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April 2004 - Posts

Friday, April 30, 2004 4:48 PM

Search tools review

There are so many tools available to address the deficiencies in Window's built-in search capabilities that deciding which to use has become mind-boggling. I've been evaluating many of the popular tools that readers, other bloggers, and tech magazines
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Friday, April 30, 2004 6:03 AM

Omar & LauraJ are Getting Things Done

Omar Shahine has a great post today about his Getting Things Done experiences. I've seen a number of Microsoft folks and bloggers picking up on David Allen's methodology in the past few months and the reports are almost universally positive. Read Omar's
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Thursday, April 29, 2004 9:16 AM

Windows XP SP2 delayed until July

Paul Thurrot reports that Microsoft has delayed the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) until July. Microsoft has delayed the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2), originally expected in late June, to at least July, according to a spokesperson
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Thursday, April 29, 2004 7:35 AM

Scoble weighs in on the power of blogs

Steve Rubel's interview with Robert Scoble of Microsoft appears today. Here's my favorite thought from the interview: Micro Persuasion Do you think PR pros approach bloggers like yourself the same way they might approach a journalist? How should PR pros
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Wednesday, April 28, 2004 9:04 PM

Steve Rubel interviews "The Scobleizer"

Steve Rubel is starting a multi-part interview with Robert Scoble, Microsoft and blogging evangelist on his MicroPersuasion blog about PR. Micro Persuasion I just completed an email interview on bloggers and PR with Robert Scoble, Technical Evangelist,
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Wednesday, April 28, 2004 2:52 PM

ContentSaver - a worthy alternative to Onfolio

A while back, I wrote about Onfolio, which you've probably read about on at least a dozen blogs by now. I really liked Onfolio for it's elegant interface, seamless integration with Internet Explorer, and rich publishing capabilities. After living with
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Wednesday, April 28, 2004 6:25 AM

Second XP SP2 release candidate due in May

BetaNews is reporting that RC2 of the XP Service Pack 2 will be released in May. The official service pack release is expected somtime this summer. BetaNews | Second SP2 Release Candidate Slated for May Second SP2 Release Candidate Slated for May By David
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Tuesday, April 27, 2004 9:02 AM

Omar's rockin' add-in for Outlook and OneNote integration

Omar Shahine is working on a totally cool add-in for Outlook that offers the knd of integration with OneNote I've been dreaming about. It's still in development but I'll be watching this closely. You go, Omar, and sign me up for the beta test! OneNote
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Tuesday, April 27, 2004 5:52 AM

Make sure you're sitting down for this!

This is a wild site filled with visual illusion. The images appear to move, yet they're not animated. It's all visual trickery. Thanks to Ole for the link.
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Monday, April 26, 2004 6:36 PM

Categories are working

A big thanks to Chris who managed to figure out how to enable categories in our Movable Type blog engine. Now you can sort all of my posts by category if you have a particular area of interest. See the list of categories in the sidebar on the right.
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Monday, April 26, 2004 6:17 AM

Even the EFF thinks anti-GMail legislation is misguided

When the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the watchdog for Net privacy, finds that proposed legislation against a new offering -- in this case, Google's GMail service -- is bad law, you have to sit up and take notice. Note that EFF is not pro-GMail in
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Monday, April 26, 2004 5:31 AM

The costs of spyware

Network World's Mark Gibbs weighs in on the costs of spyware. The cost of spyware If you're starting to think these programs are dangerous, you're right. They often slow down browsing and overall PC performance, can make your system unstable, and waste
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Sunday, April 25, 2004 7:44 AM

Sunday GMail Update

eWeek continues its excellent coverage of the new GMail service and the controversy it has stirred up among privacy advocates. Google Defends Scanning E-Mail for Ad Links "To have free e-mail, you have to have ads," Nicole Wong, senior compliance counsel
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Sunday, April 25, 2004 7:33 AM

Thanks for the link KC!

