Last week you saw me use, review and recommend Easy Video Player as a powerful new entry in video-based marketing and video publishing tools. I won't go into the details in this post since I've already written about it here and here.
In this post, I just wanted to update you about it now officially being on my "Mel Recommends list." Find it, and other marketing / productivity applications I've endorsed in the topline menu bar above.
If you have questions about how I've used any of the applications listed there, drop me a line. (No technical support questions, please... unless, of course, you're an existing client. In which case researching your technical support question with the vendor will likely already be bundled in with our coaching or training arrangement.)
Otherwise, feel free to ask me about how I use the application itself, strategies for use, productivity applications or marketing techniques.
What are your thoughts? Have you used any of the applications and/or services in my list. What has been your experience?
I'm writing this post to answer a question my friend, Jennifer, asked about how I formatted a custom signature on my Mac (via Mac's native email client called Mail). And to be able to do it in such a way that doesn't distort or otherwise get discombobulated on the receiving end. The snapshot below is what we're shooting for.
The snapshot below is what we hope to mitigate as much as possible on the receiving end of your email.
Rather than keeping the process a secret between Jennifer and me, I figured some of you might have the same question. So, I thought I'd share it with the rest of ya'll, as well. To make it easy, I included both a video (below) and then also summarized the steps in a procedure list (further below). By the way, you can also watch the video in HD directly on the YouTube server. (Just double-click the video.) That'll give you a bigger video to see all the details. Let me know if you find it helpful.
First things first.
The steps to follow presupposes the following:
A. You have access to a web or FTP site to which you can upload your images and reference them over the web.
B. You have the basic skills to create a simple html page. (Or, at the very least, you have access to such knowledge via the skills of a friend.) It will help to have a software package like Dreamweaver or Microsoft Frontpage.
C. You are trying to create your custom signature for Mac Mail.
D. You have the Safari web browser installed on your Mac.
(Double-click it to watch it in HD.)
Steps to follow.
Assuming you have the above three conditions locked, here are the steps I follow to create a signature like the one at the top of this post such that it shows up in your Mac/Mail email signature:
The Preamble. (Do this in your html software package.)
1. Take all the graphics you intend to use in your signature and ftp them to a folder on your website.
2. Use an html software package like Dreamweaver or MS Frontpage to create the look and feel of the email signature you want to have. Use the software's features to display the email graphics via "IMG" references to the file on your web host.
3. Save your email signature design as an html file. (For purposes of this exercise, I've given my signature design the name "myemailsig.html"
The Crux of the Matter. (Do this in the Safari web browser.)
4. Now launch the Safari web browser. From Safari, select File/Open File from the menu bar.
5. Navigate to the location on your computer where you saved the html file for your email signature. Select the Open button. Your email signature will appear as a web page in your Safari browser.
6. Now, save your email signature as a webarchive file. To do this, select File/Save As... on the menu bar of your Safari web browser. Make sure to select "Web Archive" in the Format picklist of the Save As... window. (For my example, I've assigned the name "myemailsig.webarchive")
Make a "placeholder" email signature in Mac Mail.
Summary: In the next steps, we're going to use Mac Mail to create a new "placeholder" for your email signature within the Mac Mail file structure. We'll then copy the system-generated filename for this placeholder and then use it to rename the webarchive file you created in Step 6 above. As a final step, we'll copy the renamed webarchive and replace the system-generated signature file in Mac Mail. (Got it?)
7. Open Mac Mail.
8. Create a new "placeholder" signature. To do this, select Mail/Preferences... from the Mac Mail menu bar. The Preferences window will appear.
9. In the Preferences window, select Signatures from the list of menu icons. The Signatures list window will appear.
10. From the Signatures list column, select the email for which you want to create a new signature.
11. Beneath the second column, select the "+" button to add a new signature. Enter a name where prompted.
12. Now close the Signatures (Preferences) window and Quit out of the Mail program. (Mac Mail needs to restart as you complete the final steps.)
The End Game. (Do this in Finder.)
13. Using the Finder (file browser) application, navigate to the following folder:/Library/Mail/Signatures
14. Inspect the "Date Created" column for the files in the Signatures folder. (Notice these signature files are webarchive files!)
15. Find the webarchive (signature file) with the most recent date under "Date Created". (This will be the signature file you created as a placeholder in Step 11 above.)
16. Select the webarchive file with the most recent creation date and then copy the filename. (Note: This step requires you to copy the name of the file; not the file itself.)
17. Now, find the signature file you created earlier in Step 6. (i.e., myemailsig.webarchive) and replace its filename with the filename copied from Step 16.
18. As a final step, copy the file from Step 17 and replace the "placeholder" file in the folder under /Library/Mail/Signatures.
Your custom email signature will appear as a selectable item the next time you try creating an email message.
I hope this and the video helps!
