Wednesday March 4, 2009 by Hal
I have friend whose job includes document management; tracking important documents, storing them, revising them and keeping track of them. I imagine the system his (large) corporation uses costs upwards of $100,000. In simple terms, a document management system consists of a scanning solution, a database for storing scanned documents, and a means of searching through scanned images.
But I just have two or three folders of paper that precedes my move to computers. I’d like to be able to store these electronically but not spend a lot of money doing it.
So my criteria for an electronic document management system include low cost, ease of use, and the ability to search for these documents easily. Searching for documents will involve ‘tagging’. Tagging means creating a description of the document in such a way that it can be found with a simple search.
The underlying ‘engine’ for my system is a Google gmail account. Each free account offers 7 gigabytes of online storage at no cost. Seven gigabytes will store a LOT of paper documents.
The biggest downside is security – while it is password protected it still is online and therefore open to possible hacking. In my case, nothing I wanted to store electronically was critical. If someone wants poetry I wrote in college; more power to them.
I also have a scanner built in to my HP OfficeJet 7110 multifunction printer but the scanning software that came with the printer absolutely SUCKS! Therefore I actually spent some money on this part.
I purchased a copy of VueScan from www.hamrick.com for $39.95 – a HUGE bargain as it completely revived my ability to scan. On the Hamrick site there is a comprehensive list of scanners that VueScan works with. An added ‘plus’ is that VueScan has an OCR (Optical Character Recognition) engine built in; so if you want to be able to edit the scanned document, VueScan will turn it into text that can be saved via your word processor.
So here we go - I fire up VueScan and scan my document. VueScan output defaults to PDF files. Here is my first tagging opportunity. By naming the PDF file carefully, I have a good sense of what it’s about.
For my document management ‘engine’ I signed up for a free Google gmail account – I simply log into it, click “compose mail” and address it to the same email address (in other words, it’s by me, from me, and to me). I click “Attach file” and browse to the PDF file I’ve just created.
This is my second chance to tag the document – in the subject line of the email I add all the words that I might need to find the file later. I click “send” and it shows up in my inbox. That’s it – that’s all there is to it. Of course, I’m trusting Google not to implode or cut me off so if your paper documents are critical or have personal information, this may not be the answer for you.
Now when I need a document, I simply go to my gmail inbox and use the search box. If multiple documents have the tag I’m looking for in the subject line, those documents immediately appear in the list. I can then easily view or print out the document.
It’s not sophisticated but it is easy to use, inexpensive, and searchable.
Hal Warfield is a speaker, teacher and coach. Write him at warfieldh@gmail.com . Or read additional self-development and business articles at www.introvert.cc and www.halwarfield.com. Hal is also VP of Business Development at www.marketstrategy.cc where he specializes in business development strategies for small businesses.
Thursday October 23, 2008 by Hal
This one may not fit well in this site but since this my ‘self improvement blog’ I guess it will do as well as any!
I work out with weights regularly and it used to leave me sore for days. I found out that weight lifting works by breaking down muscle fibers so that they’ll repair themselves and grow.
The material required for this repair and growth is protein. So here is my Whey Protein Shake I have within 30 minutes of working out. Whey Protein is supposed to be the best for muscle rebuilding.
You’ve GOT to have a blender that can handle crushing ice. Add two cups of water and an equal amount of ice to the blender. Add 1/2 to 3/4 cup of powdered non-fat dry milk. Add 1/3 (small) package of sugar-free, fat-free chocolate pudding and a ‘shot’ (to taste) of sugar free chocolate milk mix. I also add some Splenda but that’s optional.
Blend on HIGH until the mixture looks smooth then reduce speed to LOW and add one large scoop of protein powder (the scoop comes in the Whey Protein package) and blend for about 20 - 20 seconds. Longer and the protein begins to break down.
If you’d prefer a fruit shake, replace 1/2 the ice with frozen fruit (comes in bags at the grocery store) and use sugar-free, fat-free vanilla pudding instead of chocolate.
