Category Useful Tools

Recently, I purchased a copy of “Property Management Accounting:  A Survival Guide For Non-Accountants” to help me gain a better understanding of how the financial transactions in the property management world work. I was not disappointed by this book in the least!

The first line of the introduction in this book says it all:  “In this day and age, we’re lucky to have software that takes care of the nuts and bolts of property management accounting.  The second line puts everything in perspective:  “But even with software, you’ll find it much easier to keep accurate records if you have an understanding of the basic accounting concepts upon which these programs are based.”  This book does just that.

Before I ju...

Back in December, I wrote an article on my switch to Skype for my calls made while at my desk, to cut back on the number of cell phone minutes I was burning through each month.  After calculating savings, I realized I was saving $631.70 per year by going with a VoIP provider as opposed to Verizon.  At the time I was using a headset connected to my desktop.  Since then, I’ve gotten a bit more technologically advanced.

I recently came across a product put out by D-Link, which plugs into the USB port on my computer and allows me to make Skype calls from a normal phone!  In addition, if I had a regular phone line, I could plug that in as well which would allow me to make and recieve phone calls from either line...

I recently read an article over at Productivity501 about scanning your signature into your computer, so you could easily attach it to documents.  This can be incredibly handy when it comes to signing files and sending them back.  You won’t even need to print it out in most cases – just insert the image, and align it where you need a signature.  This is also incredibly handy if you use an online fax service, which I have been looking into extensively as of late in the interests of a “paperless” office.

One of the biggest objections that many people have to the scanned signature concept is that of privacy and security – what if someone gets their hand on my signature?  Think about it from this perspective:  You sign so many papers that if someone really wanted to, they would find a way to...

Recently I’ve started using Google Calendar to help me track my day to day activities, as opposed to Outlook.  I wanted a calendar that was accessable from anywhere, since I’m not always at the same computer.  That was my primary concern, and it was also Google Calendar’s primary feature!  After using Gmail for several months (before I bought my domain and moved all my mail here), I realized that Google puts together an incredibly solid suite of programs designed to help us be more efficient.

Google Calendar offers many features and benefits, such as the ability to add multiple calendars and color code them.  I like this because it allows me to separate different activities.  In addition, it is incredibly easy to share your calendar with someone else and control what they can and can’t see.  For instance, I can share my main calendar with someone, and allow them to see and edit events, just see but not edit events, or only see that I’m busy.

In addition, sharing a calenda...

Once in awhile I want to post a useful tool that I have stumbled across surfing the internet.  Today I’d like to share Whocalled.us.  Have you ever looked at your caller id to see an 800 number or another number you don’t recognize?  Pop the number into Whocalled.us ‘s database, and see if someone else has been called by the same party.  You can also add numbers for parties that you have found the identity of, to help others in the fight against unwanted phone calls.