My life hacks: Firefox add-ons, software, and optimization hacks

I have long been interested in organization and optimization, which is why I have blocked Lifehacker from my browser during the hours of 9 to 3. I actually file my papers, and I know exactly where, for example, the paperwork for my next aerobics recertification is, and that’s not for 2 years. However, I feel distinctly low-tech compared with some of the supermen and superwomen out there: I don’t have a smart phone, for example, so I haven’t joined the iPhone/iPod touch revolution. In fact, my Palm Tungsten E handheld dates from, like, 2003. I keep my calendar and day-to-day to-do list on paper (!!), and the most useful recent addition to my life is a cheap notebook, with a pen at the ready, so I can scribble down short-term notes.

Hard-copy calendar and note pad

Here’s an explanation of the software I use and how I organize my tools: Firefox add-ons, software for work and play—and, heck, why not?—a description of optimization hacks that let me work without too much distraction. I conclude with a run-down of my physical setup. I use a 5-year-old Dell PC running XP.

Firefox add-ons

• bit.ly preview :: Provides expanded link and other info about a shortened link (bit.ly and tiny.url) upon hover.
• Flashblock :: Blocks Flash animation; can be overridden by a click. Note: this blocks YouTube video previews.
• IE Tab :: Click an icon to render a page in IE, but within Firefox. Useful for pages, like Windows Update, that requires you view it with IE.
• LeechBlock :: Blocks certain sites/domains that you specify for a time range you specify. I block Lifehacker, Facebook, and LiveJournal from 9 to 3 on weekdays.
• Screengrab :: Saves Web pages as images. I don’t use this much but it will capture the whole page, not like PrintScreen.
• Twitterfox :: Creates a pop-up in Firefox’s lower right corner with updates of your Twitter pals. I am not following enough people to make this add-in a hassle, but if you follow a bunch of people or do finely granulated Twitter things, then TweetDeck is probably a better choice. I read the tweets of heavy posters via an RSS feed through Google Reader.
• Xmarks (formerly Foxmarks) :: Syncs your bookmarks and/or passwords between computers.
• Zotero (beta) :: Collects and manages citation info; plugs into Open Office Writer and Word, so you can easily embed info and cite. I haven’t been able to make it work with my writing process (yet?), but it’s handy for organizing bibliographic info.

Software (free unless otherwise noted)

The main software I use is Microsoft Office. I have Open Office handy and occasionally use it, mostly to turn a word-processed file into a PDF. For a free word processor, I like AbiWord, the portable version of which I carry around on a memory stick, along with other portable apps, including portable Firefox.

Although I love the idea of switching over to all open source, all the time, my clients give me proprietary plug-ins for Word that I must use to tag or prep or otherwise work with the documents. This is becoming less common as composition has been offshored, so now I work more with Word files and less with SGML tagged files, but I have retained some of the tools, particularly to clean up author-prepped files, because they are so useful.

Here’s a list of the software I use daily. I do not use antivirus software because nothing is downloaded to my computer: I use Gmail to filter everything and only download content I trust.

Day-to-day programs to help me traffic, prep, and edit files

• CSE Validator Lite :: I use this to view XML metadata files my clients send me; and to write Web pages. It color-codes syntax and does a quick validation.
• Editor’s ToolKit Plus (not free) :: Required for those of us employed in the publishing industry. Word template plug-in strips files, turns embedded notes into text, tags specs. The FileCleaner feature alone is worth the price.
• FileZilla :: Stable FTP software.
• Foxit Reader :: PDF viewer; way lighter than that bloated Adobe monstrosity.
• Gmail :: All my other e-mail accounts flow into Gmail. One Program To Rule Them All!
• Google Calendar :: I keep five calendars simultaneously. Only one dumps to my handheld: the calendar that tells me where I have to be at what time.
• Google Calendar Sync :: Syncs my Google calendar with Outlook, which in turn syncs with my Palm Tungsten E handheld. I export my Contacts manually from Google once a month and sync it with Outlook and then to my handheld.
• Google Groups :: I use my own personal Google Group (no other members are permitted) to store documents.
• IZArc :: Compression tool: zips and unzips files, including RARs.
• Launchy :: Launches anything you want from the keyboard: programs, Web pages, windows, whatever. Great for people like me who don’t mouse.
• PDFZilla :: PDF to Word/txt converter, so I can desperately attempt to create an editable document without rekeying it. Works well for neat blocks of text like figure captions; works less well for complex text like tables.
• Stedman’s Plus Spell Checker (not free) :: Medical dictionary plug-in. Indispensable.
• Texter :: Text expander; especially useful for signature lines and for repeated terms or HTML codes.
• Word wildcard macros :: The number one skill required for true efficiency.

System maintenance

• Start > Accessories > Tools > Disk defragmenter :: Yes, I use XP’s defrag tool. It seems to work fine.
• CCleaner :: Effective and light optimization, privacy, and cleaning tool. Highly recommended!
• SUPERAntiSpyware :: Pretty good antispyware freeware.
• Sunbelt Personal Firewall :: Er…my firewall. Free and not too annoying with the pop-ups.