If this was helpful, then you'll also like all this content on MelAclaro.com:
By now you've heard all the hubbub about Apple's iPad launch last week. You know me, Mr. gadget freak. But, on "version 1.0 products" I tend to be a little more circumspect. And as much as I love Apple's products, I'm probably gonna hold off myself and see what new versions come downstream.
If the familiar skit below is any indication of what's in the iPad--or what's NOT in it--then my hesitation is right on the mark. (Warning: I'm giving the vid below a PG-13 rating for language... but I still find it funny.)
Despite the disappointment I personally feel about the features I need in the iPad that aren't there, one thing seems clear to me, this latest round of tablet mania will (thankfully) bring a new round of competition and "one-upsmanship" in the marketplace that will serve us--consumers--well.
Last week I posted an article about conducting a SWOT analysis. One of the metaphors I used in that post were tools of paper and pen or flipchart and marker to facilitate a SWOT analysis. But, as you can imagine, there are a lot of ways to facilitate group activities like this.
In this video, I want to show you another way I've facilitated these kinds of meetings using flexible mindmapping software. (You can enlarge the video, by the way, by clicking the expand button next to the volume bar.) The SWOT shown in the this video is an actual analysis for a client I worked with in the past. While I have permission to show it, I did take time anyway to sanitize it for any references to company names, people and product labels.
Also, on a related note, I've already gotten a few sign-ups from folks who wanted to be notified when I post the e-book that compiles the facilitation tips and tools I've used and have written about in past articles. Click here and I'll make sure I keep you updated on the timeframe. Which, with the holidays and so on, is looking like sometime soon after the first of the year.
Also, on a related not, I've already gotten a few sign-ups from folks who wanted to be notified when I post the e-book where I compile the facilitation tips and tools I've used and have written about in past articles. Sign up below and I'll make sure I keep you updated on the timeframe which, with the holiday and so on, is looking like soon after the first of the year. (And, no worries. I don't spam and won't sell your information to any third-parties.)
*** This signup has closed. ***
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I came across Jon Morrow's guest post on ProBlogger last night and it rung a bell with me because it relates to the use of speech recognition software. In my web video training productions I've occasionally resorted to the benefit of speech recognition software to create transcripts from the talent in our productions. In the video below, Jon gives a great primer about his recommendations, as well as a demo on the use of Dragon Naturally Speaking (version 10) to write his blog posts.
The technology has continued to improve over the years. And, since my purchase of Dragon Naturally Speaking (version 9) last year, I believe Jon when he says that Dragon Naturally Speaking version 10 is easily twice as good.
The video below is well worth taking some time to view. But, for some of you "bottom line" types ;) I took the liberty of including a timecode index so you can fast forward to key sections.
~3:00 Hardware is key to optimizing efficiency with speech recognition software. ~4:40 Today you can buy everything you need for less than $100. ~6:00 Recommended hardware... especially USB sound pods vs. just a sound card. It makes a huge difference in accuracy. ~7:30KnowBrainer.com as an online resource for recommendations. But, check out also eMicrophones.com for price comparisons. ~9:05 Speed and power of your computer can make a difference. ~10:20 About choosing speech recognition software. ~11:00 Windows: Dragon Naturally Speaking (v10 is MUCH better over v9). Macintosh: Mac Speech Dictate. ~14:15 Demo on what it's like to write a blog post using Dragon Naturally Speaking.
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In my post a few days ago about Monitoring the Conversation, I mentioned the importance of Listening and promised my ASTD-OC friends that I'd post an article about some of the free automation tools I use to help me listen to online conversations. And it's here in the automation discussion that a related question sometimes comes up about whether or not it's ever a good idea to use bots or automation engines when engaging others in the social web. In a nutshell, yes. I said as much in an article I wrote this summer, Automating Social Media - Good or Bad?
The gist is this: leveraging automation, bots, engines, and so on, to alert you to topics, keywords, phrases and conversations that are of interest to you = good idea. But, when you respond in places where those conversations are happening, don't automate that part. That's the personal part that should come from YOU, not an assistant nor a 'bot. Easy enough?
With that said, here's the first of several tools/techniques you can easily start NOW to get a leg up on who's saying what.
o RSS. This is also known as a news feed reader. RSS means "Really Simple Syndication." But that's not important. What is important, is that it's a tool that allows you to "subscribe" to your favorite blogs, news sites and even search results from some popular search engines. The cool factor is in the one-stop-shop setup it affords you for getting updates from all those places.
In other words, instead of having to alternately go to each of 10 sites (or 50 sites or 100 sites) whose content you regularly follow (or would like to if it didn't take so long to navigate to each of those sites!), you can instead subscribe to their "RSS feeds" (I'll show you below) and view updates on one web site containing all those subscriptions. Wala: One-stop-shopping (well, reading, you get my drift).
First things first: Sign Up for An RSS Feed Reader
1. If you don't have a favored RSS feed reader at the moment, you might just as well go to www.google.com/reader and start a Google account, if you don't already have one. Otherwise, sign in.
