Synchronizing your Outlook calendar does not have to be a costly pain

I truly don't like the fact that I am sounding yet another Google trumpet, but darn if the tools aren't just cool sometimes.

Two weeks ago I was confuffling about trying to figure out how to make my Outlook calendar iCal accessible without jumping through hoops, using a Microsoft server, paying an Exchange hosting provider or worse yet installing exchange.

You have heard me jabber on how much I love Backpack and Basecamp in the past, but the Calendar function of Backpack just doesn't have the flexibility it needs to. Hats off to the folks at 37Signals for their simplicity, but sometimes it becomes a burden. Their calendar just can't accept meeting requests or turn an email into an appointment or task.

Solv

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Web tools to make you more effective

I just can't stand that word Fave but I used it anyway. Never again I tell you, never again!

Just like anything my wife initially agrees too, this list is subject to change next week. Here are my 5 favorite web tools as of right now.

Fave 5 Web Tools

(as I start a numbered list I wonder aloud why I cannot do a countdown list in the blog)

1. Plugins for Firefox - any plug-in for Firefox is great. Odds are there are useful add-ons out there for most of us. Check out https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/
   1. Web Developer Toolbar - A great utility for anyone writing or reviewing code. (goo

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Sorry for the delay avid readers, my goal is to get you news you can...yeah too cliche, anyway,  I need to get these out more often if I want to keep you folks reading, and I will...however, I must say it would help if there were some more feedback (hint, hint).

Does your website talk?

If it did would you listen? Well, your site does talk - it's chattering all day and all night long trying to tell you what's right and wrong.

Take for instance all of those log files your web site generates every day. What do you do with those? Odds are you have some analytics program installed. Here's to hoping for most of you small folks it's Google Analytics (psst - free and easy).

Every log tells a story

Digging through log files you can find at least 5 things your site loves and hates about itself. Let's have a quick look.
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"Is someone in here Twittering?"

The titles of this piece very easily could have been "Dude, what's a twitter?" or "Twitter with no regrets" and I probably would have gotten the same blank stare from most of you.

The good news is that I won't hold it against you if have no idea what Twitter is. I use Twitter more and more every day and in some ways it has replaced RSS feeds and other news sources. I can get industry news faster than anywhere else online from the people who make it and I guarantee that if your industry is not well represented now, it will be soon and it's worth your while to check it out.

What exactly is a Twitter?

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Dear Website - The First in a Series

This is the first in what I hope will be an ongoing series of articles that will look at common web site issues, what they are and  issues with web sites and their administration in order to provide tips and tools for getting better at managing your online presence.

Over the next several months I hope to tackle questions from my fabulous readers (this means you) and other sorts of stuff like -

• How to build a better website
• Search Optimization tips & tricks
• Paid Search pitfalls - where you should spend your money.
• What is social networking and how can it help my business

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Some BlackBerry tools to increase your produ...

I know that many of you travel and therefor get stuck in airports pretty frequently. The other thing I know is that many of you are among the 14 million BlackBerry subscribers who love their phones as much as they hate them.

Like many, you live on your phone and when you can't get on the plane or worse yet, can't get off the plane, what do you do? Reach for your BlackBerry, right? You check your mail, check for voicemail, call contacts, etc. In general you try and pass the time by doing something productive. As much as I love productivity, the last thing I want to do when I'm stuck in Cleveland in 6 inches of snow is work.

Well, here's a solution - games! Here are 170+ Free Games for your Blackberry . I ca...Read More

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In a comment to my last post, Jim G brought up a great point about security & support. If these are two things you need, you'd better think twice about Google Apps. Not to say there's no security, but when your personal security is breached, where will you turn - Google is pretty self service - making this an even bigger issue. There is also the issue of backups, which is especially important for compliance (SOX or other).

It kinda hurts to say but Exchange and SharePoint aren't so bad.

Ok, and this was on my mind even before Jim's comment and was given a lift by a pal. Ted pointed out that there are some nifty hosted MS Exchange / SharePoint solutions that can handle the job of email, document store and collaboration. One of the few that seems to do a pretty good job is Intermedia.net.

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Save time and money with Gmail

Time and money are precious and if you would like to save a bit of each, you might want to take a look at outsourcing your email to Google. Yes, I said Google! They have a handy little group of business tools they call “Google Apps”. In this bundle you’ll find Google Calendar, Docs, Talk, Start Page and last but not least Gmail.

By itself, Gmail is worth signing up for Google Apps. There are two simple reasons for this value – Free and Easy. Where I come from Free + Easy always equaled Danger, but not in this case.  Why don’t we take a little time going through the free and easy pieces of Gmail.

Cost if key - Gmail is Free (mostly)

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