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Time Management: Google Chrome Browser Extensions

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Time Management: Google Chrome Browser Extensions

Photograph Credit: Google Chrome

In using time wisely while online, I find the Google Chrome browser extensions a great time saver.

Having mentioned accessing a couple of money-saving tools through these extensions, I will share how you can use them as well.

When I am shopping, editing a picture, or searching online, I use the extension buttons to access needed resources.

Before sharing how to add extensions, let’s start by understanding the terms.

Defining the Terms

Google Chrome Browser

A browser connects one from an internet signal to the World Wide Web. The most popular browsers are Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, and Safari. For this post, I am only concentrating on Google Chrome, which is the browser I prefer to use.

Extension

The extensions used on Google Chrome are files that contain specific programming to complete tasks beyond the existing software. So, extensions are similar to apps, but they run on browsers rather than on a platform (e.g., android, Windows, kindle, etc.).

Installing Extensions

To view your current extensions or to add more, follow these directions:

1. Click on the button with three horizontal lines located on the right side of your screen under the red “x.”

Time Management: Google Chrome Browser Extensions2. Select “Tools”

3. Click on “Extensions”

4. With a view of your extensions, you may delete any extensions you no longer use. If you scroll to the bottom of the page, you can click on “Get more extensions.”

Once inside, you can view new extensions or search by name. My favorite extensions include the following:

      • Ebates – cash back site
      • Shop at Home – cash back site
      • Honey – promotional code finder
      • RoboForm – password and login filing system
      • Pocket – saves favorite blog posts for future reference
      • Awesome Screenshot – advanced snipping tool for capturing photos

To add one of these to your Google Chrome browser:

5. Select the “+ FREE” button

6. Click “Add” button to confirm the new extension

7. From this point, you can either add more extensions by searching or browsing, or you can return to your extensions page by following the directions to view your current extensions.

8. Once you have your favorites activated, you will see those extensions on your toolbar under the red “x.”

When you are on a website where you need one of these extensions, you only need to click the extension icon and a small window will open for you to use. In using time wisely, extensions allow quick access to information that would otherwise require visiting another website.

If you do not use Google Chrome but you want to access these extensions, then use SwagBucks or Google to search for adding extensions to Firefox or Explorer or whatever browser you prefer.

Though I find extensions helpful, you may not. On this journey to using time wisely, discover what works best for you. Happy using time wisely!

Question: What are your favorite extensions?

Living without Regrets: Playing Hookie

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Living without Regrets: Playing Hookie I only remember playing hookie from school one day. I was in 10th grade, and my mom kept me out for the day.

We went shopping and had lunch. There was something magical about the experience because everyone else was in school, including my younger brother.

My mom never regretted taking me out that day, and I have no regrets from missing one day of school.

Though I do not want my children to miss school work, I am careful about keeping them away from their studies.

With my children’s school scheduling an all-day outdoor service day and the allergies already flaring in our home, Paul and I took our kids out of school for the day.

We did sleep in this morning, but then we ventured out this afternoon to visit three museums. Admission to all three was FREE with our science membership.

Living without Regrets: Playing Hookie Art Museum with Charles Dickens’ Works

The first museum had a scavenger hunt for the children to assist with the two-floors of art and culture during the 1800’s, specifically the life of Charles Dickens.

The children’s play room allowed my children to play and explore on their own, that is, until they found the same item with which to play.

Local History Museum

The second museum was next door to the first and housed local history. Though we have visited this museum before, we saw two updated exhibits and visited our favorite rooms.

Art Museum with Greek Culture

Living without Regrets: Playing Hookie Our final museum visit was on the campus of a local university. This museum also had a scavenger hunt for the children. This art museum was the best one of the day.

My son is studying Roman and Greek culture this year, and this museum had a children’s area focused on Greek culture.

From deciphering Latin into English to solving Roman numeral puzzles, this play area encouraged learning and applying the knowledge from the Greek culture.

My girls enjoyed creating with mosaic pieces and shopping for fruits and vegetables.

