Tools I Love…

Move Over Netbook… The TouchPad Has Landed…

August 10, 2011 by Pamela 3 Comments

This past June, my husband bought me a netbook – an Acer Aspire One. I’d previously been lugging around a bulky laptop, though I’d often forget to put it in the car. Joe wanted me to have something I could carry in my purse so I could easily work on-the-go. It’s worked well, allowing me to handle online store emergencies as they happen (I’ve been known to stop off at a McDonald’s or Starbucks to fix issues).

When HP announced the launch of the TouchPad, I was eager to get my hands on the device. Not that I saw it as an absolute necessity, but rather a great add-on to my productivity suite of gadgets and software. Most of my friends and colleagues tote around iPads and Android devices, but I don’t like the restrictions set forth by Apple, nor the security issues with Google’s OS. Still, laying out hundreds of dollars for a device that would – for now – merely accompany my webOS smartphone was difficult to justify.

Then HP offered to send me a 32GB TouchPad to put to good, small business use. The only agreement was that I would write about the device from time to time. Who was I to refuse?

Rest assured, no promises of “praise only” comments were made.

With that, I’m declaring Wednesdays “webOS Wednesday” – whether posting here or at other outlets, I’ll be sharing my findings each week.

If you’re looking for ways to increase productivity and streamline communications, I invite you to come along for the ride. If you currently use another tablet, that’s fine – you’ll still gain some ideas on working more seamlessly.

To kick things off, I’ll share the #1 feature of webOS and the TouchPad: Multitasking. You can run multiple apps in pure form. That means web sites will load while you’re playing a game or writing an email.

Just how many apps can you run at once? I run 7-10 simultaneously (which I think would be the tops for many), but this video created by webOSroundup.com hits 31 (many HD) before the device poops out.

Oh, and that netbook? For now, it’s on standby as I get to know my new TouchPad. So far, I’ve been able to do everything I need while on-the-go.

You can follow all my posts on the HP TouchPad at the webOS Wednesday page.

Disclaimer: HP has provided me with a 32GB TouchPad and wireless keyboard for personal and business use, with the agreement that I will share my experience with the devices.

Filed Under: Technology, Tools I Love..., webOS (Palm) Tagged With: android, iPad, productivity, Technology, webOS

Postbox 2: Best Email Client for PC and Mac

May 10, 2011 by Pamela 2,011 Comments

I have email archives going back nearly twenty years. They were exported out of various clients over time, most notoriously Microsoft Outlook (not Express). In early 2009 I switched to Thunderbird and was certain I’d found the best client for handling the vast amount of correspondence I receive daily.

A big reason I stuck with Outlook, then Thunderbird, was Cloudmark (a user-based spam catcher), which, at the time, only worked on the two clients mentioned.

As my needs changed, I began to rely heavily on IMAP and its advanced features. Unfortunately, neither Outlook nor Thunderbird could adequately keep up with my demands. In short, both programs became unstable regularly, and, last fall, I resorted to using my own web mail. Of course, that carried its own set of problems.

Since I avoid the cloud, Gmail for business was out of the question.

Then the guys over at dotCOM host (awesome host, by the way), recommended I try Postbox 2. This stand-alone email client offers the best of just about everything. Originally created for the Mac, I was thrilled to try it for the PC.

I’m both a Mac and PC user, but the bulk of my work is done on the PC due to proprietary software.

Could I just use Mac Mail and my network to save and pick-up files for PC modifications? Sure, but why create extra steps for myself?

Enter: Postbox 2.

It has a simplified interface (thank goodness, because I don’t want my email client looking like a web site), and is as clean and robust as Mozilla, Eudora and Gmail combined. More, since I can run a licensed version on both Mac and PC, I get the best of both worlds, including the ability to work off multiple archives simultaneously.

