Get Google-Related Desktop Notifiers with Google Talk Labs Edition [Featured Windows Download]

Windows only: For some time now, Google Talk has been more appealing as a web app than in its rarely updated desktop version. That changes, somewhat, with the release of Google Talk Labs Edition for Windows. The desktop client, which looks a lot like its web counterpart, includes the same group chat, emoticons and tabbed talking as the web, and puts pop-up notifications for Google Calendar, Gmail and Orkut events in the corner of your screen—which is a nice, consolidated way of getting that Outlook-like functionality. The big trade-off, however, is the lack of voice calling or file transfer through the Labs Edition, so if those are regular features, you'll likely want to stick with whatever version you're using now. Google Talk Labs Edition is a free download for Windows systems only.

Google Talk Labs Edition [via Googling Google]

Is Windows XP Here To Stay?

Despite efforts by Microsoft to push its Vista operating system and get users to stop using Windows XP, the previous version isn't going away.  Why?  With the performance and compatibility issues of Vista, plus the stability of XP – not to mention the fact there is little need to spend the money to upgrade – XP remains popular.  But don't just take my word for it.

As a self-professed Internet Generalist, I keep abreast on all elements as much as I can, from hardware to software.  One source that keeps me in the know on all issues regarding Microsoft operating systems and software is WServerNews.  They provide both expert opinion and detailed information, with a touch of humor.

In their latest edition, interestingly #666, they talk of the upcoming release of Windows XP service pack 3, or SP3, as well as link to a detailed comparison of XP and Vista.

So will XP go away?  Not for a while, and not for a while on the computer where this was written!

My Take-Aways From The Book Purple Cow

When I read the book Meatball Sundae by Seth Godin, it reminded me of one of his previous books I read, Purple Cow.  But was it just the content of the book, or the fact that the book arrived to me several years ago in a milk carton?

The premise of the book Purple Cow, published in 2002, is about being remarkable.  Godin's point is that in an age where we are deluged with images and messages, these have reduced their overall effectiveness, and to get your message out there, your product or service needs to be different or unique in its own way.  The first example in the book is driving through farm lands and seeing cow after cow and they all look alike, but a cow that is purple will stand out and be remembered, thus remarkable.

So is remarkable something you put on top of a product or service?  Not necessarily.  The book gives examples of how L.L. Bean and Sears Craftsman line of tools are remarkable in their unconditional return policy.  Ikea is remarkable in how they sell low-cost, assemble-yourself furniture that is extremely stylish.  Dr. Bronner's soap is remarkable in its unique labeling.

My greatest takeaway is that remarkable is not a gimmick.  From the above examples, what makes them remarkable are attributes that have lasted for years.  Gimmicks may drive sales, but not over the long term.  Gimmicks are also not considered sincere.

Another takeaway is that you may already be remarkable.  When many entrepreneurs venture out on their own, their catalyst is often they can do what they do better or in a more unique way from where they previously worked.  They may not have been able to do it, whatever it is, when they worked for someone else and have the conviction to do it themselves.  This was part of my own motivation for starting Dunkirk Systems, LLC.

The book Purple Cow does not over-do it with examples and is an energetic, quick read.  If you are venturing out on your own, or taking a strategic look at your business I recommend reading the book as it will definitely inspire you, and you may get some ideas from it as well.

Nerdcycle Mounted Monitor Exercise Bike [Lifehacker Book Contest Winner]

Here's our final winner in the reader contest to win an autographed copy of our new book, Upgrade Your Life. Thanks to everyone who submitted!
Reader Martin is determined to not let the exercise bike next to his computer desk just sit there and gather dust. Instead, he wants to cycle while he surfs, and decided to start building his "Nerdcycle" by mounting an extra monitor to the stationary bike. Martin writes in:

I bought an exercise bike on Craigslist for $100. I rode it five times. It then became my footrest while I surfed the net, as it is next to my computer desk. Recently, I decided enough was enough, and I had to make it fit into my lifestyle. So, some hacking was in order.

After the jump, follow along through a photo tour of Martin's ambitious project.

Exercise bike before:

Monitor I haven't been using for anything, plus an old mount I rescued from the trash:

Wiring doesn't seem too complex...

Needed to dremel off the book holder ledge and drill new holes for the wallplate:

Since a monitor was going to be replacing it, I needed to relocate the control unit. Decided on down by my left hand. Here's a mount mockup with PVC and a paint stirrer.

I was going to make a metal one after work sometime but this one is actually sturdy enough that I think I'll stick with it until/unless it breaks. The ergonomics of having the controls here is actually way better than the stock location.

However, the stock wires are only 12" long...not NEARLY long enough. Thirty butt connectors later...

...and I've got a 4' harness instead of a 12" one.

