tekkr

Windows with Outlook: Sharing a Google Docs file for group collaboration can be a lot more useful than emailing individual copies to an entire team. Harmony makes opening, sharing, and managing Google Docs from inside Outlook a natural fit.

The free plug-in opens as a right-hand sidebar when you click its toolbar icon or launch it from your Start menu. Sign into your Google or Apps account, and your documents show up, ready for opening, sharing, or other use. Buttons at the bottom quickly toggle your view between documents, spreadsheets, and other files, and the PDF mode, in particular, might be a help for those who are all too handy at losing the right document at the wrong time.

Harmony also sports a similar Sharepoint integration sidebar, though we lack for a Sharepoint server at Lifehacker East. If you've used that feature, or found clever uses for a combined Outlook/GDocs inbox, tell us about it in the comments.

Harmony is a free download for Windows systems running Outlook only.

Harmony for Google Docs [via Source]

newVideoPlayer( {"type":"video","player":"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/v\/uJxbEQGWpeA&hl=en&fs=1&fmt=22","customParams":[],"width":500,"height":412,"ratio":0.824,"flashData":"","embedName":null,"objectId":null,"noEmbed":false,"source":"youtube"} ); Google just launched a new Google Apps Marketplace where users can discover and deploy third-party cloud applications that integrate with their existing Google Apps accounts.

Give the video above a watch for a full overview of how Google Apps Marketplace apps work, or, summed up from the Google Apps Marketplace homepage:

The Google Apps Marketplace offers products and services designed for Google users, including installable apps that integrate directly with Google Apps. Installable apps are easy to use because they include single sign-on, Google's universal navigation, and some even include features that integrate with your domain's data.

We've detailed how to trick out Google Apps in the past, but the Apps Marketplace brings an entirely new set of potentially useful tools to your Google Apps account—everything from accounting and finance apps to project and customer management.

And while the current set of offerings might seem like overkill unless you're a business running on Google Apps, the integration that these tools provide with Google tools like Mail, Calendar, Docs, and Contacts might be well worth it for the right app, and in time, Apps Marketplace sets the stage for all kinds of awesome third-party integration that could potentially take place with any outside application and the Google applications you use every day. (Time will tell on that front.)

We've been paging through the offerings since the site went up, but if you stumble onto a particularly snazzy looking Marketplace app, share a link in the comments.

Right now most of the apps look like they come with a recurring subscription fee, but we've found a few interesting looking options (some free), like:

• Aviary, the web-based creative suite.
• Shared contacts, which, as one might expect, lets you share contacts with your colleagues (something that's always been a little difficult in Google Apps). [Has a free trial]
• Gbridge, a "free, instant VPN for everyone" that can sync folders, share files, and share screens remotely between computers—and it's free.

Google Apps MarketPlace [via Official Google Blog]

Dear Lifehacker,
I've read about how HTML5 will change the way I use the web, but it seems like the biggest example of HTML5 in action is on sites like YouTube—which don't support my favorite browser, Firefox. What's the deal?

I find myself, and I'm sure tons of others, caught in the Adobe Flash Player vs. HTML5 battle. Flash Player runs terribly on my iMac. Videos on different sites either tell me to install Flash components, show up as blank white areas, load perpetually (CNET TV) or tell me to adjust global storage, and so on. If they do play, I often get the stuttering/buffering that drives me crazy. I had the latest version of Flash Player, uninstalled that and installed the latest 10.1 Beta3, and it's just as bad.

I considered signing up for YouTube's HTML5 beta test, but that only works for Safari, Chrome, and IE, not Firefox. I've read about Mozilla's stance on this issue, too.

I apologize for the long intro to my question, but do you know of any Firefox add-on or plug-in that installs the H.264 codec? We already have to install a plug-in for Flash Player, so perhaps it's possible someone can do this for H.264.

Thanks for any help,
Fighting with Flash

Howdy Fighting,
That's a good question, and unfortunately one to which there's no great answer. It actually is technically possible to play HTML5 YouTube videos in Firefox, but it's extremely convoluted (details below)—and Mac users like yourself won't have any luck. First, for those who aren't familiar with why Firefox is excluded from YouTube's (and some other video sites') HTML5 support, here's why:

The Problem

In order to move to HTML5 from Flash, video sites like YouTube need to host their videos in formats friendly to Flash-free HTML5 embedding. Unfortunately there's no default standard for the format HTML5 videos should use.

