Consolidating "My Documents" into SkyDrive

If your hard drive crashed today, what would you lose? That's a question I have posed for years during workshops. The "train wreck" picture invokes a reaction not unlike the one you or I would have if suddenly finding everything gone. Having a backup is a necessary insurance policy. Like everything else, the available tools make the process easier.

My Pre-Cloud System

For many years, my digital filing system has centered around three folders on my desktop:

• My Documents
• Current Projects
• Fingertip

The "My Documents" folder has served as my digital filing cabinet. Open it, and you see neatly-labeled folders containing reference material. No action is required on the documents which reside there. Just like the metal filing cabinet which houses reference papers, the "My Documents" is where I can go when I need to find information. My practice has been to backup everything in this folder once per month on an external hard drive.

The "Current Projects" folder served as the place for anything classified as a work in progress. The report on which I am working, the unfinished term paper for the class I am taking, and supporting documents for open projects will be found there. In fact, just opening that folder provides a clue as to what is on my plate. My procedure had been to backup this folder weekly on that same external hard drive.

The "Fingertip" folder is for those few items I use regularly. The school letterhead would be one example. Rather than having these items nested in folders requiring multiple mouse clicks to access, I have them in a folder on the desktop. I included this folder in my monthly backup.

The upside of the system was that I was creating a backup on a regular basis. If the hard drive crashed, I would not lose everything. At most, I would lose what had been created or changed during the past week from the Current Projects folder and whatever had been created or changed during the past month from "My Documents."

The downside was I could still lose some data. In addition, if something happened to both the computer and the external hard drive, all of my data would be gone.

Enter Dropbox

Dropbox offers me two significant advantages:

• What is saved to it is available from anywhere.
• What is saved to it is immediately synced to the cloud. If my hard drive crashes, anything in Dropbox is safe.

Dropbox became my "Current Projects" folder. I dragged all the documents and folders that were in the Current Projects folders into Dropbox and deleted the old folder. My rationale was that anything which was a work in progress was something I would want to be able to access from anywhere.

Likewise, the items in the "Fingertip" folder also need to be accessed from anywhere. To accomplish this objective, I dragged that entire folder into the Dropbox folder. So that I could still have the "Fingertip" folder on the desktop, I created a shortcut to the Fingertip folder and dragged it to the desktop.

Now, I had a system which would provide an instant backup for those items which are works in progress. In addition, I could get to them from anywhere.

Enter SkyDrive

The final move was to put "My Documents" in the cloud. When SkyDrive became available, I was one of the early ones to create an account. Back then, the account came with 25GB of free storage. That number has dropped to 7GB for those who sign up today.

My idea was to have everything in the "My Documents" folder sync to SkyDrive. Here is how I accomplished that objective:

1. Download the SkyDrive desktop application.
2. Open Windows Explorer, and click the arrow to the left of "Libraries," so that you see the various libraries (Documents, Music, etc.)
3. Click the arrow to the left of "Documents" to reveal the "My Documents" folder.
4. Right-click on "My Documents."
5. Choose "Properties."
6. Click the "Location" tab.
7. Click the "Move" button.
8. Browse to "SkyDrive" and select it.

Do you have a laptop or other computer from which you work? If so, download the SkyDrive desktop application there and perform the same steps to have the "My Documents" folder move to SkyDrive. The documents from each computer will now be available from each of the other computers. In addition, you would be able to log into SkyDrive from any computer which has Internet access.

My "filing cabinet" is now stored in SkyDrive and instantly backed up. If the hard drive fails, I lose no data. If my external hard drive is stolen or damaged, my data is still safe in SkyDrive.

I continue to perform a monthly backup of SkyDrive to that external hard drive. Just in case something was to happen to delete items from SkyDrive, and hence delete them on my computer, I want one more level of protection.

Safeguarding our important data has always been important. That's why people purchase a fire-proof safe or rent a safe deposit box. Our tools have changed, but the vigilance in protecting our data remains the same. SkyDrive for my reference items and Dropbox for my current projects and commonly-accessed files gives me the peace of mind and the convenience I seek. 

School Leadership Briefing Follow-Up

Welcome to those who are subscribers to the School Leadership Briefing. This post is especially for you. If you are not a subscriber, that's OK; the segment I recorded is being made available to all readers of this blog. Listen to my talk on "Five Free Tech Tools to Help You Get Organized."

Toodledo 
Toodledo is a powerful web-based to-do list. It works with PC or Mac. Apps are available allowing you to sync any of your mobile devices to Toodledo. I recently composed a 6-part series on Toodledo. You can read Part 1 here.



igHome 
igHome is a personalized homepage. It is the perfect tool for those who use iGoogle and are looking for a replace when iGoogle ceases to exist on November 1. On February 11, my post will explain igHome. By that time, you may already have your igHome page established.



