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I’ve used Google Docs for a while now, and I’ve found it to be a nice alternative to Word and Excel.  But I didn’t REALLY start using Google Docs until this past week, and I’m hooked.

Google Docs has solved a few different problems for me.  First, I’m terrible at keeping things organized on my computer.  I like saving things to the desktop so I can see them, but soon enough I have waaay to many desktop icons to actually find anything.  With Google Docs everything is stored for me in my Google Docs account.  Sure I still have to create folders if I want to keep things easy and manageable, but even if I don’t categorize them it’s still easy to find everything in my “All Items” list.

Second, I no longer have to email files to myself.  I used to work on a file on my work computer, and then if I wanted to have it at home I would save it to my desktop and then email it to myself so I could open it at home.  I know I could use services like Dropbox or Box.net, both of which I’ve used before, but I find Google Docs to be infinitely easier and it’s free.

Aside from the benefits of keeping myself better organized, it’s helped me visualize my goals and become more productive.  In the past I’ve tried to keep to-do lists on services like Vitalist and ActionComplete, and I’m still experimenting with Remember the Milk.  But then I wanted to use weekly trackers like Joe’s Goals for my workouts and David Seah’s various productivity tools like the Emergent Task Timer.  I’ve even tried Daytum for capturing data after the fact so that I can see whether or not I’m following through on my goals.  You can tell that’s getting pretty overwhelming.  It took way too much time to log in to all of these sites and maintain all of this information.  With Google Docs I can customize everything to my liking and still be able to log in from any computer (and even my Droid).

So far I’ve created two major Google Docs spreadsheets to keep me on track with my goals:

1. Weekly Workouts – where I’ve added fields for miles run, various workouts at the gym, and exercises that I do at home like pushups, pullups, etc.  It’s quite easy to go and enter a value, and I can see my progress as compared to my goals each week

2. Weekly Personal Goals – where I’ve listed my main projects that I’d like to get done during the week and also a list of things that I’d like to do each day such as write a blog post, read for at least half an hour, and develop new business ideas.

Overall, what I’m trying to accomplish is more focus on the things that I want to get done.  Since I’m a data geek, and I like being able to see progress in spreadsheet format, this is working well for me so far.  Plus I can add ideas on things I’m working on at Sigma, the Orr Fellowship, and any other projects I’m working on.  One of those projects that’s coming soon is a new online store for pure skincare products called Repurify.  Working on this has really opened my eyes to some of the harmful chemicals we may be putting on our bodies each day with synthetic personal care products.

I downloaded and installed the wp2go app on my Droid so I could post to my blog from my phone. I just wanted to test it out and see how fast I could type a post. It’s definitely a little more difficult than a computer keyboard, but the landscape orientation virtual keyboard is pretty effective. I probably won’t post from this app too often, but it works pretty well.

The pictures are from the christmas lighting parade on Michigan Ave in downtown Chicago!

So you might have seen my last post about my major need for a new phone.  Contrary to what I thought earlier I’ve actually had my current phone for over 5 years.  This weekend I retired my old LG flip phone and finally bit the bullet on a $30 per month data plan and bought the Motorola Droid.  I’m impressed with the lifespan of my old phone, but it got to the point where it was a joke to take it out of my pocket and show my smartphone-toting friends.  Now I have the Droid, and although I still have a lot to learn on how to actually use it, I’m really happy with it so far.  Here is my take on the phone after my first week with it.

Pros:

Google Navigation – This app is freakin’ awesome…there’s no other way to put it.  I can activate the voice search and simply say the address of where I want to go and it automatically calculates my route.  If it doesn’t recognize it exactly (which it usually does) then it brings up search results of what I said for me to choose from. **  The layers feature on the map is also amazing.  I can overlay traffic data for my route and it will show me what parts along the way will have congested traffic.  If I have too much red (high traffic) in my route I can have it suggest an alternate route for me with better traffic.  The satellite view is insanely detailed, and I prefer to use that as the default view when I’m driving just because it looks really cool.  I can see what the land looks like around me, which was helpful this weekend when I was looking for a tennis court and I could see on the map exactly where it was located within the apartment complex.  I’ve also used the “Suggest Alternate Route” feature that worked flawlessly and got me to my destination 10-15 minutes faster than I would have been able to because of traffic.  The traffic data is not always 100% accurate.  For example, the phone told me a 3 mile trip was going to take 26 minutes because the traffic was so heavy.  It really only took me about 7 minutes and traffic was not a problem.  My guess is that the traffic would have been pretty bad in that same area during rush hour, but my trip was at about 6:45 so the actual traffic had subsided and the map was not updated as fast.

**One slight problem I ran into was that you need to say “Navigate to” before the address or point of interest that you’re trying to get to.  If I was searching for an address it would sometimes bring up “Navigate 244 W Main St.” instead of “Navigate to 44 W Main St.”  I’ve also had one instance of GPS signal being lost when I was about 2 minutes from my destination.  The problem was that I still had about 2 turns left and it was a place that I had never been before so it was a struggle to figure out what I was doing.  I was close enough so it worked out, but I hope that doesn’t become a common occurence.

