Posts filed under 'Software'
The folks at Mozilla (the makers of the wonderful Firefox web browser) have recently released Thunderbird 1.5, an update to their solid (and free) email client. I have been using Thunderbird for about a year now and have been very impressed with the product; it looks like it has improved even more with the 1.5 version.
Overall, Thunderbird is a very viable option as an email client. While it may not shine in a corporate environment with the need for calendar sharing and other corporate features, Thunderbird is great for the home user. It handles the basics very well. Sending, receiving, writing and organizing email messages is nice and easy, with all the features the average home user needs.
The inline spell checking is a nice addition to this version. Words are spell checked as you type and underlined in red if amiss. I like the automatic spell checking feature, although I’m sure the red lines and automatic correction will eventually produce a generation of the worst spellers (sans computer) the world has ever known.
Unfortunately, having a junk-mail filter these days as part of an email client is a must-have feature. Thunderbird’s filter is very easy to use and gets better as you get more spam. I haven’t noticed too many false postitives (messages that are not spam that get directed to the junk-mail folder) in the past year I have been using Thunderbird. It seems to do a good job.
Setting up Thunderbird was a breeze. It can grab all of your addresses and email from previous desktop clients. Adding and editing email account settings was also very easy. I have several email accounts and I like how Thunderbird handles the multiple accounts. It’s a simple thing to compose an email and send it from one account and not the other.
One thing missing is an integrated auto-archiving or backup feature that would let you easily schedule and create backups of all important emails. Since another key selling point of Thunderbird is all of the extensions (or plugins), someone could write a simple extension that provides this functionality, but it would have been a nice included feature in version 1.5.
In conclusion, I like Thunderbird. It’s easy to use and extend, it has the basic features that most users need, it’s completely free, it won’t propogate viruses, and it does a good job of handling spam. What else can the average home user ask for?
January 23rd, 2006
A savvy email user knows how to write an email and write it well, knows how to squeeze every last drop of energy out of those electrons to make the email as effective as possible. Here are a few tips that can make you email savvy:
- Keep it short
Long, rambling emails are rarely read thoroughly; most people skim or totally skip over them. If you want someone to read your email, make it short. If you want someone to read the email and do something, make it even shorter. Proofread your emails and edit liberally; take out any verbose verbiage — emails should be fluff-less.
- Mind your tone
Emails don’t have context. Don’t be sarcastic or try to use any type of tone because it will inevitably be read differently than the way you wrote it.
- Reply with original text
Most email applications automatically do this, but I have received several replies where the sender has not included my original email. This is especially frustrating if I can’t remember what my original request was and the reply is along the lines of, “OK, let’s do it.”
- Use only one space
Spaces are like exclamation points — you only need one to make it work. Using more than one is unnecessary; it simply takes up more space and makes it harder to read.
- Choose descriptive subject
Don’t get too clever with your email subject line. Use a good subject that summarizes the body of the email. Having a well-written subject line is extremely beneficial when digging through old email archives.
- Keep it topical
If your email contains more than one major topic, break it up and send as many emails as there are topics. It doesn’t take much additional effort and makes it much easier keep it short and choose a descriptive subject.
- Respond promptly
This can be taken to an extreme, but just don’t let your emails sit around and get stale. Promptly may mean different things for different emails. Prioritize what you need to reply to and take care of them. Don’t let unread messages accumulate in your inbox.
Learning and practicing these simple principles will make your email life much easier, and your savvy email readers will appreciate it too.
December 4th, 2005
Presentations in a conference room with a projector are not just for executives and board members any more. Laptops and projectors are commonly used for a wide range of presentations and meetings, so it is imperative to learn proper protocol to lead such a meeting.
Whether it is a software demo, a PowerPoint presentation, or an online meeting, there are several guidelines to follow:
- Set up early
Nothing will erase credibility faster than watching someone struggle setting up for a presentation. “If he can’t figure out how to hook up a projector, how is he an expert on [Insert Topic Here]?” Arrive early (probably 20-30 minutes early if you’re unfamiliar with the equipment) and be ready to go when the first person arrives.
- Avoid distractions
The audience will be tempted enough, so don’t provide any additional distractions. Here are a few common distractions which can totally kill (the bad way) a presentation:
- Email
Outlook 2003 has a desktop alert activated by default which pops up the subject and the first few lines of each message you receive. I was in a meeting once where I spent most of my time being distracted by the emails the presenter was receiving. At one point, one with a very personal subject line popped up and I had to hold back my laughter. Be safe and simply turn off your email during the presentation — it can wait.
- Power settings
Laptops usually have default timers to shut off the screen or go to standby mode after a period of inactivity. Make sure you change those setting on your laptop when leading a presentation. In the same meeting with the email snafus, the presenter had several open discussions with the group. During each conversation, his laptop went to standby mode. (Yes, that meeting inspired this article)
- Messaging clients
Having an IM client running during a presentation is just asking for trouble. Any friend or family member may decide to send you an instant message on any number of embarrassing (and potentially career-threatening) topics. Be safe and make sure to turn off any instant messaging programs.