Dropbox
Put anything in Dropbox and retrieve it on any of your computers, mobile devices, or any computer in the world with Internet access. I composed an e-book to guide you through a strategy for using Dropbox.Click on the cover to download.

Click on the cover to download the free Dropbox E-Book

Evernote 
Evernote is a great place to store and organize commonly-accessed information. The information is then available on any of your computers, mobile devices, or any computer in the world with Internet access. On February 4, my post will talk about the notebooks I suggest you create when you get started with Evernote.

Voice Input
This area is becoming a major player in the world of smartphones. Everyone has seen the commercials advertising Siri. In the audio segment, we examine using voice input to get "to-dos" into your system, specifically getting them into your email so that when you handle your email, you are handling the voice notes (now transcribed to text) as well. To set up a reQall account, go to reQall.com/app.

For Vlingo, go to the site where you download apps for your smartphone and search for Vlingo. Recently, Vlingo for Android has been replaced with a program called "Dragon Mobile Assistant." Currently, Dragon will not allow you to email by voice, functionality that is necessary to get those random thoughts into your system. The app promises this functionality will be there soon.

Each of these 5 tools represents a major player in my productivity arsenal. They help me quickly access the information I need when I need it. Thanks for listening to the School Leadership Briefing segment. Feel free to leave a comment or ask a question.

Principal Center Webinar Follow-Up

Thanks to those who participated in the Get Organized! webinar series these past 3 Tuesdays. Also thanks to Justin Baeder, Director of The Principal Center for hosting this series. This post serves as a follow-up to the series, and especially as a follow-up to the third session..

Staying Connected
If you liked what you heard and would like more, here are several ways you can keep in touch:

• Check out our website. In addition to general information on what we do, you will find a page of free resources.
• Follow me on Twitter.
• "Like" my Facebook page and check back for updates.
• Follow me on Pinterest (which organizes blog posts by general topic)
• Subscribe to the free monthly newsletter. 
• Bring new blog posts straight to your e-mail.
• Read Get Organized! and/or Organization Made Easy!
• Bring me to your school or organization.

iGoogle
If you are interested in adding to your iGoogle page some of the same gadgets I have on mine, here is an easy way to get them. As you click each link, you will be taken to a page that describes the gadget and lets you click a button to automatically add it to your iGoogle page.

Google Bookmarks
Google Reader
Yahoo News
Twitter
Facebook 
Bit.ly URL Shortener
Weather
reQall 
Toodledo
People.com
MapQuest Driving Directions
Area/Zip Code Lookup
Music
YouTube
Document to PDF
Movies
GoogleDocs
GoogleCalendar
Google Map Search
Portfolio Monitor
Calculator
Stopwatch
Flight Status
WolframAlpha 
Time Converter

Here is how to make iGoogle (your homepage).


Dropbox
Want to set up a Dropbox account? Here is an easy way for you to set up an account and get an extra 250MB of free storage for both you and me. Click here to sign up.

I have written a short e-book which explains how I use Dropbox. For information on downloading for free, go here. 

Google Docs Forms

In a time where tablets are becoming popular, conducting classroom walk-throughs is an extremely practical use of collecting and organizing data.

Here are the steps for creating a walk-through form using Google Docs and then getting that walk-through form onto your tablet.

1. Design your walk-through form on paper. You may wish to begin with a paper form you are already using. Only after you have thought through how you want the form to look should you go to the computer.
2. Log into your Google account and go to docs.google.com. You will see a list of all of the Google Docs you have already created.
3. Click “Create New” and choose “Spreadsheet.”
4. In Row 1 enter each of the questions that will go on the form. (Examples: Teacher name, Subject, Resources Being Used, Objective/Essential question posted?, Student activity, Number of students not actively engaged, Teacher activity, Level of questioning, Overall comments). Press the tab key to go from column to column. Note: You do NOT need to have a column for the date. The date and time of the walk-through will automatically be gathered for you.
5. From the “Tools” menu, choose “Form” and “Create a form.” You will now see a form with your column heading already listed. Below each item will be a short blank where you could enter a response.
6. While some fields lend themselves well to a short answer, for others, a drop-down list, series of check-boxes, paragraph text box, etc. will be a better fit. As you move the mouse down the page, each item will turn a beige color and display a series of icons to the right. Click the pencil icon to decide what type of response you want and create your list of checkboxes, items on drop-down list, etc.
7. Each question will display a “make this a required question” checkbox. It is a good idea to check this box. That will keep you from overlooking an item. Click “Done" when you have finished editing that item.
8. At the top of the form is a button called “Theme.” Click it, and you can choose from an array of attractive looks for your form.
9. At the very bottom of the form, you will see “You can view the published form here” followed by a rather long URL. This is a very important step! Highlight and copy that link.
10. By this time, Google Docs has probably prompted you to save the spreadsheet. If not, click “Save.”
11. Now we want to get this form on your BlackBerry PlayBook, iPad or other tablet device you will be using in the walk-throughs. You can also use the form with a Smartphone, although the size may be too small for you to use comfortably.
12. Open a new e-mail on your computer, paste the link from the bottom of the Google Docs form in the body, and address the e-mail to yourself. Send the e-mail.
13. Go to your PlayBook, iPad, or other tablet. Check your e-mail, looking for the one you sent to yourself.
14. Open the e-mail, and click the link. You should now be looking at your walk-through form.
15. Your tablet should offer you a way to save a URL as a “shortcut” on your home screen. For example, on the PlayBook, you will tap the hollow star and choose “Add to Home Screen.” You have now created an app for the walk-through form.