Some of the features that made me fall in love with Postbox 2 include:

Wicked fast search. I don’t know how they do it, but even searching through archives of thousands of messages returns results in a snap.
Categorization. No more having to file everything in “to-do” folders as I work. Categorization simplifies the process of seeing everything I need at once.
Advanced Searching. I can search for all sorts of attachments (documents, images, etc.) based on file names.
The Inspector. This pane tells me information about the sender, including his/her picture (if assigned) and credentials. It also summarizes the links and attachments in the message. It’s a handy feature when I just need to revisit a specific web site, but don’t want to re-read the entire email.
I can assign color codes to topics, tag messages as To-Dos, and see email and sender details (Inspector).
Quick Reply. I often receive messages that require research. Quick Reply makes it easy to send someone a note of acknowledgement. I also use it to reply to comments via the Disqus system.
Quick Reply is so much quicker than using the standard full-window reply method.
Quick Move. I hate the task of dragging email messages across folders. Now I can hit a key and use a menu to move/archive email.
To-Dos in the Inbox. I love that I can create a To-Do (task) and it appears just like an email in the inbox. Out of sight, out of mind? No more, because I can also “sticky” them to the top of the list.
Pending Flag. I use this feature to mark an email that requires a response before I can move forward. When a response comes in (a reply to the original message) the flag disappears automatically. I also rely on this feature to send reminder emails.
Message Editing. When subjects don’t make sense, I can modify them (append notes), as well as annotate the message itself.
Topic Assignments. One of the most productive features of Postbox 2 is the ability to organize messages based on topics. I can assign topics to any message quickly and sort, filter and archive accordingly. Used in conjunction with To-Do marking, I’m getting more work done in less time because I’m more organized with my correspondence.
Twitter & Facebook. Postbox 2 is not a replacement for social apps, but the ability to post a quick update when inspiration hits (like after reading a cool message) is a plus.
Quick Web Search. No more moving to a browser window to search a phrase or topic. From within a message I can select text and opt to search Google or one of many other sites, including Amazon.
No more going back and forth! If I'm not sure what you're talking about, I can simply highlight text and search the web.

While other email clients offer some similar features, Postbox 2 does it better, faster. Users of Mac Mail will find it’s an excellent alternative, and PC users will find the interface and speed delightful. Best of all? The price… No, Postbox 2 isn’t free. But at less than $30 (at the time of this writing) who can complain? The time you’ll save using it’s organizational and reminder tools means this email client will pay for itself in no time. For me? It took only a day…

And if the core features simply aren’t enough for you, Postbox 2 Add-Ons include Lightning (Mozilla), providers for Google Calendar and Microsoft Exchange Calendar, spam filtering, even OpenPGP encryption. Heck, you can even schedule emails to send at a certain time… like when your boss thinks you’re at your desk. Umm, well, okay, maybe not.

Do you use Postbox 2? Plan to try it out (free trial)? I’d love to hear what you think…

Filed Under: Tools I Love... Tagged With: email, organization, productivity, software

Gearing Up for Social Media Success Summit 2011

April 14, 2011 by Pamela Leave a Comment

Social Media Success Summit 2011 (SMSS) is right around the corner. I’ve already started clearing off my desk to make room for my feet so I can kick back and listen to some key players in the social world. (Yes, even those who consult spend time and money to stay in-the-know.)

From May 3-26, more than 20 key players in the business will be sharing their methods, predictions and statistics. I attended the summit last year and walked away armed with tons of new ideas, some merely triggered by case studies totally unrelated to my work.

The organizers make it simple. Presentations (which include Q&A) are scheduled throughout the month, which helps ease the burden of information overload. If you miss a session, or just want to see it again, you get access to replays. SMSS is actually the first online “big” event I’ve attended where I didn’t feel pressed for time to get in and out of education panels.

Many of you have been asking me if the summit is worth the cost. Since no travel or accommodation costs are involved – no one is going to judge you if you’re sitting in your jammies eating M&Ms (yes, guilty) – there’s no worries about connecting flights or lost reservations.

But, seriously, if you want to gain more customers and brand recognition, it makes sense to understand what tools are available, how to use them, and how some companies went about making their mark. The sessions are designed to guide you down a logical path. It’s also a great opportunity to hear speakers you might not otherwise have the chance to experience.

