productivity http://www.computersight.com/tags/productivity New posts about productivity 10+ Tips to Boost Your Productivity at Work with Your Computer or Laptop http://www.computersight.com/Communication-&-Networks/10-Tips-to-Boost-Your-Productivity-at-Work-with-Your-Computer-or-Laptop.172145 You probably know that kind of person that can read emails instantly, write faster than lightning and accomplishes more in an hour than you in an entire week. That person has something you don't know what it is but you would like to have too. That person understands some tricks you will learn right here and right now.

  1. A Computer Just To Work

    If you use your computer to anything else than just work you will be not 100% productive since you will be tempted to install software you don't need and games that will just waste your time. Delete ALL the programs you don't need to work. Buy one computer for entertainment and play with that computer instead.

  2. All your tools must be just one click away

    If you have to click twice or more to open or get what you want you are not 100% productive and remember you only have one life because you are not a cat! All your shortcuts must be in the deskbar so you can launch all you want with one click. To access your documents quickly I recommend you to install Google Desktop ONLY if you still use Windows XP. Vista users use the default desktop search.

  3. Email productivity is crucial

    You have more important things to do than checking your mail all the time. Gmail is the best and the fastest mail because not only you don't need to install any software to make it fast but also you have powerful tools to search and tag all your mails easily.

  4. Browser productivity is the single most important producivity improvement you must make

    Install Firefox 3 as fast as you can. It's not the fastest or the most secure browser, but overall it's the best one because of compatibility issues and website interaction. Don't install any theme or you risk having fun instead of working. The only add on you need is Stumble Upon toolbar to submit your pages to the comunity but you should hide the toolbar while you are not submitting to see less distractions.

  5. Delete all the files from your desktop

    My computer, Recycle, Documents, hide them all. You don't need them that often and you can access them faster if you use Google Desktop in Windows XP or the Start Button in Windows Vista because most of the time you are browsing or writing and closing all the Windows requires not only time but a lot of patience too.

  6. Get a nice wallpaper because it's the face of your computer

    Don't get one with hot chicks or cars. Instead get a professional one like Windows Vista Ultimate Wallpaper. Get it on Google. It's looks very good and professional and it boost morale to work.

  7. Configure your computer regular tasks to be done automatically

    Defragment, Disk Cleaning, Anti Virus and more sould be done 100% automatic with zero user interaction.

  8. Delete ALL the files you don't need to work

    I mean all the images, music and videos as well as Firefox Bookmarks for sites you don't need to work. They will just be there to distract you.

  9. The U.S. Navy knows something that most people don't know

    To achieve 100% focus you need to see only the essencial buttons to command a powerful and dangerous submarine so the soldiers cannot have more than 11 lights on in the submarine control pannel because human beings cannot hadle so much input. This means you should clean your computer from all distractions. Clean your office as well. You need only the essencial input to work 100% concentrated.

  10. Work with your browser in full screen mode

    This way you will see less buttons and attention messages from many programs and you can work longer and more concentrated. Just press F11 while using your browser.

  11. Put Media Player streaming a good radio with music only

    If you play your own music you will always feel tempted to choose this music or that one instead. With just one radio you know you can't choose so you concentrate on working.

  12. Peace of mind is absolutely important to work better

    Password protect your computer and all your log in sites with a very strong password from a password generator javascript website and save all those passwords in a password protected document.

Now go back to work and see how faster you are working now!

]]> Thu, 17 Jul 2008 06:15:49 PST 10 Ways to Occupy Yourself on the Computer http://www.computersight.com/Computers/10-Ways-to-Occupy-Yourself-on-the-Computer.168727

  • Games



    Games is probably the biggest thing on a computer. When either it be a simple 5kb online flash game or a CD-ROM 10GB sized FPS game, games is sure to take a lot of time. You might be occupied several hours a day just for having a little fun. A little reminder though: Don't play too much, it can hurt you.

  • Video



    Watching video is a huge, huge thing on the internet. There is probably over 100 video sites with video of anything you like. The best video site is probably YouTube , But also MetaCafe, Stage 6 (DivX video), and Google Video (includes a lot of YouTube).

  • Graphics



    Staring at pictures, taking pictures, editing pictures, uploading, downloading, blogging, watching, almost everything you can think uses graphics and pictures.

    If you're a website manager you might want to spiff up the site with some exciting pictures and icons.

    If you're a photographer you might want to take your SD card, pop into your computer and upload your pictures. Then you can clean you SD card again, as the backup is on the computer, and then take more pictures. You save money on developing pictures too.