As a dedicated open-source, open-standards browser, Firefox chose to support the Ogg Theora video format for HTML5 video. Like Firefox, Ogg Theora is free and open; it's not covered by any patents, so it requires no licensing and is completely free to use for everyone involved.

Other browser makers, like Chrome and Safari, support H.264 for HTML5 video. Unlike Ogg Theora, H.264 is patented, and would theoretically require browser makers to pay licensing fees to use it (though the company that owns licensing rights to H.264 have said that they'll offer it royalty free until 2016). Additionally, the issue isn't just about licensing.

Some tests have shown H.264 to perform better than Ogg Theora in side-by-side comparisons. Apple's stance on the matter, via Wikipedia, is that "H.264 performs better and is already more widely supported." For video sites like YouTube, the main concern is likely which format can deliver the highest quality video with the greatest compression rates. Unfortunately for Team Firefox (and supporters of free and open web standards), it's looking like H.264 might deliver the best results.

It's worth nothing that browsers can support multiple video formats for HTML5 support, but currently Chrome is the only browser that supports both H.264 and Ogg Theora (though through the Frankenstein efforts of Google Chrome Frame, Internet Explorer also gets support for both). The chart below (from Wikipedia) lays it all out:

As you can see, unless either Firefox changes its stance or sites like YouTube decide to support a free alternative like Ogg Theora, Firefox fanatics don't have a clear way to watch HTML5 YouTube videos.

The "Solution"

If you're extremely desperate to watch HTML5 YouTube videos but you absolutely do not want to switch to another browser, you've got one simple-yet-absurd solution that'll only work on Windows:

Watch HTML5 YouTube Videos in Firefox (on Windows)

1. Install the IE Tab Firefox extension (or one of the other IE-in-Firefox extensions).
2. Install Google Chrome Frame for IE.
   
   
3. In the IE Tab preferences inside Firefox, set YouTube to always open inside an IE Tab (see image below).
   
4. Visit the YouTube HTML5 Video Player opt-in page (if you've set up IE Tab correctly above, it should open in an IE Tab inside Firefox) and click the Join the HTML5 Beta link at the bottom of the page.
   
5. Go watch an HTML5-supported YouTube video.

And... that's it. Ridiculous, but I've tried it, and it seems to work. (Though, unsurprisingly, it seemed buggy, and worked much better in straight Chrome than it did in either IE with Chrome Frame or Firefox with IE and Chrome Frame.) Unfortunately it doesn't help Mac users like Fighting with Flash much, but it's the best we could do.

More than anything, the convoluted process involved in watching an HTML5 YouTube video in Firefox only serves to underscore the problem. It's not something that'll likely be solved overnight (though I guess if Mozilla decides to cave into H.264, change could come pretty quickly), but it's a good reminder that important, web-changing technology almost always comes with a few speed bumps.

Love,
Lifehacker

Got a better method you're using, or want to weigh in on this whole H.264 vs. Ogg Theora battle? Let's hear it in the comments.

Think you've got what it takes to join Team Lifehacker? That's good, because we're on the hunt for a new writer to join the crew.

You could be a great fit if:

• You love and understand a lot about technology, and have a knack for tinkering with software and bending gear to your will. (Bonus points for command line/programming junkies in general.)
• You know how to slap together nouns, verbs, and the occasional em dash and enjoy a good href.
• You can deliver clean, crisp, and informed takes on everything from software and web sites to food and personal finance.
• You're creative, and you've got all kinds of ideas that would make for great Lifehacker features. (We particularly love a good how-to feature.)
• You're ambitious, looking to make a name for yourself, and are prepared to work hard.

I'm emphasizing the hard work aspect because Lifehacker is a job that does require some serious hours and dedication, and if you don't have the time or aren't interested in a job that requires a lot of hard work, it's probably not for you. But if you're a good fit, it's also an extremely rewarding job.

If you think you may be a good fit, send an email to tips at lifehacker.com with "Lifehacker Job Application" in the subject. Don't include any attachments. Do include your Lifehacker commenter ID if you have one, along with anything else you've written, Lifehacker-y ideas you have that you think would make you a good fit, or anything else you think might wow us.

The position we're looking to fill is part-to-full time and pays accordingly. We're expecting a lot of submissions, so we won't be able to respond to each email individually; rest assured that your interest is much appreciated.

Google dips its toe into TV programming searches, netbooks' market share is growing, Twitter and Facebook gear up for geolocation, and researchers make the case for fat as a sixth taste sense.