Multi-Tasking – I love being able to listen to music or a podcast and then see the notification that I got a new email which I can simply pull down and read the email while my music plays seamlessly in the background.  That’s the type of functionality that I’ve come to expect in any computer so it seems weird to me that the iPhone can’t do that.  I can also make a phone call and talk on speaker phone while my navigation still takes me to my destination.  I can’t browse the web or check email while on the phone, but the fact that the Navigation still works is awesome because that is the only application that I think would be a major nuisance if it didn’t work.

Android Apps – I’ve downloaded quite a few apps for my phone so far, and overall I’ve been extremely happy with the quality of applications.  There have been a few glitches (most of them I think are due to the upgrade to Android 2.0) but I’m sure they will be worked out soon.  A few of my favorite Android apps…

Sports Tap

I have this constantly running so I can get score updates on all of the major professional and college games.  The app is fast, gives real time updates, and comes with a outstanding interface to view all games on a given night.  I can easily view detailed stats such as player scoring, and even see current drive info for football games.  The only thing I’d like to see is further detail in the college baskebtall stats.  I can see all the game scores updates in real time, but it’s hit or miss on actual player stats for those games.

Locale

This app lets me customize my phone settings based on where I am, what’s on my calendar, or what time it is.  I’ve used it for location only so far, and the GPS signal has mixed results.  It doesn’t always find where I am, but updates have been coming.  It has been able to detect when I’m at work and as soon as I pull into the parking lot of the office my phone automatically goes to vibrate, and notification vibrates are turned off because I don’t need my phone to tell me I have a new email when I’m sitting in front of my computer and it’s already popping up there.  At home I have it set to automatically turn Wi-Fi on so I can connect to my home network.

Feedr

Great for all of the blogs that I read on a regular basis.  They are frequently updated and presented in an easy to read and scroll format.  This is the only app that I’ve paid for so far and it was $0.99 so it wasn’t too bad.  It’s been a worthwhile purchase because I’m often in this app to catch up on anything I’ve missed on the web.  This app is quickly becoming my replacement for ever reading blogs on my laptop.  I used to spend a lot of time going through blog articles, but now I can just use this app when I have a couple minutes of downtime and I never have to spend part of my evenings on my laptop reading blogs

CardioTrainer

I haven’t gotten a chance to test this out a whole let yet, but I like the fact that it is both GPS and pedometer enabled to get the most accurate distance measurements of my runs.  Plus it can play songs from my music library when I run.  The voice feedback on how long or far I’ve gone is a great feature, and I haven’t tried it yet, but the ability to race against yourself from past runs is a nice addition to the premium, paid version.  It syncs all your data to the website where you can see detailed reports of all your runs.

Qik

I haven’t used this yet, but I’ve tested it and it works really well.  I can stream live video to the Internet and anyone has the ability to log in and watch.  There are tons of potential uses for this so I hope I get the opportunity soon.  If I’m at an event and want to show my family what’s going on, I can launch this app and stream DVD quality video onto the Qik website for them to watch.

USA Today

Although it’s not my favorite news source the USA Today app has become my default app for breaking news and weather simply becasue the interface is better than anything else that I’ve found so far.  It’s very easy to use and there’s a ton of information available in a nice format.

ActionComplete

This is a great GTD style to-do list with projects, notifications and due dates.  I haven’t used it a whole lot yet, but it’s great for reminders.

Gmail, Exchange, Facebook, Calendars – I’ve synced all my major accounts to my phone without any problems.  My email pops up in the notification panel as soon as I get one, and I can easily read it, move it to a folder, delete, or reply.  Absolutely great experience with notifications coming in any kind of form – sound or vibrate – and this is one of the features I use most often on the phone.

Cons:

Media Player

Like most reviews mentioned the media player is just average.  It works just fine, but there’s a lot that could be improved.  I can’t complain too much though because the sound quality on the music is great and it sorts by song, artist, or album.  Videos are somewhat of a hassle because it doesn’t support all file formats like MP4, but a third party video player app worked great for this so I’m able to watch most of my videos.

Camera

The camcorder works wonderfully, but the camera is slightly less than stellar.  I guess I was expecting pictures of the same quality as my regular digital camera.  With 5 Megapixels I thought it would be nearly on par with some of the 7MP – 10MP cameras that I’m used to.  The images tend to turn out grainy and with weird lighting.  It works, but the quality could definitely be improved.  Plus there is a long pause between pressing the button and when the picture actually takes.  Then you have to wait a few more seconds while it processes before you take another one.  Hopefully this can be updated through a software release or third party apps, but right now I won’t be using the camera a whole lot.  I do like the social functionality in the camera application that lets me easily share a picture to Facebook, Twitter, Email, or SMS right after I take the picture.

Overall the Droid has exceeded my expectations and truly an exceptional device.  The GPS functionality has made my life easier on several occasions through the course of one week, and my phone has become a major source of information consumption during my commute and during down time throughout the day.  I’m able to be more productive and that is why I’m extremely happy with my Droid!

