Kolz Blog

One thing about Word is that, once you type in something that has “http://”, “www.” and a “.com” in a sequence, it automatically creates a hyperlink pointing to that specific URL. While keyboard ninjas would swear by Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V combo. There are still more ways to create hyperlinks in Microsoft Word. Here’s a nifty trick that you can do using the right-click and drag technique.

(more…)

There’s not much you can do in terms of some creep stealing your laptop physically from you. Unless, of course, you try to strap it to yourself with cuffs and shackles. But sometimes, all the security you need is from that bozo from the next cubicle who’d like to mess with your computer when you’re by the water cooler or that brown-noser in the meeting room always fidgeting with your laptop right after your presentation. That can easily be fixed by a simple security measure - enabling the password request on wakeup. (more…)

One of the most popular topics here is reading efficiently, including How to read a lot of books in a short time and A reading workflow based on Leveen's "Little Guide". Using Leveen's terminology, I have a candidates library of at least 50 books (i.e., purchased and in my bookcase), and a pre-candidates list of around 600 (kept on Amazon, but it's not perfect). So I really want to read a lot (actually, to learn a lot), but the problem is my eyes are bigger than my stomach, and I've fallen behind. This is in spite of outsourcing voice note transcription [1]. Thankfully, I came across Scott Ginsberg's post [2] Before we make our move, let’s call... where he writes in passing:

(FYI, I read five books a week.)

This was just the whack to the head [3] I needed! The essential idea I forgot? I don't need to read the whole book. D'oh! He elaborates in How to read a book (part two here):

You don’t need to read every word. You don’t need to devour every page. You don’t need to understand every concept.Just get the key ideas.

(See his post for details.) I have to say, it's great to reminded of the basics, but humbling as well. [Read more]

Windows only: Freeware application DriveImage XML creates and restores images of any drive or partition on your system. That means that next time you freshly install Windows on your computer (whether XP or Vista), you can back up that clean and sparkling system state with DriveImage XML. If things get messy down the road, you can just as easily restore that fresh system state with the program's simple interface [Read more]

Those elusive projects that always stay undone could benefit from a red, hot go, as Leo Babauta suggests, instead of slowly chipping away at it. However, you need a plan. These steps cover everything from setting your time up to resolving the project at the end. Won’t you feel awesome once you get this one done?

4. Make a project modular. Similarly, sometimes there’s a project where it would be impossible to do all in one go. It might be too large, or sometimes you have to wait for certain things to happen before moving to the next phase of the project. In those cases, see how you can make the project [Read more]