• The Rise of Netbooks
  Think netbooks are a dwindling fad? GigaOM's infographic designers look at the last three years and disagree. [GigaOM]
• Readability
  The very handy, text-focused reformatter we all know as a bookmarklet has arrived as a Firefox add-on, with a few unique features like auto-scrolling. [Firefox Add-Ons via gHacks]
• Google Testing TV Search Service On Android-Enhanced Set-Top Boxes
  Google employees with DirecTV are trying out a search app that scans TV programming and web video. It's powered in part by Android, and we're kind of hoping makes it to a wider market. [Business Insider]
• Just In Time For The Location Wars, Twitter Turns On Geolocation On Its Website
  Just in time for SXSW, Twitter opens up geolocation embedding from its main site. It had previously been available through its API. [TechCrunch]
• Facebook Will Allow Users to Share Location
  Upping the arms race, Facebook might launch its own geo-smart status updates at its f8 conference next month. [Bits Blog]
• Parallels Desktop update adds support for Chrome OS
  It's not clear whether the $80 Mac virtualization suite means Google's unreleased, official Chrome OS or the open-source Chromium OS builds floating around, but either way, Parallels is on it. [Yahoo! News]
• So Fat, You Can Taste It
  The presence of fat in food may be a kind of sense, or at least a distinct taste, and researchers suggest those with less fat on their bodies can taste more fat in foods. [Slashfood]

Mac only: Multiple monitors do great things for your desktop space, but your menu bar sticks to one screen. If you're looking for more menu access, free utility SecondBar puts one at the top of each monitor.

As veteran Mac users know, each application's menu fills in the menu bar at the top of the desktop, not the window of the app itself, as in a Windows desktop. When you have a lot of apps open in different spots, it becomes inconvenient to access an app's preferences or deeper features with a mouse. SecondBar adds a customizable menu bar to your second, third, or tenth monitor, letting you keep your focus on one screen at a time.

SecondBar has all the features of OS X's built-in menu bar, along with being drag-able and having the half-and-half resizing features of Windows 7's Aero Snap. The app is still in its super-early development stage, but it seems stable enough for regular use at the moment, and more features appear in the works.

SecondBar is a free download, Mac OS X only. Thanks, Douglas!

SecondBar

Last week we asked you to share your favorite VPN tool, then we rounded up the top five contenders for a vote. Now we're back with the results.

Leading the pack was OpenVPN with 29% of the vote, followed closely by LogMeIn Hamachi (28%). Both are notable for being free, although only OpenVPN is open source. In third place, the built-in Windows VPN software grabbed 19% of the vote, followed by Cisco VPN with 13% and Shrew Soft rounding out the Hive Five with 4%.

Check out the full Hive Five for additional information about VPNs and contenders. As always, if you have a great idea for a Hive Five, shoot us an email at tips@lifehacker.com with "Hive Five" in the subject line.

Meetings don't have to be the bane of the workday existence. Try scheduling them in 22-minute blocks to get more out of them and spend less time hating them.

Photo by brianpobuda.

Blogger Scott Berkun recommends latching onto Nicole Steinbok's 22-minute meeting idea as a good metric for sticking to agendas and keeping meetings from becoming a time-sink.

Of course, even abbreviated meetings won't work if you don't make good use of the time. Do not, for example, show up at a meeting with a batch of handouts for everyone to dig into.

Send required readings 3 days beforehand – The burden is on the organizer to make this small enough that people actually do it. Never ever allow a meeting to be "lets all read the documents together and penalize anyone diligent enough to do their homework". (note: I think 24 hours is plenty).

Of course, there may be times when 22 minutes is just not enough time to get things done. The vast majority of meetings, though, could probably be blasted through in even less time.

How do you keep your meetings from spiraling into three-hour marathons? Share your hard-earned tactics in the comments.

The 22 minute meeting [ScottBerkun.com]

Windows 7: Hailing from the camp of "software that does exactly what its name implies", Windows 7 Taskbar Thumbnail Customizer fine-tunes the size, spacing, and margins of your Windows 7 Superbar previews.

If you're unhappy with the size and spacing of application and folder thumbnails on your Superbar (less enthusiastically dubbed the taskbar in some circles), Windows 7 Taskbar Thumbnail Customizer adjusts them. Vertical size, spacing between the icons, and margins on the top and bottom of the icons are among the parameters awaiting your obsessive attention. This application won't change the spacing of icons on the actual bar itself, it alters the size and spacing of the preview thumbnails.

