What 3 things do you think will become obsolete in the next ten years?

1. CDs / DVDs / Blueray, any form of optical disk
2. Home Phones
3. Newspapers

Launchy

This quick launch program can save you a ton of mouse clicks. You can forget about looking for an icon or browsing the start menu. This app puts all of those programs just a few keystrokes away. By pressing the default alt+space, a small window launches with a text box. You start to type the name of the application you want and it will find it within a few letters, press enter and it launches your app. I can also launch websites, do simple math, and open files or directories. It does take a little configuration to get going, but it is worth the effort.

Launchy

Mint

Mint is a free way to manage your money online. It helps you track your spending and saving with a great user interface. It takes a few minutes to set up, you have to link your accounts to it. But once the set up is complete you can quickly see charts and graphs of when and where you are spending your money.

You can setup budgets for spending in different categories. Then you can set up a variety of notifications, like when you have exceeded your budget in a category. There is also a new goals feature which lets you set financial goals and easily track their progress. I’ve been using the service for about 6 months now and I am very please with the results.

Mint.com

Netflix

Delivering DVDs to people by mail is what Netflix is known for. Streaming movies and t.v. shows directly to your multimedia device is what they will be known for. I just log into the Netflix website, search their library, and add movies and t.v. shows to my queue. Then I turn on my Xbox, go to my queue, choose what I want now, and play. It couldn’t be any easier. Having recently signed up, I have just discovered the huge catalog of content. I am just scratching the surface at this point. I’ll check back after a few weeks. Maybe the excitement will have faded, or maybe i’ll have a new favorite source for movies and t.v..

Google Chrome

This web browser has been my standard for over a year now. Speed is one of its greatest assets. It loads webpages quickly and launches quickly itself. The built in functionality is basic. Tabbed browsing, bookmarks, history, it’s all there. Extensions allow you endless possibilities for customizing your web browsing experience. Give chrome a try, especially if you are still using IE. I’ll be talking more about chrome features and chrome extensions soon.

Google Chrome

Teux Deux

A to do list with a simple sleek style. No real bells and whistles here, just function and little bit of style. I’ve been using it for a few weeks and it works for me. Oh, and it’s free.

Teux Deux

Goodreads

Goodreads is a website for sharing and discovering books. You can post and read book reviews. You can keep up with what your friends are reading. You can use it to keep track of your entire book collection. It is very simple to use, but also robust enough for those passionate about books. It integrates with Facebook too.  My profile.

Goodreads.com

Flavors.me

This website creation service allows you to combine your content from around the web into a single elegant website. You choose the content that you want presented, like your blog, your twitter feed, your flickr photos, etc. It combines that content into a very customizable website. It is very easy to set up, and looks great. You can see my page here.

Flavors.me

After the Deadline

This is a great add-on that checks your spelling and grammar on just about any webpage in which you type. Tweets, e-mails, Facebook posts, it is easy to use and super helpful. I’ve been using the Google Chrome extension for about two weeks now and haven’t found any major flaws.

After the Deadline

TweetDeck

TweetDeck is a desktop client for your various social network feeds. It does Twitter, Facebook, Google Buzz, Linkedin, Foursquare, and MySpace. You can see updates from all of these sites. You can update your status and post it to any or all of your social networks. It is easy to configure, and has a good number of options for things like notifications and filters. Getting all your updates in a single client is a real time saver.