The UsefulTechnology Blog

If you travel a lot or work internationally it's very easily to tie your brain up in knots trying to make sense of different time zones. Outlook has a useful feature that allows you to show two different time zones on your calendar so you always know when your meetings will take place. It looks a bit like this:

To add an extra time zone to your Outlook calendar:

1. Click on Tools > Options > Calendar Options
2. Click on Time Zone... in the advanced options section
3. Place a tick against Show an Additional Time Zone
4. Select the additional Time Zone you would like to see and whether to adjust for daylight savings time.
5. Give your new time zone a short label (e.g. PAC for US Pacific Time) and make sure there's an intelligent label at the top for your current time zone.
6. Click OK three times to save

Now, when viewing your calendar you'll see two different time zones in the Day and Week views. You can also change these settings by right-clicking on the vertical time list in either of these views.

Well, not quite. But I did just stumble completely by chance on a website that tells me that today is the last day of Microsoft support for Windows 98 and (everybody's favourite) Windows Me. Windows XP SP1 will also no longer be supported after today so install SP2 if you haven't already.

If your computer still runs on either Windows 98 or Windows Me, now would be a very good time to start thinking about upgrading to something more secure and, er, 21st century. Jump straight to Windows XP with Service Pack 2 if you're in a hurry, or start saving for a shiny new Windows Vista PC early in 2007.

If you've ever had the "pleasure" of working for an international company the size of Microsoft, this short film parody will almost certainly raise a wry, if somewhat vexatious, smile. Enjoy!

There are some things in life that we all wish would just be that little bit bigger. Now, I can't help you in every department but I know I can satisfy your text enlargement requirements with this natty little Microsoft Word keyboard shortcut. So, make sure you have a pair of nice warm hands, and let's get stuck in:

Want your selected text to be bigger? Press SHIFT+CTRL+> to see it grow in front of your very eyes.

Want your selected text to be smaller? Press SHIFT+CTRL+< to cut it back down to size.

Bonus tip: now you can get rid of those silly little buttons on the toolbar making room for something altogether more useful.

Every so often a tip comes along that you really want to memorise. And The Beatles would have called this tip the 'Get Back To Where You Once Belonged" Tip.

While editing a document in Microsoft Word (or while composing an email using Word as your editor) you can "get back" to where you last edited the document by using the keyboard shortcut SHIFT+F5. This is really useful if you are editing a document then move your cursor to another position before realising that you now need to get back to where you last were to edit some more text. Or if you're partway through reviewing a Word document then have to save and close the file. Next time you open the file, simply hit SHIFT+F5 and you're right back to where you left off! (Unfortunately this doesn't work for part-edited emails that you re-open from your Drafts folder).

Want to know if your PC is up to the job of running Windows Vista? Or should you start saving your spare change to ensure you have enough pennies to buy a new PC when Vista reaches general availability early next year?

Head to this website where you can download and run a small (4MB) beta application that will test your current PC and report on how Vista-ready you are. It will also let you know which version of Vista will work best for your needs and your hardware, and tell you if any of your devices are unsuitable for the new operating system.

Very useful technology!

I received a lot of communication since my last blog posting in which I explained how the Skype client can start behaving as a supernode and using your bandwidth to facilitate communications between other Skype users. Several people thanked me for bringing this information to their attention while others pointed out some of the other issues that Skype throws up for both consumer PC users and business IT Managers. So I thought it might be helpful to offer this follow-up posting.

First up, it is possible to change Skype's default behaviour to prevent it becoming a supernode. As the Ja.net report explains "placing Skype behind a default deny firewall prevented supernode behaviour while still allowing calls to be made and received using web protocols." If you're worried about your bandwidth being used by Skype to facilitate other calls you simply need to use and configure a firewall that will prevent this supernode behaviour. There's a lot of debate about this on the Skype Forums. Check out these pages for a taster.

If meddling with firewalls and deny lists sounds a little above your head, but you still want to use Skype, then you have little choice but to accept that your Skype client could become a supernode. You best option to prevent this behaviour is to only run the Skype application when you wish to make or receive calls. Changing the option that allows Skype to start up when your computer starts is a smart first step.

If you're sufficiently techno-savvy you could also install a software application like NetLimiter or Net-Peeker that prevents Skype from using excessive bandwidth.

Another correspondent asked why Skype was allowed to use their bandwidth without their permission. The problem here is simply that anyone who has installed Skype has already given their permission to Skype to use their bandwidth and processor to facilitate communication between Skype Software users. Don't believe me? See Article 4.1 of the Skype EULA (End User Licence Agreement) that you are required to accept before installing and using Skype. The moral of the story is to always read the details of any EULA that you are required to accept. As one correspondent wrote to me "there's no such thing as a free lunch". If something looks too good be true, it probably isn't.

Skype has issued assurances that the bandwidth load from being a supernode will never exceed 5kb/second. If used continuously in this way that adds up to around 1.5GB a month. If you think you qualify as a potential supernode and have a capped or pay as you go DSL connection to the internet you should decide if this 1.5GB load is affordable and acceptable for you.

Finally, if you'd like to know how Windows Live Messenger differs from Skype, my colleague Mark Deakin has posted some interesting advice on his blog.

I've used Skype. And I like it. It has a really simple user interface and does what it promises very well. The call quality is generally great, but I've now uninstalled it from all my PCs preferring instead to use the new Windows Live Messenger client. Why? Because Skype, for all its merits, can start behaving as a bandwidth hungry super-node. What does that mean? It means that with Skype installed and running my internet bandwidth was potentially being used by other Skype users without my knowing about it. Which could mean that my PCs consume more electricity and I suffer a slower internet connection. Not exactly the reasons I signed up in the first place.

Ja.net carried out an interesting study recently to assess the impact that installing and running the Skype client can have on bandwidth usage. The findings were eye-opening to say the least. They installed Skype on a PC connected to a 1Gbit/sec internet connection. They didn't use Skype to make or receive any calls and no other applications were used on the PC. They then monitored the PC's internet activity over a 2 week period.

What they discovered is that their Skype client appeared to start behaving as a super-node, an intermediary client acting on behalf of other Skype users. In essence, what happened is that their PC became a mini communication hub for Skype.

If you want to get the best performance out of your Internet connection I recommend you read through the report at http://www.ja.net/development/voip/skype&janet.pdf and decide if Skype is right for you. This is particularly important if you have a capped ADSL connection or pay for your internet usage as you go. With the Skype client running in the background on your PC (the default behaviour after it is installed) you could find it generates significant network traffic by acting as a proxy for other Skype traffic. Of course, you can still continue to use Skype if you wish to make calls using their service. But you may find it preferable to only run the Skype client when you need it instead of leaving it active all the time. The downside of this approach is that you will not be able to receive incoming Skype calls without prior arrangement. The upside is that you won't be loaning your expensive internet connection to people you don't even know.

[Thanks to Mark Deakin for educating me about the way Skype works!]

In this, my final posting as Exchange/Outlook Product Manager for the UK, I would like to share with you the most powerful productivity tool in Outlook: the delete key. I'll also share a simple workflow you can use right away to help maintain an empty Inbox while staying on top of important information. I hope you find this useful.

As email volumes continue to grow every email user feels the pressure to stay on top of their workload. But for many, reading every email and diligent filing every message is no longer a viable solution in this data-filled age. We need a new deal. We need more powerful tools to eradicate email-borne stress from our lives.

We need "The Delete Key".

Take this key as my gift to you. It is coloured green intentionally. Think of this button as your green light to a happier, more productive future. Use it wisely and it will pay rich dividends. Here, in true Useful Technology Blog style, is how you can make this key your new best friend:

1. Set aside time each day to sort through your emails. During this time you will work only towards emptying your inbox. This is known as email triage. You won't action every email at this time but, after completing this triage stage, you will know for sure what workload awaits you.
2. Sort your emails by conversations with the newest email at the top. Now start at the top. Leave all calendar meeting requests until you have cleared all emails. How can you accept a meeting request until you know what the rest of your workload looks like?
3. Review your emails in strict date order. No cheating. This is important so I'll say it again: No cheating. You cannot look at the next email until you have decided what to do with the top one. If you break this rule you'll re-enter a dangerous spiral of inefficiency and procrastination.
4. Now you are ready to empty your inbox. With one hand on your mouse and the other on the delete key, follow this simple system. Looking at email number one, ask yourself:

• QUESTION ONE: Does this email relate to a meaningful personal objective?
  • If yes, proceed to Question two
  • If no, PRESS DELETE until the entire conversation thread is removed
• QUESTION TWO: Is this email actionable?
  • If yes, decide whether to DO IT (if it will take less than 2 minutes), DEFER IT (create a task using CTRL+SHIFT+V, T) or DELEGATE IT (either forward the email to someone else to action or create an assigned task)
  • If no, decide whether to DELETE IT (press delete), HOLD IT in a holding folder for later attention when you have some spare time (I call this folder 'not actionable' while others call it 'Someday maybe') or FILE IT (into a deeper folder so you can refer to it at a later date if needed).

If you follow this time-tested process diligently I guarantee you will be pleasantly surprised to discover how much of your email you can simply delete. The rest you will have sorted into manageable tasks. Now, after adding your own tasks into Outlook (this is crucially important otherwise your working life would be solely driven by the emails you receive) you will have a complete log of all the things you have decided to do and their deadlines. You can now look at your calendar and those outstanding meeting requests and decide if you would like to accept these appointments. Again, if they don't relate to a meaningful personal objective or are not sufficiently action-oriented it's OK to decline meeting requests. You are, after all, in complete control of your time so don't feel bullied to surrender it without good reason.

Back in the early 1990's my boss would return to the office after a holiday and ceremoniously empty his (at this time paper-filled) in-tray into the bin. He was so right when he said "If it's important, they'll let me know." By deleting extraneous information and concentrating only on what is important to you and your personal objectives you can regain control over the email monster and achieve a happier and more fulfilling work-life balance.

Good luck.

I'm moving to a new role at Microsoft on Monday. Which, of course, means new things to learn, new tasks to work on and new people to get to know.

Because I'll no longer need to email many of my existing contacts, now is a great time to spring clean my Outlook world by clearing out my address history (the autocomplete cache that remembers who I've emailed in the past).

Here's how: Open the folder at c:\Documents and Settings\user name\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook in Windows Explorer, then delete the profile_name.nk2 file.

Now, when I start my new job Outlook will no longer prompt me to add recipient names that relate to my old job. Slick! Now for the hard bit: learning how to do the new job...

If you routinely send similar emails to the same people (like a sales report every morning) you can speed up the process by adding a button to one of your toolbars that creates a new email message and pre-populates the address field and subject line. To do this:

1. Click the Toolbar Options arrow at the end of one of Outlook's toolbars.
2. Click on Add or Remove Buttons then Customize
3. Click on the Commands tab and in the Categories list click Actions
4. In the Commands list click New Mail Message and drag it onto the toolbar where you'd like it to appear.
5. Right-click on the button you've just created and customize as you wish (e.g. change the name, change the view to Text Only or edit the Button Image)
6. Right-click again on the button and choose Assign Hyperlink then Open
7. Type a hyperlink along these lines mailto:TheBigBoss?subject=Daily Sales Report where TheBigBoss is the name or distribution group to whom you send the email and Daily Sales Report is the subject line of your email.
8. Click Close on the Customize window
9. Test your new button

You could add a keyboard shortcut to this button if you wish to make things even speedier! Another way of doing this would be to create a custom form but the simple hyperlink route is adequate for most users.

Useful Technology news for Microsoft Office users who create documents that they share with others. Microsoft and Creative Commons have just released a new feature for Microsoft Office that makes it really easy to add a Creative Commons copyright notice to your documents. Get the download from here. Note that this doesn't yet work with the Beta of Office 2007.

Creative Commons is a non-profit organisation that allows content creators (i.e. people who create stuff on computers) to share their work while retaining rights over their work. Adding a Creative Commons licence is like adding a standard copyright notice but allows you to add more granular rights than the blanket "Oy, don't re-use my stuff, ever!" (i.e. all rights reserved) protection given under conventional copyright laws. A Creative Commons licence is 'useful technology' because you sometimes actually want people to be able to re-use your work but don't want to sign over all rights.

Windows Live Messenger, the brilliant successor to MSN Messenger, is now available for download. This great new product came out of Beta just yesterday and we've already notched up more than 2 million downloads in just 36 hours! There are loads of unique features like sharing folders, Live Call which allows you to ring ordinary phones from your PC, full screen video calling and Live Contacts that self-update when details change.

If you're one of the remaining 238 million active users who haven't yet made the leap you can find out more at http://www.messengerlaunch.co.uk or http://get.live.com/messenger/overview.

To find out more about Windows Live check out http://ideas.live.com/. If you're a Beta tester sign in to see the full list of services you can try out. As you'll see, there are many great new Windows Live services readying themselves for release. Expect more news in the coming weeks!

My Outlook 2007 RSS Feed brings me news today that the Crabby Office Lady is on her soapbox again with some more email etiquette techniques. And quite right too. As my regular reader knows, I too am a big fan of being nice to people, whether that's face to face or while racing around the information superhighway. Crabby's Crab #14 is a contentious one. Some productivity gurus would have us believe that email is a rapid-fire communication tool and to read every detail would be inefficient. Those with either morals or a conscience will know that such advice is pure baloney. Not reading emails carefully before responding is plain rude and, arguably, one of the biggest contributors to email overload.

Decide for yourself what's right and what's wrong. I've arranged for today to be the official longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere* so you should have plenty of time to read Crabby's latest email tips from this page.

* If you're in the southern hemisphere you may not have time to read this until December 21st.