. Karen explains how to deal with them.

• 8 Significant Developments in Social Media

Aliza’s second “Social Superstar” column looks at some developments in the social space that you should pay attention to.

• The Dark Side of Freelancing

Freelancing’s not all unicorns and roses; Dawn explains why.

• The Problem With Social Media

How do we define “social media?” Aliza looks at what it means.

• 8 Significant Developments in Social Media You Should Watch

Aliza’s second “Social Superstar” column looks at some developments in the social space that you should pay attention to.

• Improved Productivity: A 12-Step Program

Amber shares her 12-step program for getting more productive

• Backup Strategies For the Paranoid

Dawn explains her two-pronged backup strategy

• 10 Things to Avoid In Social Media

In Aliza’s first “Social Superstar” column, she explain ten things we need to steer clear of if social media is to avoid repeating the mistakes of the Web 1.0 era.

• 7 Ways to Find Your Focus

Constant interruptions can kill your concentration and put a crimp in your productivity. Karen shows how to fight back.

• Google Buzz Tips and Tricks

Doriano shares his favorite ways to get the most out of Google’s new foray into the social networking space, Buzz.

• 10 Things to Avoid In Social Media

In Aliza’s first “Social Superstar” column, she explain ten things we need to steer clear of if social media is to avoid repeating the mistakes of the Web 1.0 era.

• Get Better Connected On Social Networks

Georgina exaplins hwo we can get better connected with our social networks

• Opera 10.5 Beta: The Fastest Browser on Earth

Simon looks at the latest beta of Opera 10.5, and finds that its claims to be the fastest browser available really do stack up.

• Minute Suites: Rest and Recharge, Airport Style

A new service that recently opened in Atlanta Hartsfield airport, called Minute Suites, wants to serve as travelers’ oasis from the stress of life traveling the unfriendly skies. Nancy takes it for a spin.

• Feb. 8 is Clean Out Your Computer Day

Monday was Clean Out Your Computer Day — but if you missed it, you could still follow Thursday’s tips.

• Minute Suites: Rest and Recharge, Airport Style

A new service that recently opened in Atlanta Hartsfield airport, called Minute Suites, wants to serve as travelers’ oasis from the stress of life traveling the unfriendly skies. Nancy takes it for a spin.

• Work Hacks: How to Run Meetings Google-style

Imran shares some meeting insights from Google’s Marissa Mayer

• Improve Productivity by Avoiding Going Online Before Breakfast

Charlie’s new productivity tip: don’t go online before breakfast.

• Opera 10.5 Beta: The Fastest Browser on Earth

Simon benchmarks the latest release from Opera — and finds that it really is the fastest browser on Earth (currently)

• 7 Ways to Find Your Focus

Karen shares seven techniques to stop co-workers from interrupting your focus.

• The Importance of Buffers

Amber recently suffered through a stressful, overly busy week. In this post, she explains why buffers are necessary for some breathing room.

• Public Speaking Demands Productivity

Karen explains why productivity can be something that you give to others; which is why if you speak in public you should make sure your presentation is productive and professional.

• My Dirty Little Task Management Secret

Dawn’s problem? She marks everything as “urgent.” In this post, she explains her new methodology

• Could the iPad Be My New Travel Computing Device?

The launch of Apple’s new iPad coincided with Nancy’s return from a hectic trip. here, he speculates whether the iPad could replace her MacBook as her “on the road” computing device.

• 10 More Must-have Google Chrome Extensions

Paisano shares his favorite extensions for Google’s increasingly popular browser.

• Creating a Whole New Business on the Web

While Untemplater is full of interesting content, one fact about it will be especially interesting to web workers: its six founders live all over the world, in places including New Zealand, Thailand and Wisconsin. Thursday tells the story of this virtual business.

• 8 Firefox Add-ons I Can’t Do Without

Charlie lists the Firefox add-ons that are an integral part of his workflow.

• Tips and Tricks: Making the Most of Google Docs

Google Docs’ simplicity doesn’t mean that it’s limited in functionality. Celine takes a closer look to find out what else we can do with this seemingly lightweight tool.

• New Silverlight Client for Facebook: I Can’t Believe This is Facebook

Darrell doesn’t like using Facebook, but this new Silverlight client makes the experience a lot more bearable.

• Reclined Computing With Your Laptop

Charles looks at devices that enable you to work with your laptop while lying down, which can, surprisingly, be good from an ergonomic point of view.

• 10 Free Add-ons to Extend Google Apps and Make It More Useful

Doriano runs through ten free add-ons to Google Apps that extend its functionality.

