The two worst words in tech: "SIMPLY LOG-IN"

Surely, you, like me, have been frustrated by the inability to log-in at a site, where you know your user name, and of course, you know your password.

My frustrations mount when I have to try various user names and passwords, and check my encrypted password list to be certain I've got it right.

Today, the problem was worse than usual, so I tried creating a new account.
No matter what variation on my name I tried, or which email address, the service responded that name was already in use.

So I was instructed to "simply log-in..."  and it simply failed, over and over again.


Then I tried to re-set my password, and even though my various names were "in use" none of them allowed me to re-set the password.

I think from now on, once I get past this obstacle, I'll change my password to IFIHADAHAMMER...

Hope your day is going better, and the tech gods on on your side,

Helen

Requiem for a Website?

If you're an active blogger and use social media daily, when is the last time you checked your website?

Perhaps the time has come to put your site to sleep. Web sites are no longer the first place we look for up-to-date information or news. Social media is a more active and immediate place to stay connected.

Read this article at BNet.com and see if you agree. The most stricking evidence in the article is this:

"Shutting down your website to communicate solely through social meda channels might seem like a crazy idea for any large organization. But then again, there is some logic to it. The Wall Street Journal reported that Starbucks receives over ten times as much traffic to its Facebook page (19.4 million unique visitors each month) as to its corporate website (1.8 million). For Coca-Cola, the divergence is even starker: 22.5 million visitors on Facebook vs. just 270,000 to its website—over 80 times as much traffic."

Something to think about before you renew that annual hosting bill ???

Learn to deny access to your data

Even the simplest web search seems to leave us prey to search engines who monitor our search behavior.

Today, while trying to past a Facebook comment from The New York Time, I noticed the paper has become particularly grabby about letting me do a simple one-click post from their site. these are the choices I was given. If, like me, you don't want to give them all these rights, you can get around it by pasting the article link into your Facebook update.

Special Education Week & Autism Awareness Month

From Kelly James-Enger "Kids with special needs aren't weird or odd. They only want what everyone wants... to be accepted. Can I make a request? Is anyone willing to post this & leave it on your status for at least 1 hour? It is Special Education week & Autism Awareness Month. This is in honor of all children made in a unique way. You never understand a situation until you are faced with them." Share!

What browser do you use? IE, Firefox or Chrome

Please take my one question poll about your web browser. The short poll is right above this post.


Internet Explorer continues to lose market share, I personally think Firefox is superior, and a growing group of clients and colleagues have made the move to Google Chrome.

There are advantages to each, so if you're not happy with your current browser, please explore Firefox or Chrome.
the poll expires April 5, 2011 at noon.   I'll comment on the results here after that date.

Helen Gallagher

Recognizing Tech Overload

David Pogue, the clever and funny New York Times tech columnist has an interesting post here.

A Parent’s Struggle With a Child’s iPad Addiction

If you're lucky, you don't have the same problem he does, with a six-year-old child craving time with an iPad.
Many of us have a similar problem with attention and focus, very likely caused by the growing mutli-tasking trend of the 21st century. But it is clearly affecting children as well as adults. When families are all together, but each person is isolated in their own tech world, the comfort of that electronic stimulation becomes normal.

Whether 6 or 60, we need room in our lives for critical thinking, original thought, face time with family, and ways to develop our character... something a plastic screen can't provide.

from Poynter.org on LinkedIn

Get more value out of LinkedIn by following the suggestions here on the Poynter.org "Ask The Recuiter" blog. Details include use of Signal - a free LinkedIn feature:

"One of LinkedIn’s cool, free tools is Signal, which helps LinkedIn users extract more value from the growing amount of content on the careers site and Twitter accounts by helping users slice and dice a tsunamic newsfeed down to a stream they actually can use.

It works like this: There is a “Search Updates” window just under the “What should your network know?” window near the top of the screen. Type in the term you are interested in, and LinkedIn will extract all the relevant messages from its general newsfeed. With 70 million users in 150 industries, there is a lot in that general feed.

When you click after the search term, it will open up a three column-page with the  selected posts running down the main central column. Headlines on that subject, passed along by others, are in the right rail. The left rail lets you refine your search further."

Power up for a Snow Day

In Chicago, we are familiar with the routine of a snow day, especially those of us who were here during the 1967 blizzard.
Walking on top of cars the next day was the only way to have fun.

