MakeUseOf Directory » office worker

LetsMeetAndWork: Find Places In London & New York Offering Great Working Environments

MOin — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 23:01:03 +0000

Fortunately for people who cannot work at home, numerous places such as libraries and coffee shops provide sound environments that let you work in peace. Londoners can search for such places using the web app called Lets Meet And Work.

Lets Meet And Work is a simple to use web app that lists numerous places around London that offer great working environments. These places are marked on a moveable map of London that you can zoom in and out of. You can click on a marker to view details of a place; these details have been added by other site visitors who have contributed this information.

These details usually include a description of the place followed by the official website of the place, if available. In case you know of a place offering a wonderful working environment you can recommend it to be added in the site’s directory. This directory of places on the site is carefully curated by the site’s staff.

Features:

User-friendly and simple interface.
Works with Google Maps.
One click recommend button.
Great tool for professionals working on the move.
Also read related articles:

Check out LetsMeetAndWork @ www.letsmeetandwork.com (via The Next Web) (by MOin from Urban Savior)

HardlyworkIn: Disguise Facebook As Excel Spreadsheet

MOin — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 17:01:20 +0000

Are you bored at work? Would you like to check your Facebook account without looking unprofessional? If yes, then a tool called HardlyworkIn will help you.

HardlyworkIn is a free to use web application that lets you check your Facebook account by masking it as a spreadsheet. All you have to do is visit the website and authorize it to access your Facebook account. After that, you can browse your Facebook account from a spreadsheet-like interface. For all posts you will see that the “from” and “to” are clearly labeled. For photos and videos place your mouse pointer over the post title and a preview will appear in the bottom right of the application.

If you feel like somebody suspects you are checking your Facebook account, just press the spacebar and everything will turn into a properly-looking spreadsheet.

Features:

A user friendly web service.
Lets you check your Facebook account from a spreadsheet-like interface.
Helps check Facebook account at work without attracting any attention.
Displays preview of images and videos.
Similar tool: MoDazzle.
Also read related article: How To Check If Someone Else Is Accessing Your Facebook Account.

Check out HardlyworkIn @ www.hardlywork.in (via BuzzFeed) (by MOin from Urban Savior)

TheLateJar: Make Coworkers & Friends Pay For Being Late

azim — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 01:01:40 +0000

Almost in any office there are people who come late to work. If you work in a big office or in a small group of several people, now there is a way make the employees more punctual thanks to The Late Jar. It is a web based app, which tracks times when employees come to work and punishes latecomers with late fees. Everyone is required to log in and check in to the service before a specified time. If a person checks in late, he will be asked to contribute an amount (set by account owner) to the jar.

To set is up for your office or group, sign up for an account (companyname.thelatejar.com), specify the amount late comers should contribute, the latest time they should show up at work, your working days (e.g.Mon-Fri) and start inviting employees by email.

When you show up early, you get to punch Rajiv, the guy who sits at the office desk. If you are late, though, Rajiv gets the last laugh and you are asked to pay.
Once your jar is full, you can empty it and buy everyone a pizza, throw a party on Friday night or distribute to the most punctual employees.

Features:

Make office workers or members of a group to contribute money every time they are late
Set up for any number of people
Specify contribution amount for being late
Specify days and latest time to check in for employees
Free, web based app

Check out The Late Jar @ www.thelatejar.com

Excellbook: Secretly Use Facebook At Work By Disguising It As A Spreadsheet

MOin — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 01:01:39 +0000

Nobody wants their boss catching them using Facebook at work but nevertheless, no Facebook addict wants to stop using Facebook. A solution is presented by an app called Excellbook – a desktop app that disguises Facebook as a spreadsheet.

Excellbook is an Adobe AIR-based desktop app that comes in different versions for Windows and Mac. After you download the setup archive and install the file it contains, you can open up the spreadsheet-like interface and use it to log into your Facebook account. On the first login you will need to provide the necessary permissions to Excellbook like you would for any other Facebook application.

With this step complete, your Facebook updates will be loaded up and displayed in a spreadsheet-like format. The interface might take a bit of getting used to but rest assured that everything is quite easy to use once you are familiarized with it. The app displays your newsfeed, wall, and lets you chat with Facebook friends.

Features:

A user-friendly desktop app.
Comes for Windows and Mac.
Disguises Facebook as a spreadsheet.
Displays your Newsfeed, Wall, and Chat.
Helps prevent getting caught using Facebook at work.
Similar tools: IdleKeyboard, TweetyMail, MailMyWeb and WebInMail.
Also see our related article “5 Cool Websites To Procrastinate At Work Like a PRO“.

Check out Excellbook @ www.bestupidatwork.com (via TheNextWeb) (by MOin from ThumbPress)

VendASnack: An Online Vending Machine To Order Your Favorite Snacks

azim — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 01:01:10 +0000

If you wish you had a vending machine in your apartment, now you can almost have it, with Vendasnack. It is a web-based virtual vending machine, which lets you buy different snacks online and get them delivered to your door with a single click. Simply go to their homepage and browse snacks sorted by categories (Chips and Crackers, Breakfast, Candy, Cookies, Nuts, etc). Unlike your traditional vending machine, VendASnack contains a much larger list of available snacks including familiar brands like Pringles, Rice Krispies, Twix, Twizzlers, as well as international snacks.

Snacks are shipped free of charge within the US, as long as you order 24 items for $24, with each item priced at $1. Simply choose a snack and click “Buy” to add it to your shopping cart. Once you reach 24 items, you can proceed to checkout and pay with your credit card or PayPal.