  • Music



    Face it, music makes everything more elaborate. What if you went to a concert, and all you heard was nothing. Or watching a movie, a horror movie, wouldn't be anything without the sound. But now you don't have to go to a concert or watch a horror movie, just to hear your favorite soundtrack. The computer is here for you. On the internet there is tons of sites who offers great musical enchantment like Musicovery , and outside the internet, if you got a CD-ROM with your favorites on, press it into the computer and put it on your computer. It's easy, either you rip it with a software, or goto your drive and copy the sound.

  • Editing



    Ever wanted to edit anything that just isn't perfect yet? How about video special effects, drums and bass, masking pictures, creating your own Mario level? All you have to do is edit it.

    For example, video effects, can be made quite good with FXHome VisionLab Pro, you can add laser sabers, fog, interference and lots of other stuff. But how about the sound? A sound editor that adds bass and drum and a lot of other stuff is available on the web, just search? How about VirtualDJ or FL Studio?

    But you want to make pictures look better? Photoshop is the tool for you. Although there is a lot of other image editors from MS Paint to Photoshop, Photoshop is the ultimate. How about erasing the background and make it look like you are wounded, bleeding and on the moon? That would be cool. But lets say, you're more into games. You liked Super Mario 3 right? How about Super Mario Improvement 3? Where you can edit a existing SM3 rom and make your own levels. Sounds really entertaining (Note: Roms are not provided by Super Mario Improvement 3).

    There is gigatons of equipment for all your need out there. Just search.

  • Socializing



    Social life is best when outside traveling around with friends. But it is not all dead on the computer. There is a lot of places where you can make new world wide friends. These includes forums, blogs, guestbooks, chat rooms, IRC, internet phone, instant messaging, e-mails or other online activity.

    Popular software includes MSN, AIM, ICQ, Skype, mIRC, AOL and Yahoo. These are chat programs which sends instant messages or e-mail to all your friends for free (with the exception of Skype which is an online telephone that costs for anything else than other skype users). Making accounts is usually free and you have the chance to make an special name which could be world wide someday.

    When it comes to forums however, these are mostly online based. And there is a huge collection of forums just waiting for you out there. You can even make your own forum. Just search the web for free forums or something.

  • Development and Productivity



    Sitting around the computer all day isn't always just a waste of time. You can do things that will cover up the time lost. Many people sit all day at the computer and earn a lot of money. Just look at Bill Gates, making the Windows system, he is one of the richest guys on the Earth. And to make the system, you don't think he sat all day with his DOS lines?

    Now, development doesn't always bring in cash, but can be enjoyed by others. Take New Grounds for example. This site is almost fully dedicated to Adobe Flash users publishing their content which took around 6 weeks to complete, just to get credit and to be known world wide.

    If you'r a grown person you might work with computers. Develop programs all day and such. You might have a major breakthrough and start producing something revolutionary. Now, this doesn't happen to everybody, but it is fun to create stuff, getting it published, and enjoyed by others.

  • Knowledge



    Ah, considered our prime function, learning is what differs us from single celled organisms. Learning is obtained by books, documentations, movies, audio, and by watching others. However, all this is easily obtained by the internet. If you have a question, search for it, and the answer might pop up. Half my brain is from things I learned from the web. Like scripting, tricks, history, math, development and science. Wikipedia is considered the biggest source of information (however, being editable by anyone, everything is not always 100% accurate), and it is also make in a huge selection of Languages (not tied together so everything may not be display the same at each language).. You have the power of knowledge in your browser. Use it.

  • Creating and Design



    Tied together with editing, development and productivity, creating and designing your own thing from scratch is one seriously huge thing on the computer. Think about it, many things you do, are created by you. If we take away text based stuff like forum posts and e-mail, have you ever though of all the videos, pictures, audio and such on the web? Many of those are made from scratch.

    Take Photoshop, you can make a universe with stars, planets, twirls, waves, blasts and meteors just from scratch, without anything.

    Creating a video might take some raw footage, but all the editing, titles, special effects and that things are made from scratch by you.

    And audio, every piece of sound must have been made from scratch at some point. And they are created every second, many by software on a computer. And the web? The whole web was made from scratch, every site is made from scratch, html files that are made from scratch by someone, maybe you? Then hosted at an computer for viewing by everyone. My point is, most the time, many people are creating random stuff, when either it be games, graphics, video, audio, html, software or flash.

