This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business.
Since Google launched its Chrome web store in December, extensions have sprung up to speed up and simplify the messy world of Internet browsing. If you’re a member of the club that spends more time looking at screens than people, some simple browser add-ons can streamline many of your daily processes on the job.
We brought you a list of great Chrome apps for small businesses shortly after the store’s opening. Here are ten new ones that are sure to increase your web productivity while at work.
Let us know in the comments if you are using any of these apps. Which work for you? What did we miss?
1. StayFocusd
We understand it's a bit much to ask you to go completely cold turkey from Angry Birds. Fortunately for the Internet browsing addicts out there, StayFocusd puts a cap on a list of sites you choose to limit. Whether you're wasting time on social networks, blogs, shopping or gaming, you can customize your list of restricted sites. Then, set your limit to the amount of time you will allow yourself to waste.
2. Large Document
Say goodbye to email bounce-back notifications for documents over ten megabytes. The Large Document app lets you transfer what email won't, and it's simpler than an external sharing site like YouSendIt or Dropbox. The Chrome extension converts your file into a URL you can share. An added bonus? No log-in information is required.
3. Docs PDF/PowerPoint Viewer
Docs PDF/PowerPoint Viewer ends the frustrating restriction of needing to download Doc and PowerPoint files to view them. Rather than wait to read several pages sent in email, open Docs, PowerPoints and PDFs directly in your Chrome browser.
4. Yast
Whether you're timing your hours billed to clients or how long your lunch meeting lasted, Yast makes timing your work easy. The app generates time sheets you can comment on and color codes so you can organize all your time-related needs.
5. TabCloud
Sure, tabbed browsing makes everyone's life easier. That is, until your tabbing gets to be a disorganized mess. TabCloud lets you save browsing sessions for a later date. If you're researching a project, just save the set of tabs and return to the bunch at a later time. And, because they're stored in the cloud, you can access your tabs from any computer.
6. Screen Capture
Using Screen Capture, you can easily grab stills from your browser. More transferable than copy and paste and faster than taking notes, screen shots will speed up your work online.
7. Popchrom
Expedite your typing by turning your commonly used phrases into abbreviated shortcuts. Let's say you add "lmk" as a shortcut for "let me know if you have any questions." Once you have the shortcut saved, all you need to do is place your mouse over the abbreviated shortcut -- in our case, "lmk" -- and press ctrl+space. The expanded text will replace your abbreviation.
8. HootSuite
Winner of Mashable's Best Social Media Management Tool for 2010, HootSuite puts all your social networks in one simple dashboard, updated in real time. Track traffic to your site, monitor conversations and schedule messages using this handy app.
9. Read Later Fast
If you often find yourself distracted while reading every interesting story you stumble across during the work day, Read Later Fast can help you kick the habit. Rather than forgetting about all those interesting links, this app will store your stories in an easy to use inbox for reading at a later time.
10. Google Calendar Checker
Rather than navigating between your work and your schedule, this easy app counts down until your next engagement in the corner of your browser. Google Calendar Checker's simplicity keeps you focused on meeting your deadlines and preparing for engagements.
More About: chrome apps, google chrome, small business, Small Business Resources, web productivityFor more Business & Marketing coverage:Follow Mashable Business & Marketing on TwitterBecome a Fan on FacebookSubscribe to the Business & Marketing channelDownload our free apps for Android, Mac, iPhone and iPad
Posted on Mon, 08 Aug 2011 17:04:38 +0000 at http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/~3/3MOp18PlL_w/
Comments: http://mashable.com/2011/08/08/chrome-increased-productivity/#comments
Since Google launched its Chrome web store in December, extensions have sprung up to speed up and simplify the messy world of Internet browsing. If you’re a member of the club that spends more time looking at screens than people, some simple browser add-ons can streamline many of your daily processes on the job.
We brought you a list of great Chrome apps for small businesses shortly after the store’s opening. Here are ten new ones that are sure to increase your web productivity while at work.
Let us know in the comments if you are using any of these apps. Which work for you? What did we miss?
1. StayFocusd
We understand it's a bit much to ask you to go completely cold turkey from Angry Birds. Fortunately for the Internet browsing addicts out there, StayFocusd puts a cap on a list of sites you choose to limit. Whether you're wasting time on social networks, blogs, shopping or gaming, you can customize your list of restricted sites. Then, set your limit to the amount of time you will allow yourself to waste.
2. Large Document
Say goodbye to email bounce-back notifications for documents over ten megabytes. The Large Document app lets you transfer what email won't, and it's simpler than an external sharing site like YouSendIt or Dropbox. The Chrome extension converts your file into a URL you can share. An added bonus? No log-in information is required.
3. Docs PDF/PowerPoint Viewer
Docs PDF/PowerPoint Viewer ends the frustrating restriction of needing to download Doc and PowerPoint files to view them. Rather than wait to read several pages sent in email, open Docs, PowerPoints and PDFs directly in your Chrome browser.
4. Yast
Whether you're timing your hours billed to clients or how long your lunch meeting lasted, Yast makes timing your work easy. The app generates time sheets you can comment on and color codes so you can organize all your time-related needs.
5. TabCloud
Sure, tabbed browsing makes everyone's life easier. That is, until your tabbing gets to be a disorganized mess. TabCloud lets you save browsing sessions for a later date. If you're researching a project, just save the set of tabs and return to the bunch at a later time. And, because they're stored in the cloud, you can access your tabs from any computer.
6. Screen Capture
Using Screen Capture, you can easily grab stills from your browser. More transferable than copy and paste and faster than taking notes, screen shots will speed up your work online.
7. Popchrom
Expedite your typing by turning your commonly used phrases into abbreviated shortcuts. Let's say you add "lmk" as a shortcut for "let me know if you have any questions." Once you have the shortcut saved, all you need to do is place your mouse over the abbreviated shortcut -- in our case, "lmk" -- and press ctrl+space. The expanded text will replace your abbreviation.
8. HootSuite
Winner of Mashable's Best Social Media Management Tool for 2010, HootSuite puts all your social networks in one simple dashboard, updated in real time. Track traffic to your site, monitor conversations and schedule messages using this handy app.
9. Read Later Fast
If you often find yourself distracted while reading every interesting story you stumble across during the work day, Read Later Fast can help you kick the habit. Rather than forgetting about all those interesting links, this app will store your stories in an easy to use inbox for reading at a later time.
10. Google Calendar Checker
Rather than navigating between your work and your schedule, this easy app counts down until your next engagement in the corner of your browser. Google Calendar Checker's simplicity keeps you focused on meeting your deadlines and preparing for engagements.
More About: chrome apps, google chrome, small business, Small Business Resources, web productivityFor more Business & Marketing coverage:Follow Mashable Business & Marketing on TwitterBecome a Fan on FacebookSubscribe to the Business & Marketing channelDownload our free apps for Android, Mac, iPhone and iPad
Posted on Mon, 08 Aug 2011 17:04:38 +0000 at http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/~3/3MOp18PlL_w/
Comments: http://mashable.com/2011/08/08/chrome-increased-productivity/#comments