Moment of truth....yay everything works!

Here's the bike as I left it last night:

So for now Martin's got the bike control unit relocated to by his left hand and the monitor mounted. He's not done yet; here's what Martin's got on the Nerdcycle to-do list.

Still to be done:

• Loom the wires and ziptie them so I can't trip and die
• Figure out what source I'm going to use for this (most likely: rig up a laptop shelf/slot)
• Make an adapter plate to raise the monitor 3" (my knees hit if I'm peddling vigorously)
• Come up with a workable keyboard solution
• Make a matching mount by my right hand for a mousepad

Eventually I'm only going to allow myself to surf the internet while on the bike. Even if I'm not at my peak heart rate, some pedaling is way better than sitting like a lump.

Indeed! Even though it's not a complete project yet, Martin gets an A for his first efforts, plus an autographed copy of Upgrade Your Life. Congratulations, Martin! Be sure to send in photos of the final product once you get your laptop and keyboard hooked up to the Nerdcycle.

Thanks to everyone who sent in their best life hacks for the contest. You rock!

Features Specific to the Mac (or PC)? [Ask The Readers]

Reader Tim is thinking about the great Mac versus Windows debate. He writes in:

Without starting a holy war, I was wondering: What features does the Mac operating system have out of the box that Windows doesn't? What can you do in Windows by default you can't do on the Mac? It seems that feature convergence is happening across modern platforms (even Linux!), so it's harder to say what (if any) OS offerings are truly unique. Can we make a list?

We sure can make a list! Here are a few operating system-specific features off the top of my head:

• The Mac can save any document in any program to PDF from the Print dialog. (Though you can get this feature in Windows with a program like CutePDF.)
• The Mac can look up words in its dictionary from newer Cocoa programs using a keyboard shortcut.
• Windows can auto-hide its taskbar and clear your desktop entirely, where the Mac's menubar is fixed.
• Windows Vista has an awesome one-click monthly calendar in the taskbar; on the Mac it takes a few clicks or some tweaking to see today's full date easily.
• The Mac offers Unix command line tools built into the Terminal, which Windows does not (though you can get them by installing something like Cygwin.)

Surely I've missed dozens of other platform-specific features. So let's hear it, Windows and Mac users—what can you do that the others can't? Remember, fanboys and girls, keep this discussion clean and respectful—OS wars are SO 1999. (And don't forget to check out our complete guide to Mac/Windows interoperability.)

Consolidate Multiple Email Addresses with Gmail [How To]

The following post was originally published in Chapter 1 of our new book, Upgrade Your Life: The Lifehacker Guide to Working Smarter, Faster, Better.
You've finally decided to move all your email online to Google's web-based service, Gmail. Great! But what about messages still going to your old email address(es)? You don't have to notify all your contacts that your email address has changed—again. Gmail is not only an email host, it's an email client, which can fetch mail from any number of external services and consolidate it all right there in your Gmail inbox. Here's how to move your email to Gmail without missing a single message from an existing account.

Receive messages for other addresses in your Gmail inbox

There are two ways to receive email from other addresses in Gmail: using Gmail's Mail Fetcher feature or by forwarding your other addresses' mail to Gmail automatically.

Option 1: Set Up Gmail's POP Mail Fetcher

Most likely your former email provider offers POP (Post Office Protocol) access for retrieving messages for it. Gmail's Mail Fetcher feature can retrieve those messages via POP and display them in your inbox alongside messages that come directly your Gmail address, too. You can fetch email from up to five other email addresses via POP in Gmail.

To use Gmail's Mail Fetcher, your old email account must offer POP access. Not all free addresses offer POP, but most do. Check the other account's settings or contact customer support to find out if POP access is available on your non-Gmail account. You'll need three settings: the POP server address, port, your username and password. Also, if you haven't already, you'll need to sign up for a free Gmail account at http://gmail.com.

Once you're logged into your Gmail account, configure Mail Fetcher to retrieve messages from your old account. Here's how.

1. From the top of any page within Gmail, click Settings.
2. Click Accounts.
3. In the Get mail from other accounts section, click Add another mail account.
4. Enter the full email address of the account you'd like to access, then click Next Step.
5. Gmail will fill in the username, POP server and port fields when possible, based on the email address, as shown. Enter your password.

   
   

6. If Gmail will be the single place you check mail, uncheck the box labeled "Leave a copy of retrieved messages on the server." If you want to access the other mail from other software (or if you're just using Gmail as a backup), do check this box. You can also set options to use SSL (a secure connection) to retrieve mail (some servers support this, others don't) and whether or not to label or archive incoming messages.
   