- Other
Simply be aware of the things that may be displayed during your presentation. If you accidentally minimize the main window, should the group really see the picture of you in your bathing suit from your last vacation? Do you have a shortcut to your Death Rock Music folder on your desktop? Do you have any other programs which occasionally send pop-up notifications? Clean up and turn anything off that you don’t want shown on the projector screen.
- Use dual screen
Although this is a little more advanced and doesn’t apply to all types of presentations, using the projector as a second monitor can be a very useful technique. Windows XP supports dual monitors by default, but you may have to tweak your video card settings to pull this off right. If properly done, this technique can really help your presentation.
Following these simple guidelines won’t make you a great presenter. You will need to master your message, voice characteristics, body language and many other factors to deliver a polished presentation, but at least you won’t look like a total rookie.
November 27th, 2005
Listening to audiobooks on my iPod is a new favorite hobby of mine. However, audiobooks are pretty expensive to download from iTunes (or Audible.com), so I have become a frequent visitor to the Books on CD section of my local library. Because I don’t have a CD player in my car, I rip the audiobooks into my iPod and listen to them during my commute.
iTunes still doesn’t have great support for ripping audiobooks; it’s certainly not a one-click operation. I also haven’t found a good resource explaining how to import audiobooks online, therefore I have decided to document the process I use.
1. Get disc information
Let’s get the obvious steps out of the way: start iTunes and insert the first audiobook CD (most audiobooks I’ve seen span several CDs). iTunes will try to find the information for the author, album, and tracks and will populate it if it exists. If not, the best way to populate this information yourself is to right-click the CD in iTunes and select Get Info. You can add the title, author, disc number, and other information for the disc.
2. Select audiobook format for import
As stated before, iTunes (as of version 6.0) still doesn’t make it easy to import audiobooks. Follow these steps to select a good audio format for importing:
- Choose Preferences from the Edit menu
- Click on the Advanced tab
- Select the Importing tab subsection
- Choose the AAC encoder from the Import Using dropdown list
- Select Custom from the Setting dropdown list
- In the AAC Encoder window, choose 64 kbps from the Stereo Bit Rate dropdown box and check the Optimize for voice checkbox
- Click OK until you get back to the main iTunes window
(Note: You can select a lower bit rate if you need a smaller file size and don’t mind the decreased quality)
3. Group and rip
Most audiobooks I’ve come across have about 25 tracks per CD. You don’t want to listen to an audiobook by track, but rather by CD (audiobooks are bookmarkable — see the next step). Select all of the tracks on the disk and choose Join CD Tracks from the Advanced menu. This will join all of the tracks on the CD into one track on your iPod. Then simply click on the Import icon and let iTunes work for a few minutes.
4. Make files bookmarkable
After all of the discs have been imported into iTunes, one crucial task remains. Tracks imported by iTunes with the AAC encoder are saved with and extension of .m4a. To make the file bookmarkable, simply change the extension to .m4b.
Windows XP hides the extension by default, so you will have to change that setting. Simply go to the Control Panel, switch to the classic view, and open the Folder Options. In the Folder Options window, click on the View tab and scroll down the list of Advanced options and uncheck the Hide extensions for known file types checkbox.
Finally, find the imported audiobook tracks and change the extension from .m4a to .m4b. iTunes will automagically recognize those files as audiobooks. Sync them to your iPod and enjoy the commute!
October 15th, 2005
Hard drives fail. Operating systems corrupt. It’s your basic Second Law of Thermodynamics, things fall apart.
Even though most of us know the Second Law of Thermodynamics (few have it memorized, but most understand it intuitively), somehow we still fail to perform one of the most basic and essential tasks in computing: the all-important backup.
We’re now in the digital age, photos are no longer stored in shoeboxes, songs aren’t on CDs, recorded TV shows aren’t on videotape, journals aren’t written by pen on paper and hidden under a pillow — they are all stored on your hard drive. As digital media proliferates, computer users still back up as much as they always have — rarely, if ever.
Having a complete and comprehensive backup solution takes a lot of work. However, a few simple steps can prevent major disasters. Here are three basic recommendations everyone should be following:
1. Indentify the data (pictures, emails, address book, Quicken files) you can’t lose. Make this step easier by separating your data from all of your program files and operating system. Windows XP does this by default (for most files) by storing them in your My Documents folder. Beware of other user profiles on that machine and the location of their important files if the computer has more than one user. This is the data you will be backing up.
2. Put the data (from step 1) on removable media. Almost all computers these days come with a burner. CD and DVD media are very inexpensive and should have plenty of room to store your most important data.
3. Repeat Steps 1 & 2 at regular intervals. It won’t do you much good to have a backup from a year ago. You need to get into the habit of backing up your files. The frequency is really up to you, but I would suggest at least monthly.
These three steps should make losing a hard drive an inconvenience instead of a total disaster. Sure you will still need to install an operating system and all of your program files, but most people keep the original install discs around. Restoring the OS and the programs is the easy part — it’s the loss of those personal files and data that hurts. Performing these three steps will prevent much pain and heartache when the Second Law of Thermodynamics pays an unexpected visit.
September 20th, 2005
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