See the two images below for comparison. The top is the default settings and the second is with the size of the thumbnail doubled to 400:

Don't worry about remembering your initial settings—if you're not happy with your Superbar's new look, hit "Restore Defaults" and everything will return to its default. Have another application or trick for customizing your Windows interface? Let's hear about it in the comments. Thanks Saudrapsmann!

7 Taskbar Thumbnail Customizer [Deviant Art via #Tips]

The FCC is considering dedicating a portion of the wireless spectrum to "free or a very low cost wireless broadband service," according to Reuters. They didn't offer much in terms of details, and you can file this one under the believe-it-when-we-see-it category, but it's a nice thought. [Reuters via Gizmodo]

Workplace distractions are nothing new, but if you can't seem to find time to do some serious distraction-free work for any significant chunk of time, consider time blocking an appointment with yourself.

Over at business site Fast Company, our own Gina Trapani continues her Work Smart video series with a great piece on Time Blocking (embedded above). Recounting the days when she worked as a low-on-the-totem-pole programmer in a distraction-heavy office, Gina remembers:

It got so bad that when I was on deadline, I'd book hour-long meetings in a conference room where I was the only attendee. I'd put the meeting in my calendar a day or two ahead of time so that I showed up as "busy" in Outlook. When the time came, I'd steal off to the conference room with my laptop to work uninterrupted. When I confessed to another programmer that I was holding fake meetings with myself just to get work done, he asked if he could join me—under the condition that we would not distract one another. I got the most work done in the shortest amount of time during those blocks.

Ever try something similar, or have your own methods for carving out distraction-free blocks of work time? Let's hear your tips in the comments.

Work Smart: Avoid Office Distractions With Time Blocking [Fast Company via Smarterware]

If bold colors, a big desk, and plenty of well lit storage sounds like your kind of office, you'll definitely want to check out today's featured workspace.

Sometimes after making do with an office that just doesn't fit, you have to dig in and commit to an overhaul. Lifehacker reader Vincent Vega was sick of an office with old carpet and eight years worth of mismatched furniture:

After quite a bit of searching online I settled on IKEA for most of the furniture.The desk legs are Vika Annefors with a 78" Vika Amon tabletop.

The cabinets are from the EFFEKTIV system. The EFFEKTIV stuff is all modular and has tons of options. I looked at several different lighting options but settled on the Inredia bookcase lights because they are so darn adjustable.

Now I just need some art! Comments are appreciated!

You can check out additional photos of Vincent's workspace in the gallery below:

gawkerGallery(5489361,7);

If you have a workspace of your own to show off, throw the pictures on your Flickr account and add it to the Lifehacker Workspace Show and Tell Pool. Include some details about your setup and why it works for you, and you just might see it featured on the front page of Lifehacker.

Red and Black: An Office Makeover [Lifehacker Workspace Show and Tell Pool]

Hey there Lifehacker RSS readers! Starting today, as passed down from above, Lifehacker's default RSS feed is switching from a full-item feed to an excerpt-only feed. Don't panic! You can still get the full feed back.

We fully understand the hypocrisy of a productivity site with an excerpt-only RSS feed, and the last thing we want is to require you to visit the site to read every single post if that's not what best fits your time. So if you're not keen on the new excerpt-only feed, the new full RSS feed for VIPs (that's all of you) is available here:

http://lifehacker.com/vip.xml

If you want to continue getting the full-item Lifehacker feed, just swap the feed above with your current Lifehacker feed in your newsreader of choice.

For what it's worth, the new default feed was made to look more like the Lifehacker front page, so some of you may actually prefer its scan-ability. For everyone else, the full "VIP" feed above should do the trick.

Thanks for understanding, and our apologies for the inconvenience.

Update: Some people are seeing excerpts in the VIP feed and the full feed in what will be the default excerpts feed. If that's the case, be patient—the switch isn't quite instantaneous, and there may be a few hiccups while the feeds switch.

Math professor, programmer, and blogger John Cook discusses how work expands to fill the time allowed for it, and why the more trivial something is, the more time we waste discussing it.

Yesterday I found a copy of Parkinson's Law for $1 at a library book sale. This book is best known for it's opening line: Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.

The name "Parkinson's law" can mean at least four different things:

1. The 1957 book by C. Northcote Parkinson
2. The first chapter of Parkinson's book
3. The principle expressed in the book's opening line, as understood by Parkinson
4. The principle in the opening line as understood today.

I'd heard of the general principle of Parkinson's law a few years ago. I only found out about the book more recently. I didn't know until last night that Parkinson intended his principle to be applied more narrowly than it is applied now.