Of course, like anything else, if you can walk away with just one, really good idea, it wasn’t at all for naught.

Learn more…

I pay for my own attendance to this event. However, I do use an affiliate link in this post.

Filed Under: Ecommerce, Social Media, Tools I Love... Tagged With: Ecommerce, facebook, marketing, social media, twitter

Snagit – Capture, Size, Crop and More…

April 14, 2011 by Pamela 2 Comments

If you’ve been relying on the Print Screen key and PhotoShop (or other graphics program) to capture and perform basic edits for online graphics, you’re wasting a great deal of time.

The first time I tried Snagit (TechSmith) was to take screen shots of the Miva Merchant admin when writing the official guide to the software. I’d previously paid someone to capture screens for me, but it was tedious to work with an obscure file naming scheme, and counterproductive when I needed to move things around. Snagit allowed me to capture what I needed, at different resolutions. It was a simple program, and quite inexpensive.

Snagit boasts many standard tools for image editing.

If PhotoShop is too rich, or overkill for your work, try Snagit. It boasts many standard tools, including drop shadows, filters and watermarking.

Snagit is still affordable (currently $49.95), but now boasts hordes of tools for simple and on-the-fly graphics editing. I used to “snag” the screen and use PhotoShop to resize, add effects and run filters. Now, I can edit most images for this site from within Snagit itself. And, yes, I can also work with images never captured through the software.

The beauty of Snagit, however, is not just what I can capture, but how… Not only can you grab pages via a scrolling window method, Snagit can capture entire web pages with links intact. This is quite useful when I need to archive a page before modifications, or, unfortunately, when I need to capture a site that’s ripped off my work. You can also set up custom profiles for capturing at specific resolutions or percentages.

Default, basic capture profiles are sufficient for most. When you want to do something special, though, you can create custom settings.

The ability to use output commands is a plus. Snagit can launch virtually any program (including email and FTP) to attach or upload images. It can also output to Excel, Word and PowerPoint (to name a few). Need to include the graphic with a description in a new Word document? Just choose “New Document” from the drop down.

Output files to email, FTP, documents and more. You can even customize outputs to specific programs. If that weren't enough, you can also download "stamps" for marking up images.

And, while I’ve always had an affinity for Google’s Picasa and Adobe Bridge, Snagit’s image library feature is more than sufficient for those wanting a single tool to handle it all.

I first used Snagit more than five years ago. Price wasn’t the deciding factor for me. After all, I have always needed tools that get the job done and save me time. It just so happens that Snagit fit the bill across the board.

Snagit is available for both PC and MAC, and is available for trial or purchase directly from TechSmith.

Filed Under: Design, Tips, Tools I Love... Tagged With: Ecommerce, organization, web design

Follow Friday 5: Setting Yourself Up for Success

April 8, 2011 by Pamela 2 Comments

Each week I pick 5 key folk to follow on the web (and Twitter) based on a selected topic.

Success. It’s something for which we all aim. We read books, articles and listen to motivational speakers, usually only when we make the time.

If you’re looking for daily guidance or inspiration, follow and subscribe to RSS feeds for these key players:

Chris Brogan (@chrisbrogan) works with Fortune 100 and 500 companies, but that doesn’t mean we can’t translate his oft-inspirational advice for small business folk. You’ll want to make reading his blog posts a daily ritual, for sure. Visit his site–>
Guy Kawasaki (@guykawasaki) is the author of Enchantment (which I dubbed a must-buy last month). He’s the co-founder of Alltop.com, but, most notably, was the chief evangelist of Apple. Guy takes a no-holds barred approach to business success, and uses terms we understand to explain what works and what doesn’t. Visit his site–>
Stephanie Calahan (@stephcalahan) focuses on organization as a foundation to success. Her aim is to combat wasted time and resources, inspiring us to take simple steps daily so we may reap more benefits from our work. Visit her site–>
Scott Stratten (@unmarketing) is a major influencer on Twitter, but I’m willing to wager a good number of his followers aren’t taking his advice literally… And they should, because Scott’s approach is to break out of the “bubble” in which so many “experts” and businesses are trapped, shifting attention to true, human marketing techniques. But it’s not all about marketing. Follow Scott around the web and you’ll see what I mean. Visit his site–>
John Jantsch (@ducttape) is a small biz marketing consultant. The term marketing tends to scare small business owners because, more often than not, it coincides with the word “expensive”. You can, however, learn quite a bit by following John and reading what he has to say. Although most of his work is not geared toward the tiniest of businesses, it’s simple enough to translate and relate. Visit his site–>

