Okay, so every now and then I get people asking me how I setup my business and how I'm able to do everything remotely, etc... Here's a quick checklist of cool stuff that you might want to scope out. If you've got other gimmicks that you like, please post 'em up... (PS none of these links are aff links in case you think I'm a douchebag noob... if you do I've got an ebook to sell you 
)
1. Firefox + some extensions (Mozilla | Firefox web browser & Thunderbird email client). If you're not using Firefox, you're a loser. Your children will be losers. Top extensions for FF that I like: SEO for Firefox (brings up SEO tidbits on SE's and quick lookups for sites you're visiting). McAfee SiteAdvisor (helps me steer clear of bullshit sites). FireFTP (FTP directly on the browser). StumbleUpon toolbar (just fun, plus lets you quickly stumble all your work). Firebug (helps to weed out Javascript code issues).
2. Thunderbird + Lightning. Email + Calendar application. Thunderbird is a GREAT email tool for affiliates and webmasters since it has default support for unlimited web aliases. Makes life easy when you are running a dozen different email addresses and inbound/outbound email servers. Lightning is okay - does the trick as a simple scheduler, plus it supports ical files so you can take your calendar elsewhere or sync with online calendar tools.
3. Vonage. (Vonage - A better phone service for less <-not an aff link). I know I know some of you are going to shit all over this one, but for $25 a month, it's easy as hell. Buy the little black box from Fry's, and the best part is that WHEREVER you go, you can take your number with you. So, if you're staying at a friends' place for a week or something, just plug in to their router and about 5 minutes later your phone works. Plugs in to any phone, unlimited long distance, cheap calls to europe, and decent call quality.
4. Open Office. Why waste money on MS Office when you can check out Open Office (OpenOffice.org: Home) and get a word processor, spreadsheet app, vizio-style drawing app, presentation app, and even a light (but useless) database app. Free. Woot. Free.
5. Basecamp. (Project management, collaboration, and task software: Basecamp) Especially if you're working on projects with other developers, teammembers, or want your client to see how things are coming along, BaseCamp is great for collaborating small teams, and free. Once you scale up there can be some charges. Also, you can sync basecamp with Thunderbird to keep the RSS feed updated so you know when others make changes to the project.
6. Get Linkedin. (LinkedIn: Relationships Matter) It's a great place to find lots of contact information, and grow your network. Make introductions, search for your competitors as well as companies or individuals that you might want to collaborate with.
7. eFax. (eFax - Email Fax Services) Another sweet & simple tool, eFax costs like $17 a month for your own fax number, plus you can use their "create a fax" tool, send faxes online, and send and receive faxes through your email. Great if you're doing contracts or other forms that require signatures and / or fax correspondence. Sends everything in PDF format via email, so it's pretty portable on whatever platform you're rocking.
8. GoToMyPC. (http://www.gotomypc.com). I know I know you're probably going to shit on this too since there are some freeware & open source variations on this, but when it comes to remotely accessing my machine, GTMPC works really really well. Costs about $20 a month, and lets me remote access from any machine with an internet connection. It even supports my dual-monitor setup by providing a "next window over" button, so you really get 100% use of your desktop.
9. PrototypeJS. (Prototype JavaScript framework: Easy Ajax and DOM manipulation for dynamic web applications). Ever wonder why all the new Web 2.0 websites look better than your crap? It probably has to do with this script library. Once you've got Prototype, you can get a ton of other script code bases, and do some sexy stuff with simple call functions rather than having to reinvent the wheel every time you want to make a button look sexy.
10. Vistaprint. (http://www.vistaprint.com). Seriously, I know some more of you are going to take a nice hefty crap on this one, but get the fuck over yourself. For $20 a site, you can print up 500 business cards. If you're running a dozen sites, it costs you what, $240 to get cards made up for each one. And now, when you're out at the bar or kicking it at the grocery store and you get in to small talk, you can hand a business card and promote your site. Go up to the SitePoint contests and find a good designer if you don't know how to make a sexy business card, you can probably find someone there to make you a nice design for under $100.
