10 Productivity Tools for Computer Addicts
Posted October 14, 2009 in Productivity, Tools/Resources
Not everyone needs a computer to do their work, but those of us who do tend to be stuck to our computers like a strong piece of velcro.
With the amount of time we spend tapping away at our keyboards, it’s no wonder there are hundreds of tools dedicated to making that time more efficient. These productivity tools range from online web applications, to small desktop programs, to smartphone software, and everything in between. That broad range of programs, though, is just the problem — it’s tough to weed through all of the junk out there to find tools that are actually worthwhile.
So, to make your life easier, we’ve gone and done some of the work for you. Here are ten incredibly useful productivity tools for those of us who can’t seem to eat breakfast, lunch, or dinner away from a computer screen.
1. SiteLauncher (FireFox)
No matter what your profession, it’s practically a given that you visit at least a dozen websites on a regular basis. Now, this being a productivity article, we need to make sure you aren’t typing in each of those URLs every time you visit a site. Sure, you could use your Firefox bookmarks toolbar (and you probably are), but imagine how quickly you could browse the web if you had keyboard shortcuts for all of your favorite sites?
Enter Firefox Site Launcher — a simple add-on that places all of your favorite websites within a few simple keystrokes. All you need to do is press Ctrl + Enter to bring up the site launcher overlay, and then simply tap the letter you’ve assigned for each of your sites. All in all, it’s a very impressive, and useful, little add-on.
Click here to visit the Site Launcher page →
2. Yahoo Pipes (Web)
Yahoo pipes is an incredibly powerful tool that can perform the equivalent of online miracles. Pipes is based on the idea of taking information sources like website APIs or RSS feeds, and then performing a number of different operations and functions on them to create a new output. This sounds complicated, and it sometimes can be, but the results can easily save you hours (once you’re done, of course). What types of things can you do? Combine RSS feeds, filter out search terms, automatically post to services like twitter, and much much more.
It will undoubtedly take some time getting used to the interface before you can make anything useful, but luckily there are a number of pre-made pipes that can accomplish a lot of time-saving functions.
Browse the most popular pipes here →
3. ExpanDrive (Mac/Win)
For web designers, developers, or anyone who works with FTP frequently, ExpanDrive is one of the most simple and wonderful programs you can add to your workflow. What it does is create a new drive in Windows Explorer or Finder that links directly to your FTP account, a simple but profound action. This means that you can use any text editing or graphics to open, edit, and save files directly to your live web server.
In my other business I manage dozens of hosting accounts under my main server, and with ExpanDrive I can access any of them within a few clicks. Updating theme files is a cinch, and moving files around is as easy as dragging and dropping them from my network drive to my main computer. The whole process is simple and intuitive, and the company has both Windows and Macintosh versions of the software.
4. Notepad++ (Win) or TextWrangler (Mac)
Okay, now I know you’re wondering why two very popular text-editing programs are on a list of productivity tools, and here’s why: Both of these tools offer advanced functionality that can save you hours once you learn how to use it.
Notepad++ is a simple app that provides syntax highlighting and makes coding easier, but did you know that you can use perform advanced find/replace using Regular Expressions? Not only that, you can record and playback macros too — which, as most powerusers will tell you, can be a huge time saver. Finally, Notepad++ has a huge list of extensions that allow you to expand the functionality of the editor and tailor it to your specific needs. Which saves lots of time.
TextWrangler offers Mac users a lot of the same functionality. Spend a few minutes thinking about how the advanced functions could help your workflow and I’ll bet you can become significantly more productive.
Learn more about Notepad++ | Learn more about TextWrangler
5. XMarks (Firefox)
Firefox bookmarks are a simple way to store interesting and valuable websites — and XMarks takes that basic function and makes it more useful. XMarks is an extension and web service that works with Firefox to backup and synchronize your bookmarks across all of your computers. Those of you who work on multiple computers know exactly how valuable that feature can be.
For you guys who don’t have multiple computers, Xmarks is till useful in that it serves as a great backup feature for all of your bookmarks. Are you used to manually replacing your bookmarks after every fresh computer format? Use this add-on and you won’t have to worry about that anymore.