Of course, there are plenty of folk worthy of mention. My picks are based on current trends and my experience with their work. Know someone we all need to follow around? Share your thoughts in the comments box!

Filed Under: Ecommerce, Must Read Web, Tools I Love... Tagged With: #FF, marketing, organization

Review: ENCHANTMENT (Guy Kawasaki) is a Must-Read

March 15, 2011 by Pamela 6 Comments

I spend at least half my work time learning—that is, expanding my knowledge and understanding of current trends in the fields of ecommerce, usability and security. Most of my learning takes place online or in-person. I’ll admit, the number of business books I read is limited, mostly because I see reading time as relaxation time, and for that, I delve into fiction.

I received Guy Kawasaki’s latest book, Enchantment, as I was wrapping up work on my own recently published commerce manual. I was put on the list* to receive a review copy, and when the release date (March 8^th) passed me by I felt quite guilty. Fortunately I was heading to California on the 9^th for the annual Miva Merchant conference, and what better way to pass the time while at 35,000 feet?

I’ll admit, when Guy announced the title of his new book, I wasn’t impressed. The word enchantment, to me, had little to do with business in our busy world today. When he revealed the butterfly cover, my concerns grew—all I could wonder was, How is he going to push this book to the masses with a weak title and “pretty” cover? Despite the fact he’d already explained the basic concept of enchantment (in the sense of his message), it was still a turn off.

Mid-way through Chapter One I was hooked, primarily because Guy’s writing style is exactly what I hope mine is perceived as… Direct, easy to understand, and sans sugar coating. Yes, Guy’s very blunt about key issues, going so far as to say the moral wrongdoers have no right to succeed in business.

Enchantment is a guide for advancement. From teaching us how to smile and give a proper handshake, to lessons on leveraging today’s technology, Guy’s directives are not only clear, they make sense.

Enchantment is not a guide for becoming an instant hit. It’s about building relationships atop strong foundations.

I was so impressed with Enchantment that I made a last minute change to my presentations, which focused on shopability. During my sessions I explained how small business ecommerce sites shouldn’t try to mimic Amazon.com’s layout and flow. I used the product page for Enchantment as my example (with a side-note suggesting that the audience buy his book. Yes, the entire audience).

This was when I realized Guy used more “pull” than “push” when it came to marketing his latest book and growing his readership (he explains both these methods in the book). I’ve seen more third-party tweets, facebook posts and blog posts about Guy’s book than I have any form of mass advertising. And that’s exactly what Enchantment is about—growing by means of relationships and support—something every business and person needs in order to succeed.

Steve Wozniak says, “Read this book to create a company as enchanting as Apple.”

I say, “Read Enchantment if you want to succeed in anything…”

* This is not a paid review. I was provided the book only for consideration of review, with no agreements made. I do, however, use an affiliate link while linking the book title to amazon.com.

Filed Under: Ecommerce, Must Read Web, Social Media, Technology, Tools I Love... Tagged With: Ecommerce, marketing, Mistakes That Kill, reviews, social media

Constant Contact – Free “Site Design” Email Template

February 19, 2011 by Pamela Leave a Comment

If you’ve been thinking about using Constant Contact, you may want to take advantage of their special offer. Through Feb. 28, 2011 Constant Contact giving new users a free email template based on your existing site design. It’s a $99 value (and, actually, usually costs more than that through an outside designer).