I just got Gary Vaynerchuk’s new book Crush It! and I haven’t finished it yet, but I’m pretty impressed based on my skimming.  One thing that I found out, and I’m immediately trying out is that Tumblr allows you to host your own domain for free if you use the Tumblr CMS.

You still have to purchase the domain ($10-$20) but you don’t have to pay a montly hosting fee.  The platform is incredibly easy to use.  You just click on the type of content you’d like to add (audio, video, etc.) and insert it directly into your post.  Plus you can pull anything else from the web into Tumblr and post it to your own blog.  I’ll be trying it out with my Career Kickstarter blog and I’ll keep updates on how it goes.

This month Inc. Magazine did a feature article on Ponoko, an on-demand manufacturing platform from New Zealand. The article explains founder David ten Have’s motivation of starting a company that provided an opportunity for everyday people with a desire to make things.

The article explains ten Have’s theory that the innate desire to make things has been suppressed by our “consumer-oriented” society and the fact that we’re so used to being able to go buy whatever we want at Wal-Mart or any other store.  Ponoko is absolutely an awesome business concept.  I can upload a design for any kind of object that I can dream up and Ponoko will have it manufactured for me at a reasonable price.  No minimum quantities or any other restrictions.  If I want to sell my creation I can set my own retail price and even use their web site to start marketing it.  Plus, if I’m planning to sell I don’t have to purchase any kind of inventory.  My product is stored simply as a design file on my computer and whenever someone makes a purchase I can place another order with Ponoko to have one made.  I’m excited…this is really cool!

However, here are the problems I see with this as a major business.  How many people really understand how to use CAD (computer aided design) applications?  I don’t, and I’d consider myself pretty proficient with technology.  Ponoko has already addressed this by allowing users to request a product by working with an experienced designer.  That’s definitely helpful because then I don’t have to worry about learning the software.  But the deeper questions is how many people really have their own ideas for how a product can be made?  If I want a new table I’m probably going to go looking around a store to see what types of designs look best.  I’ll probably be able to find one that I really like.  I don’t think I need to create my own when I don’t have the slightest idea of how one should look anyways.  Have I become a victim of the consumer-oriented society that Ponoko’s founders are trying to rebel against?

Regardless of how Ponoko does as a business, I think it’s a great concept and I plan to try it out and get a product built soon.  Heck, maybe I’ll even try to sell a few.  I do hope this type of distributed manufacturing catches on because it could lead to innovation in a whole slew of product categories.  Is Ponoko something you’d like to try out?

Image Credit - CNET

Have you ever actually thought about what web browser you’re using?  For the way you use the web could there be a better option?  According to the data, about 65-70% of people use Internet Explorer.  Now, is that because Internet Explorer is so much better than Firefox, Chrome, or other competing browsers?

I think the main reason is that Internet Explorer comes pre-installed with Windows, and it’s sufficient for most things you want to do online.  It’s almost like the sports team that you grew up rooting for or the religion that you were born into.  You get set in your ways, you’re happy, and there’s no reason to make any changes.

However, there may be some major advantages in other browsers depending on what types of things you like to do online.  Here are some alternative browsers and why they might be an upgrade over Internet Explorer.

Firefox

The best part about Firefox is the add-ons.  You can find a add-on for almost anything you like.  If you’re involved in social media and you spend a lot of time sharing things with others (through email, Facebook, Twitter, etc) you can add the Shareaholic application.  If you enjoy looking at pictures in Facebook albums or anywhere on the web you might like Cooliris.  Finally, you might want to try Xmarks if you have a lot of bookmarks on your home computer, and you’d like to be able to use them on any other computer you log in to.  There are tons of other tools that you can find in the Firefox Add-Ons Directory.

Google Chrome

The biggest advantages of Chrome are speed and seamless integration with Google products.  If I just want to have a clean, fast, and simple web browsing experience I’m going with Google Chrome.  Although it can have trouble running too many tabs, it’s by far the fastest browser for simple activities.  It also works the best with Google services like Gmail, Google Analytics, Google Docs, etc.  If you use these applications and have had trouble in Firefox or IE it’s worth downloading Google Chrome and just setting up Google products in Chrome separately from whatever other browser you’re running.

Flock

Flock is somewhat under the radar, but it’s actually the browser that I use most often.  I like to have a lot of tabs open at once, and Flock has been the best at handling multiple tabs at once.  Sure, there are some issues once I’ve had a tab open for a week with 7 other tabs, but that’s more of my problem than the browser.  Flock is built on the Firefox platform so almost any add-on that is available for Firefox can also be installed on Flock.  The other cool part about Flock is that it incorporates social media and RSS directly into the browser.  Even as I read articles on other sites I can see new Facebook or Twitter updates or my friends in real time.  I also have the Facebook Chat feature available at all times (even when I’m not on Facebook) in case I want to shoot one of my friends a quick question.  I can grab an RSS feed automatically while I’m on a web page and throw it into my reader application.  Obviously, not all of the features in Flock are necessary for the average user, but it allows you to do so many things at once instead of having to jump back and forth between the normal sites you use.

Take a look at your online habits and see if there is a browser that’s better for you.  Obviously, IE works quite well and it now has quite a few features of its own, but it’s not your only option.