Features:

Online virtual vending machine – have snacks delivered to your doorstep.
Buy 24 snacks (at $1 for each snack) per order.
Free shipping for each snack order.
Snacks are shipped only within the US.
Update (add/remove) snacks in your shopping cart at any time.
No registration needed to shop for snacks. Use credit card or PayPal to complete the order.

Check out VendASnack @ www.vendasnack.com

LinkedLeaks: A Useful Tool To Find Out If You Are Being Appropriately Paid

MOin — Thu, 12 May 2011 03:01:38 +0000

Getting appropriately paid for your job is a major factor in job satisfaction. The best way to know if you are well paid is by comparing your salary with others in the same professional field. Here to help perform such a comparison is a tool called LinkedLeaks.

Linked Leaks is a free and simple to use web service. You can start using the website by linking your LinkedIn account with it. Next you can confidentially share salary information with your LinkedIn contacts by interacting with them via LinkedLeaks. Your exchanges are visible only to you and your counterpart. A salary comparison with somebody whose job is similar as yours will quickly determine whether you are underpaid or overpaid.

In cases when you feel your counterpart is lying about their salary, you can rate the exchange as “cheating”; others will be able to see this on your counterpart’s profiles.

Another helpful feature is “salary range”; it helps determine the range of salaries of your colleagues.

Features:

A user-friendly web service.
Lets you compare your salary with colleagues.
Works through LinkedIn.
Shares salaries confidentially.
You can mark an exchange as “cheating” if you feel your counterpart is lying about his salary.
Lets you learn the salary range of your colleagues.
A helpful to determine whether or not you are appropriately paid.

Check out LinkedLeaks @ www.linkedleaks.com (by MOin from ThumbPress)

SnackAndMunch: A Service That Ships Snack Packs At Your Home & Office

MOin — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 19:01:12 +0000

Many people cannot get a quick break from work to buy something to eat. Instead of going to the snacks, a new service called Snack & Munch helps bring the snacks to you.

Snack & Munch is a service that lets you create snack packs. These packs comprise of 24 snacks and cost a total of only $24. You can select snacks from the list available on the site. These snacks are sorted categorically: breakfast, candy, cookies, chips and crackers, gum and mints, nuts, and international.

You can add more than a single piece of each item; you can use any combination that brings up the total number of snacks to 24. You can save a dollar on your purchase by going for the service’s monthly option: have your selected snack pack delivered to you every month. Shipping for the snacks is free.

Features:

A user-friendly service.
Delivers snack packs at your home / office.
Snack packs cost $24 and comprise of 24 snacks.
You select from a wide range of snacks.
You can have the service deliver the snack pack to you monthly at a discounted price.
Shipping is free.

Check out Snack & Munch @ www.snackandmunch.com (by MOin from ThumbPress)

Excuse Generator: A site that offers handy excuses for all occasions

Umar — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 19:01:36 +0000

Gore Mountain is a premier family ski resort in upstate New York. To help people get away from the daily routine, the website of Gore Mountain offers various handy excuses through its page called Excuse Generator.

Excuse Generator is a simple website that lists a number of excuses that can be used to escape to Gore Mountain. The excuses are meant to be given to bosses, teachers, and spouses. Most of the excuses are funny and meant to provide only amusement. But there are also a good number of usable excuses that will prove to be very helpful.

You can submit to the website by submitting your own excuses.

Features:

Excuse generator app.
A user-friendly web service.
Provides a number of excuses.
Excuses meant to be given to teachers, bosses, and spouses.
Contains funny as well as usable excuses.
Lets you submit your own excuses.

Visit the Excuse Generator @ www.goremountain.com/excuses (By Umar from TechCityInc)

CubeDuel: See Who Your Co-Workers Prefer To Work With

MOin — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 01:01:59 +0000

Would you like to see whether your co-workers prefer to work with you or with somebody else? If yes, then a voting poll is the best option. This is precisely what Cube Duel offers.

Cube Duel is a free to use web service that compares you with your LinkedIn contacts. You start by connecting your LinkedIn account. You then rank your co-workers according to who you like working with the most. Your co-workers rank their co-workers as well. This way you vote and get voted too. With its simple service, Cube Duel lets you rank your co-workers and it lets you see your rank too.

The site also provides its visitors with a list of most popular companies, job titles, and geographic locations.

Features:

A user friendly web service.
Works with LinkedIn accounts.
Lets you rank your coworkers.
Lets you see your own rank.
Lets you compare yourself with other coworkers and see who people like working with more.

Check out CubeDuel @ www.cubeduel.com (by MOin from ThumbPress)

BusyLunches: Work Lunch Planning Made Easy

Israel Nicolas — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 19:01:38 +0000

If you are always busy and on the move, it gets difficult to organize meetups with your friends and colleagues. If you are the type who would like to have lunches but can’t seem to make it work, then you should check out BusyLunches. This lunch planning app lets you create lunch dates and invite friends so you’ll know the time, place, and who will be coming. The application supports Linkedin and lets you log in using your Linkedin credentials.

BusyLunches starts with you creating a lunch date. Fill in a descriptive name, then the date and time. Choose a common location where most of your friends are near . You can get restaurant suggestions from Foursquare based on the distance of the venue from your working place. Then select and invite guests to your lunch to notify them. Your friends will be able to set their status whether they are available or not for the proposed lunch date, so that you can adjust the lunch schedule easily to accommodate them.

BusyLunches is a nifty social tool for organizing events with friends and workmates, making sure that you have a quick invite and RVSP sent in seconds.

Features:

Free and easy to use.
Create quick working lunches dates.
Select the venue, date, and time.
Check status of friends to see who are attending.
Supports Linkedin.
Similar Tools: Lunchn, Lunchstr, and Lunchwalla.

Check out BusyLunches @ www.busylunches.com