Streamline Computer Tasks with Direct Access
If you’re like me, you spend a lot of time hunched over the keyboard. Anything that makes me more productive is well received. That’s why I am happy to do this review of a nifty tool called Direct Access.
In a nutshell
Direct Access integrates two basic functions into a slick package. First, it’s a text expander. Enter a pre-defined abbreviation and Direct Access will replace that abbreviation with a chunk of text. Second, it’s an application launcher. Enter an abbreviation (such as “goo” for Google), and Direct Access will launch the app.
The software comes …
Pimp Google With Firefox Extensions and Scripts
Have you noticed that Google invades every tiny corner of our online lives? My mail, news feeds, and calendar all rely on Google to keep working. Right now, I have three Firefox tabs open to Google applications, plus the resident Google search in the upper right corner.
I’m not complaining about it. In fact, I want to teach you some cool Google tricks. Yep, we’re going to pimp your Google.
But first, two quick notes:
1. All of these nifty hacks require Firefox. If you’re using another browser, just read on to see what you’re missing.
2. Everything …
Hide PayPerPost Opportunities That You Don’t Want
I haven’t hidden the fact that I do paid posts from time to time. Yes, I even take opportunities from PayPerPost.
There are usually anywhere from 60 to 100+ opportunities in the PayPerPost database. Since they’ve segmented their bloggers by PageRank and category, I’m not eligible for all opportunities. Plus, most of them have nothing to do with the site here.
I want to hide opportunities that aren’t applicable to me.
That’s why I created a simple Firefox extension that allows users to hide PayPerPost opportunities. It adds …
Sidebar – Free Software for Fun and Productivity
#ga_block { width: 250px; background-color: #ffffff; padding: 6px; border: 1px solid #cccccc; margin-top: 8px; }
#ga_block img { display: block; border: none; }
#ga_block #ga_title { font: normal 12px Verdana, sans-serif; border: none; margin: 4px 0 0 0; }
#ga_block #ga_title a { text-decoration: none; color: #096D15; }
#ga_block #ga_text { font: normal 11px Arial, sans-serif; border: none; margin: 0.5em 0 0 0; }
#ga_block #ga_text a { text-decoration: none; color: #333333 }
#ga_block #ga_text p { margin: 4px 0; }
#ga_block #ga_text img { display: block; position: relative; float: left; border: none; margin: 0 1em …
Spruce Up Your Blog with Images, Courtesy of Flickr and Creative Commons
When blogs are just text, they’re boring. This is a problem with lots of legal blogs.
An easy way to prettify your blog is to add images to it. They don’t have to perfectly tie into the post, but they should be close and visually appealing.
But where do you find free images you can use? Flickr, everyone’s favorite photo sharing site.
With Flickr you can easily search for pictures based on any term(s) that might come to mind. The odds are great that you’ll find tons of …
Easy Ways to Stikkit to Your Computer
If you haven’t yet heard of stikkit, you’re missing out. In short, this is an online repository for digital sticky notes. But it’s also much more than that.
Stikkit actually thinks for you. When you type in certain things, stikkit understands what you mean and can do the appropriate actions with your note. You can make tasks, contacts (or “peeps”), calendar items, bookmarks, and more! For a great introduction to this service, check out Merlin’s awesome stikkit demo.
The …
Control Your Computer and Dictate with Windows Vista Speech
One of the coolest features of Windows Vista is the speech recognition software. It’s actually usable!
Do anything with only your voice
Vista lets you easily control your entire computer, with nothing but your voice. You can control windows, open/close programs, dictate text, and even browse the web. It’s quite powerful.
Dictation – When your cursor is somewhere that accepts text (like Microsoft Word), you can simply speak. The words are then typed into the program.
Commands – The program recognizes a variety of special commands to manipulate the cursor, windows, and other things on your computer. You can …
Lazy (and Quick) Way to Leave Blog Comments
We all know that one key to building your blog is to comment. You’ve got to participate in the community, give to others, and share ideas.
But do you ever get tired of filling out comment forms? You know, the standard fields: name, email, website. I’ll bet you type the exact same info in these fields on every blog.
Your browser might remember these values, or you might have a form filler that watches your back. But if you don’t have a solution for these repetitive keystrokes, I’m going to help you out.
Lazy blog commenter
I’ve written a little …
How to Convert a Video Podcast to Audio Only
Do you own a video iPod? If not, you’re stuck watch video podcasts only on your computer. Until now.
These simple directions will convert your favorite video podcasts to audio only. You’ll now be able to listen to these podcasts on your iPod, with no video required.
I run Windows XP. Thus, these steps focus on Windows. However, I’m sure a similar process would work on Mac, Linux, etc.
1. Download and install MediaCoder, an open source (free) media transcoder. Simply download the latest stable release and follow the easy install process.
2. …
Google Offers Tailored Results for Medicine
It seems like I’m constantly finding a new Google feature that I didn’t know existed. You would think that a search engine is pretty basic and can’t be constantly evolving. Not so, at least for Google.
I was doing some research on prescription medicines. I typed in the medicine name, and Google offered a list of options to “refine” my search results. This is awesome! I’ve included a screen shot below, using Tylenol as an example.
When you click one of these links, you’ll see results specific to the topic you selected. This is simple, but …
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About Andrew Flusche
Lawyer, bicyclist, husband.
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