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Category: protips

Essential Mac Tools: Captio for iPhone

Essential Mac Tools: Captio for iPhone

Captio has become one of my favorite apps for iOS. It does one thing, and does it very well.  Open Captio and start typing.  Press send and the note is delivered to your inbox. Why is Captio a great tool?  Because using it, I have tamed my inbox with Gmail GTD.  Now, I can capture ideas generated when I am on: bus rides long runs bike rides the bathroom in bed and evaluate Read the article >>
Why start a Kanban board for your personal projects?

Why start a Kanban board for your personal projects?

One of my struggles over the last several years has been an appetite to do too many projects but having the constraint of a finite amount of time to do them.  Between living in beautiful Colorado, switching jobs, purchasing a house, planning a wedding, learning photography, it is hard to figure out where I should spend an open block of several hours. I've written before how to manage my time Read the article >>
5 Minutes to a Productive Gmail Inbox

5 Minutes to a Productive Gmail Inbox

If you're anything like me, you get a knot in your stomach in the morning when you check your inbox. Emails are imposing.  Sometimes, they come with an expectation of response.  Often, there is a task to be completed before I can give that response.  To add insult to injury, my inbox is a bottomless jumbled mess of action items that are different priorities.  It represents a footrace towards Read the article >>
Just installed Mountain Lion? Try these 6 OSX Apps

Just installed Mountain Lion? Try these 6 OSX Apps

Your machine is a tool. A really powerful tool.  You dropped hundreds, probably thousands of dollars on it.  You spend more than a few hours a week with it, you owe it to yourself to learn to use it right. Try these 6 underrated OSX Apps: Skitch (free) makes it easy to share screenshots. Divvy (free to try, $14 after) makes window management a breeze. Dropbox (free) makes file sync Read the article >>
6 Easy Quantified Self Tools

6 Easy Quantified Self Tools

I've written before about how, as Ignighter's CTO, I log everything I can measure.  This allows me to delve deep and gain insights about how folks are using our fledgling site. Since discovering a love of data in my professional life, I've cultivated a similar affinity for data around my personal habits.  These 6 tools have helped me track financial, fitness, and health trends in my personal Read the article >>
Startups @ Scale: Building an early warning system

Startups @ Scale: Building an early warning system

I've been thinking how much things have changed lately at Ignighter.  We're starting to get some press, a bunch of daily registrations, and a bunch more messages piping through our once-rinky dating website.  It's beginning to feel like we're not such a small startup anymore. When milestones like those pass, it really changes the way your team builds software.  These days, I'm obsessed with building Read the article >>
5 Essential Tools for a New Startup CTO

5 Essential Tools for a New Startup CTO

Sometimes I get asked what tools I''d recommend to new lead developers. Many times, these developers are coming from mid-to-large size enterprise companies, where tools are proprietary and aimed towards the enterprise. The toolset for the open web is much different than the ones available in larger companies. Here we go: 1. Version control, and the tools to make sense of it. I can''t emphasize Read the article >>
Zen OS X: 5 easy steps to eliminate distractions on your Mac

Zen OS X: 5 easy steps to eliminate distractions on your Mac

I''ve been putting a lot of thought lately into simplifying my workspace to allow greater focus whatever task is current. Here are 5 easy wins I''ve made on my laptop (MBP 15" running Snow Leopard) in the past month to eliminate distractions and increase focus. 1. Cleanup the Desktop. There are two main things I''ve found really helpful to eliminate distractions on my desktop: Archive every Read the article >>
Make your Site”s Usage Data Visceral & Ambient

Make your Site”s Usage Data Visceral & Ambient

I love data. I love trying to compare it with more qualitative analyses of my product. I love finding trends in it. But I hate spreadsheets. I need to consume data viscerally. In traditional retail, visitors to a store are in the same physical space as the employees, allowing collection of more ambient data about store ''usage'', e.g. foot patterns, visitor reactions, etc. Not so on the web. Read the article >>
Recommended Tool: RescueTime Time Management Software

Recommended Tool: RescueTime Time Management Software

I love tools that help me be more productive or more self aware (especially where Time Management is concerned). What it is. (from Rescuetime.com): Personal time management software. Get the focus you need to get things done! Features. (also from Rescuetime.com): - Automagical app & site tracking (with no data entry!) - Beautiful time & attention reports for managers only - goals, alerts, Read the article >>