If you also wish to have the form on your Smartphone, you will repeat the process on that device. Check your e-mail on the Smartphone and open the one containing the link to the walk-through form. Click the link to display the form. Now turn that URL into a desktop shortcut. How this is done will vary from one Smartphone to the next. For example, on a BlackBerry running OS6, click the icon just to the right of the URL address bar. Choose “Add to Home Screen.” You have now just made the walk-through form into an app! You will find its icon on your home screen.

You are ready to start your walk-throughs! Each time you finish a form and touch “Submit,” the data instantly goes into the Google Docs spreadsheet. Each entry is date and time stamped for you!

No more filling out forms and then recopying that data somewhere else! Your data is neatly stored in rows and columns on your Google Docs spreadsheet. Less time spent on paperwork. More time spent on helping good teachers get even better. Life just got easier!

reQall

Create your own reQall account for free.
Also check out Vlingo.


Questions?

For answers to questions others have posed in the past, take a look at these two posts:
Webinar Follow-Up: Answers to Your Questions (Part I)
Webinar Follow-Up: Answers to Your Questions (Part II)


Again, thanks for participating in the webinar series. If one of your goals for the summer is to "Get Organized!" I hope the three hours we spent together will give you a great start.

Dropbox Has Gotten Even Easier

When you use one tool extensively, even a small improvement can mean a great deal. For the more than 45 millions who use Dropbox, uploading files just got easier.

Users know that merely dragging a file into the Dropbox folder is all that is required to upload it. But what about when you are working on a computer which does not have the Dropbox software installed?

With this recent improvement, you can go to Dropbox on your web browser (Explorer, Firefox, or Chrome), and drag a file from your desktop into the window on your browser. Dropbox uploads the file. Similarly, if you want the file to go into a particular folder inside Dropbox, drag it to that file in your browser's window. Dropbox does the rest!

To help users learn about this new feature, Dropbox has posted about it on their blog. Even better, if you click the normal "Upload" link, the first thing you see is a box explaining the new improvement.

As of October 2011, more than 45,000 people were using Dropbox. If you are not one of them, there is no better time than now to create a free account.

Click here to start your Dropbox account.

Normally, you would get 2GB of free storage. Using the link above gives you an additional 500 MB and also gives me an additional 500 MB. As you set up your account, you will see how you can get additional storage (up to a total of 16GB for free) by introducing others to Dropbox.

I have said many times, we do what it easy. This new improvement makes a user-friendly service even easier.

Free Dropbox Ebook

Having a tool is one thing. Having a plan for how it will fit into your system is another. This ebook was written for those who attended last week's webinar, yet it is free for anyone for a limited time.

Click on the cover to download the ebook. Once you have looked through it, please let me know your thoughts. If this was your introduction to Dropbox, I would be interested in knowing your experience with using the ebook to get started. If you are a Dropbox vet, what do I need to include on future revisions?

Eye on Education Webinar Follow-Up

If you participated in the Eye on Education webinar, "Free Tech Tools for a More Productive New Year," this post is a follow-up.

Staying Connected
If you liked what you heard and would like more, here are several ways you can keep in touch:

• Check out our website. In addition to general information on what we do, you will find a page of free resources.
• Follow me on Twitter.
• "Like" my Facebook page and check back for updates.
• Subscribe to my free monthly newsletter. 
• Bring new blog posts straight to your e-mail.
• Read Get Organized! and/or Organization Made Easy!
• Bring me to your school or organization.

iGoogle
If you are interested in adding to your iGoogle page some of the same gadgets I have on mine, here is an easy way to get them. As you click each link, you will be taken to a page that describes the gadget and lets you click a button to automatically add it to your iGoogle page.

Google Bookmarks
Google Reader
Yahoo News
Twitter
Facebook 
Bit.ly URL Shortener
Weather
reQall 
Toodledo
People.com
MapQuest Driving Directions
Area/Zip Code Lookup
Music
YouTube
Document to PDF
Movies
GoogleDocs
GoogleCalendar
Google Map Search
Portfolio Monitor
Calculator
Stopwatch
Flight Status
WolframAlpha

Here is how to make iGoogle (your homepage).


