| Greetings!
Yep, we are rapidly approaching the Labor Day holiday, and I'm going to assign you some homework (the nerve!!!) But this is actually pretty fun homework, much of which you can likely do while sitting on the beach, grilling on your deck, or while watching the Isaac coverage on TV. I want you to finally get your smart phones and tablets configured for full productivity. Let's get to it!
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| Smart Phone/Tablet Productivity Configuration Short and Sweet! | This is ALWAYS the place to look for your Timely Tip!
This month, I would like to share with you some of the key aspects in my very popular new program on Smart Phone Success (including Tablets). In this program, I basically share how you can set up a tablet or smartphone to be a really powerful productivity tool (and not just a player of Words With friends or Angry Birds!)
When I built this program, I looked at the basic productivity configuration I had on my business laptop, and then compared it to the many popular apps and the basic configuration of my smartphone and tablet devices.
And, I discovered, with a bit of tinkering and a few app uploads, I could easily make my smart phone and/or tablet a nearly complete surrogate for my business laptop. Here's how:
1. Get the most basic productivity functions installed -- e-mail, calendar, contacts, tasks, and notes on your devices. I have apps on my smartphone and tablet that give me separate access to my work e-mail, personal e-mail, and junk/spam/internet e-mail accounts. I also have the Google calendar app, the contacts app, a task app, and Evernote for my notes. Effectively, this emulates Microsoft Outlook and syncs nicely with the Google productivity suite.
2. Get an MS Office-compatible document creator -- I'm using Quick Office Pro but Documents to Go and others give you the ability to create office-compatible documents. Google Docs may be an option too.
3. Download the Adobe Reader app and possibly a PDF creation app. This way, you can not only read PDFs, but possibly create them when needed.
4. Get a cloud storage account to have a location to save your documents and media files. iCloud, Google Drive, DropBox, Box.com -- even Evernote -- can act as locations where you can store and save your files of all types so you can access them when/as needed. (This will also keep you from using up all of the available memory on your device -- the cloud becomes your "hard drive"!)
5. You already have a browser with web search capabilities -- you are good there! You also have media playing/streaming capabilities. These are usually built right in, although sometimes you can find cool apps that can enhance these capabilities.
6. Consider a scanning app like CamScanner to scan hard-copy documents and quickly/easily convert to PDF (then save to the cloud!)
7. Put shortcuts to all of these apps on one or two of your "home screens" on your device -- make this your "productivity panel", and, if possible, make this the default screen that your device typically opens first (NOT the "Games" or "Social Media" panel!)
8. Strongly consider getting a Bluetooth or connected keyboard option for your device, and a wifi-enabled printer connected to your router. With these two devices, you can type ten-finger speed when creating documents or e-mails, and then seamlessly print from anywhere.
Let's add this up: e-mail, calendar, contacts, tasks, notes; document and spreadsheet creation; PDF reading and creation; document and file storage; web browsing/search and media playing/streaming; document scanning; and ten-finger typing, and seamless printing. You no longer have a smart phone or tablet -- you have a fully functional laptop computer in smart phone or tablet form! And you could do all of this over the holiday weekend, with plenty of time to spare!
Of course, I go into much greater detail on this basic productivity configuration as well as much more deeply discuss many of the most popular productivity-related apps in the communications, travel, finance, health and wellness, media, and other genres in my full program on this topic, but this gives you the "gist" of how you can configure your device for true mobile productivity. Have at it, and share with me the fruits of your labors (it is Labor Day weekend after all!)
(And contact me if you would like to bring my Smart Phone Success: Getting More Productivity (and Fun!) From Your Smart Phone & Tablet Devices program to your next company, conference, or group meeting!)
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| Update on My "Viral" YouTube Video |
A BIG THANKS to all of you! The YouTube video I mentioned last month has nearly reached 18,000 views -- WOW!! If you didn't see it last month, it is a YouTube video I produced and posted a little over a year ago on two of my favorite Outlook 2007 tips (yes, these tips work on Outlook 2010 too!): "Drag & Drop" and the use of "Auto Signatures". Take a look at the video here:
http://youtu.be/uLDAzHcHKZA
And please feel free to also share! (And possibly consider subscribing to my YouTube channel so you can receive immediate notification when I post new videos.)
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*******
I just finished another two weeks of intensive work on the road, with trips to Alabama, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania in the last 10 days. Luckily avoided the hurricane, West Nile virus, and any cheese steak sandwiches on these trips (some might argue whether it was "lucky" I didn't get a cheese steak.)
Now, I have a little break for Labor Day and a planned week off the road next week as my little ones start school (including the youngest starting Kindergarten -- WOW!!) Can't wait to be a Mr. Mom on Tuesday and see that pensive yet excited little face as she starts her next big life adventure!
Now that the kiddos are back in school, look for several new announcements starting in September. I plan to offer more public webinars this fall on even more topics, and will be announcing my public in-person events and conferences too. Hope to see you on the road somewhere (and that you catch a fish, burn a hot dog, avoid the mosquitoes, or just take time to read a book this Labor Day!)
Until next month, Stay Timely!
Randy Dean
Randall Dean Consulting & Training, LLC
or http://www.emailsanityexpert.com
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App of the Month
Brightest Flashlight Free
| Brightest Flashlight Free app -- available on Google Play and iTunes App Store. There is another free flashlight app available for BlackBerry.
Sometimes, the simplest (and silliest!) app is often one of the most usable.
And I use this app ALL THE TIME! It is an app that does exactly what is says -- it turns on all of the lights on your phone, including your camera flash, to maximum brightness, and effectively turns your phone into a flashlight.
I use it all the time -- looking for stuff under the couch, when walking the dog at night, seeing to the bottom of my computer bag, even checking hotel rooms for bed bugs!
I've been told but haven't researched that there are even apps that create levels for hanging pictures and other single-source household use apps. If you are using any of those, please let me know. I could see creating a "toolbox" shortcut where I store all of these useful apps.
I know this seems sort of silly, but Brightest Flashlight Free is probably one of the top 5-10 apps I find myself using on a regular daily basis. Check it out! |
| Going Camping This Weekend? |
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You may remember that earlier this summer I did the issue on using Evernote to track your camping list. Well, Timely Tips readers Dan Smith and Cindy Bergman added a couple items to that camping list:
DVD's (and maybe a portable player if you aren't in a camper)
Bubbles for the small children
Box drinks for the little ones
Beach Towels
Adult Beverages
Swim Suits
First Aid Kit (including something for bug bites and burns -- LOVE this addition!)
Fan
Sling Shot (Thanks Dan!)
Keep sending me more ideas for the list! We'll get it to be one of the best out there!
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