The full title of the first chapter of the book is "Parkinson's Law, or The Rising Pyramid." This chapter explains how work expands to fill the available resources within a bureaucracy and why bureaucracies grow exponentially at a compounding rate of around 5% per year. The subtitle addresses the mechanism for this growth, bureaucrats creating a pyramid of subordinates. Parkinson derives his law from "two almost axiomatic statements": An official wants to multiply subordinates, not rivals. Officials make work for each other.

Nowadays Parkinson's law is usually condensed to saying work expands to the time allowed. It is applied to individuals as well as a burgeoning bureaucracies. Parkinson discusses this interpretation in his opening paragraph but then limits his attention to organizations.

The total effort that would occupy a busy man for three minutes all told may in this fashion leave another person prostrate after a day of doubt, anxiety, and toil.

Chapter 3 of Parkinson's law is "High Finance, or The Point of Vanishing Interest." This chapter is the source of the phrase bike shed arguments. In this chapter Parkinson states what he calls the Law of Triviality:

… the time spent on any item of the agenda will be in inverse proportion to the sum involved.

The idea is that people are more likely to contribute to the discussion of things they understand. A nuclear reactor will sail through the finance committee, but a bicycle shed will cause endless debate because everyone can understand it and everyone has an opinion.

Republished from www.johndcook.com

If you like Google Wave's real-time collaboration but not the interface or registration, check out TypeWith.me. It's a solid, simple, as-you-type document collaboration webapp with no sign-up required.

A quick background: Google recently bought previously mentioned EtherPad with goals of integrating it into Wave, then closed the service. Then, after some backlash, they open-sourced the entire app. TypeWith.me took that code and put it on a new server that, unlike EtherPad, won't be closing down any time soon.

Getting started with this free app is as simple as clicking the New Document button on the site's home page. You're instantly dropped into an edit-ready page where you can start typing right away, or import an HTML, plain text, RTF, or Word document.

Each online document has its own unique URL you can share with others for real-time co-editing, and there's a small window for chatting on your edits. TypeWith.me helpfully assigns different colors to each author so you can easily track who's typed what, and the app instantly synchronizes as you type so changes appear in real time. When you're done, export your work to one of six file formats, including Word, PDF, and HTML.

Google Wave users will see a lot of similarities between it and TypeWith.me, but this simple app has an easier learning curve.

TypeWith.me [via MakeUseOf]

Panic is a software company that makes useful tools like my personal favorite, Transmit for the Mac. They've also made a beautiful project status display that keeps their team on top of what they're working on and keeps everyone motivated.

The board is actually an internal web page that auto-updates support email queue numbers, how far along each company project is, day over day revenue comparisons, the company calendar, and Twitter messages. Here's the effect it's had on the team:

Les, one of our support guys, said it best after a week: "That board is like magic." Our support turnaround time is faster than it's ever been. Just the simple act of "publicizing" those numbers - not in a cruel way, but a "where are we at as a group?" way - has kept the support process on-task and, I think, made it a bit more like a video game. (It helps that when all the boxes are at "zero", a virtual bottle of champagne appears on-screen, and a physical one is likely removed from the fridge.)

Brilliant! I am dying for one of these for my own personal use. Panic, will you add that to your project list? For the nitty gritty on how this board was built and what kind of display it's on, check out the full post at the Panic blog.

The Panic Status Board [The Panic Blog]

Smarterware is Lifehacker editor emeritus Gina Trapani's new home away from 'hacker. To get all of the latest from Smarterware, be sure to subscribe to the Smarterware RSS feed. For more, check out Gina's weekly Smarterware feature here on Lifehacker.

Republished from smarterware.org

Discounted laptops, HDTVs with built-in internet, and portable devices galore await you in today's Dealhacker roundup. Come for the window shopping, stay for the free games and music.

Computer Gear!

