You may have the hottest hardware
under the sun, but it's nothing if your system
isn't running smoothly. After all, it's the
little things that make life bearable, and given
the undeniable nature of software to be
annoying, you'll want to set it up exactly how
you like.
To that end, we've taken a dive into the
highly chlorinated pool of most commonly used
software, and come out itching with some handy
hints to make life a little easier. Note that a
number of these tips require administrator
access to your machine, and you may not (and
most likely should not) be able to do them at
work! - So come, wade with us, the water's
fine...
Microsoft Outlook
Improve
Outlook 2003
search
Since
purchased
and
integrated
into Outlook
2007 by
Microsoft,
Lookout
is the best
search tool
one can use
for Outlook
2003. Make
it a point
if you're
still
running the
older
software
suite.
Protect
company
secrets with
SendShield
Sometimes
Microsoft
Office
documents
get sent out
with more
information
than is
needed —
tracked
changes,
author
information,
formulas in
Excel —
SendShield
warns you of
this when
adding an
attachment
in Outlook,
and can
strip this
information
accordingly.
Note that
this is a
paid for
program,
costing
US$59.95 for
the Standard
version, and
US$79.95 for
the
Professional
version,
which can
convert to
PDF on the
fly.
SendShield
makes
sure you
don't
send out
sensitive
information
embedded
in your
Microsoft
Office
documents
Go stat
crazy with Xobni
Apart from
including a
search engine,
Xobni
supplies you
with a whole
bunch of extra
information it
harvests from
your emails,
from who
responds the
quickest, all
the way down to
showing networks
between people.
We deeply
suspect this
will appeal more
to the marketers
and managers
among you, but
some may find it
useful.
Xobni
provides a
wealth of
information
on who you
email, who
emails you
and their
habits
Save multiple
attachments...
To save multiple
file attachments
in an email
message all at
once, click
File
> Save
Attachments,
then in Outlook
2003 select
Save All
Attachments,
or in Outlook
2007 just
All
Attachments.
...but get rid
of the large ones
Free up your inbox by
deleting messages with
large attachments.
Simply click on the
Size
column header to sort by
size. Now you can delete
emails with the largest
attachments first and
work your way down. If
the Size
column is missing, you
can add it by right
clicking on the column
headers, selecting
Field Chooser,
find Size
from the menu that pops
up, and drag it to the
toolbar.
Order by size to
find those large
attachments
Create
multiple
signatures
You can
specify
a
different
signature
based on
whether
you're
sending
a new
message,
a reply
or a
forward.
Go to
Tools
>
Options
>
Mail
Format.
Under
Signatures,
select
the
signature
you want
to use
from the
Signature
for new
messages
drop-down
menu.
Colour incoming
messages
Colour-code
incoming
messages based
on who they're
from by
highlighting a
message from
that individual,
clicking
Tools >
Organize
> Using
Colors,
and selecting a
colour from the
drop-down list.
Schedule
Appointments
To turn an email
message into an
appointment,
drag it over to
your Calendar
bar until it
changes colour.
This
automatically
opens an
appointment
window, in which
you can set up
the time and the
place and set a
reminder.