Anyways, that's 10 ideas for some products & services you should check out. I use everything in this list frequently, so if you've got questions or other good ideas, post 'em up.
Now get back to work.
)1. Firefox + some extensions (Mozilla | Firefox web browser & Thunderbird email client). If you're not using Firefox, you're a loser. Your children will be losers. Top extensions for FF that I like: SEO for Firefox (brings up SEO tidbits on SE's and quick lookups for sites you're visiting). McAfee SiteAdvisor (helps me steer clear of bullshit sites). FireFTP (FTP directly on the browser). StumbleUpon toolbar (just fun, plus lets you quickly stumble all your work). Firebug (helps to weed out Javascript code issues).
2. Thunderbird + Lightning. Email + Calendar application. Thunderbird is a GREAT email tool for affiliates and webmasters since it has default support for unlimited web aliases. Makes life easy when you are running a dozen different email addresses and inbound/outbound email servers. Lightning is okay - does the trick as a simple scheduler, plus it supports ical files so you can take your calendar elsewhere or sync with online calendar tools.
3. Vonage. (Vonage - A better phone service for less <-not an aff link). I know I know some of you are going to shit all over this one, but for $25 a month, it's easy as hell. Buy the little black box from Fry's, and the best part is that WHEREVER you go, you can take your number with you. So, if you're staying at a friends' place for a week or something, just plug in to their router and about 5 minutes later your phone works. Plugs in to any phone, unlimited long distance, cheap calls to europe, and decent call quality.
4. Open Office. Why waste money on MS Office when you can check out Open Office (OpenOffice.org: Home) and get a word processor, spreadsheet app, vizio-style drawing app, presentation app, and even a light (but useless) database app. Free. Woot. Free.
5. Basecamp. (Project management, collaboration, and task software: Basecamp) Especially if you're working on projects with other developers, teammembers, or want your client to see how things are coming along, BaseCamp is great for collaborating small teams, and free. Once you scale up there can be some charges. Also, you can sync basecamp with Thunderbird to keep the RSS feed updated so you know when others make changes to the project.
6. Get Linkedin. (LinkedIn: Relationships Matter) It's a great place to find lots of contact information, and grow your network. Make introductions, search for your competitors as well as companies or individuals that you might want to collaborate with.
7. eFax. (eFax - Email Fax Services) Another sweet & simple tool, eFax costs like $17 a month for your own fax number, plus you can use their "create a fax" tool, send faxes online, and send and receive faxes through your email. Great if you're doing contracts or other forms that require signatures and / or fax correspondence. Sends everything in PDF format via email, so it's pretty portable on whatever platform you're rocking.
8. GoToMyPC. (http://www.gotomypc.com). I know I know you're probably going to shit on this too since there are some freeware & open source variations on this, but when it comes to remotely accessing my machine, GTMPC works really really well. Costs about $20 a month, and lets me remote access from any machine with an internet connection. It even supports my dual-monitor setup by providing a "next window over" button, so you really get 100% use of your desktop.
9. PrototypeJS. (Prototype JavaScript framework: Easy Ajax and DOM manipulation for dynamic web applications). Ever wonder why all the new Web 2.0 websites look better than your crap? It probably has to do with this script library. Once you've got Prototype, you can get a ton of other script code bases, and do some sexy stuff with simple call functions rather than having to reinvent the wheel every time you want to make a button look sexy.
10. Vistaprint. (http://www.vistaprint.com). Seriously, I know some more of you are going to take a nice hefty crap on this one, but get the fuck over yourself. For $20 a site, you can print up 500 business cards. If you're running a dozen sites, it costs you what, $240 to get cards made up for each one. And now, when you're out at the bar or kicking it at the grocery store and you get in to small talk, you can hand a business card and promote your site. Go up to the SitePoint contests and find a good designer if you don't know how to make a sexy business card, you can probably find someone there to make you a nice design for under $100.
Anyways, that's 10 ideas for some products & services you should check out. I use everything in this list frequently, so if you've got questions or other good ideas, post 'em up.
Now get back to work.
