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US-centric: Coupons—they're never around when you get that sudden urge to splurge on electronics. Not so with a 10-percent-off printable discount at Best Buy, which is posted as an image at a U.S. Postal Service "Mover's Guide" site with... Read More »
Linux only: Control the volume of individual Linux applications and other sound-producing items with PulseAudio Volume Control, a free download for Linux systems. That in itself is a pretty handy feature, given how often many of us watch and listen to streaming, Flash-based media, but PulseAudio's volume control applet remembers your settings when you log in, lets you kill sound support to particular apps, and control microphone and other input volumes in a similar manner .The Volume Control applet requires use of the PulseAudio sound driver, enabled by default in Ubuntu 8.04 (now in beta) but installable in nearly any Linux distro. PulseAudio Volume Control is a free download, available in source packages and in some repositories; hit the via link for the Ubuntu installation line.
Mac OS X only: Funes is a one-purpose app for OS X that just might inspire you to start rating songs and getting creative with smart playlists. That's because it puts a drop-down menu in a Mac's status area that displays the song title and offers those familiar ratings stars to click on. If you're not rating songs through Quicksilver, you probably have to do it (and don't do it) by bringing up the main iTunes window and clicking through to rate the song, and Funes is the low-key (and low-memory) way around that bother. Funes is a free download for Mac OS X only. Screenshot via Fousa.be
Reader's Digest online lists 15 ways to maximise your lunch hour—aside from eating lunch—that could help you make the most of your midday break.
Daydream for 15 minutes — and then eat, run errands, or return to work. "Creative daydreaming is not only a way to get out of the daily lunch hour grind, but also a way to put your creative juices to work," explains Patricia A. Farrell, Ph.D. If you're feeling particularly stressed about a project, spend your 15 minutes mentally exploring ways you can tackle it. If you feel mentally stale and burned out, spend the 15 minutes in la-la land, on a mini vacation.Naturally there's something to be said about using your lunch break for just that, but since most of us take advantage of that hour to relax or get things done outside of the work context, why don't your share how you get the most from your lunch hour in the comments. Photo by Claudecf.
US-centric: Compare mobile phone plans and find the perfect plan to fit your usage needs at web site BillShrink. Just enter some information about how you use your phone along with your current monthly bills, and BillShrink will offer... Read More »
Dying to join the ranks of pajama-clad work-at-homers? The boss doesn't want you to telecommute for several reasons, but the Web Worker Daily blog offers a few talking points that can build your case. First, use the term "telework" instead of "telecommute" to emphasise that your time at home wouldn't be time off. Second, show that teleworking would help you get more done.
If your manager doesn't focus on results, it's up to you to help him start. Start reporting simple management numbers that focus on your productivity. Productivity numbers don't just show how much you've completed, but shows how quickly or efficiently you tackled them. That generally means including a time component to your statistics such as tasks competed per hour, income generated per day, or product per week.
You've been able to share gadgets on your iGoogle homepage for some time now, but now you can share the information stored in them—like sticky notes. Set the content of your gadget as read-only or editable by your invitees. Handy!
If you've ever forgotten the details of a recent conversation with a friend or family member, weblog Parent Hacks suggests taking notes during personal calls to improve your social brain.
When I forget enough of these details, the next time I talk to that person it sounds a lot like I wasn't listening, or worse, don't care.... At first it seemed odd to rely on tools to remind me about details I thought I should just be able to just keep in mind. I felt slightly guilty about even needing reminding about the most important people in my life. But it's better than forgetting.If your brain is crammed to the point that you're forgetting important details from your personal life, taking notes could be the kick in the pants you need. It may seem a bit strange, but in the end you could end up with a better social brain than you've ever had.
Windows only: The Giveaway of the Day web site is offering the normally $90 Data Recovery Wizard Professional software as a free download today only. If you've accidentally deleted important files or documents, chances are the Data Recovery Wizard Professional edition can recover them (if another process didn't overwrite the disk space with new data). The trick with software like this is to install it before file loss panic, so you don't write the software installation files over your deleted documents. The Data Recovery Wizard Pro download is free for the next nine hours or so only at Giveaway of the Day, so grab it while you can—and it's for Windows XP/NT/Vista only.
Tech blogger Amit Agarwal has been receiving suspicious, spam-like alerts from his Google Calendar lately reminding him to collect millions from an ATM, among other things. If you've seen similar GCal spam, your first instinct may be that your account has been hacked. On the contrary, clever spammers are taking advantage of a Google Calendar feature that automatically adds events to your calendar as soon as you're invited—which means all a spammer needs to do is send his spam via GCal's Add Guests feature. To fix this, head to your GCal settings and find the entry labelled, "Automatically add invitations to my calendar," then switch from the default (Yes) to "No, only show invitations to which I have responded." Google should probably switch the default to No, but in the meantime, this tweak will do the trick.
US-centric: Windows Live Maps has added a new feature called Clearflow, which suggests routes based on traffic conditions with the intention of getting you where you need to go quickly and with a minimum of traffic congestion. Rather than... Read More »
On Tuesday we put out our call for the best applications that help you practice the Getting Things Done productivity system, and from a mighty list of viable contenders, we've taken your votes and determined the five most popular of the bunch. Your choices span a wide range—you'll be surprised by some of the tools many of your peers are using to boost their productivity and get things done. Let's take a closer look at the five most popular GTD tools, then you can cast your ballot for the single best GTD app to rule them all.
Our productivity blogging pal Merlin Mann says that when you find yourself whining about working on a task or project, take it as a signal to stop and figure out why.
Whining is the white smoke in your tailpipe that lets you know you're burning mental oil. It means you're unconsciously devoting cycles to something that you can't, won't, or shouldn't be spending time thinking about.We've all whined and moaned about that job, relationship, project, and annoying to-do that just sits on our list for weeks pointing and laughing at us. That's when it's time to hit the mechanic instead of, as Merlin says, adding oil to feed the smoke.
Trent at The Simple Dollar blog would rarely recommend getting into debt, but since financing a car is sometimes a necessary evil, he recommends taking a good look at your finances, and the market, before signing those dealership papers. He walks through familiarising yourself with your credit report, shopping around for loans, and, of course, saving early, but his key advice on how much to put down is summed up in one sentence:
Have at least a 20% down payment (unless you're buying an old car, then 10% is the bare minimum), but if the interest rate is over 7%, save for a bigger down payment and wait until you absolutely need the car.Anyone's mileage will vary, depending on their finances, but Trent's advice seems pretty solid. How have you determined what you should and shouldn't put down on a new or used car? Share your own advice, and other car-buying tips, in the comments.
If you use Windows' built-in feature that groups similar program windows on the taskbar, you've noticed it only works when you've launched enough windows to fill the taskbar. The CyberNet blog offers up a customisable registry tweak that activates the grouping with just two or more windows open. Not everyone enjoys the grouping function, as it was downgraded to a non-default setting in Vista, but for those who do, the hack can be a real helper. You can download a registry fix file at the link below, or make the change yourself at the following key:
Perpetual Web Coupon Saves 10 Percent at Best Buy
Find the Perfect Cell Phone Plan at BillShrink
Data Recovery Wizard Pro Free Today Only
