Product Description

Whether youre a Mac or Windows user, there are tricks here for you in this helpful resource. Youll feast on this buffet of new shortcuts to make technology your ally instead of your adversary, so you can spend more time getting things done and less time fiddling with your computer. Youll learn valuable ways to upgrade your life so that you can workand livemore efficiently, such as: empty your e-mail inbox, search the Web in three keystrokes, securely save Web site passwords, automatically back up your files, and many more.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5716 in Books
• Published on: 2008-03-17
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 480 pages

Review
"A productivity manual-slash-computer book, this book is packed full of tips...Buy this book. Immediately." Photo Pro June 2008 "Easy to dip in and out of, you won't fail find something here that will speed up your work.".net August 2008

From the Back Cover
Spend more time getting things done and less time fiddling with your computer

This book isn't a computer user manual, and it isn't a productivity system. It's a mashup of both. It's where you learn to practice big-picture productivity methods on your very own computer desktop. Whether you're a Mac or Windows user, know only enough to get by or are the family tech support geek, there are tricks here for you. Whether or not you've been turbocharging your day with the tips from Gina's first Lifehacker book, you'll feast on this buffet of new shortcuts to make technology your ally instead of your adversary.

A dozen ways to upgrade your life:

• Hack 1: Empty your email inbox
• Hack 14: Instantly recall all your different passwords
• Hack 22: Make your to-do list doable
• Hack 29: Turn tasks into gameplay
• Hack 45: Search the Web in three keystrokes
• Hack 55: Securely save web site passwords
• Hack 56: Become a scheduling black belt
• Hack 59: Automatically back up your files
• Hack 75: Remote-control your home computer
• Hack 86: Supercharge your Firefox downloads
• Hack 111: Synchronize folders between computers
• Hack 114: Have your Mac and Windows too

Companion Web site
At http://lifehackerbook.com you'll find hack updates, additional information, and more tips and tricks.

About the Author
Gina Trapani (http//ginatrapani.org) is an independent web programmer and writer whose work has been mentioned in Wired magazine, The New York Times, and Time magazine. She is the founding editor of Lifehacker.com, a software and productivity weblog she updates several times daily. A Sun Microsystems-certified Java programmer, Gina builds web sites and Firefox extensions.

Customer Reviews

Huge timesaver - Use the technology you have to improve your life!
I'll keep this review short and sweet: I love this book. I loved its predecessor, "Lifehacker", and love this one more.

It taught me things about what Windows, Office, and Firefox can do that I would have had no idea about before - and I thought I was reasonably astute! It also points you in the direction of an enormous number of great downloads, websites, and other resources - most of them free or quite cheap.

I've given this book as a gift a number of times and have always heard raves.

I'm currently running XP Pro and Office 2003 and it offers a lot of ideas for turbocharging those programs, but has even more ideas for Vista and Office 2007. I have tagged several dozen ideas to implement when I get around to upgrading.

This is an outstanding tool. Very eye-opening. You won't regret it.

Best for PCs but useful for Macs
This book has some great tips as responses have noted. My one issue - at least a quarter of the book -- possibly more -- are tips that apply only to PCs. While often there will be a separate entry for PCs (usually longer) and Macs, there are a good number of suggested tools/tricks that only apply to PCs. I would have like to be able to read through only relevant ones.

Wonderful Book
If there's one book that's provided me with value for money recently, this is it. I've had it for over a week and I look at it every day. The other reviews here do a fine job of telling you the content, so mine is a more personal review.

I have plenty of experience in computers, so I can see the advantage of many of the tips. Since buying the book I have changed my browser from IE and my e-mail from Yahoo to Thunderbird, as well as downloading some of the many freeware programs she recommends. It's improved my life immensely, and often the time spent downloading has been paid back in minutes.

I stop short at some of the suggestions for advanced users, but that's because I don't want to change things for the sake of changing them. Otherwise I have more programs that I know what to do with, but that's because there are so many of them.

What's good is that Gina has covered the recommendations down to the last detail, especially living your life with them. Too many books on software run through the features with no recommendations as to where and how to use them. So if you're a person with any level of computer experience you will be using these programs and tips more or less from when you adopt them.

So thank you Gina (and Terra) for bringing this book about. I would guess it's made me 50 percent more effective in the first week. I can't think of anyone who wouldn't do marvels after reading this.