Essential Office Worker Tools

I am constantly in a hurry. In fact, thinking about how to get more done in less time has become my career as an automater. Thinking about the essential time saving tools that a Windows office worker would want beyond the ubiquitous MS office suite...

Search

Due to the volume of files and emails we have to deal with, we need a search tool to find stuff that's way better than the Windows Search tool. I use a couple of them. First up is X1 (www.x1.com) which I have used for years now. It finds files and emails INSTANTLY and has a wonderful columnar layout.

I also use the Copernic (www.copernic.com) search tool on my family PC. It's quick, free, and simple enough for my family to use.

Images

We're so visual these days, that grabbing and using an image has become a necessity. For viewing, I use the wonderful free Irfanview utility. For capture, I use either HyperSnap (www.hyperionics.com)or SnagIt (www.techsmith.com). Both are excellent and make getting the right image into your document or web site very easy.

Backup Software

You only think of this category if you have lost an important file. Did you know that most electronic file loss is caused by accidential deletion? That's right -- we do it to ourselves. So get one of these nifty backup utilties and be safe. I use Mozy (http://mozy.com/)on my laptop because I only have documents and source files to back up. Mozy's 2GB limit on the free version nicely covers me on this. I pay about $5/month (less if you pay for the year) to have Carbonite (http://carbonite.com/) running on my family PC. Simple and unobtrusive, Carbonite backs up tons of family photos, our financial files and lots of little documents you forget about like your daughter's dissertation on why you are the World's Greatest Dad.

To-Do List / Reminders

For quick reminders, I use the Stickies for Windows utility (www.stickiesforwindows.com). It creates various colored sticky notes on your desktop that you can use to organize things you don't want to forget. If you need these reminders (as I do) in different locations, then use Gubb (www.Gubb.net). I have used many to-do list makers and found Gubb to be the best because it is easy, nice looking, and single-minded about its purpose. I'm using both at the moment.

Personal Labeler

If you were sending out a big batch of letters for the same purpose, you'd run a mailmerge and use laser labels. But what about those of us that just mail out bills or send a few letters a week? It's time-consuming (and sloppy if you write like I do) to hand write these envelopes. My solution is the Dymo LabelWriter 330 (http://global.dymo.com/enUS/Categories/LabelWriter_Printers.html). Type the address once and after that it's two clicks to get a label out (select, print).

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