7 Essential Set Of Tools For Everyone Who Earns A Living Online
Posted May 29, 2008 in Uncategorized 55 Comments »
If you are a full time web-worker earning your living through the internet, I am sure you would agree that for every task you can think of, there are more tools on the internet then you can imagine. Sometimes it can become really difficult to chose the tools that will do the job right.
Today we decided to list out seven such tools or rather sets of tools, which are essential for every web-worker no matter the area of specialization. So whether you are web designer, blogger, freelance writer or any other kind of web-worker, you could certainly use these tools to work more effectively and productively too.
1: Browser And Email
For starters, I suggest you use Firefox, if you are not already. That’s because Firefox has so much more to offer then other web browsers and with the impending release of Firefox 3, it will bring some new and excellent features which many of us are looking forward to.
I use Gmail as my email client and recommend it. But if you are more into a desktop email client, then MS Outlook or Thunderbird are great. And if you happen to be on Mac OSX, I’m pretty sure Mail does the job. :)
2: Invoicing And Payment
If you work online, then you know the importance of such tools. Paypal is the most popular way to send and receive money and it also allows you to create invoices and send them to your clients. FreshBooks and LessAccounting are 2 very popular web-based invoicing tool used by a lot of web workers. In fact, Jon wrote an elaborate post on different invoicing tools, which you may find very useful.
3: Taking Notes
No matter what kind of work you do, I’m certain that taking notes is something that takes a considerable amount of your time, especially if you’re a freelance writer doing a lot of research. A very simple way is by using a nice moleskine notebook.
However, there are other cool ways to take notes. Like Ubernote, which lets you take notes and clips online and organize them effectively.
One of the best and most popular tools to take notes online is Evernote. It has a web version and a desktop software version and the best part is it allows you to sync the online and offline versions. I have been using it and found it to be excellent. I have 20 invites to give away for the new version of Evernote. So if you want one, leave a comment and I’ll email you the invite. (*make sure you mention it in your comment and leave a valid email address)
4: Storage
As web workers, we are dealing with data all the time. Whether it’s design sketches/mock-ups, unfinished articles, invoice templates or client information, it can get overwhelming at some point.
It’s important to preserve this data and store it outside your computer. What if your computer crashed? You can use a USB thumb drive for that purpose or a portable hard drive like this one. Also you could sync the data between the computer and the portable device, using softwares such as Sync Toy or Syncback SE
5: Writing
Not only bloggers and freelance writers need to write. Every web worker will eventually have to create documents or reports. So, for this purpose some suggestion are Google Docs and Zoho. In fact Zoho has an amazing collection of free tools which you should try out.
Desktop tools for this purpose are MS Office and Open Office.
6: Images
Desktop tools for dealing with images range from paid alternatives like Photoshop and SnagIt to free alternatives like GIMP. For those of you who just need simple image editing features, try out online tools like Picnik and Photoshop Express.
If you are looking for great photos, there are sites like iStockphoto and Everystockphoto. I wrote a post on my blog about how to get excellent license free images. You may find it useful too.
7: Organizers / Time management
Organizing and tracking your time is very important as a web worker. You could use the default calendar of your email program or an organizer like Essential PIM. One of my favorite task management softwares is Remember the Milk, because of its excellent features and its integration with Gmail and Google Calendar.
To track your time, you could try Toggl or yaTimer.
What tool do YOU use and why? let us know in the comment section! :)
Cheers,
Abhijeet Mukherjee
******
About the author: Abhijeet Mukherjee is a blogger and freelance writer. He is a regular contributer for many blogs notably including DumbLittleMan.com and MakeUseOf.com. He also maintains his own blog about tech tips, productivity hacks and blogging tips – Jeet Blog
About the author: Abhijeet Mukherjee is a blogger and freelance writer. He is a regular contributer for many blogs notably including DumbLittleMan.com and MakeUseOf.com. He also maintains his own blog about tech tips, productivity hacks and blogging tips - Jeet Blog
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55 Comments
UIDooD
May 29th, 2008 at 5:20 amHey, Thanks for the great post.
I would really appreciate if you could send me an invite to evernote, it just looks awesome.
Thank you!
Magnus Jepson
May 29th, 2008 at 5:38 amYou forgot the most valuable of all: BaseCamp
emendelski
May 29th, 2008 at 5:49 amThanks for the great article.
But you’ve missed 1 point – neverending cup of coffee (’cause web developers are merely the tools to convert caffeine to code).
I wanna please for invitation to Evernote also.
Greets.
Marieke
May 29th, 2008 at 6:01 amThank you for the tips… this article has already gotten stared, and the time management programs downloaded :-)
I would appreciate a invite to the new Evernote too.
Joe Norton
May 29th, 2008 at 7:49 amI second that note on basecamp. Awesome app, makes working over computer so much easier.
Stefan
May 29th, 2008 at 8:17 amHi,
great post, great list – really!
And by the way – could you send me an evernote-invitation please?
Thanks a lot,
Stefan
Travis Thompson
May 29th, 2008 at 8:30 amGreat article – I’d love an Evernote invite – it looks amazing.