Drinking this will minimize next day soreness and give your muscles what they need to grow and repair. There’s no fat and almost no sugar and it’s smooth and creamy!
Enjoy!
Sunday August 19, 2007 by Hal
Those who know me well know me to be a confirmed geek. I’ll let that sentence stand for itself.
One of my favorite sites is Lifehacker where they review all kinds of “life hacks”.
They recently ran a call for individuals to document their “Go Bag”; that is, the tote that they take out the door with them.
I participated and mine was reviewed - my 0.15 seconds of fame!
You can see how I travel and work here.
Saturday January 27, 2007 by Hal
I have always been a big fan of “Mind Mapping”; the concept of doodling your thoughts graphically and watching for interconnections that appear. I’ve used it for brainstorming and note-taking for many years.
Originally put forth by Tony Buzan, mind mapping can be found as a computer application at FreeMind.
FreeMind provides a standalone application for your PC.
But today I found Bubble.us, which is a free “Web 2.0-ish” mindmapping tool that works in your browser.
I’m going to play with it some more but thought some might want to check it out for themselves.
Monday September 11, 2006 by Hal
One of the articles I’ve written that has garnered the most response is my simple guide to writing and giving speeches.
Here is a question from a reader concerning how to teach others to give speeches.
Hi Hal
I am about to start coaching some young people in my team (a small administration team in a bank) on how to give speeches. Their roles are somewhat mundane and I think helping them improve their speech-making ability will keep them more engaged at work plus give them something to put on their resumes.
I saw your ‘Simple guide to writing (and giving) a speech’ on the net and I think it is a really good model for an inexperienced person to follow to prepare a speech.
I’m personally confident at speaking now (after many years of being terrified) but I’ve never really taught others how to do it.
I was just wondering if you have any quick tips on dos and don’ts in coaching people to speak better or if you know of any exercises that you have found to be useful?
Thanks for your time — Paul
And I reply:
Paul -
Thanks for your note - I’ll try to give you a “grab bag” of ideas; if any appeal to you feel free.
First, the goal should be to get them talking; not to have you talk TO them. Try some confidence building exercises. Have them tell a story one sentence at a time; have the first person start by saying “once upon a time” and then move around the group each person adding to the story by one sentence. Go through several rounds. This will get them to loosen up and feel more comfortable in the group.
Get them to build a speech outline in the same fashion. You throw out a topic and have them create an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. Coach them if their ideas don’t fit the right part of the speech process. Feel free to use my article to help them.
If they have ‘stage fright’ have them read prepared paragraphs (from a book or magazine) facing away from the group; then have them read the same paragraph facing the group.
After they’ve prepared their own brief speech have them read it aloud as fast as they can, then have them gradually slow it down - this does two things, first they’re going to go too fast at first anyway so forcing them to read fast will emphasize how this DOESN’T work. Having them gradually slow down will cause them to gain some confidence through repetition.
Once they’ve made a speech to your group; invite one or two other people in so that they get used to speaking to others. Finally, if this becomes something you want to expand or continue, consider starting a Toastmasters group at the bank.
Best wishes,
Hal Warfield
Friday June 23, 2006 by Hal
I’m always trying to find metaphors, illustrations and allegories for the size of the Universe — both great and small. As I think I’ve blogged before, on a scale from smallest subatomic particle to the complete Universe, a human being is about halfway.
Which means that looking out at the cosmos (in your imagination), is the same as an electron “looking” at you!
But today’s mind-blower is this illustration of the relationship between a proton (subatomic particle in the center of an atom) and it’s electron (subatomic particle ‘orbiting’ the proton).
The Site is Here
In this illustration you’ll see a blue sphere representing the proton that is 1000 pixels across — to reach the electron which is ONE pixel across you’ll have to scroll to the right the equivalent of 11 MILES!
Makes the mind boggle doesn’t it? Everything that seems solid is made up of mostly empty space. Meditate on that for a while!