6. UltraMon (Win only)
Study after study shows that running multiple monitors can increase productivity, sometimes up to 50%. While this application, UltraMon, won’t buy you a second monitor — it will boost your productivity even further if you already have two or more.
UltraMon helps with a few little things that make a big difference — like extending your task bar to your second or third monitors, or automatically sending an open window to the other monitor. Once you’ve got UltraMon installed it only takes a few minutes to set up shortcuts like Ctrl + Right and Ctrl Left that can instantly move applications between displays. I use this feature hundreds of times daily, and it is a huge productivity enhancement.
Sadly, UltraMon only has a Windows version at this point, and I wasn’t able to find any good Mac alternatives. Do any of you have a suggestion for Mac users?
7. GreaseMonkey (Firefox)
Greasemonkey is an add-on for Firefox that allows you to customize how pages display by adding bits of Javascript that get executed with the page. For developers, this means that you can do a lot of advanced customization to other peoples’ websites. For the rest of us, this is really useful because you can download a bunch of scripts that provide pre-built features.
Once you have Greasemonkey installed, check out Userscripts.org for a list of popular scripts to run. There are scripts that add twitter search results to Google, scripts to improve the functionality of Gmail, and much much more. One of my favorites is a script that helps manage multiple Google accounts. Many of these can replace tasks that you’ll repeat on a regular basis, and hopefully save a lot of time in the process.
8. Fences (Win)
Fences is unfortunately another PC only application — but for those of you who are running Windows, I think it’s a must have. Simply stated, Fences is a small application that allows you to better manage and group icons on your desktop. In addition, it allows you to instantly hide all of your icons simply by double clicking.
These are two very small features, but for a simple and free application, I don’t think it’s all that shabby.
9. Texter (Win) or TextExpander (Mac)
Lifehacker, a blog known for productivity applications, actually created their own little app a few years ago that still works in Windows 7 and provides some really cool features. The app is called Texter, and it is basic text replacement throughout windows.
What that means is you can set up keywords that will be instantly replaced with a larger block of text, depending on how you set it up. This can be a lifesaver if you find yourself typing certain phrases over and over again. With Texter installed you can simply type a few letters and they will automatically be replaced with your chosen text. And it works throughout the entire operating system.
For those of you on Macs, there’s a similar and slightly more advanced version called TextExpander that does basically the same thing.
Check out Texter | Check out TextExpander
10. Gmail Notifier Plus (Win) or Notify (Mac)
Finally, our last productivity apps are a couple of little programs that notify you of new Gmail messages, and they do it better than Google’s default notifier. For those of you, like me, who have several Google accounts, the default notifier can be less than perfect.
Both of these alternatives handily manage multiple accounts, and both of them are sure to improve your experience with gmail notifications.
Check out Gmail Notifier Plus (Win) | Check out Notifier (Mac)
What Are Your Top 5 Productivity Tools?
This list is the combined effort of several of us here at FreelanceFolder, but I’m sure you’ve got at least a few productivity apps you know about that we don’t.
Let us know what your favorites are — try to list your top five productivity tools in the comments.
Related posts:
- 7 Productivity Tools I Couldn’t Live Without
- 12 Tools That Enhance Productivity
- Freelance Web Designer Tools And Productivity Management
- 15 Firefox Add-Ons to Tame Social Media Addicts
- How To Unleash the Productivity Beast
About the author: Mason Hipp is a designer, entrepreneur, and writer. He is co-author of the Book The Unlimited Freelancer, and has just recently launched a collection of premium graphic resources for web designers called MediaLoot. Follow him on twitter @MasonHipp
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64 Comments
Ahmed Gaber
October 14th, 2009 at 5:08 pmAlthough most of the application for Win and Mac, Linux still have very expanded set of the useful applications freelancer may use to ease the work
Mason Hipp
October 14th, 2009 at 5:14 pmAhmed, that’s very true.
I personally don’t have enough experience using linux for work, so I wouldn’t feel comfortable recommending anything. Are there any applications you’d want to suggest for linux-using freelancers? It would be great to get some Linux guys to contribute their favorites too.
Marwan
October 14th, 2009 at 5:34 pmTexter saved me a lot of time and keystrokes, highly recommended.
I recommend also Ubiquity extension for Firefox.
http://labs.mozilla.com/ubiquity/
LizWong1
October 14th, 2009 at 5:54 pmYou seem to have accidentally posted the Ultramon picture instead of the GreaseMonkey picture.
Mike Smith
October 14th, 2009 at 6:05 pmTexter is an AWESOME program I use daily. With everything from emails to wordpress codes, xhtml/css codes, php codes, ect. It’s a definite time saver. Same with Notepad++… For years I coded in regular notepad. took a week or so to get used to notepad++ but now I’ll never look back.
I’m checking into the gmail notifier now. Does it work with business gmail accounts, do you know?
nurbie
October 14th, 2009 at 6:16 pmFirebug and Color picker for Google are my favorite add-ons ever. I use them all the time.. always pulling apart other websites to find out how they work, or what color they are using or (even what color I am using, depending on the website color complexity).
Right now I am working on amientertainment.com, and saw selectable text on a website with shadow on a website… was able to figure out how they did it (Firefox only at the moment, will enable for ie asap) and now text-shadow lives on the secondary menu. Great great great!
Skee
October 14th, 2009 at 9:10 pmI personally use the following:
Firebug for checking bugs on websites and codes
Coda to develop websites
Google Reader for RSS feed (Firefox extension: Better GReader 2.0)
CoolIris to browse images (Firefox extension)
Web Developer (Firefox extension: outlines of website layouts and so forth)
Nicholas Cardot
October 14th, 2009 at 9:16 pmI use XMarks and I love it. It saves me a ton of hassle.
Endre
October 15th, 2009 at 4:22 amI could not live without Executor (executor.dk)
Sean
October 15th, 2009 at 4:31 amI tried expanddrive but found it was really really slow and bogged down my computer. Instead I use Web Drive which is incredibly easy and working on files directly on the server I notice no difference in save speeds.
Am also a fan of notepad++, which coincidentally is the topic of a post I just wrote today.
Birgit Schultz
October 15th, 2009 at 4:34 amIndispensable for me to organize information from the www: Evernote (http://www.evernote.com/). Also very useful for organizing all my texts and drafts is Microsofts OneNote. Although not free for commercial use I recommend PhraseExpress instead of Texter http://www.phraseexpress.com/. For mindmapping XMind is a great tool http://www.xmind.net/. And to find relations I would never have thought of, I suggest trying PersonalBrain http://www.thebrain.com/.
I’m also a great fan of XMarks and Notepad++. Fences sounded great but was not a productivity booster for me.
Jacky
October 15th, 2009 at 5:47 amNice post! I liked GreaseMonkey Add-on. I also Liked http://www.SimilarWeb.com Add-on- which is a side bar that finds similar sties to the ones you serf in. Have you heard about it? What do you think about it?
Peter van Teeseling
October 15th, 2009 at 8:00 amI’m on a Mac and use these tools a lot during the day:
* Skitch for screenshots and easy annotation/uploading
* iStatMenu’s to monitor system performance
* Precipitate to add Google Docs to spotlight searches
* Quicksilver and/or Google Quick Search Bar for keyboard navigation
* Adium for multiprotocol chat
* Cyberduck for FTP access
* and most of all: 1Password for safe password management
Nate
October 15th, 2009 at 11:35 amNo Launchy???!!!
Birgit Schultz
October 15th, 2009 at 12:22 pmNate, sure! I couldn’t live without it. It’s so natural that I absolutely forgot!
GreenBird
October 15th, 2009 at 12:39 pmOne of the most useful applications that I use, and is free also, is PDFredirect.
this app adds a virtual printer on your machine and converts any document you have into acrobat (.pdf) format. have a look:
http://www.exp-systems.com/
Simon
October 15th, 2009 at 1:51 pm+1 for PhraseExpress. It is the power house if it comes to text replacement.
Wellington Grey
October 16th, 2009 at 1:35 amI swear by textexpander. I’ve put everything I possibly can in it: my email address, phone numbers, email templates, etc. I can’t image how I ever lived before.
L.F.
October 16th, 2009 at 6:37 amI do a lot of software documentation, taking tons of screenshots. Layers PSD capture is priceless. I usually open all windows, dialogs, etc. in secondary display and grab all at the same time.
Don’t know if there is something equivalent for windows. Linux is a total mystery for me, sorry.
This one: layersapp.com
Barış Toker
October 16th, 2009 at 9:12 amTexter is the kind of application that I would benefit very much from, but it doesn’t do very good on my computers, it is very buggy and brakes lots of things. Are there any other alternatives to this application?
Chris Pierre
October 16th, 2009 at 12:07 pmI have been using Notepad ++ for a couple months now and It really gives you the advantage of controlling your code. But I also still use DW CS4, which after using notepad you will be lightening quick in DW.
Sean Patterson
October 16th, 2009 at 12:20 pm+1 for Launchy. I also want to toss in my vote for Rocketdock.
While Launchy and Rocketdock are effectively moot with Windows 7 since there are similar features built in, my office is still running XP on some old machines and between the two applications, I can fire up anything I need in a blink or two.
Ilija Brajkovic
October 16th, 2009 at 4:24 pmI use Windows Live Writer for blogging and Q10 for writing some articles.
Markus
October 17th, 2009 at 9:28 amNice, I use some of these. And another tool I am using is Sticky Password – password manager and form filler. It save lot of my time and keeps my passwords strong. Plus I never forget them :-))
http://www.stickypassword.com
Markus
October 17th, 2009 at 9:28 amNice, I use some of these. And another tool I am using is Sticky Password – password manager and form filler. It save lot of my time and keeps my passwords strong. Plus I never forget them :-))
http://www.stickypassword.com
Rhonda Tipton
October 18th, 2009 at 9:58 amI am a big fan of app launchers. I use Executor currently and LOVE it. I used Launchy and SlickRun in the past and like those as well. Can’t wait to try out the FireFox SiteLauncher.
Texter is awesome…I use it everyday.
I also use Evernote religiously. Love having my notes with me everywhere I go.
Great post!
Ian Mayman
October 18th, 2009 at 11:54 amI use a Mac and there are some good apps shown here but there are some fantastic apps missing, such as task managers like Omnifocus and Things, and one great app but little talked about is Concentrate which helps you, well, concentrate! It stops you visiting websites you specify and from using apps you specify and a for an amount of time you choose. It really help us procrastinators!
For Twitter, I would say the best time saver is Twhirl. I manage several twitter accounts, personal and professional, and Twhirl lets me stay on top of them without reloading tweets or webpages. It does far more then CoTweet, Hootsuite or any of those browser based apps.
krstatzar
October 21st, 2009 at 7:50 amGood choice but I would add
AltDesk virtual desktop manager
http://www.astonshell.com/altdesk/
Best tool on your list Notepad ++ of course
Birgit Schultz
October 21st, 2009 at 8:00 amFor the Altdesk recommendation I would rather mention Windows Pager: OpenSource and free!
http://windowspager.sourceforge.net/
Jay Kerr
October 21st, 2009 at 5:36 pmI use 1Password to manage all of my site logins, credit card info and for creating strong passwords when I need them. It keeps all of my client’s passwords organized and easy to find when I need them.
1Password also saves time with its “Go & Fill Login” feature by going to a website and logging in automatically. The software is Mac only and works in Safari and Firefox.
Eric B.
October 28th, 2009 at 10:00 amSiteLauncher sounds pretty cool. I’ll go check it out.
I guess it counts as a productivity tool so I use Vim as a text editor. It’s really hard to use if you’re just starting out, but once you get used to it, it can really help to edit files much more quickly.
designfollow
October 28th, 2009 at 9:32 pmthanks for this great post.
Diptanshu
October 30th, 2009 at 5:34 am1. NetDrive instead of WebDrive/ExpanDrive. It’s free.
2. PStart — application launcher. Low memory footprint, free.
3. KeyPass for managing passwords/logins.
Keypass doesn’t compare to Roboform but it’s free.
In general, try portableapps.com for some excellent productivity tools.
Oh, and if you’re on a LAN, IP Messenger (http://www.ipmsg.org/) to communicate+transfer files to other users. This one doesn’t seem to have any competitors.
Sam
October 31st, 2009 at 11:00 amI’ll have to give a spin to some of these apps.
My personal favorites, used on a daily basis:
+ xmarks
+ windows live sync
+ windows live writer
+ windows live skydrive
+ bloglines
+ eclipse galileo
Enrique Ortiz
November 17th, 2009 at 1:23 pmInstead of XMarks I’ve been using delicious for quite some time, now there’s a new tool around to manage bookmarks it’s called diigo http://www.diigo.com/ is a bookmark administrator with steroids, it allows to select a partial page and bookmarkit, comment on it and share it with an open or closed group you create, looks like a great tool.
Juan Carlos Pelayo Santos
November 17th, 2009 at 10:17 pmThanks for the tips, several were pretty useful to me. Thanks!
harry
November 19th, 2009 at 11:57 pmGreat list.
I find myself pretty productive with a goal and task tracker app: http://www.goalsontrack.com
Sean
December 10th, 2009 at 4:56 amHere are some I would add. One of these is a tool, the other is a service, but I find both very helpful.
On productivity: http://www.InternetStopwatch.com – I find timing how long it takes me to do certain tasks really makes me cut out a lot of wasted time.
On avoiding procrastination: http://www.Stickk.com – This site lets you put contracts on yourself. I find it very useful.
PC Help
December 10th, 2009 at 12:32 pmWe found a solution over at http://www.pc-helpdesk.co.uk/, which kills two birds with one stone!
They give you help with any IT problem over the phone or remotely and you get a brilliant on-line drive for free, AND it costs less that the normal price of on-line storage anyway!
J
Fern
January 6th, 2010 at 2:43 pmThanks for this great list – I’ll check out SiteLauncher and GMail notifier (I can stay on top of my 3 Gmail accounts without logging in/out?! great!)
I suggest you check out http://www.wizehive.com for increased productivity and easy project management. Amongst the many features:
* You can email notes and documents directly into your workspaces and sort info by topic using pages within each workspace.
* You can upload and edit MS files and and post comments too.
* The drag-and-drop task management features are really helpful in planning collaborative projects and staying on top of deadlines and priorities.
* Send info right to your workspace via Twitter
… and lots more… come check it out! thanks…
Online Outsourcing
March 8th, 2010 at 8:19 amI am following Evernote..
Your all suggestions are made as per the fastest generation and their valuable process of the computer era…keep sharing.
Ivan de Leon
March 10th, 2010 at 5:12 pmMy top is Notepad++
I use it every day and the best is to search/replace mutiple files with regular expressions
Franz Geffke
March 28th, 2010 at 11:20 pmOne of my TOP productivity tools is ‘Things’. It offers a great To-Do list with many features like grouping, timing and repeating events. An iPhone synchronization is available as well.
Things is only available for Mac tho.
http://culturedcode.com/things/
geekware
June 19th, 2010 at 9:43 amGreat list. A new tool which I added to my must have list is TriX – lots of functions which can be called by hotkeys / simple menu – worth trying.
http://cipherdon.com/trix.aspx
Sujay
October 25th, 2010 at 6:54 amThere are a couple of more
http://sujay-ghosh.blogspot.com/2010/09/top-effective-utilities-for.html
Contractors
December 17th, 2010 at 9:30 amFences and Ultramon are brilliant – use them all the time!
Jane Gordon
May 16th, 2011 at 4:45 pmI’d like to add http://dooster.net to this list. A great productivity tool, it’s helped me to be much more organised and integrates with Google and my mobile.
Andrew Liongosari
April 9th, 2012 at 1:35 amMost of these stuff are for Windows and Firefox, and while I can’t deny that some of these boost the productivity, I can’t really say that they are so much of a help. With or without these tools, our productivity lies in what we DO, not what we USE
Iphone app design
September 17th, 2012 at 11:14 pmIt’s really hard to use if you’re just starting out, but once you get used to it, it can really help to edit files much more quickly.
Iphone app design
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