KC Lemson points to a cool grammar quiz . Like KC, I'm a bit of a grammar maven. You are a GRAMMAR GOD! If your mission in life is not already to preserve the English tongue, it should be. Congratulations and thank you! Take the quiz yourself - it's fun
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Saturday, April 24, 2004 7:42 AM

Steve Gillmor talks with Google's Brin about GMail

More on GMail. At eWeek.com, Steve Gillmor has a fascinating conversation with Google co-founder Sergey Brin about the new e-mail service. Google's Brin Talks on Gmail Future Could you give me a quick overview of the goals of this project? It started
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Saturday, April 24, 2004 6:53 AM

Does GMail set a precedent?

Wired News has an interesting article by Ryan Singel that covers the Computers, Freedom and Privacy conference and asks some thought-provoking questions about the implications of Google's GMail. Maybe I've become a cynic, but I never had an expectation
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Friday, April 23, 2004 5:44 AM

GMail - first impressions

I maintain another blog on the Blogger.com host related to information security and protecting your PC from virus, Trojan, and spyware attacks called The Invisible PC . It's part of a project I'm developing to support an e-book that will help PC owners,
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Thursday, April 22, 2004 7:47 AM

Google OS?

I had a conversation with my company's SEO consultant just a few days ago about this. Talk about a paradigm shift! Oakland Tribune Online - Business News Google eyes Net operating system One of world's largest supercomputers could let users access Windows
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Thursday, April 22, 2004 5:31 AM

Managing mail in your Outlook inbox

Yesterday's Microsot Insider Update newsletter has a link to an online training exercise that offers 5 useful tips for managing your mail. The focus is mail you've elected to keep in your Inbox. I try not to use the Inbox as a storage area (see my recent
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Wednesday, April 21, 2004 6:36 AM

Salon.com interview with Neal Stephenson

I'm a huge fan of Neal Stephenson. His current project, a multi-volume story called the "Baroque Cycle" began with "Quicksilver" and continues in the just-released "Confusion". These are big books, in page count and scope and there are riddles, obscure
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Tuesday, April 20, 2004 7:24 PM

No review tonight but read Chris Pratley

Dang. Rushed out of the office for an end-of-day meeting offsite and forgot to grab my OneNote install disc (you need it and have to uninstall 1.0 before installing the SP1 release). So, no review tonight on the SP1 Preview. However, Chris Pratley has
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Tuesday, April 20, 2004 10:28 AM

OneNote SP1 preview is now available!

The OneNote Service Pack 1 Preview has just been posted! It's a big download (82 MB). I'll try to post a thorough review of the new features tonight. For now here's the link . Be sure to check out the What's New page. A huge number of new features have
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Tuesday, April 20, 2004 6:19 AM

A great guide to basic backup

Here's a great guide to basic backup strategies for: My Documents Outlook data Registry data Outlook Express data Messenger (and other IM) data System data (core files and desktop configuration) When's the last time you backed up your PC? Argentum - Windows
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Tuesday, April 20, 2004 5:40 AM

Steve Rubel is blogging on PR

If public relations is part of your job (and if you're blogging for business it is), check out Steve Rubel's new blog Micro Persuasion . Weblogs will become a fountain of knowledge more powerful than any other. Some of the best and brightest minds in
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Monday, April 19, 2004 6:59 PM

The trials are over - sticking with the Palm OS

I gave the Blackberry and the Sidekick a thorough workout but... no dice. The PIM functionality is brutally primitive and I just could not accept the limitations either imposed on my Getting Things Done workflow and need to fully sync with Outlook. Although
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Monday, April 19, 2004 5:06 PM

James Fallows weighs in on managing knowledge

James Fallows is a bright guy and it's always nice to see him talking about tech (his recent missives for The Atlantic have been very Iraq-focused). He has a very thoughtful piece in yesterday's New York Times Business section about how Lookout, Onfolio,
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Monday, April 19, 2004 5:41 AM