Optimization hacks

Color-coded mesh bags

• Filing system :: For work, two files: an open one on the floor by my feet with current projects; and a nearby little file cabinet with files for active clients. I pull from the latter and file in the former when I have extant work from that client. I regularly update documentation and copy style sheets, etc., to my Google Group as backup.
• Hard-copy calendar :: Two pages per week, just a cheap spiral-bound paperback calendar from Walmart. I use stickies to list long-term items that I ought to work on; I write in items that need to be done per day to meet the longer-term goal.
• Launchy shortcuts :: PubMed, Webster’s online, IMDb, Amazon.com.
• Mesh bags :: See-through, color-coded mesh bags that I use to store cords and peripherals. Camera is blue! iPod is red! Cell phone cord is yellow!
• Palm Tungsten E handheld :: Obsolete but still works, although battery life is about an hour of constant use. I use the calendar function to flash me an alarm a half-hour before I need to be somewhere. I use the contacts function to store contacts. But mostly I use it to watch videos while working out.
• Reference books :: Chicago 15, Webster’s 11th, AMA 9th and 10th, Stedman’s Medical Dictionary, Stedman’s Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Symbols—all on a bookshelf I can access by simply leaning over.
• Scratch pad :: Little notebook where I write notes to self. I used to use stickies in my calendar, but the dedicated notebook works even better. It also makes a nice coaster.

Software for play

Here are the programs I use for play, mostly having to do with accessing or repurposing media, such as videos or photos. I keep meaning to upload stuff to my Flickr account (I have no photos stored there), or find out a better CD/DVD-burning program, or figure out how to use Gimp, but I never do. Moral of story: it is occasionally more efficient to work with what you know when your needs are few and simple. That said, my complex photo hacks are just…stupid, and I really ought to optimize that. Later!

• DVD Flick :: Converts AVI to DVD format.
• foobar2000 :: I don’t use this to listen to media; I use it to rip CDs as one continuous track. I do this to aerobics music, so I can use my iPod for class; it’s the only way to make the songs truly gapless. I also use it link up several CD’s worth of audio dramas into one huge file.
• Format Factory :: Converts to MP4, so I can push video to my handheld and watch it while working out.
• iTunes :: Oh, how I hate this program, this bloated monstrosity! I have a second-gen red iPod nano I got in 2006. I have my preferences set so iTunes doesn’t re-sort things willy-nilly. I also do not download cover art, so as to conserve space on the nano.
• Jasc Paint Shop Pro v. 8 :: Totally obsolete; came with my computer. But I know how to use it to do things like resize and crop, and it has a tool that lets me figure out RGB colors in a way that lets me control said colors in CSE Validator Lite.
• Photobucket :: I use this free service to store images that I blog. I got my accounts ages ago, before Flickr was the big thing (yes, before Flickr was purchased by Yahoo!), and I haven’t bothered to move elsewhere. It links to Twitgoo, a Twitter image tool.
• Picasa :: Photo organization program. I use it to download pix from my camera, then upload images to my Google Photos account, where I then copy the ones I want to blog to my Photobucket account, letting these services do the resizing (because it degrades the image quality the least). I also use Picasa’s editing tools to get rid of red-eye or to slightly darken or lighten the image. If I need to crop, I use Paint Shop Pro.
• Real Record Now! :: It came with my computer, and I have never upgraded it. I use it to burn CDs and DVDs.
• Windows Media Player v. 10 :: No, I haven’t upgraded. I wish it would stop asking me. I use it to stream DI.fm trance radio all day long.
• VLC Media Player :: Why, yes, it does play everything.

Physical setup

Physical setup

• Dell Dimension 8300 (desktop computer) running XP and Office 2003.
• Dell 19-inch monitor.
• Microsoft Optical mouse Blue USB (not that I use it much; I’m keyboard only!).
• Belkin 4-USB expander dongle (permanently attached to desktop, so I don’t have to stand on my head to access the USB port on the front of my tower).
• Dell Latitude D510 laptop (only used occasionally; has programs on it, but no data).
• Microsoft Natural Keyboard Elite (split ergonomic keyboard).
• Router/wireless.
• Steelcase chair.
• Tracfone LG cell phone.
• HP LaserJet 1000 series (black-and-white laser printer).
• HP Officejet 5610v All-in-One (fax, scanner, color printer including photos).
• Palm Tungsten E handheld.

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Palm Tungsten E functionality quest, part 2

In a previous post, I discussed my obsessive quest to turn a retro device, the Palm Tungsten E (TE), into something that works for today’s discerning user. During my research, I found that most of the archived Web documents I was stumbling across were from, say, 2003, 2005, or 2007—rarely anything more recent. The Tungsten E2 is far more often discussed, and you can still buy it for $199, whereas the TE is not available for purchase through Palm’s Web site. Many TE applications are no longer available or supported.

Optimizing my Palm Tungsten E for travel amusement

I have a Palm Tungsten E (known among Palmanistas as the TE) that I no longer use much. Yesterday and today, inspired by a bad back left over from hauling a slew of electronic equipment hither and yon while traveling, I sat down and attempted to get this old workhorse to do everything to keep me entertained for a whole day of transit. I like to read, listen to music, and watch videos—and the videos are important to me because my portable DVD player is heavy. I have a hard drive full of .avi files that I want to be able to watch while on the road; currently I burn them to CD or DVD.