’Mas
May 29th, 2008 at 8:52 amGood collection, some new to me that I’ll be checking on. May I have one of those evernote invites please?
J Mercer
May 29th, 2008 at 9:58 amThanks for introducing me to some new tools – and reminding me to invest more time in the tools that I already have. I would love an invite to Evernote.
Thanks,
Jenn
Peter Button
May 29th, 2008 at 10:17 amGood collection of ideas. Two more that I use:
http://www.nozbe.com for an excellent online task tracking application based on GTD ideas
http://www.getharvest.com as a clean, simple and effective time tracker
Thanks for the offer of the evernote invite – yes please!
Peter
Jimmy
May 29th, 2008 at 11:38 am3. I use Google Notebook (has browser integration) – http://www.google.com/notebook/
7. I use Todoist (about as simple as it gets… love it!) – http://www.todoist.com/
Trever Yarrish
May 29th, 2008 at 11:53 amThank you for sharing your tool belt with us. We utilize a lot of the same tools and you have opened my eyes to a few new ones. One of which being the Evernote app… it looks great and I would love an invite if you have any left. Thank you again.
waterprise2
May 29th, 2008 at 3:47 pmPlease send me an invitation if any are left! thank you!
Thanks for a great post!
JustinM
May 29th, 2008 at 8:27 pmGot to your site from digg. Very nicely done.
Somehow I completely missed EverNote, it looks freakin amazing! (search words in text, jigga whaaat?!)
I’d really appreciate an invite, iamjustinm( at )gmail.com
Joanne Taylor
May 29th, 2008 at 9:26 pmGreat Post! I’ve been reading your blog for some time now and you do a great job.
If you have any invitations left I would love one. Thank you
Geo Washington
May 29th, 2008 at 10:07 pmDon’t know how I got here, but I am glad I did!
Thanks for all of the insightful information.
Hopefully, I’m not too late for some of those Evernote invites…
Cheers
Shawn Norris
May 29th, 2008 at 10:22 pmI use the Zotero plugin for Firefox to gather my notes and clips while I’m researching. Or a simple legal pad.
The Lightning add-on for Thunderbird is the best calendar I’ve ever used. It keeps me on track with my email, deadlines, and to-do list all right in one place.
Nick Goddard
May 29th, 2008 at 11:42 pmHi Thanks for anither great post.
I’d appreciate an invite to Evernote if you have any left, it looks really good.
Cheers
Peter - Snagit Guide
May 30th, 2008 at 3:01 amNice list :-)
Yes, please evernote invite would be appreciated ;-)
Shankar Ganesh
May 30th, 2008 at 3:02 amThat’s a great list. I’d like to add you can also use an online backup solution like SugarSync or Mozy Backup to create copies of your important documents.
SugarSync – sugarsync.com
Mozy Backup – mozy.com
You can also shell out some money and buy additional storage if you want. They aren’t much expensive, I should mention.
Grace Smith | Postscript5
May 30th, 2008 at 3:35 amFantastic list however i agree with Shankar that backup is essential for anyone working online, you just never know when you will need it! I would love an evernote invite, i have been waiting to test it out for a while. Cheers :-)
Andrew
May 30th, 2008 at 4:05 amThank you! Great post, much appreciated. :)
Julia
May 30th, 2008 at 9:59 amExcellent list, and not just for full-time web workers! I’m sharing this one with my students and my fellow faculty.
If you have any Evernote invites left I would very much like one.
ironicart
May 30th, 2008 at 10:36 amGOD i love you guys :)
keep up the great work… this is just a gem!
Ahmed
May 30th, 2008 at 1:01 pmInvite for Evernote :)
Dragos
May 30th, 2008 at 1:16 pmHi.
Can you please send me a evernote-invitation?
Thank you.
Zakman
May 30th, 2008 at 1:20 pmThanks Abhi for the reminders!
Well so far as the storage goes, sometimes I wonder if uploading to my Gmail account is the safest bet of all… I mean with 6 gig there and chances of Google crashing are much less than my hard disk crashing, I think it’s a good idea to archive some of my most important data on my Gmail account. Besides, I can access it from anywhere….
What say you?
Abhijeet Mukherjee
May 30th, 2008 at 1:26 pmThanks all for your nice comments ! I have sent the invites to those who wanted and in fact I have already sent more than 20 :) But I have more so no worries.
@Zakman- I don’t think you should use Gmail as your storage place. It may not be very convenient. If you check Shankar’s comment above , he has suggested 2 good services for that.
Grace Smith | Postscript5
May 30th, 2008 at 1:51 pmI have 17 evernote invites left, as someone kindly sent me an invite this morning, if anyone would like one drop me an email.
Abhijeet Mukherjee
May 30th, 2008 at 1:54 pmLOL..Grace that someone has a name , folks can see your previous comment :) :)
But thanks for coming forward. I appreciate that. As of now I have more invites so no worries. But if we are out of it then I’ll get in touch with you. :)
Jon Phillips
May 30th, 2008 at 1:57 pmI got 20 invites too, in case you guys run out of invites :)
Brandon Arnold
May 30th, 2008 at 2:03 pmGreat post!! I would love an invite if anyone has one left…
thanks!!!