Getting Things Done - The Four Criteria Model

The Four Criteria Model I mentioned the idea of context in my earlier posts about Getting Things Done, and that is the first criteria in this model that you apply to make instant decisions about what to do next. Context is all about where you are and
Posted by marc | 7 Comments
Sunday, April 18, 2004 8:39 AM

My take on Getting Things Done - Interlude

Over the last few days, I've been posting about David Allen's Getting Things Done methodology for personal productivity. Based on the comments posted here and the e-mails I've received, it seems to be a popular topic. Before I pick up the thread with
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Sunday, April 18, 2004 7:03 AM

Moodbook - an art gallery on your desktop

Here's a fun tool for "setting the mood" while you work. MoodBook. Bring art to your desktop! With MoodBook your desktop looks like an art gallery changing art expositions either automatically, at regular time intervals, or manually, with a click. Each
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Saturday, April 17, 2004 6:20 AM

The Book Game - GTD-style

Seems like bloggers everywhere are playing the Book Game: 1. Grab the nearest book. 2. Open the book to page 23. 3. Find the fifth sentence. 4. Post the text of the sentence in your journal along with these instructions. In keeping with my current focus
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Friday, April 16, 2004 6:03 AM

My take on Getting Things Done - part two

There are two big take-aways for me from David Allen's Getting Things Done. Today, I'll discuss the The Five Phases of Workflow (thanks to a reader for correcting me here) and how it defines the activity areas that make up the mechanics of the system.
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Thursday, April 15, 2004 7:01 AM

My take on Getting Things Done

Chris challenged me this morning. "When are you going to start blogging about your approach to Getting Things Done?", he wrote. I plead guilty to having been an unrepentant evangelist for David Allen's personal productivity system since I was first introduced
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Wednesday, April 14, 2004 4:45 PM

One Note on-demand seminar

Micorosoft OneNote MVP Ben Schorr posts today about a OneNote on-demand seminar . Introduction to OneNote 2003 and Toshiba Tablet PCs Webcast OneNote, Tablet PC Microsoft has an on-demand webcast that introduces OneNote 2003 and the Toshiba Tablet PC
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Tuesday, April 13, 2004 8:39 PM

Ben Schorr - Portable OneNote

Ben Schorr has a nice tip on using a USB thumb drive to make a portable OneNote notebook. theSpoke I recently got a new 64MB USB Flash Drive (Thanks Christine!) and wasted no time putting it to use in my daily life. I have a couple of folders in OneNote
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Tuesday, April 13, 2004 4:27 PM

Less: What Customers Really Want

Dana's Blog is a must read if you have anything at all to do with marketing. According to Seth Godin's new book Free Prize Inside , that's everyone. Today, Dana points to a wonderful e-book with a valuable reminder about what we're supposed to be doing
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Tuesday, April 13, 2004 6:30 AM

Trying out the new Blackberry 7230

On to the Blackberry. I had a great experience at the local T-Mobile store yesterday. The manager, who uses one of these new color Blackberry units was supposed to bring it in so I could play with it during lunch. He forgot it at home. He offered to bring
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Monday, April 12, 2004 5:57 AM

Knockout solves Outlook "hang" problems

I've been using the KnockOut: Companion for Microsoft Outlook (freeware) for a couple of months and it has proven to be lifesaver for a recurring problem with my Outlook 2003 installation. If you, like me, run a number of Outlook add-ins, you've undoubtedly
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Sunday, April 11, 2004 7:31 AM

The Ultimate Troubleshooter

Answers That Work (love the name!) is a great resource for anyone who has ever wondered just what the heck is going on "behind the curtains" on their PC. The company has developed an inexpensive application called The Ultimate Troubleshooter ($20 for
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Friday, April 09, 2004 8:22 PM

Small Pieces Loosely Joined for kids

David Weinberger is one of the most cogent and original thinkers about the meaning of the Net and the impact it has, and can have, on our lives and our society. As one of the authors of The Cluetrain Manifesto , he helped define the impact of the web
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Friday, April 09, 2004 6:20 AM

