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This is an archive of the "Internet Safari" column that appears in print in various newspapers. The column is written by Tom DiFrancesca III.
Wednesday, April 13, 2005
Column for month of April 2005:
Making life easier.
Isn’t that what modern technology is supposed to do? Sometimes I wonder though, with the proliferation of video games (both console and portable), portable DVD players, cellular telephones for adolescents and teenagers, satellite radio, and let’s not fail to mention the Internet. With the World Wide Web we’ve got online games, chat rooms, downloadable movies and music, streaming television, and thousands of shopping Web sites.
Is life truly easier now, or simply more distracting?
Are we taking advantage of the conveniences afforded to us or are we becoming more prone to procrastination? Just one more movie to watch, just one more game to play, just another hour or two and we’ll have our entire collection of Jimmy Buffett videos downloaded and cataloged.
Marriages are crumbling, people are becoming less social – more willing to stay at home and sit in front of the computer than they are to go out and mingle with the rest of humanity.
Of course, it’s not all bad – I’m just pointing out some if the pitfalls of modern technology.
Now I’ll dwell on some of the positive aspects. Take for example, getting one’s self organized.
If you’ve ever had the opportunity to use Microsoft’s Outlook program, you were probably pretty impressed with its ability to help one stay focused and organized when it comes to task management, to maintain contact information, and to keep notes on a variety of subjects. That type of program is called a "Personal Information Manager". The primary drawback in using Microsoft’s program is that it comes with a pretty hefty price tag.
I have found a worthy alternative though.
"EssentialPIM" can do just about anything that Outlook can do (except for built in e-mail handling) and it is priced perfectly – that is, it is totally free. I’ve been using the software for about two weeks now and it works flawlessly; and I’m just totally blown away that it did not cost me a dime. There are so many great features that are built into the program that I couldn’t possibly cover them all in this column. You’ll just have to hop on over to:
www.esentialpim.com
and download a copy for yourself. Some of the niftiest features that I like are first of all, the ability to assign different colors to scheduled appointments and for individual tasks. Different colors to indicate the relative importance of each item. The second feature that I like is that I can export almost any aspect of "EssentialPIM", a customized calendar, a list of tasks, etc. into an HTML document and post it on the Web, that way I can access the data remotely from another computer if I so desire.
Now on to another aspect of making life easier with modern technology.
How many times have you found yourself starring at a piece of electronic equipment, or an appliance, and wishing that you had quick access to its user’s manual? I know I have on more than a few dozen occasions. Well, have I got a site for you; check out
www.livemanuals.com
and you will be pretty impressed. One can look up operating manuals by product type or by manufacturer. There is no guarantee that every single device is covered, but it sure doesn’t hurt to give the site a try though.
Happy Web wandering.
Making life easier.
Isn’t that what modern technology is supposed to do? Sometimes I wonder though, with the proliferation of video games (both console and portable), portable DVD players, cellular telephones for adolescents and teenagers, satellite radio, and let’s not fail to mention the Internet. With the World Wide Web we’ve got online games, chat rooms, downloadable movies and music, streaming television, and thousands of shopping Web sites.
Is life truly easier now, or simply more distracting?
Are we taking advantage of the conveniences afforded to us or are we becoming more prone to procrastination? Just one more movie to watch, just one more game to play, just another hour or two and we’ll have our entire collection of Jimmy Buffett videos downloaded and cataloged.
Marriages are crumbling, people are becoming less social – more willing to stay at home and sit in front of the computer than they are to go out and mingle with the rest of humanity.
Of course, it’s not all bad – I’m just pointing out some if the pitfalls of modern technology.
Now I’ll dwell on some of the positive aspects. Take for example, getting one’s self organized.
If you’ve ever had the opportunity to use Microsoft’s Outlook program, you were probably pretty impressed with its ability to help one stay focused and organized when it comes to task management, to maintain contact information, and to keep notes on a variety of subjects. That type of program is called a "Personal Information Manager". The primary drawback in using Microsoft’s program is that it comes with a pretty hefty price tag.
I have found a worthy alternative though.
"EssentialPIM" can do just about anything that Outlook can do (except for built in e-mail handling) and it is priced perfectly – that is, it is totally free. I’ve been using the software for about two weeks now and it works flawlessly; and I’m just totally blown away that it did not cost me a dime. There are so many great features that are built into the program that I couldn’t possibly cover them all in this column. You’ll just have to hop on over to:
www.esentialpim.com
and download a copy for yourself. Some of the niftiest features that I like are first of all, the ability to assign different colors to scheduled appointments and for individual tasks. Different colors to indicate the relative importance of each item. The second feature that I like is that I can export almost any aspect of "EssentialPIM", a customized calendar, a list of tasks, etc. into an HTML document and post it on the Web, that way I can access the data remotely from another computer if I so desire.
Now on to another aspect of making life easier with modern technology.
How many times have you found yourself starring at a piece of electronic equipment, or an appliance, and wishing that you had quick access to its user’s manual? I know I have on more than a few dozen occasions. Well, have I got a site for you; check out
www.livemanuals.com
and you will be pretty impressed. One can look up operating manuals by product type or by manufacturer. There is no guarantee that every single device is covered, but it sure doesn’t hurt to give the site a try though.
Happy Web wandering.
I'm baaaaaaack:
I just took a "little" trip (about 3,000 miles to be exact) and my Internet access was pretty limited so I've not posted anything new in a while. I should be back to my two or three postings a week routine shortly.
Here is something of interest. Don't know if you know this already, but Google now offers a mapping service (it's free) and it works great. Just hop on over to maps.google.com and check it out.
I've also just come across a "Wired" magazine article about the service that will help get you "up to snuff" on the service. Click here to access the column.
I just took a "little" trip (about 3,000 miles to be exact) and my Internet access was pretty limited so I've not posted anything new in a while. I should be back to my two or three postings a week routine shortly.
Here is something of interest. Don't know if you know this already, but Google now offers a mapping service (it's free) and it works great. Just hop on over to maps.google.com and check it out.
I've also just come across a "Wired" magazine article about the service that will help get you "up to snuff" on the service. Click here to access the column.