• Dell Studio XPS 8000 Core i5-750 Desktop + Star Trek Movie & Game for $599 (Regular Price: $774)
• Lenovo IdeaCentre D400 Home Server for $369 + free shipping (Regular Price: $500 - use coupon code USPID1A).
• 15.6" Acer Aspire 5732Z Laptop for $449.99 + free shipping (Regular Price: $520).
• 14" Dell Inspiron 14 Core i3 Laptop for $499 + free shipping (Regular Price: $654).
• 10" HP Mini 210 Netbook for $319.99 + free shipping (Regular Price: $350).
• 17.3 HP G71-340US 2.2GHz 4GB RAM 320GB HDD Laptop for $629.98 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $700).
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• 22" ViewSonic VA2223wm 16:9 1080p LCD Monitor for $159.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $170).
• Epson Artisan 710 Wireless Color Inkjet All-In-One Printer for $127.47 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $150).
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• 16" Toshiba Satellite A505-S6015 Intel Core i5-430M Dual-Core Laptop (4GB/500GB) for $699.98 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $849).
• 2 Dell Mini 10v Netbooks with WinXP, 160GB HDD for $398 (Regular Price: $550)
• 20" Dell IN2010N Widescreen LCD Monitor for $109.00 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $149)
• 8GB Patriot PSF8GUSB USB Flash Drive for $12.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $26 - use this form)
• 15.6" HP Pavilion DV6-2150US Core i3 Laptop with 320GB HDD, 4GB RAM for $599.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $730 - use this form).
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• 15.6" Dell Inspiron 15 Laptop with Intel Dual Core Processor for $399 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $683).
• 15.5" Sony VAIO VPC-EB15FX/WI Core i3 Laptop w/Blu-ray for $699.99 with free shipping (Regular Price: $819)
• 14.1" HP dv4i Core i3 Laptop w/Free 512MB Mobility Radeon for $609.99 with free shipping (Regular Price: $799.99 - use coupon code SVMC84425)
• 14" Lenovo G450 Laptop for $469 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $669 - use coupon code USP2949DX2).
• 13" HP Pavilion dm3 Laptop for $499.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $650 - use this form).
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• 10.1" Asus EEE PC 1005HA Intel Atom N270 Netbook (1GB/160GB/Win XP/3-Cell) for $249.99 (Regular Price: $299).
• Dell IN1910N 19-Inch Widescreen LCD $99.00 with Free Shipping at Dell Home & Home Office (Regular Price: $129).
• Lexmark X7675 Wireless All-in-One Printer for $79.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $118).
• Epson Stylus NX415 All-in-One Printer for $44.24 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $65.07).
• OCZ Vertex Series 2.5" 30GB SATA II MLC SSD for $70 after $40 rebate (Regular Price: $100)
• Korg nanoKEY 25-Key USB Controller Keyboard for $35 (Regular Price: $50)
• Apple Magic Mouse for $59.49 (Regular Price: $68.95)
• Dell AY410 Multimedia Speaker System for $20 with free shipping (Regular Price: $60).
• Iomega Prestige 1.5 TB USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive for $129.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $149.95).
• Seagate FreeAgent Go 880GB Portable External Hard Drive for $119.99 (Regular Price: $159).
• Seagate Expansion 750GB Portable External Hard Drive + $20 Newegg Gift Card for $109.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $169).
• Iomega Prestige 500 GB USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive for $84.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $105.39).
• Antec TriCool Fans: 80mm for $3+, 92mm for $5+, 120mm for $6+ free shipping
• Cordless Desktop MX 3200 Laser, dented box for $49 + $6 shipping(Regular price: $99 - use coupon code logi_30910).
• HP DVD-R 50-pack and CD-R 50-pack Bundle for $10 + free shipping(Regular price: $20).
• Antec 300 Computer Case for $50</a (Regular Price: $70)
• Creative Labs Sound Blaster Arena Surround USB Gaming Headset for $74.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $90).
• Get 7 Mac Apps with the Macheist Nanobundle2 for only $19.95 (Regular Price: $260)

Home Entertainment Gear!