The company does offer a 60-trial (up to 100 subscribers) as well.

And, yes, I use Constant Contact for my mailings.

Trusted Email Marketingand Online Surveys

Filed Under: Design, Tools I Love...

Love webOS? 10 Things We Can Do to Make It Thrive

May 19, 2010 by Pamela 18 Comments

It’s no secret, I love webOS, which is the driving force on my Palm device. You know what else I love? Word of mouth… You know who else loves this type of marketing? Yep, Apple.

Keep in mind that while HP can bring in the capital and the marketing experience, word of mouth is still key in selling just about anything. So if you love webOS and want to see it hit the big time, here’s 10 things you can do.

Keep the Signature. If you send email via webOS, you’ve probably noticed the default signature of “- sent from my Palm XXX (in my case, Pre)”. This alone can help spread the word. And if you use your device for business? It also tells colleagues, bosses and customers that they’re uber-important because you’re responding to them while you’re out of the office.
Offer to help – then bust out your phone. The other day I helped a guy in the grocery store find out which Probiotic yogurt was considered the best amongst all the brands the store sold. When I brought up a definitive site, zoomed in and let him take a look, he was quite impressed. We wound up talking about my Pre for several minutes.
Demonstrate it. When people make a comment about your Pre or Pixi, be excited and take a moment to show them what it can do. For millions of cell phone users, the only interaction they’ve had with a PDA or smartphone has been via TV commercials or the Internet.
Let them touch it. Unless your interested party is a total klutz, let him take a look. A few weeks back I handed my Pre to my father-in-law. Within seconds he was opening and closing applications, surfing the web and looking at photos. Now, his work doesn’t require anything more than a regular cell phone, but if it required more? He’d be using a Pre.
Show off pictures. Once they see how vibrant the colors are, they’ll want to see more.
Let them watch a Betty White / SNL clip off YouTube. Well, really, any currently popular clip will do. The goal is to show them that watching video on what they might think is too tiny a screen is actually doable and enjoyable.
Show off a cool app. What really intrigues people are apps that are either very logical or just really cool. My favorite show-offs? Seismograph, Flashlight, Notes, Crossword and Shopping List.
Slide out the keyboard. A big plus to the Palm Pre and Palm Pixi are the keyboards. So many people simply don’t want to be screen-tapping letters all day.
Don’t bash the competition. Instead of spending time being so negative over Android and the iPhone, just be more positive about webOS. Good people LOVE positivity, and are more apt to pay attention to what you have to say.
Check the weather. One of the most fundamental tools is among the most popular. People want to know if it’s going to rain or snow. They want to know what the weather is going to be next week when they take a trip or if a reported storm is headed their way.

Sure, there’s many other things toshow off – many dependent on the type of person with which you’re sharing. The key is to be enthusiastic and “teach” others just how easy webOS is to use. In short, do what the carriers should already be doing – selling the phone!

I’d love to hear your own “share” stories.

P.S. If you’re a webOS user and are on LinkedIn, feel free to join the group: webOS Enthusiasts. We talk about anything webOS.

Related: HP to Buy Palm: Here’s My Plea

Filed Under: Technology, Tools I Love..., webOS (Palm) Tagged With: palm, pda, webOS

Pidgin Streamlines My Multiple Chat Accounts

April 29, 2010 by Pamela Leave a Comment

Managing multiple chat clients separately is a nightmare. Colleagues and some key clients use a variety of tools, including AIM, Yahoo!, MSN and Google Talk. While I do have accounts on all of these, handling multiple chats and logs, for me, is a snap.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Tools I Love... Tagged With: chat, communication, Technology

Find Hex Colors On the Fly

April 10, 2010 by Pamela 1 Comment

Opening PhotoShop (or other program) just to pick a color can be tedious. Who wants to wait for programs to load just to find the right color? Enter: Online Hex Color Selectors.

Here’s a list of my favorite ones. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Design, Tools I Love... Tagged With: web design

Enter: Postbox 2.

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