The scavenger hunt was geared toward the composition of the art where even my 4-year-old could find the colors in the paintings and figure out the clues.

We concluded the day by meeting up with Daddy at the university’s dining hall. With a smorgasbord atmosphere, our children enjoyed going from station to station. It cracked me up that all three of them wanted cereal as there was a vast variety of flavors. The day was definitely special as we missed school without missing any school work.

Skipping school is not a habit I endorse. However, it was fun taking the day off from school to attend these museums and spend time together. In using time wisely, we played hookie while living without regrets. Happy living!

Question: Have you ever played hookie? 

RoboForm: FREE Password Manager through April 13, 2014

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RoboForm: FREE Password Manager through April 13, 2014

Photograph Credit: RoboForm

If you routinely register for freebies, enter in the same information on a routine basis, and/or you have many online account usernames and passwords to remember, then you would benefit from this FREE year-subscription to RoboForm.

RoboForm Everywhere is one of my favorite time-saving tools. I used the FREE version for a number of years.

Last fall, I found a deal to get a FREE lifetime subscription to RoboForm Everywhere which I snagged. I saw the deal with only an hour remaining, so I did not post it. Sorry!

Though this deal from SharewareOnSale.com is not for the lifetime subscription, it is for 1 year. You can try it out and see if it works for you. I have enjoyed the full-version after using the FREE version for so long.

With the FREE version, I only got 10 usernames and passwords. With the lifetime version and this FREE 1-year version, one gets unlimited logins.

RoboForm Explained

This software is a password manager. When you download the software to your computer or the app on your device, you will establish a master password. Think carefully, and do not lose this password as you cannot change it once you create it.

Once RoboForm is installed, just operate as usual on your computer or device. When you come to a login screen and enter your information, a pop-up window will ask if you want to save this information in Roboform.

You can then title that login. When you hit enter, you will need to type in your master password (the one you cannot change). Then that information is stored in your RoboForm directory.

I also save my standard information – name, address, phone number, junk e-mail, etc. – for filling in freebie forms. When I come to a registration or entry page, I just click on my name on the toolbar. I have saved my identity information in RoboForm to make requesting freebies only one click to completion.

RoboForm Accessed

To access RoboForm, you can click on the icon which may be in your top menu bar or on your desktop or use an extension in your browser. Before extensions, I used the icon on my task bar.

Task Bar Icon

If I remember correctly, I went to settings and selected “show lower RoboForm toolbar.” The RoboForm toolbar stays at the bottom of my screen when I am on the Internet. This way, I can easily access sites I need.

For example, when I want to search, I open a new tab, select “logins” on my RoboForm toolbar, choose SwagBucks (which is what I named my SwagBucks login information), and watch RoboForm log me into SwagBucks.

Extension Icon

Currently, I use the Google extension for RoboForm. Here, I also use the lower RoboForm toolbar. To select that option:

      1. Add the RoboForm for Google Chrome extension (see these instructions for adding extensions to Chrome)
      2. Once installed on your menu bar, right click the icon
      3. Select “options”
      4. Choose “Show lower RoboForm toolbar” and “Show lower RoboForm toolbar for popup windows”

The toolbar will now show at the bottom of your screen when you are on the Internet.

In using time wisely, I find RoboForm a valuable tool to save all my login information (usernames and passwords) in one place. To snag your FREE year subscription, go to SharewareOnSale and click on the turquoise-colored “Download it now” button. This FREE software is only available through 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, April 13, 2014.

Once your yearly subscriptions ends, you can still keep the FREE version. Just pare down your logins to 10. I know that will be tough, but 10 is better than none. I will also keep an eye out for more RoboForm deals.

You won’t regret getting this software as you will save yourself so much time online with all your usernames and passwords at your fingertips. Go! Get it now!

Question: Do you keep the same password for all your accounts, or do you select different passwords for each account?

Time Management: Please Value Others’ Time

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Time Management: Please Value Others’ Time

Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

Time is valuable, and one of the quickest ways to ruin your rapport with others is to waste their time.

