Get Your News Faster with NewsRack

NewsRack is an iOS feed reader.

For those of us who still read RSS feed I found this app makes browsing through my feeds a lot faster.  Some of the features I really like:

1. Left and right keys toggle you between the feed list and feed article.
2. You can see the list of feeds and the article at the same time.
3. Only $7.99 from the mac store
4. Has tabs so you can open multiple articles at once (or click through links in articles)
5. Opens article in a webkit (I think) browser in the app
6. It even has integration with Delicious!!! (Something I didn’t know till I downloaded it)

Some of the minor inconveniences I’ve noticed:

1. Have to login to delicious (and any other site) every time app launches
2. Read articles listing doesn’t scroll when you navigate with keyboard (like Google Read)

Overall I think this is a great desktop app for getting through our web news a bit faster.  If you’ve used it, let me know what you think!

Filed under: Office, Productivity, Tools

Outlook Tasks (for Mac)

I recently moved into a working environment that uses Outlook. Not my choice of email clients, but in the name of trying out new things I started playing with the Task’s in Outlook.

So far, here are a few things I like:

• Shortcut to create a new task (command + N)
• Can set deadlines and reminders for taks
• Has a follow up feature
• Has a nice date picker

As with any app, there are always some cons

• No way to switch between mail, calendar, and tasks via keyboard
• Can’t add email to a task (like in Gmail)

Overall, I would say that if you’re already using Outlook for your Email, give the Tasks a go!  If you use Outlook Tasks, let me know what you think?

Filed under: Office, Productivity, Tools, Uncategorized

Gmail Archives and Action Method To Do App

I recently posted an article on Dabrook about how I use gmail archives along with the action method to do app to zero my inbox and stay on top of my to dos.

Filed under: Personal, Productivity, Tools

Get up and walk away for 2 minutes

Preferably outdoors.

With warm weather approaching, I thought I would post a little reminder about how helpful it is to get up from your computer (or work) and take a little walk.

• It clears your head
• Helps blood your circulation
• Opportunity to talk with people
• It inspires others to take a break too

Now, this is not to be confused with the procrastinations, I don’t want to work, I am easily distracted breaks.

Filed under: Office, Productivity

Review of Things To Do App for the iPhone

A while back a gave a list of some different to do list applications that I use or have used.

Since then, I have primarily been using Things on my iPhone for my to do list.  I had downloaded the free demo version of Things for the Mac, but it did not sync automatically, and I found that just having my to do list on my iPhone works pretty well for me.

The nice thing about the Things To Do app for the iPhone is that I can easily move to do items between “Today”, “Inbox”,  “Someday”, or “Project”.

• Today: items that I need to do today or be constantly reminded of.  The number of items in your today section display similarly to the way Apple Mail displays your unread emails.  Items that are checked off are automatically logged at the end of the day
• Inbox: this is the place for ongoing to do items.  Often items start in my Today box and get moved to Inbox if I don’t see getting to them soon.  Every few days I will go back and move a few items to the today box to make sure they get done.
• Someday: we all have these great ideas that we want to do… someday. I like the idea of the idea of this box, but I don’t use it much
• Projects: This is where you can keep track of ongoing projects that you have.  You can then have a to do list for each project, that will show up in the respective Inbox or Today box of your choosing.
• Scheduled: I haven’t used this one yet, but it allows for you to have a to do appear in your Today box on a scheduled date.

Things may not work for you, but I have felt that the cost has been warranted because I feel much more on top of my to do items.  They have some great screenshots and a videoon their site if you want to look into the app further.

Filed under: Productivity, Tools, App, iPhone, Review

Take 2 Minutes to Clean Up Your Work Space

We all know how great it feels to have a clean work space.  This week take two minutes to clean up one draw or small part of your workspace.

Pick the space that is least organized, most messy, and the part that could use your attention the most.  But don’t go overboard.  Tell yourself you will give it two minutes and no more.

You can clean up a lot in two minutes and you will feel a lot better about your workspace.

Filed under: Office, Productivity, 2 minutes, Cleaning, Tips

Save Time and Cook Your Greens in Your Rice Cooker

This may not apply to everyone, but if you have a rice cooker and enjoy green leafy veggies for dinner you can save some time and stove space.

Just put your fresh greens, like spinach, into your rice cooker with some water and you’ll have steamed veggies in no time.  Plus you don’t have to take up another pan to cook with!

Just keep an eye on the cooker, because it may overcook them.

Filed under: Personal, Productivity, 2 minutes, Cookin, Tips

Take 2 Minutes To Thin Out (or Enhance) Your RSS Feeds

I am assuming that readers will already be using an RSS feed of some sort.

For many of us, missing a few days of our feeds means that we have hundreds of articles to sift through.  Sometimes it can take us hours or days to catch up with everything we missed.  Or we give up and mark everything as read.

Next time you are in your feed reader, take a few moments to look through your feeds two types of feeds:

• Feeds you don’t read
• Feeds you don’t click through to

Thinning out your RSS feed gives means that when you read it, you are reading things that you actually care about and want to read.

On the other hand, if you are still building your feed, take some time to subscribe to a few feeds from sites that you regularly visit.

Filed under: Personal, Productivity, RSS

Sign-up for a Free Backpack To Do Account in 2 Minutes

In this 2 minute post I am going to show you how to sign up for a free account with 37 signal’s Backpack To Do application.  This is in follow-up to a previous post about Online To Do List Tools.

1. Go to backpackit.com
2. Click on Pricing & sign up in the top navigation.
3. Find the link for “choose our free plan” underneath of the of the pricing chart
4. Enter in WIDESKYDESIGNS under referrer code
5. Enjoy! (and come back and share your experience)

If you want to use back pack with a group of people — partner or business — you will have to upgrade to a paid account.

Filed under: Office, Personal, Productivity, Tools, Uncategorized, 2 minutes, Tips

Returning most phone calls take less than 2 minutes

This goes for personal and business calls.

You will feel better about having the calls off of your todo lists, and the people you are calling will appreciate hearing back from you in a timely manner.

Filed under: Office, Productivity, Social, 2 minutes