7. Once your options are set, click Add Account. Gmail will issue an error if your username, password or other settings are incorrect. Once Gmail can fetch messages successfully, it will give you the option to set up a custom From: address. (See the section below for more on that.)

Note: Gmail checks for new messages at different rate, depending on previous mail fetch attempts. You can't customize the default frequency of mail fetches.

Option 2: Forward messages to Gmail automatically

If your old address doesn't offer POP access—or you have more than 5 addresses you'd like to consolidate in Gmail—you can set your former address to automatically forward messages to Gmail instead. The exact way to do this will differ depending on your email account, but if your provider offers auto-forwarding, it will most likely be listed in your account options area.

For example, to auto-forward email from your Hotmail email (which does not offer POP access), click on your account options, and under "Manage Your Account" click on "Forward mail to another email account." There you can set your new Gmail account as the destination address.

Update: Several readers point out that Hotmail does not allow you to auto-forward email to any address outside of Microsoft services. Sorry for the error! Thanks, Josh!

Write messages from non-Gmail addresses

Now that you've got email addressed to several different accounts arriving in your single Gmail inbox, you may want to use those various From: addresses when replying to those messages. For someone who maintains several different online personas - but accesses them all in Gmail - the option to use various From: addresses when sending mail is crucial. Here's how to set up multiple From: addresses once you're logged into Gmail:

1. Click Settings along the top of any page, and then select the Accounts tab.
2. Click Add another email address in the Send mail as section.
3. Enter your full name in the Name field, and the email address you'd like to send messages from in the Email address field.
4. Click Next Step >> and then click Send Verification to complete the process. Gmail will send a verification message to your other email address to confirm that you'd like to add it to your Gmail account. If you are already receiving this mail in Gmail, it will appear in your inbox. Click the link in that message, or enter the confirmation code in the Accounts section of your Gmail account, to complete the process.

You can add several possible From: addresses to your Gmail account, as shown.

Set one as your default for new messages, and you can also set the From: name and a different reply-to address if you'd like (by clicking "edit info.")

Once you've verified that you'd like to add the address to your account, you can start sending messages using your custom 'From:' address. When you click Compose, you can choose the From: address to use from the dropdown list, as shown.

Note: Your Gmail address will be included in the email headers of your message in the sender field, to help prevent your mail from being marked as spam. Most email clients do not display the sender field, though some versions of Microsoft Outlook may display "From customaddress@domain.com on behalf of yourusername@gmail.com"—unless you're using Gmail for your domain.

With Web Sites, Something Is Better Than Nothing

Many times when I meet people and tell them I develop Web sites, a common reaction is the person starts apologizing for their own Web site.  They say they have a Web site, but it sucks!  They then continue to say how it was something done by themselves or on the cheap and it needs to be more robust and have a better design.

However when I eventually look at their Web site, I often have a different reaction.  Where some of their points are valid, I am looking at the Web site from multiple viewpoints.  As a Web developer, I look to see if the Web site is technically sound and has a clean design.  I then put myself in the shoes of the consumer and see if I can find sufficient information on the entity, such as if I can find their phone number or hours.

When I circle back to the person, I pass along my quick evaluation, and tell them it's better to have something than nothing at all.  If you're a new business and haven't created your branding or marketing plan, simply have a 1-page Web site with your name and contact information.  When you do develop these, ensure the design of your Web site allows for iteration, where you can add content and functionality over time, as you have the time to create it.

This is the beauty of the Web – you don't have to do it all at once as with a paper brochure.

Qwitter Harnesses Twitter to Help You Quit Smoking [Smoking]

The only thing worse than constantly reaching for your phone to Twitter at social occasions is a constant need for a nicotine fix, and health organization Tobacco Free Florida must sense their linked nature. Every so often, post an update with the number ("X") of cigarettes you've recently smoked to their Qwitter applet like so:@iquit X. You can also send diary-style entries to chronicle your progress, and see a graph of your cigarette intake at the Qwitter site. For those whose mobile extroversion is a lot stronger than their willpower, it's an elegant craving substitution.
Qwitter [via Twitter blog]

See You At The Great Chicago Networking Extravaganza On May 8

I have just registered for the Great Chicago Networking Extravaganza, to be held on Thursday, May 8 in Lombard, Illinois.  Yes, I will be venturing out to the suburbs of Chicago for this event, and I am looking forward to it.

This is the seventh such event put on by Lillian Bjorseth and Jason Jacobsohn.  I have gotten to know Jason over the last couple of years, first virtually through our own blogs then in person.  His blog, Networking Insight, is an excellent resource for information and tips on business networking.  He offers straightforward, practical advice without hype, thus making it a popular resource for people not just in Chicago but worldwide.

With those credentials, this event will surely be an effective platform for meeting colleagues.  Hope to see you there!