Crabby Office Lady explains Task Panes in Office

Crabby Office Lady is back with a great guide to the many uses of the Office Task Pane. Of particular use is a table showing which panes are available in which programs in the Office System. As always, a really helpful column from the crabby one. Crabby
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Thursday, April 08, 2004 5:40 PM

OneNote Update is coming

Both Ben Schorr (a Microsoft MVP) and Fred Zimmerman (author of my favorite OneNote book) have reported that OneNote SP1 will be widely available in beta by the end of the month. I'm looking forward to seeing what additions will be made. My biggest wish?
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Wednesday, April 07, 2004 6:22 PM

Free Windows Explorer replacement with tabbed UI

Here's a nice, small Explorer substitute that offers a tabbed UI and actually shows you the size of your folders! ExplorerXP also supports wild card selections (e.g. "*.zip" to only select zip files in a selected directory). ExplorerXP ExplorerXP is a
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Wednesday, April 07, 2004 5:58 AM

New ActiveWords app - Google tools

Found on the ActiveWords forum via their RSS feed. Announcing a new ActiveWords application: GOOGLE! ActiveWord Systems has just released a new application for ActiveWords PLUS and Enterprise users: GOOGLE.AWZIP. You can now automate all your Google searches
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Tuesday, April 06, 2004 6:00 AM

Online Content Checker - Are you sending SPAM?

Here's a great tool for anyone who generates customer-oriented e-mail. If you're concerned your e-mails are being trapped by spam filters, here's a fast and easy way to see what might be triggering the trap. ContentChecker This is probably the most reliable
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Monday, April 05, 2004 2:29 PM

ActiveWords scripting reference now available in PDF

Just posted on the new ActiveWords forum: The ActiveWords Community - ActiveWords Scripting In response to one of your requests we just posted the ActiveWords Scripting Language documentation file as a PDF: ActiveWords Scripting Guide Regards, Pete Weldon
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Monday, April 05, 2004 5:57 AM

What's up with Borders?

Jon Strande at the Business Evolutionist has a great post about what's wrong with the big booksellers - Borders, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble - and how they're missing out on a great opportunity to create a community. Business Evolutionist: Bookstore Relationships
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Sunday, April 04, 2004 8:26 AM

Goin' Mobile... with Hiptop

I'm trying out a Color Sidekick device (CSK) with always on service from TMobile . I've seen these devices written up occasionally - most recently in a post at the Getting Things Done forum - and got a bad case of gadget lust when it occurred to me that
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Saturday, April 03, 2004 3:01 PM

David Allen's Magic 8 Ball

From David Allen's blog: David Allen My book as psychic reader? I ran into someone who said he and his staff were having a great time using Getting Things Done (on audiotape) like one of those 8-ball cubes you turn upside down when you ask a question
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Saturday, April 03, 2004 6:37 AM

Quote of the week

Forbes.com: Linux Loyalists Leery "SCO is targeting large companies," Carey says. "If we put a large Linux presence out there, it puts us on the radar to get sued. It's like walking around in the woods during deer season." uttered by Rick Carey of Bank
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Friday, April 02, 2004 5:41 AM

My favorite April Fool's Day gag

Forget GMail (no joke, it appears). This one got a lot of people going... Microsoft Changes XP Activation in SP2 ActiveWin.com has learned that Microsoft plans to update Windows XP's End User License Agreement with Service Pack 2, to be released this
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Thursday, April 01, 2004 4:51 PM

Lookout updated - two new features

The Lookout search add-in for Outlook that I''ve been raving about has just been updated. As might be expected, this new release addresses bugs discovered in the prior beta release but also adds two new features. My favorite is that Lookout now remembers
Posted by marc | 0 Comments
Thursday, April 01, 2004 5:43 AM

MessageSave and EZDetach make mail management a lot easier

Reading some of the e-mail questions I receive from readers and scanning through some of the older posts on the Getting Things Done forum , it appears that many people are struggling with two problems related to Outlook e-mail How to save e-mail for archival
Posted by marc | 0 Comments