• Secrets of Successful Self-directed Work

Working for yourself or by yourself can be hard work. Georgina explains the challenges and shares her secrets to keeping everything ticking along smoothly.

• Facebook Pages, Groups and Profiles Explained

Aliza runs through Facebook Pages, Groups and Profiles, and the features and quirks of each.

• 24 Free iPhone Apps for Job Hunting

Doriano lists 24 useful iPhone job hunting apps.

• 5 Alternatives to Keeping a Fax Machine

Many people don’t keep a fax machine any more. Thursday outlines five online alternatives.

• 10 Tips: My Personal Journey Toward Maintaing Inbox Zero

Dawn’s started 2010 trying to maintain an empty inbox. Here she shares ten tips she’s learned along the way.

• Can We Make Social Media Pay?

Georgina asks, “Can we harness the enormous potential of social media as a direct sales vehicle?”

• Can You Be Personal and Professional in Social Media?

Dawn explains how to balance the personal with the professional in social media.

• 4 Web Tools You May Have Missed

Darrell shares four oddball little web applications that do things you may not even have realized you wanted to do in the first place.

• Revisiting 10 Golden Rules of Social Media

Aliza revisits and consolidates her ten “Golden Rules” for some tips on how to use social media in 2010.

• 10 Must-have Google Chrome Extensions

Will shares his top ten extension for Google’s increasingly popular browser

• Why Social Media Marketing is Still a Red-headed Stepchild

Aliza explains why social media isn’t being adopted wholeheartedly, and what we can do to change the situation.

• 5 Great Productivity Goals For 2010

Karen weighs in with some achievable productivity goals for this year.

• Must-have iPhone and iPod Touch Apps For Newbies

Many folks will be getting their hands on brand-new iPhone or iPod touch over the holiday season. Here, Charlie runs through the must-have apps that web workers will want to install on their new device.

July

July’s often a quiet month, but big news was the release of the MS Office 2010 technical preview, and Will spent some time putting it through its paces (although, disappointingly, Office Web Apps was not released at the same time). Also released was iPhone OS 3.0, which included useful push notifications. Sharing your screen got a little easier as Skype added in its latest release — I tried it out on a call with jkOnTherun blogger James. Sam pondered on the efficiency benefits of multi-monitor setups; Dawn discussed the impacts that blanket corporate policies can have on web working employees;  Meryl shared 34 ways to use YouTube for business; Thursday explained how to turn a hotel room into a web working office; and most of the team contributed to a debate on personal branding.

August

Google Wave started creating a lot of buzz as it was gearing up for launch. TypePad released a new version of its blogging platform and added microblogging features, while Aviary made online photo editing a snap; Aliza asked if Twitter is really better than Facebook for your business; Charles reviewed business-oriented virtual PBX system Grasshopper; Celine shared some SEO basics; Amber explained why your blog is your mothership; and Georgina wrote about how to build trust remotely.

September

Nancy weighed in on the growing health care debate, looking at whether health insurance and self-employment can mix. After all the buzz, Google Wave finally started to roll out to a limited number of users, and Microsoft started to release Office Web Apps and announced Project 2010, which promises significant improvements. The beta of Evernote 3.5 for Windows arrived; Darrell wrote about Bento, a nice Mac database management app; and Aliza shared how to explain to clients why they should engage in social media.

October

The big news revolved around operating systems: Both Mac OS X Snow Leopard and Windows 7 were released. Twitter and Facebook updates started to appear in search engines. I reviewed TinyGrab, a simple screen grabbing and sharing app; Darrell wrote about justifying the expense of coworking as an investment; Dawn questioned whether Twitter was replacing the RSS reader; Celine shared her Google Calendar tips and tricks, while Scott detailed why he moved from Backpack to Springpad.

November

Black Friday sales provided opportunities to grab some bargains. Microsoft Office 2010 entered beta, while Mozilla celebrated Firefox’s fifth birthday and released the first beta of Firefox 3.6. TweetDeck updated to support the new Twitter lists and retweet functionality. Darrell wrote about his experience with his netbook six months in, while Charlie listed must-have iPhone/iPod touch apps for newbies.

December

As we moved toward the holiday season, December was a quieter month, although we saw Google adding true real-time search to its results pages. Amber posted an excellent series of articles on accountability partnerships, while Meryl explained how to make sure that your LinkedIn profile is effective; Celine shared her Google Reader tips and tricks; and Aliza busted some common social media myths.

So that’s it, 2009 — a year that’s seen some pretty big changes for web workers. What’s been the most important news for you?

Photo credit: stock.xchng user ilco

January

2009 started quietly as far as many web workers were concerned, but significant tech news included offline support being added to Gmail, many web workers’ email client of choice, while GrandCentral’s SSL certificate expired (which caused Judi to ask whether Google was going to shutter the service — a question that was answered later in the year when Google Voice was launched). Meanwhile, the state of the economy was grabbing the headlines, prompting Dawn to evaluate what impact the downturn might have on web workers.

January also marked some significant changes here at WWD, as longtime senior writer Mike Gunderloy left, and editor Judi Sohn stepped down.

February

While Google continued to release new Gmail features (including Tasks, a simple to-do lists manager) a major Gmail outage prompted me to question how much faith we put into our web apps. While back on the desktop, a critical security vulnerability discovered in Acrobat reinforced the importance of keeping your software up-to-date. Perhaps in a sign of things to come for 2009, one of the most popular WWD posts of the month covered ways to improve Twitter efficiency, while Facebook overtook Myspace as the No. 1 social network.

February also saw the start of our excellent Web Work 101 series of posts for novice web workers, which was later compiled into a free e-book.

March

In a sign that updating and keeping an eye on all of our social networks was getting tiresome, Eric took a look at Ping.fm, a service that allows you to easily update a host of social networking and social media profiles all at once, while Dawn explained the systems that she uses to monitor online conversations. Meanwhile, Imran wrote about the increasingly popular trend of coworking, and Aliza went to SXSW and asked people, “What’s your favorite web app?” Xobni, a favorite tool of ours, moved out of beta; GrandCentral was finally relaunched as Google Voice; and Scott wrote about the Small Business Web, a collaborative effort that would lead to greater integration between many of our favorite web apps. In the most popular post of the month, I explained how to adapt Google Tasks for use in a GTD system.

April

In big OS news in April, Microsoft made the release candidate of Windows 7 available for download, which included a built-in “XP mode” to ensure backwards compatibility. On the browser front, Firefox 3.5 neared release, which was important as it included the new Tracemonkey JavaScript engine, providing for much better web app performance. RIM launched the BlackBerry App World to try to compete with Apple’s App Store. In the “What’s In Your Bag?” series of posts, the WebWorkerDaily writers all opened up their bags, showing you the gear they lug about every day.

May

In gear news, the Verizon MiFi 3G router went on sale, while I pointed to a report that blamed poor Wi-Fi performance on baby monitors. I reviewed new “computational knowledge engine” Wolfram Alpha, while Sam tried out Google Chrome and found it to be a speed demon. Tasks was integrated into Google Calendar, while Evernote released a BlackBerry app and Box.net also received some web worker-friendly updates. Aliza shared her 10 Golden Rules of social media, while Dawn wrote about the tools that she uses to monitor real-time information on Twitter.

June

June was a big month for browsers. News included the release of the stable and fast Firefox 3.5, the launch of Mozilla Collections, Google Chrome Mac Developer Preview’s debut, and the launch of the beta of Opera 10. Gear-wise, the Palm Pre debuted, although Charles wasn’t that impressed. Google Voice neared launch; Celine told us how to eliminate compulsive Internet fiddling; Aliza went to the 140 Characters conference and explained why Twitter matters now; Darrell wrote about the new trend of singletasking; while Georgina explained how to set up a home office for two.

I’ll publish the second part of this review tomorrow.

Photo credit: stock.xchng user biewoef

Perhaps unsurprisingly, a lot of the top posts for 2009 are about social media and Twitter, and articles promoting productivity techniques are also popular. You also seem to really like lists, so here’s another — a rundown of the top 10 posts published on WWD this year.

1. Must-have iPhone and iPod Touch Apps for Newbies

Did Santa give you an iPhone or iPod touch this year? Wondering what apps you should install on it? Look no further than Charlie’s handy guide.

1. 3 Efficiency Tips for Using Dual Monitors

Moving to a dual-monitor setup is a good idea as it can improve your efficiency, but to get the most of that second screen, check out Sam’s excellent tips.

1. 10 Golden Rules of Social Media

Aliza’s Golden Rules of Social Media are all about listening, giving kudos and respecting others, and are well worth paying heed to.

1. 62 Ways to Use Twitter for Business

Twitter can be an effective business tool. In this mammoth post, Meryl shares her top business Twitter tips.

1. 5 Warning Signs of a Project in Danger

Not all projects end up going according to plan; clients can unexpectedly pull the rug from under your feet without warning. Georgina lists five warning signs to look out for.

1. How to Eliminate Compulsive Internet Fiddling

Do you often end up procrastinating, whiling away unproductive hours on the web? Then you might be a compulsive Internet fiddler. Celine shares how she managed to break her habit.

1. 33 Ways to Use LinkedIn for Business

Is your LinkedIn account mostly sitting idle? Meryl explains how to get more from the professional social network.

1. Web Work 101: 10 Apps You Can’t Do Without

Just getting started in web work? Aliza gives you the lowdown on the apps you need.

1. Getting Things Done with Gmail Tasks

I explain how Google Tasks can be easily adapted to be used as an effective GTD app.

1. 32 Ways to Use Facebook for Business

Facebook’s not just for keeping tabs on friends and filling out quizzes — it can also be used as a highly effective business tool, as Meryl explains.

Photo credit: stock.xchng user LarryLens

• Elance’s MVP for 2009: PHP

Elance releases its December Work Index and declares 2009’s MVP (in terms of number of projects posted on the popular freelance jobs site) to be PHP.

• How to Create a Business-friendly Facebook Profile

Meryl shares some useful tips for creating a Facebook profile that can be used for both work and play.

• The Power of Newsletters

Amber explains why newsletters can be such a powerful marketing tool

• 4 More Tips for Using Google Wave on Your First Project

Will follows up his earlier post with some more advice on getting to grips with Wave.

• Project Management Tools: Beyond Gantt Charts

Don’t like using the venerable Gantt chart, or find that stakeholders don’t understand them? Check out this post where Will explains the alternatives.

• How to Track Freelance Job Leads Via Spreadsheet

Celine shows you how to keep track of freelance job leads using a simple and easy to update spreadsheet.

• How to Never Be Late For Work or Anything Again

Are you in time denial? Karen shares some strategies that should get you where you need to be — on time.

• Must-have iPhone and iPod Touch Apps For Newbies

Many folks will be getting their hands on brand-new iPhone or iPod touch over the holiday season. Here, Charlie runs through the must-have apps that web workers will want to install on their new device.

• Twittering Causes Blindness: Busting Social Media Myths

There are a lot of social media myths doing the rounds at the moment; Aliza busts the most common.

• Trick Yourself Into Working Better

No one tricks a trickster, right? Well, that may not always necessarily be true, even when the trickster in question is actually yourself. Darrell explains how to lie to yourself in order to promote better, more efficient working habits and practices.

• Must-have iPhone and iPod Touch Apps For Newbies

Many folks will be getting their hands on brand-new iPhone or iPod touch over the holiday season. Here, Charlie runs through the must-have apps that web workers will want to install on their new device.

• Start Now to Wrap Up 2009 and Prepare for 2010

For most freelancers, December is a slower month. Clients are taking vacations and rarely does anyone schedule a big launch in December or January. As Dawn explains, this makes December an ideal time to get finances in order, prepare for 2009 taxes and make any adjustments in our plans for 2010.

• 6 Tips For Using Google Wave On Your First Project

While many of us are still scratching our heads trying to figure out how to fit Wave into our workflow, Will has tried using it on a real client project — here he shares some tips.

• Should You Hire a “Certified” Social Media Consultant?

Some companies have started to offer costly social media certification. But before you hire someone who waves a social media certificate around, check out Aliza’s advice.

• Web Worker Gift Guide: Inexpensive Stocking Fillers

Wondering what to ask loved ones for this Christmas? Or struggling to come up with a novel gift for the web worker in your life? Fear not, as Simon’s put together a list of 10 relatively inexpensive gift ideas that any web worker would be delighted to find in his or her stocking come Christmas morn.

• Must-have iPhone and iPod Touch Apps For Newbies

Many folks will be getting their hands on brand-new iPhone or iPod touch over the holiday season. Here, Charlie runs through the must-have apps that web workers will want to install on their new device.

• Knowing When to Fold ‘Em

Our impulse is usually to try to do everything. Opportunities present themselves, and we think, “If I turn this away, I may not get another shot. What if there’s nothing else coming down the pike?” But, how do you know when is a good time to hold and when is a good time to fold? Amber provides some clues.

• 10 Ways to Get Paid What You Deserve

Karen shares some useful phrases that can tip a project from free to paid.

• Get Inspiring National Geographic Images to Use as Desktop Wallpaper

Looking for something to brighten up your desktop? Check out these great National Graphic images.

• 6 Tips For Using Google Wave On Your First Project

While many of us are still scratching our heads trying to figure out how to fit Wave into our workflow, Will has tried using it on a real client project — here he shares some tips.