    Speaking of flash, did you know, that almost every ad, banner and online video is made with flash? Of course YouTube videos are made with a camera and some editing, but in general, they are converted to flash video (flv).

  • Rainy Days



    The final, and probably a very used reason to sit at the computer, is rainy days. When the weather is cloudy and rainy, the TV is broken, you have just sold your game boy, the fridge is empty, you're sealed inside your computer room and the computer is on, you will most likely jump into your chair and grab that mouse as if it were the end of the world.
    • ]]>     Mon, 14 Jul 2008 10:07:52 PST     Nine Unique Killer Apps http://www.computersight.com/Operating-Systems/Windows/Nine-Unique-Killer-Apps.74204
  • Okay, so you have the latest version of your browser with all the latest add-ons and updates, your anti-spyware has cleaned house and your net connection has been tweaked to perfection. Yet you still keep getting DNS errors or the dreaded 404 page telling you you're unable to find the address. It might be time to flush and restart your Windows' DNS cache to fix those pesky net errors. Get on to hassle free surfing right here. Totally narly, dude.
  • About the only thing that you can raise my pulse rate - other than the wife telling me her mother is coming for a visit - is the idea of downloading some of the latest music. Big Brother used to be the scare, now it's being named in a RIAA lawsuit for trying to get my Cowboy Junkie tunes all in digital format. Well the last bastion of free music to download and listen to is right here. Yes, get your cowboy hat back out and get ready to kick back…the music is back on!
  • Is your file system as cryptic and difficult to find as your buddy is when he owes you some money? No fear. Not only can you find, manipulate and browse your files easier with FreeCommander, it just may replace the old windows Explorer altogether. With its two pane browsing feature multi directory shifts are a breeze. Want to find out or even change a file's attribute? Easy. Securely delete files. No problemo. And if after all this you decide, “Nah, not for me.” It's also easy to try FreeCommander without pushing Explorer out, so reverting back from the Porche to the Model T Ford is easy for you "Learning-curve" challenged folks. All kidding aside, try it, you won't go back! FreeCommander is a free download for Windows only.
  • Has this happened to you? You find a program or data file you know a friend would be really happy to receive so you attach it to an email or instant message it and it gets rejected because its too large. Well PipeBytes solves it. A free online file transfer web app for transfers of unlimited sized files. Say again? Unlimited? Yes, that's right, Just like mother-in-law's waiste size -- there's just no end!
  • So many times I look for and find a good app that looks easy to use until it sends me through some obscure process of getting windows to integrate it into my system by editing those delicate .ini files. Too much like work for me. Imagine my relief when I found the people at the BitNami project offer executable installers for many open source webapps. MediaWiki (of Wikipedia) offer downloadable installers for the app you want, like Drupal or WordPress, and ... voila! Up and running without a hassle!
  • A paradox of modern technology, with all the emails and wi-fi nodes, cell-phone calls and Blackberry texting, is simply trying to get a group of people together at any single time that is agreeable to all the participants. TimeBridge fixes it using -- just guess? That's right, technology! It sends out emails to every attendee and gets them to choose one of five timeslots, tallys them and confirms to all. Best of all, you get a clear idea as to the stragglers of your group. So if you are part of a Quilting bee, the local GreenPeace chapter, an organizer in the PTA or even a business executive, you might find this of some use. Check it out…then get back to me.
  • I think one of the best applications I found converted files of different types to PDF format for desktop publishing or web distribution. Well here is one that does the reverse. It'll take PDFs and change them to Window Doc files. Just what you need when you realize you should have tweaked that PDF with another graph or a better image. Now you can with this site.
  • You know what litters the edges of my monitor, Post-It notes. Yeah, good ole 3M knows me on a first name basis I use them so much. Well hello to anonymity because now I have this app called TiddlySticky that allows me to create virtual sticky notes with different themes, saving them as you write just like old fashioned ink on paper. Now, if only I could find an app that removes glue residue from the edges of my monitor.
  • When I have some spare time I like to catch up on the latest software releases for my frequently used apps. This is a time consuming process of opening an ap going to the help tab which has the “About…” heading. I open it, find the software developer's website and visit them. Most of the time its wasted effort, sometimes I am greeted with an update improving the program. Well Secunia Personal Software Inspector does just that. Just like windows update, it does this for your installed software notifying you of updates, patches or “End-of-Life” notices when apps are no longer supported by the developer. It's just such a beautiful thing it brings tears to my eyes, so try it…and hand over the tissues, will you.
    • ]]>     Tue, 15 Jan 2008 06:12:46 PST