tools Archives - What Does This Mean to Me, Laura?

Is working from home too quiet for you? Three tools to help

However, even I will sometimes admit that things can get just a little too quiet. Granted, if you’ve got kids or family trapped in the house with you right now, that might not be one of your problems. For myself, I find music to be far too distracting to use as ambient sound on a regular basis. That’s where services like the ones below come into play.

No Photoshop? Try free LunaPic instead

I work with a good number of smaller libraries that don’t have professional graphic artists on staff and also rarely have the money or expertise to use high-level design software, such as Photoshop or Paint Shop Pro. Oftentimes, our clients simply need a way to resize or crop images for their websites. Maybe do some… Continue reading No Photoshop? Try free LunaPic instead

Cliphy: Add fun to words

I spend a fair amount of time testing out new online tools, usually of the free variety. Some don’t work as advertised. Some are cool, and I sing their praises to the virtual rooftops. Others are just useful in very specific ways. Cliphy is one of these niche tools that just does one thing, and… Continue reading Cliphy: Add fun to words

Free online tools you didn’t know you needed

I had the privilege of speaking to a packed house at the Computers in Libraries 2018 conference last month. Here’s my slidedeck, featuring a small sample of some of my favorite online tools. Enjoy! Free Online Tools You Didn’t Know You Needed! from Ohio Public Library Information Network (OPLIN)

Because you’re not getting much work done anyway (2017 edition)

Happy holidays! It’s time for my annual collection of Stuff You Didn’t Know Existed But Can Waste Your Time On. You know, in case you needed help not getting your work done. Sandcastles: If you, like most people, feel that 2017 has left much to be desired, this site won’t help. Watch the virtual sandcastles… Continue reading Because you’re not getting much work done anyway (2017 edition)

Make your own animated GIFs from video captures–easy

Animated GIFs are everywhere, especially in social media. Even my Android phone has many built into its SMS app. They’ve become a very common part of modern communication. Not only do they effectively communicate emotions, but they have a significant entertainment value as well. Would your library like to make it’s own? (Who wouldn’t?) All… Continue reading Make your own animated GIFs from video captures–easy

Because you’re not getting much work done anyway (2016 edition)

Happy holidays! It’s time for my annual collection of Online Stuff To Waste Time On. You know, in case you needed help not getting your work done. Be virtually rained out. Like the sounds of rain? Of course you do. This site allows you not only to hear rain whenever you want, but you can change the sounds by… Continue reading Because you’re not getting much work done anyway (2016 edition)

Is your library’s website costing your patrons money?

For several years, I was a lucky customer of Verizon with a grandfathered, unlimited data plan. Last year, in an attempt to shove us freeloader-types overboard, Verizon jacked up the price of unlimited plans by an insane amount. Rather than be extorted, I moved over to Google Fi. The point here, however, is not how… Continue reading Is your library’s website costing your patrons money?

5 tools to ease your font headaches

Fonts are complicated. I won’t pretend that I’m anything like an expert, because I can barely differentiate between a typeface and a font to begin with*. But I have to work with fonts all of the time, and I’ve come to rely on some tools to help me get the job done. I thought some of… Continue reading 5 tools to ease your font headaches

Absolutely honest tool tells you if you need a better headline

There’s a heck of a lot of information out there about how important it is to have a good headline for blog posts. Many people will make their decision to read or not, based purely on the headline. So, headlines count. A lot. While there is a ton of practical advice about making your headlines… Continue reading Absolutely honest tool tells you if you need a better headline

Get the web details you need–FAST

Today’s post discusses my latest “Headache Avoidance” tool. If you work on designing and/or developing websites, you are almost certainly accustomed to vague conversations, that don’t give you all of the details you might need in order to troubleshoot an issue. In my experience, library staff rarely know what exact OS or browser version they’re looking at,… Continue reading Get the web details you need–FAST

Make your web colors better

Colors can be fun, but they can also be complicated. There’s a lot of psychology involved with choosing colors as well. I really enjoy putting together or finding color palettes for different websites or projects that I get to work on, but the task is always accompanied by a sense of knowing that a lot… Continue reading Make your web colors better

Too quiet for you?

I’ve mentioned before how I primarily work from home nowadays, where it’s very quiet. So, I’m often looking for ways to jazz up my work environment without actually playing music, which I often find to be too distracting. I’ve written about Coffitivity, which gives you a modifiable coffeehouse ambiance. Since then, a couple of new… Continue reading Too quiet for you?

Tool Tuesday: TL;DR

Perhaps you’re like me, and you have the attention span of a gnat. Or, maybe you’re just like most people, and you don’t have time to read today’s news, in depth. That’s where this handy site comes in: TL;DR. (You may have seen that acronym before; it’s gaining popularity quickly across the web. It stands… Continue reading Tool Tuesday: TL;DR