But now, over 40 years later, you have so many more ways to have fun on a snow day. You and your computer can pass the time and catch up on all the things you feel you never have time for:

1. EMPTY YOUR MAILBOX - Sounds drastic but its a great time of year to backup your old email and purge the Sent and Trash folders. Get through your Inbox and either read the messages, reply, take some action, or copy useful information into your calendar or note files. Shovel that clutter !

2. Organize your files

3. Charge all your electronics

4. Clean up your desk to get ready for tax time.

Then take a nap, make a pot of soup, and enjoy your snow day.

Computer Clarity Now In Its15th Year

The year 2011 marks the beginning of my 15th year as consultant and owner of Computer Clarity. I can still remember the weeks-long struggle to come up with the right name for my business. The two people closest to me helped and once we found 'Computer Clarity' I knew it was a name that would hold up, no matter how technology changed over the years.

And yes, we've seen big changes in consumer technology,

• from desktops to laptops to mobile devices with more power than big computers.
• from dial-up internet connections to wi-fi everywhere.
• from typing letters, and learning to fax from the computer, to ever-present email and social media.
• from adults teaching children, to children teaching adults.

Thanks to all of you for being with me along the way. It continues to be an interesting field, although my search for better knowledge management, intelligent computing, and low-cost internet access for everyone still seems out of reach for many.

How good is your memory?

Today I learned about Superior Autobiographical Memory.

Using your computer well may mean you use it to store all sorts of information, track details, keep everything at your fingertips.
How good would your memory be if you didn't use a computer? Today, on "60 Minutes" there was a fabulous segment on "superior autobiographical memory," and about James McGaugh, who discovered and studies superior autobiographical memory.

One person with this gift is bothered by the volume of all that she recalls,  Imagine if you could remember every single TV show or movie you've seen in your life? If you knew which days had rain in February of 1971? This is apparently a very rare condition, and is a fascinating topic, and there's more information about the research, and video available on the "60 Minutes" website.

Good or bad? Facebook adds email addresses

This from the Facebook Blog today:

Today I'm excited to announce the next evolution of Messages. You decide how you want to talk to your friends: via SMS, chat, email or Messages. They will receive your message through whatever medium or device is convenient for them, and you can both have a conversation in real time.  You shouldn't have to remember who prefers IM over email or worry about which technology to use.  Simply choose their name and type a message.

We are also providing an @facebook.com email address to every person on Facebook who wants one.

Now people can share with friends over email, whether they're on Facebook or not. To be clear, Messages is not email. There are no subject lines, no cc, no bcc, and you can send a message by hitting the Enter key. We modeled it more closely to chat and reduced the number of things you need to do to send a message.

Google Settlement on

Google, grabber of all the world's information, tried to capture too much private data when they launched Buzz.  Buzz was intended to let you share all your social media feed, photos and videos, but Google was keeping that information.
Sued for the privacy grab, the US Courts found Google guilty, and slapped a fine of $8.5 million, (probably one-day's ad revenue!).  Yet google users don't get a penny. The courts found:

There are too many people in this settlement and too few actually suffered any damages for Google to bother paying them directly. Instead the company will give the funds to nice Internet privacy organizations.

Thanks to  Rosa Golijan at Gizmodo for digesting the court case down to this concise summary.


Helen Gallagher
Blog Power and Social Media Handbook (Volume 2)

Email Subject Lines

If your email message aren't getting the response you desire, it may be due to a weak subject line.

Your goal in a business email is to get the recipient to open and act on the message. If it ends up in a junk mail or spam filter, you'll miss your target.

Try these three tips for better results:

1. Be brief and specific, and avoid spam catchwords, such as "Buy now" or "Fantastic link,"  etc.

2. Make it convenient for the person, by inferring a call to action

3. Convey a sense of urgency if the message is important, and live up to the promise of  your subject line.

Read more effective email tips at BizAction

"The Man Who Lied to His Laptop"

One of my BlogCritics.org book reviews is getting a lot of attention online. Here's a link:

http://www.seattlepi.com/books/428064_145835-blogcritics.org.html

Windows 7 shortcuts

If you're enjoying Windows 7, here are a few useful shortcuts to make your experience even faster:

[from LifeHacker.com]

* Ctrl+Shift+N: Creates a new folder in Windows Explorer.
* Alt+Up: Goes up a folder level in Windows Explorer.
* Alt+P: Toggles the preview pane in Windows Explorer.
* Shift+Right-Click on a file: Copies the path of a file to the clipboard.
* Shift+Right-Click on a file: Adds extra hidden items to the Send To menu.
* Win+P: Adjust presentation settings for your display.
* Win+(+/-): Zoom in/out.
* Win+G: Cycle between the Windows Gadgets on your screen.

