This week on Monday Productivity Pointers, I’ll show you how to take screenshots natively with the operating system of the machine you’re working on. By “natively,” I mean that there’s no new app to download—everything you need is already on your system.
The first video this week will focus on taking screenshots on a Windows-based PC, while the second, member-exclusive video will cover the same on a Mac, using a built-in tool called Grab.
It’s wonderful that I can go to a public library to use a computer—but there’s an element of vulnerability about it, too. Each day, hundreds of people will use the same computer that I just used. This week on Monday Productivity Pointers, I’ll give some options for public browsing, as well as some settings to consider for the various computers you may have.
For example, I maintain entirely different browser settings for my laptop, which I travel with and could easily lose, than I do on my desktop computer, which could only be used by someone else if they broke into my house.
You’ve heard it before, but it can’t be overstated: Your online reputation matters. Just like a credit score calculates your spending and payback habits, your online reputation gives potential employers invaluable data for measuring your character.
It’s one thing to be conscientious about what you say about yourself online—but you should also be aware of what others are saying about you. I’m not talking about Facebook, where you’re notified when people tag you and you can easily untag yourself. I’m talking about less obvious cases, such as a club in which the leader posts the entire club directory—including your name, address, and telephone number—online, unaware that Google is indexing the entire list for public consumption.
In this week’s first Monday Productivity Pointers video, I’ll show you how to find out what’s being posted about you online, and how you can stay on top of your online reputation effortlessly by setting up a Google Alert.
My second video this week will cover what to do if you find a result that concerns you. Did you know Google has a search index removal tool? I’ll go over how to locate the tool, and to follow the chain of website ownership command to get your reputation, privacy, and safety back to the way it should be.
Learn more:
• Start a 7-day free trial at lynda.com
• All Monday Productivity Pointers on lynda.com
• Jess Stratton’s courses at lynda.com
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SkyDrive is a free collaboration product from Microsoft that helps you store and synchronize digital files across your desktop and mobile devices. With SkyDrive, you’ll get 7 gigabytes of space for storing your files, photos, and important assets, which can then be accessed from either a web browser or native applications on your desktop, tablet, or smartphone.
In this week’s first Monday Productivity Pointers video, I show you how to use SkyDrive directly within Microsoft apps like Windows 8 and Office 2013, and also work on new documents directly in your web browser. With your SkyDrive account, you’re also entitled to use the Microsoft Office Web Apps—online versions of Word, PowerPoint, and Excel—for free!
Etsy.com. Etsy is one of the world’s largest online shopping sites for handmade goods. It lets you start your own “shop” for free—without having to figure out how to build a website. This week on Monday Productivity Pointers, I explain how to sell your wares through Etsy, and host a shopping cart on that site.
You’re allowed to sell three kinds of items on Etsy: handmade goods, vintage items, and craft supplies. Etsy handles everything for you. It costs 20 cents to list an item for four months, or until it sells. When you make a sale, Etsy charges a 3.5 percent fee on the sale. To start a shop, all you need is a valid credit card and a product!
In the first video, I show you how easy it is to set up an Etsy shop to start selling your items. I walk you through the options to customize your shop, and then show you how to add your first product.
This week’s pointer is all about Square payment processing.
Square makes it easy for small business owners to collect payments from their tablets or smartphones. Using a card reader inserted into the device’s headphone jack, business owners can swipe cards directly, turning their phones into mobile point-of-sale systems. There’s no monthly fee, and you pay 2.75 percent per swipe.
In the first video, I demonstrate how to add an item to the Square Register app, add a discount, and perform an ad-hoc transaction. I even show you how to swipe the card, and how easy it is to give your customer a receipt.
Skype is the popular and free voice, video, and chat application that lets you keep in touch with family, friends, and customers no matter where you are. You can use Skype on your laptop, desktop computer, tablet, or mobile phone. Skype doesn’t use your telephone provider’s connection. It uses your Internet connection instead, so all you need is a computer with an active connection to the Internet.
This week on Monday Productivity Pointers, I start from the beginning and add a contact, test my equipment, and then initiate an Internet call with my contact.