Dropbox
Want to set up a Dropbox account? Here is an easy way for you to set up an account and get an extra 250MB of free storage for both you and me. Click here to sign up.

Google Docs Forms
We mentioned briefly about students being able to take tests on the computer which are instantly graded and item analysis conducted. Here is a post that goes into more depth on that concept. (Sorry, we actually didn't get to this one.The link will explain the concept. If this is something your school would serious like to pursue, let me know.)

In a time where tablets are becoming popular, conducting classroom walk-throughs is an extremely practical use of collecting and organizing data.

Here are the steps for creating a walk-through form using Google Docs and then getting that walk-through form onto your tablet.

1. Design your walk-through form on paper. You may wish to begin with a paper form you are already using. Only after you have thought through how you want the form to look should you go to the computer.
2. Log into your Google account and go to docs.google.com. You will see a list of all of the Google Docs you have already created.
3. Click “Create New” and choose “Spreadsheet.”
4. In Row 1 enter each of the questions that will go on the form. (Examples: Teacher name, Subject, Resources Being Used, Objective/Essential question posted?, Student activity, Number of students not actively engaged, Teacher activity, Level of questioning, Overall comments). Press the tab key to go from column to column. Note: You do NOT need to have a column for the date. The date and time of the walk-through will automatically be gathered for you.
5. From the “Tools” menu, choose “Form” and “Create a form.” You will now see a form with your column heading already listed. Below each item will be a short blank where you could enter a response.
6. While some fields lend themselves well to a short answer, for others, a drop-down list, series of check-boxes, paragraph text box, etc. will be a better fit. As you move the mouse down the page, each item will turn a beige color and display a series of icons to the right. Click the pencil icon to decide what type of response you want and create your list of checkboxes, items on drop-down list, etc.
7. Each question will display a “make this a required question” checkbox. It is a good idea to check this box. That will keep you from overlooking an item. Click “Done" when you have finished editing that item.
8. At the top of the form is a button called “Theme.” Click it, and you can choose from an array of attractive looks for your form.
9. At the very bottom of the form, you will see “You can view the published form here” followed by a rather long URL. This is a very important step! Highlight and copy that link.
10. By this time, Google Docs has probably prompted you to save the spreadsheet. If not, click “Save.”
11. Now we want to get this form on your BlackBerry PlayBook, iPad or other tablet device you will be using in the walk-throughs. You can also use the form with a Smartphone, although the size may be too small for you to use comfortably.
12. Open a new e-mail on your computer, paste the link from the bottom of the Google Docs form in the body, and address the e-mail to yourself. Send the e-mail.
13. Go to your PlayBook, iPad, or other tablet. Check your e-mail, looking for the one you sent to yourself.
14. Open the e-mail, and click the link. You should now be looking at your walk-through form.
15. Your tablet should offer you a way to save a URL as a “shortcut” on your home screen. For example, on the PlayBook, you will tap the hollow star and choose “Add to Home Screen.” You have now created an app for the walk-through form.

If you also wish to have the form on your Smartphone, you will repeat the process on that device. Check your e-mail on the Smartphone and open the one containing the link to the walk-through form. Click the link to display the form. Now turn that URL into a desktop shortcut. How this is done will vary from one Smartphone to the next. For example, on a BlackBerry running OS6, click the icon just to the right of the URL address bar. Choose “Add to Home Screen.” You have now just made the walk-through form into an app! You will find its icon on your home screen.

You are ready to start your walk-throughs! Each time you finish a form and touch “Submit,” the data instantly goes into the Google Docs spreadsheet. Each entry is date and time stamped for you!

No more filling out forms and then recopying that data somewhere else! Your data is neatly stored in rows and columns on your Google Docs spreadsheet. Less time spent on paperwork. More time spent on helping good teachers get even better. Life just got easier!

Again, thanks for participating in the webinar. If one of your New Year's resolutions was to "Get Organized!" I hope the hour we spent together will give you a great start.

Free Tech Tools for a More Productive New Year

Free Webinar 

January 10 4:30 EST/3:30 CST 

Click here to register 

iGoogle
Dropbox
Google Docs Forms
reQall

Every year, one of the most popular New Year's resolutions is to"Get Organized!" This free, hour-long webinar shows you how to make life easier with four game-changing technology tools.

This webinar shows you how to:

• Use iGoogle to organize all of your Internet resources. 
• Use Dropbox to instantly backup your documents and give you access to then from anywhere. 
• Use Google Docs to forever change the way you think about paper forms. 
• Use reQall to trap voice notes on the fly. Have them show up as text in your e-mail. 

Are any of these tools brand new to you? If so, this webinar will give you the background you need to get up and going the same day.

Already familiar with one or more? Gain some new ideas for how to use these great tools.

Space is limited, so sign up today!