If you’re not happy with your web hosting company, it’s usually pretty simple to make a change. Blogging tips site Essential Keystrokes has simplified this process into six easy steps. The main thing to remember? Back up, baby, just in case things don’t go right. Basically, you’ll want to get all your web hosting ducks in a row before you start switching things willy-nilly. If you’ve had to switch web hosts – for whatever reason – please share in the comments what made the process go more easily for you.
6 Easy Steps to Making a Web Hosting Switch [Essential Keystrokes]If you like to tinker around with web code, then tech site AjaxNinja’s list of the best Firefox extensions for developers is just for you. These are the ones that will help you streamline various processes; for instance, you can analyse your search engine optimization efforts with Seoquake, find Alexa stats with Alexa Sparky, debug with Extended Cookie Manager, etc. I’ve become a wee bit of a Firefox extension junkie so I’m trying to resist the goodies on this list, however, do feel free to cherry-pick what you find useful.
10 Awesome Firefox Plugins and Extensions for Developers and Bloggers [AjaxNinja]Technology publisher O’Reilly has a nice write-up of how to make a really dynamic Google custom search engine for whatever topic you want. A Google custom search engine is a great way to supercharge your searches and make them more targeted – the example in the article is for recipes, but you can go nuts and whip one up for vintage toys, anime soundtracks, eBay tweaks…the possibilities are endless. This particular tutorial will help you really make the most of your personal search engine; it goes way beyond the simple instructions that Google gives you.
Creating Google Custom Search Engines [ONLamp.com]Make a reversible laptop sleeve with Instructables’ easy to implement tutorial. This is pretty basic sewing and can be completed in under an hour (not counting your trip to the fabric store to dither over all the cool fabrics, however). Note: laptop sleeves are meant to cradle your machine when they are in sleep mode or completely off; otherwise, you run the risk of overheating. How to Make a Reversible Laptop Sleeve [Instructables]
Ever let someone borrow something and they break it? RealSimple has an interesting post on borrowing, and what happens when something goes wrong: Borrowers do have an obligation to replace items they break or lose, says etiquette authority Anna Post, who leads business-etiquette seminars for the Emily Post Institute, in Burlington, Vermont. That’s why borrowing — or lending — expensive items is not a great idea.
I’ve unfortunately had this happen to me, mostly with books being lost. If you’ve let someone borrow something and it didn’t end well, let us know how you handled it (or wish you would have handled it) in the comments.
5 Money-Etiquette Issues, Solved [RealSimple]Wired magazine’s How To Wiki has a short and sweet article on how to make your emails more efficient with a defined structure. Here’s what the perfect email consists of: brevity, a set context, clear requests, and a deadline if necessary. How do you make your emails more efficient – what’s your secret sauce? Thoughts in the comments.
Write a perfect email [Wired How To's]Work from home lifesaver Web Worker Daily has compiled a list of the most productive iGoogle gadgets (yep, there really are some!). Included on this list are multiple list tools, reminder services, clocks, earnings calculators, and lots more. I just might have to dust off my sadly neglected iGoogle page and see how much I can rev it up with these.
15 iGoogle Gadgets for Web Worker Productivity [Web Worker Daily]Life Coaches Blog, a practical self-improvement site, has an article on how to make your critical voice – you know, that inner jerk who lets you know exactly how much you suck – more useful. Those of us who struggle with self-criticism will especially appreciate this little tidbit: That’s when someone, say someone like me, has to yell (inside) ‘stop!’ and remember that the only real use for my critical voice is to help me spot my mistakes so I can learn from them.In other words, to make real the principle that ‘there are no failures, only learning experiences’.
Good advice, that’s for sure. What do you do when that inner jerk tries to get the best of you? Thoughts in the comments.
The Only Real Use for Your Critical Voice [Life Coaches]