• 55" Vizio VF551XVT LED-Backlit LCD HDTV (1080p, 240Hz) for $1749.00 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $2499).
• 46" SONY BRAVIA KDL-46W5100 1080p LCD HDTV for $1,198.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $1529).
• 42" Panasonic Viera TC-P42U1 1080P Widescreen Plasma HDTV for $700 with free shipping (Regular Price: $1000).
• 55" LG 55LH85 55-Inch 1080p 120Hz Wireless HDMI LCD TV $1,399.99 (Regular Price: $1900)
• 40" Samsung UN40B6000 1080p 120Hz LED TV for $999.00 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $1068 - use coupon code UN40B6000)
• Denon AVR1910 7.1-Channel Multi-Zone Home Theater Receiver with 1080p HDMI for $366.73 (Regular Price: $525 - use coupon code LS03A11E)
• 6 Pack of 6ft. HDMI Cables for $9.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $17)
• Sony ES Series STR-DA4400ES Home Theater A/V Receiver for $799.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $1099.99 - use coupon code SONYSTR440ES).
• 55" Samsung LN55C650 1080p LCD HDTV w/ Internet@TV for $1,686.35 + free shipping (Regular Price: $1,887).
• 15.6" Toshiba 15LV505 Widescreen LCD TV with Built-in DVD Player for $199.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $226.10).
• Yamaha RX-V465BL 525 Watt 5-Channel Home Theater Receiver $248.99 + Free Shipping (Regular Price: $294).
• 42" Sharp LC42SB45UT 1080p LCD HDTV for $539 + free shipping (Regular Price: $756).
• Sony HT-CT100 Sound Bar Speaker + Subwoofer for $219.99 (Regular Price: $299 – use coupon code: 3A825).
• Creative Inspire Speaker System $40 Shipped (Regular Price: $50 - use coupon code EMCYPYN25).
• Skullcandy Ink'd Earbuds - Black for $9.99 plus shipping (Regular Price: $19.99).
• Best Buy $9.99 + Free Shipping Blu-ray Movie Sale (Quantum of Solace, Dark City, MORE).
• Austin Powers Collection: Shagadelic Edition Loaded With Extra Mojo (Blu-ray) for $24
• Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay Unrated Special Edition (Blu-ray) or Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle Extreme Unrated (Blu-ray) for $11

Portable Gear!

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Everywhere you look, food is trying to impress you with how natural it is, but the message is vague and often misleading. What does "organic" actually mean? What separates "grass-fed" from "free range"? We're separating real, meaningful labels from eco-hype.

Photo by greenblog.

Even if you couldn't care less about the growing media presence and consumer curiosity around food sourcing and handling, it helps to know what you're getting when you're forced to pay more for certain goods.

If it was just one government agency that offered semi-descriptive labels, a la the USDA's meat grades, there wouldn't be much to talk about outside the shop talk of butchers. But meat and produce carry a lot of labels and statements these days, ranging from very official imprints to generic terms. Here's the Cliff's Notes version of what you should look for.

The Word "Organic"

This is the biggie among food labels, and one of the most controversial. It's a word that sounds black and white—either it grew up naturally and was brought to you without chemicals, hormones, pesticides, or radiation, or it didn't, you'd think. But under federal law, any product with "organic" anywhere on its packaging or display materials must contain at least 70 percent organic ingredients.

To qualify as organic, those ingredients can't contain, or be produced with, any of the following: chemical, additives, synthetics, pesticides, or genetically engineered substances. That's the stated law, but, as you might imagine, those criteria can be subject to interpretation, and the USDA's regulation of the "organic" label has come under questioning. Photo by Tim Psych.

That said, there are different grades of organic labeling in the U.S. Here's how the Washington Post breaks down the differences:

"100 Percent Organic" products must show an ingredient list, the name and address of the handler (bottler, distributor, importer, manufacturer, packer, processor) of the finished product, and the name and seal of the organic certifier. These products should contain no chemicals, additives, synthetics, pesticides or genetically engineered substances.

"USDA Organic" products must contain at least 95 percent organic ingredients. The five percent non-organic ingredients could include additives or synthetics if they are on an approved list. The label must contain a list that identifies the organic, as well as the non-organic, ingredients in the product, and the name of the organic certifier.

"Made With Organic" products must contain at least 70 percent organic ingredients. The label must contain a list that identifies the organic, as well as the non-organic, ingredients in the product, along with the name of the organic certifier.

"Natural," "Grass-Fed," And Other Labels

When it comes to concerns and criteria that the USDA and other government or state bodies don't regulate, the path to knowledge gets a lot more twisty.

In my research, the most comprehensive resource I've found to determining what a label really means comes from Consumer Reports' Eco-Labels verifier, a search and index tool that covers a wide variety of labels. From generic labels applied in spirit to state-specific co-op certifications, there's a really good chance anything you're looking for is in there.

But most people don't want to head to the store, write down labels, research them at home, then head back out again with a verified shopping list. So, with Consumer Reports' permission, I've taken one of their food label report cards, and broken down the more widely seen labels into categories. You'll find far more label-specific footnotes, research, and explanations at their full chart, but these labels, as applied to meat and other foods, have been vetted by Consumer Reports' researchers and broken down by how meaningful, verifiable, and free of marketing double-speak they are.

Note: If these label ratings sound harsh, it's because they are. They're based on universal, verified labels, so use your good judgement when all else fails. If a trustworthy local rancher tells you his meat is free of antibiotics, hormones, and was raised naturally in humane conditions, he may be telling the truth, but not have federated labels to prove it. You should still buy that product. All the rest of this is related to larger-market labels you'll find in bigger stores.