LifeHacker has many more shortcuts for Windows 7 listed here, some with photos.

Blog Power and Social Media Handbook

It's here and available now on Amazon: the update to Social Media Handbook, including the Blog power secrets you've been waiting for.

Don't let social media ruin good communication

Not much new in technology lately, so it looks like I've been neglecting this blog in favor of the Release Your Writing and Pajama Marketing blogs.

But today, I've read a business report on something that has been bothering me. By being more efficient with tech gadgets, some people are actually becoming rude, quite unintentionally. I guess we need a new guide to etiquette: You can't save yourself time by taking tech shortcuts if it makes more work for the other person.

So when you send a message, even view Twitter or your phone, take the time to be lucid, not dash off a phrase and make the recipient guess the context.

Here's an interestng BNET article that explains it fully.

Book Review: Windows 7 Annoyances by David A. Karp

I’ve been using Windows 7 since its October 2009 U.S. launch and don’t have a single complaint. I couldn’t imagine filling a 700-page book with its “annoyances,” until I read author David Karp’s point of view, which is especially true with technology:

“One person’s annoyance is another’s feature.”

So, in Windows 7 Annoyances, Karp shares what’s cool and what isn’t, scoping out all the features/annoyances, and explaining the best way to get Windows 7 to do what you want. An hour with Windows 7 Annoyances and you’ll know how to move the software out of your way when it’s not helping.

Oh, but its so beautiful...


This is a hefty handbook that teaches you to streamline and optimize Windows 7, and find what you lost in the migration. There are plenty of hacks and time-saving tips as well as high-level operating system tech details for geeks. Overall Windows 7 is friendly and accessible to lay-users who upgrade from Windows XP or Vista, and Karp doesn’t talk down to higher level techies.

Karp covers audio/video, performance boosting tips, and provides excellent details on getting out of trouble, security issues, setting up networks and wi-fi, which is easier than in previous versions of Windows. Throughout the book, there are loads of links to third-party power tools.

If you've made the leap to Windows 7, read the full review here: http://blogcritics.org/books/article/book-book-review-windows-7-annoyances/#ixzz0qmgggHRp and you'll see there's lots to love in Windows 7 too.

Facebook & Twitter & LinkedIn... Oh My!

If you're reluctant to get on board with social media sites, fearing a complete loss of privacy and having your free time sucked into some magical vortex, relax.

You can sign up for Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin without fear:

1. On each service, control your privacy settings. It takes less than ten minutes to read and understand your options. Start by limiting your 'friends' to only the people you know.

2. Write useful comments at least once a week. No need to write every day, or to respond to other people's comments. It's not expected, so don't make it more work than you want.

3. Use a single interface to view all the traffic/feeds/comments on your collective social media sites:
-- Use Hootsuite.com to post to all social media sites at once, and update on your schedule

-- Use Echofon.com for a fabulous way to keep up with Facebook and Twitter. It's literally a little dot in your browser. Click daily to view the new stream of tweets, and you're done.

-- Don't get scared by the thought of using RSS (Really Simple Syndication) to amass all the sites and chatter you desire into a single site, such as your Google Reader page.



Find more help understanding the development of the social media craze in my Social Media Handbook.

A teacher purchased 30 copies yesterday for her classroom!

Finding phone numbers without phone books

Well, we've ruined another institution - that of the telephone book - those 5 lb. books we recycle every year. The Yellow Pages may live on, due to advertising support, but it looks like the White Pages are a thing of the past. New York Times story here.

So how will you find phone numbers?
Start with switchboard.com, and click either business or person at the top. Unless you really need to find someone, try to avoid clicking on the pay-to-view links that say something like "We have all the information for ... "

Also try whitepages.com or anywho.com, and stick with these professional online directories, so you don't get caught by a spammer. You can even use Clusty.com or Google, putting the person's first and last name together in quotes, and type the word phone after the quotes, like this:

"Roger Ampersand" phone