2. Open a new window or a new tab in your web browser and navigate to one of your favorite blog sites and look for a little "RSS button." It looks like this: . Right-click it and select "Copy Link." (Hint, and, shameless plug: There's a similar button in the right sidebar of my blog. Feel free to start with that one.
3. Now, go back to Google Reader and click the "Add Subscription" button. It looks like this:
4. In the field that appears, Paste the link you copied from Step 2 above.
5. Click the Add button.
6. Wash, rinse, repeat for each blog you typically follow.
Henceforth and forever after, all you have to do is go to your Google Reader site to read any new updates on each of your subscribed blogs. (Unread articles will be highlighted in a slightly different color or typeface until you've read it or marked it as having been read. In this way, you can easily scan what's new and what's not.)
I hope that helps! In my next post, I'll tell you how to add keyword search results to your RSS feed reader.
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Gawd. I didn't know there was such a hubbub about comic sans until I came across the video below. But then again, I count myself amongst those who don't know much about typography. :)
And, maybe you agree that, as Vincent Connare says, sometimes, it's just better than Times New Roman.
But, hey, if you get tired of Comic Sans, take a look at these cool tools for creating your own.
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I read Tom Kuhlmann's post today about "How to Create Screencasts You Can Be Proud Of." It's definitely worth a read. But, one of the more compelling highlights for me was a real-live comparison/contrast between the use of a cheapy headset microphone vs. a slight investment bump for a desktop microphone. And, we're not talking about a huge bump, either.
For example, take a listen to the following: the difference between this audio quality and this better audio quality is the difference of about $30 vs. only about $70. Can you tell difference? Just kinda shows the power of a side-by-side comparison.
I typically use a desktop mic for my screencasts. But, I'd be the first to admit that the audio quality still isn't quite at the place I'd like for them to be. I'm upgrading (again) today.
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** Update: I just plunked down about $75 for this condenser microphone. I'll write a review in a week or so after it arrives and I've had a chance to test drive it.
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Google's release this week of Picasa 3.5 now adds facial recognition functionality to its desktop application.
Tag a photo with the name of the subject and the application will scan your photo library to try and identify other photos with the same face to apply the tag to.
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I've been tweaking a presentation for a training session I'm facilitating this week on the topic of (what else?) social media. I'm jazzed about it.
No, not just because I'll be playing a role in helping a great group of folks understand the topic a little better (at least, I hope!), but also because it sounds like they, too, are excited about the topic. I've been informed that some folks are skipping other modules to attend my module on social media. (My piece is only one portion of a four-part marketing series.)
For my part, in addition to the little "how tos" and "where fors," there are a couple of high-level concepts I find myself revisiting. One of these is the concept that social networking is a lot of work. The other, which I've written about in a previous post, social networking isn't a point-solution. I'll revisit that second one in a follow-up post.
But, for this post...
Social networking is a lot of work.
Based on feedback and discussions with colleagues, I've found this is definitely one of the underlying messages that needs to be communicated. The lamentations of one of my colleagues comes to mind--an executive with a small business I consult with--"So, Mel, I set up that Twitter account... but nothing happened..." (Ho ho ho. Silly rabbit, Tweeps are for kids... who work at it!)
On another occasion, I was asked by another executive about how he could maximize his time getting 1,000 followers over an upcoming weekend. (Whooaah... easy boy.)
'Turns out, it appears their thought process was that, social networking, being technology-based, should "make it easy" to connect with a lot of people at once. So, why wasn't this happening?
Well, as it turns out, it's not the case that you should just set up a LinkedIn account, or just a Twitter account, or just a Facebook account and then "things" will happen. The fact is, the word "networking" is an operative word. At the end of the day, online social networking isn't really too far removed from live networking in a brick-and-mortar setting.
Similar common sense manners are in play:
Don't lead with a sales pitch (though an "elevator pitch" may still be appropriate with proper context),
Don't come with the sole intent of seeing how many business cards you can pass,
Be interested in others,
Be engaging without making it all about you,
See who else you can connect with those you meet,
Find opportunities to help someone.
The list above works just as well for online social networking as it does in a brick-and-mortar social networking venue. And, while I think most of us understand this, many of us run into trouble when we try to automate the points above because, let's face it, there are a helluva lot of social networks to have to engage folks in.
So, we tend to lose the bubble when we allow auto DMs, auto-follows, and LinkedIn Inmail-blasts to supplant the relationship building process.
Ahh, well, hence the header... social networking is a lot of work. And it is a process.
So, Automating Social Media is Bad, Right?
... Well, no. But, if you're going to lean towards automating anything in your online networking activities, don't delegate your relationship-building and conversation-engaging activities to a 'bot. Rather, use technology to automate some of the listening processes.
By placing keywords and phrases into these tools on topics, themes and trends that interest you--or that relate to you or your business--you'll be informed about conversations as they happen now and have an opportunity to reserve the core of your efforts to engagement and conversation with actual people.
Rather than re-hash a list of listening tools in this post, let me offer these excellent articles from which I, myself, have learned much:
