Life, a little simpler

I'm a trial and error kind of girl. I usually try something for a while, until I realize that there is an easier way of doing things.

This isn't such a bad method, because by the time I'm ready to move on to something new, I know what my needs are.

I liken it to building a home. You know that you know you do not want your laundry room and pantry to be combined, so the next time around, you don't do that. It's simple and it makes sense.

So, when I'm sitting here at my computer enjoying all of the wonderful tools I've discovered on the Internet, either by referrals or random surfing, I feel compelled to pass it all along to you, my dear readers!

I love Google and if you've never sat down to explore the wealth of tools that Google has to offer, you are missing out!

First up...

1. Google Reader helps you keep track of the blogs you read. It also lets you know when a blog has been updated with a new entry. But, wait...that's not all. It works with other sites that are checked periodically for updates. Say for example you are looking for a play kitchen on Craigslist, but are getting tired of searching through the many listings. Well, cut and paste your your search URL in the "ADD SUBSCRIPTION" portion of your Google Reader (example: http://austin.craigslist.org/search/bab?query=kitchen) and Google Reader automatically search for your item and post the results in your subscription column. Try this feature with any website that allows "feeds"


2. Google Homepage is awesome. It beats Yahoo homepage hands down! There is a ton of content that can be added to your page, to customize anything from your mail, calendar, news, stocks, recipes of the day, etc. It's much more user friendly than Yahoo (for example). It sooo totally rocks! So, hop onto to Google and start adding your own content!

3. Gmail - (Google Mail) - Love it! Can't say enough about it. I still use my Yahoo account because I've had it for years, but I'm soooo ready to make the switch entirely. Gmail catalogues your mail into conversations. So, essentially you can have a group of emails from one person literally in one email. You can expand the view, collapse it, etc. No more clogging your inbox with the same email conversation from one person... it's all in one. One stop shopping!

4. Google Calendar - has made my life so easy! It's one click function of adding activities or events to my calendar is a life saver. No more of that pesky clicking three or four times to get to the portion of the calendar that needs to be updated. It's literally point, click, type. Beautiful.

5. Google Documents and Spreadsheets - is especially effective if you have groups of people that need to see the same document and or make changes to it. Say for example you are setting up a sign up sheet. Set it up in Google Docs, then email it out. The recipients can add/change stuff on the document, sign up, etc. all in one centrally located place! Are those dudes at Google geniuses or what?!

6. Google Groups - Like Yahoo groups to help manage groups of people with common interests i.e. playgroups, etc.

7. Google Analytics - Awesome tool for website traffic and stats. Tells you who, what, where, and when people visited your website or blog! Awesome, is all I can say. It beats sitemeter.com, no question about it!

8. Picasa - Google's photo editing and organizing software - ROCKS! LOVE IT! It's FREE! It's simple and easy to use.

9. Finally, Blogger by Google - Setting up a blog to share with friends and family could not be easier and more user friendly.

It's no wonder why Google's (GOOG) stock closed today at $483.93. They have it going on!