Grace Smith | Postscript5
May 30th, 2008 at 2:04 pmSorry abhijeet i totally had a brain freeze! ;-)
Allan
May 30th, 2008 at 5:54 pmOooooo would be really generous if someone could send me an invite aswell.
allcrabnokebab (at ) hotmail.com
Thankyouuu
nice article btw found some cool things this way.
TomBamford
May 30th, 2008 at 11:54 pmHeya, a great selection of tools.
For invoicing, desklamp is very useful web app, and they are working on v2, which will be more like a CRM I understand.
Online Backup, I used to use Mozy, but not the unlimited as it’s for home use and Pro for clients, but recently come accross JungleDisk
which use’s Amazon’s S3 Storage Service. And price/quality is pretty amazing. If your on Mac, it saves dishing out lots of money for a .Mac account, and it fully integrates just as well.
oh and would kindly love an evernote invite as well :p Thanks
BANAGO
May 31st, 2008 at 7:51 amGreat post! Thanks!
Charlie Gilkey | Productive Flourishing
May 31st, 2008 at 5:21 pmBackpack has become one of my essential web tools.
I’d love an invite to Evernote if you still have some. Thanks.
Viqi French
June 1st, 2008 at 9:54 amI have yet to try GIMP, but I’m a die-hard user and fan of Paint.net. It’s an excellent, FREE graphics software that rivals Photoshop. Except it’s probably easier to learn.
I definitely need to check into Toggl and yaTimer. Better time management and projecting is increasingly important as a freelance writing practice grows!
Very nice post!
Viqi
http://ebookstrategies101.com
Qasim Rasheed
June 1st, 2008 at 9:40 pmNice post. Any evernotes invites available or am I tool late to the party.
Thanks and keep up the good work
Amy
June 2nd, 2008 at 1:24 amEvernote, please. :-)
Angie Bowen
June 2nd, 2008 at 8:34 pmGreat post, and a lot of useful tools I didn’t know about.
And I figure you’re out by now but if not, I would love an invite to Evernote as well!
Matthew Maudlin
June 3rd, 2008 at 5:49 amThanks for the great post. I would love to get an invite to evernote. Thanks so much.
Melissa B
June 3rd, 2008 at 10:37 pmWow, thanks for all the ideas.
If anyone has any evernote invites left, please send me one. I would love to check it out. I have been using some of my Vista gadgets and Backpack. I like Backpack because you can have it send you text messages as reminders.
~Melissa B
Massimo Marolda
June 4th, 2008 at 1:56 pmwonderful post! :D Congrats!
Jeremy
June 4th, 2008 at 7:38 pmGreat post, thanks! I have been exploring all kinds of different productivity tools as I make the transition from full time employee to lone ranger. I recently started using Freshbooks, that one’s a favorite. Try to keep most of what I do Google integrated, Gmail, Reader, Notebook etc. Started using a toodledo which is a to do list that integrates decently with google but I really like the online portion of the app. Time tracking is one I fail on so I’ll be checking that out, and I will definitely be diving deeper into my Backpack and Basecamp accounts. Keep the ideas comin’
Thomas Evan Lecklider
June 4th, 2008 at 8:18 pmAn amazing tool for those of us on Macs is Billings: http://www.billings2.com/
Great for invoicing and time management, built in timer, projects, contacts, and work slips.
chlori
June 5th, 2008 at 2:42 amIf you still have an invite for Evernote, please send me one… Thank you very much!
Ryan Keeter
June 5th, 2008 at 2:22 pmGreat post! Excellent overview! If you still have an invite for Evernote also, I would love to get one, thank you so much!
Craig Huffstetler
June 9th, 2008 at 5:56 amI would love an EverNote Invite if you still have one :-) I love your website and am avid reader! Great post by the way, very helpful…some new tools I didn’t know about.
Digital Design Diary
June 9th, 2008 at 7:40 pmHey thanks these are all useful tools but I have yet to try out some. Personally I would add an rss reader to the mix. (Why? To keep up with all the great sites like freelancefolder.com!)
Robert S. Robbins
July 8th, 2008 at 11:56 amI use http://klok.mcgraphix.com/klok/index.htm for keeping track of my time. I create custom Compiled HTML Help files for my project notes. This allows me to document my work using web pages that can actually demonstrate what I’m documenting; CSS, JavaScript, code with syntax highlighting, etc. I can then send this documentation to the client as a single file.
Neveuncen
December 30th, 2008 at 3:11 pmhello it is test. WinRAR provides the full RAR and ZIP file support, can decompress CAB, GZIP, ACE and other archive formats.
fhpdtltvmccihakunwdgitznwjbxegxuechhello
sandrar
September 10th, 2009 at 5:14 pmHi! I was surfing and found your blog post… nice! I love your blog. :) Cheers! Sandra. R.
Ronald
November 28th, 2009 at 4:13 amHourDoc is another tool for Time Tracking. http://www.HourDoc.com is right treatment for time tracking of virtual assistants, has to be an easy-to-administer and affordable solution for Freelancers. They offer free application to companies less than 50 employees.
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