Weak or vague labels:

• Antibiotic free
• Free range
• Free roaming
• Hormone free
• Natural
• No chemicals

If the food you purchase carries one of the labels above, keep in mind that most of them don't offer strong verification and sourcing chains, are used with inconsistent criteria, and don't make plain-English standards widely available. In most cases, they were also developed without public or industry input.

Better, but not conflict-free labels:

• No antibiotics administered
• No hormones administered
• Raised without antibiotics

These labels are backed by organizations that have a consistent methodology and clear conditions for their labeling, and make their standards publicly available. In all cases, though, they weren't developed by groups outside the selling chain, and lack for public input and examination.

Consistent, if flawed, labels:

• Grass fed (USDA)
• Salmon Safe

In the "grass fed" case, it's held up by the USDA, but many have criticized the inconsistency of application, and the lack of outside review. Salmon Safe is mostly consistent and has set standards, but was similarly developed "in-house."

Certifications with clout:

• Aurora Certified Organic
• Certified Humane Raised and Handled
• Certified Organic, Inc.
• Demeter Certified Biodynamic
• Food Alliance (FA)
• Global Organic Alliance (GOA) - Certified Organic
• Guaranteed Organic Certification Agency
• Integrity Certified International
• International Certification Services, Inc.
• NMOCC - Certified Organic
• OneCert
• Quality Assurance International (QAI) - Certified Organic
• Quality Certification Services (QCS)
• USDA - Organic

Consumer Reports considers many of these food labels to lack for consistent meaning, but otherwise finds them certain, controlled, and developed by groups with both separation and public accountability. The USDA "Organic" certification is, as mentioned previously in this post, divided into sub-sets. Other tools

We've previously mentioned the Beef Label Decoder as an interactive tool to help you figure out what the label on your USDA Organic beef label is trying to tell you. If you're interested in finding out more about your milk, Where Is My Milk From? can answer exactly that question, if you type in the stamped code off the top of your carton.

Not included above are many state-wide and regional certification labels, which are, as previously mentioned, covered more in-depth at Consumer Reports' big label chart and search tool.

That's our take on slightly simplified food labels. We're not farmers, ecologists, or food inspectors, but we gave it our best. If you've found another guide that's easy to grasp and full of helpful detail, do share the link in the comments.

If you find your productive periods of work ever shrinking because of email, phone, and other interruptions, it's time to adopt a policy of scheduled replies.

Photo by Mike "Dakinewavamon" Kline.

Over at the organizational blog Everyday Simplicity they found their productivity was taking a hit because of excessive interruptions and perpetually responding to emails and phone calls as they came in. Their solution was to set aside scheduled windows of time to deal with incoming email, voicemail, and other inputs:

I only return messages left for me at 10 am, 2pm, and 4 pm. My phone's ringer is turned off, and my cell phone sits in my purse. I call it my "Dr Pepper Rule," because of the old 10-2-4 logo on the Dr. Pepper bottles.

You can adapt the schedule to whatever fits your work flow best. The spirit of the system, however, is to break away from the habit of answering email and phone requests the second they happen. Make sure you're scheduling large enough blocks of time for your primary work.

If you already batch your email and voicemail checks to cut down on interruptions, we want to hear your tips and tricks in the comments. Have another tip for getting things done without all the distraction? We want to hear about that too.

Time Management Tip: Returning Calls, Emails, and Text Messages on Your Schedule, Not Theirs [Everyday Simplicity via SimpleProductivityBlog]

Android: Your best thoughts can come to you when you're nowhere near your work space. If you're carrying an Android phone, Thinking Space is an elegant and convenient way to map out where your mind goes on the go.

Thinking Space does most of what you'd want a desktop mind mapping package to do, and a little more, in some cases. You'll figure out the methods for adding and branching thoughts pretty quickly, and if you're already using Freemind, it can read those files, too. Your mind maps are stored on your phone's SD card, but can also be converted to images and sent by email, or uploaded to a cloud-based space Thinking Space has set up.

I've only just started tinkering with Thinking Space, but the How-To Geek has repeatedly advised me that it's a worthy tool for organizing thoughts. If you, like me, are a neophyte in this realm, read up on Brad Isaac's beginner's guide to mind mapping meetings for a primer on getting the most from your maps.

Thinking Space is a free download for Android phones, available in the Market and as a QR code scan at its home site.

Thinking Space for Android