1. Outlook contact tracking
If you use Outlook, one of the most powerful, but often overlooked features is the ability to use the Contacts list as a contact tracking database. This feature allows you to add notes about phone calls, meetings, etc. to a contact. Because Outlook also manages your e-mail, it adds a feature to integrate all e-mails to or from this contact as well. In the Outlook Contact folder, double click on a contact to display the contact record fully. Click on the Activities tab and the system will automatically search for any e-mails to or from the e- mail address you have specified for that contact and list them for your reference. It searches all mail folders, so you will see those you have sent, received and even deleted. Note that this may take a while depending on how many e-mails you have in your folders. To explore what other activities you can use, click on the Actions menu item and click on New Journal Entry. You can then see what types of entries you can add and see how you can use Outlook as an integrated e-mail and contact management application.
2. Nero CD Burning software
More and more we are discovering the benefits of producing a CD for backup or for promotional or product purposes. The best CD creation software I have found is called Nero and it is produced by a company in Germany. It gives a ton of options and produces CD’s that can be read on both PC’s and Mac’s. One of the best features is that if you set up a file list to be burned to a CD (as I have done for my CD based products), any time you go to produce that CD, it searches for updates to those files and always uses the latest versions. One of our subscribers, Brad McRae, used this software to produce a mixed mode CD, where you can listen to his audio track on a CD player, but you also see Word and PDF files when you pop it in your computer. I highly recommend Nero and you can learn more about it at their web site http://www.nero.com.
3. Useful Resource – Woody’s Office Watch
Most of us are using the Microsoft Office suite of products and sometimes it is hard to get an unbiased view of the products and new upgrades that are coming. I have recently discovered a good resource for anyone using these products. Woody’s Office Watch is written from a true end-user perspective. They cut through the marketing junk and give you the straight goods. It is a regularly published e-zine that is well written – clear and concise. I suggest you check it out at http://www.woodyswatch.com. They also publish newsletters for Windows XP, MS Project and MS Access.