If you are overseeing a project and call a meeting, then please value others’ time by preparing, starting on time, and finishing on time.

Preparing for your Meeting

Map out a schedule and an outline for your meeting. A word-for-word speech is not necessarily needed, but an agenda is very helpful for your participants.

With a plan in place, do your best to stay on task. Other issues might arise and need attention, but move efficiently through them and get back to your agenda.

Starting on Time

By waiting for others to arrive or needing more time to setup and get organized, you are expecting those who were on time to use their time waiting.

If you oversee the meeting, then you should be ready at least 5 minutes prior to the starting time. Do emergencies occur? Yes. However, those instances should be rare, not the norm.

If you find that most of your meetings start late because participants arrive late, then this might be a sign of time wasted at prior meetings. The meeting participants have learned that your meeting time is really 5 or 10 minutes after the time indicated.

To change that cycle, you might need to start your meetings with a special announcement or incentive whereby those who are late miss that information or reward. Participants will quickly learn that they want to be at the start of your meeting, but you must follow through and start your meeting on time.

Finishing on Time

Just as important as starting on time, the meeting must finish on time. Your participants have blocked out time on their schedule for this meeting. They have other responsibilities and projects to do. If your meeting drags on past your meeting time, then you are using borrowed time.

In wrapping up your meeting, write out your conclusion. Too many speakers spend time preparing their introduction and body/content of their presentation and then wing their conclusion. Usually that means, they repeat themselves and finally just fizzle out with a dismissal.

You have spent time preparing, so take a few more minutes to write out the finishing words for your meeting. Once the business has concluded, finish with your written conclusion, and bring your meeting to an end.

Sitting through a couple of meetings in the last month, I have felt that my time was wasted. If you are a presenter, please value others’ time by preparing, starting on time, and finishing on time.

If you are organized and value others’ time, then you will earn respect. Others will enjoy coming to your meetings, and you will benefit with eager participants when you are using time wisely. Happy planning!

Question: How can a speaker/leader/coordinator better value others’ time?

Searching for the Hidden Safe Place

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Searching for the Hidden Safe Place

Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

Sometimes on this journey of using time wisely, I find myself frustrated at myself. Today is such a case.

This past week, I have been absorbed in curricula. Having gathered about 90% of what we think we need for this coming year, I’m at the end of the gathering stage.

However, I’m stuck.

I’m not using time wisely as I’m searching for the hidden safe place where I placed my son’s second grade Bible cards.

I remember taking the cards out of the sheet protectors at the end of the 2012-2013 school year. The cards are in my house somewhere.

I put them in a safe place, and that place is so safe that I cannot find them.

Thus far, I’ve looked in the following places:

  • School bookshelf
  • Craft bookshelf
  • Reading bookshelf
  • Totes from all school years
  • School supply cabinet
  • My bookshelves behind my desk
  • Homeschooling cubbies

Honestly, I’m out of options of where to look. Paul thinks that inspiration will come to me around 4:00 a.m. whereby I realize where I placed them. Rise from bed closing the door behind me as I click on lights and discover the hidden safe place.

Though I hope I get that inspiration, I would rather have it during waking hours. But if inspiration strikes in the middle of the night, then I will gladly find them because I’ll sleep better knowing I’ve found them.

The journey of using time wisely is not always a success. Losing things drives me crazy. I have a place for everything and work very hard to put everything in its place.

If someone has a suggestion of where the hidden safe place is for our second grade Bible cards, then please share? I’m open to all recommendations. I will keep looking, but I’ve already wasted over half a day searching.

If you are also searching for the hidden safe place of an item, then you are not alone. Those who know me well, are usually surprised when I have lost something. However, it happens. I’m not beating myself up, but it is constantly on my brain.

When I find them or replace them (last resort), then I’ll let you know. In the meantime, be careful about where you place things. You might find yourself searching for the hidden safe place without using time wisely. Happy searching!

Question: Where do you usually find things that you have secured to a safe place?