Productivity Archives - Make Tech Easier

What Is Microsoft Lists and How to Get Started with It?

Ojash Yadav — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 15:25:33 +0000

Managing any team can be a challenging task, especially if you’re working remotely. The last thing you’d want is your employees not knowing what tasks has been assigned to them, when they are due, etc.

Microsoft Lists is a platform built to help you become a better team leader. It offers an intuitive environment for managing resources, people, or data and comes with a long list of features that let you customize it according to your unique needs. In this article, we will take a look at some of Microsoft Lists’ essential features and use cases and demonstrate how you can get started with it.

5 Focus Assist Companion Apps

Amy Yoder — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 00:25:00 +0000

No matter which industry you work in, whether it’s in an office or at home, or what your job title is, you can benefit from spending more time in a state of concentration instead of constant distraction. Let’s face it: our computers are powerful tools that allow us to do incredible things, but they can also hijack our attention and prevent us from getting work done. Focus Assist is an integrated Windows option that can help, but there are plenty of other apps that work with the native app to ensure that you’re not distracted by third-party apps or the Internet.

Content

What Is Focus Assist?
Robust Focus Assist Companion Apps
Simplistic Focus Assist Companion Apps
Frequently Asked Questions

What Is Focus Assist?

In short,... Read more

10 Free Microsoft SharePoint Alternatives

Crystal Crowder — Sat, 02 Jul 2022 00:25:00 +0000

Microsoft SharePoint may be a powerhouse when it comes to project management and collaboration, but the best SharePoint alternatives prove Microsoft is far from the only option. From individuals to large businesses, productivity, collaboration, and project management apps are a must. SharePoint gives you all of this in one convenient platform, but it gets expensive quickly. Free SharePoint alternatives are ideal for saving money without sacrificing features.

Content

1. ClickUp
2. Atlassian Confluence
3. Bitrix24
4. Slack
5. Process Street
6. ONLYOFFICE Workspace
7. Jostle
8. Monday
9. Google
10. WordPress
Frequently Asked Questions

1. ClickUp

ClickUp seeks to be a one-app solution to all of your collaborative needs and works well as a free SharePoint alternative. It’s designed to handle everything from project management to team meetings all in... Read more

How to Remove Unwanted Objects From Photos

Mehvish Mushtaq — Thu, 30 Jun 2022 21:25:00 +0000

A good photo is often ruined by an unwanted object or person in it. Fortunately, you don’t need to discard the entire photo as you can easily remove objects or people from it on both mobile and PC. You can use native tools (if available), third-party apps, and web-based tools to remove extra objects, defects, text, and stickers from images. Let’s see how to do that on various platforms.

Content

How to Remove Unwanted Objects From Photos on Android
How to Remove Unwanted Objects From Photos on iOS
How to Remove Unwanted Objects From Photos Using Online Tools
How to Remove Unwanted Objects From Photos Using GIMP on a Computer

How to Remove Unwanted Objects From Photos on Android

On Android, you... Read more

AirDroid Cast Review: Screen Mirroring Made Easy

Crystal Crowder — Thu, 23 Jun 2022 17:25:00 +0000

Being able to share your screen with others shouldn’t be complicated or require special hardware. With AirDroid Cast, it’s as easy as installing the software and entering a code. It’s designed to simplify screen casting and mirroring so that you can focus on sharing what’s on your phone or computer screen with others. I recently had the pleasure of seeing how well AirDroid worked in action.

This is a sponsored article and was made possible by AirDroid. The actual contents and opinions are the sole views of the author who maintains editorial independence even when a post is sponsored.

Content

Overview of Features
Common Use Cases
Getting Started
Exploring the AirDroid Cast Interface
AirDroid Cast in Action
Pricing
Final Thoughts

Overview of Features

One standout feature of AirDroid Cast is cross-platform compatibility. It works with Android, iOS, Windows, and macOS. Easily cast your phone’s screen to your computer or share your computer screen to a larger computer screen. The software even supports sharing up to five device screens at one time.... Read more

How to Make Mouse Clicks Effortless With an Auto Clicker

Ojash Yadav — Sat, 18 Jun 2022 00:25:00 +0000

Sometimes, even a task as simple as clicking can become monotonous. Luckily, you can use software known as auto clickers to automate the clicking process and achieve the same results with minimal error in a very short time. Let’s go over a few auto-clicking programs that can help you in your day-to-day tasks and see how to set them up.

Content

What Is an Auto Clicker?
Best Auto Clicker Apps
How to Set Up an Auto Clicker
On Windows
On macOS
On Android
Frequently Asked Questions

What Is an Auto Clicker?

An auto clicker is a program that allows you to configure and automate the click of a mouse on your computer screen. An auto clicker not only follows your cursor, but often has support for double and triple-clicking, hotkeys... Read more

14 Useful PowerPoint Templates to Set Up a Digital Planner

Crystal Crowder — Wed, 15 Jun 2022 21:25:00 +0000

Paper planners are difficult to always keep with you. Plus, once you use them, you have to throw them away. Instead, organize your life, keep track of goals, and plan your business’s growth with a PowerPoint-based digital planner. Start off with PowerPoint templates and customize them for any purpose. You’ll find templates for everything from a basic daily planner to a detailed project planner with timelines. Once you’re finished with a time period or project, load the template and create a new custom planner.

While these are all free digital planner templates, they’re only for personal use. You can’t sell them. If using them for public presentations, you may need to credit the creator, which will be detailed in the template or on template’s download page.

Content

1. Daily Planner
2. Weekly Planner
3. Monthly Planner
4. Yearly Planner
5. Bullet Journal
6. Wedding Planner
7. Lesson Planner
8. Event Planner
9. Timeline Planner
10. Student Planner
11. Meal Planner
12. Social Media Planner
13. Marketing Planner
14. Business Planner
Frequently Asked Questions

How to Password Protect Your Excel Workbook or File

Mike Tee — Sat, 11 Jun 2022 15:25:00 +0000

Although cloud-based solutions and budget apps are trying to steal Excel’s thunder, it still remains the king of accounting, charting and data organization. With millions of people worldwide using MS Excel, many forget to utilize its formidable security feature: adding passwords and making it read-only.

This will ensure that the only people who can tamper with your spreadsheet are those you give express permission to do so, locking customization of your sheet behind a secure encrypted password. Here’s how to do it.

Content
Why Lock an Excel Workbook
How to Save an Excel Workbook as Read Only
How to Unprotect an Excel Workbook
Frequently Asked Questions

Also read:How to Find and Remove Duplicates in Excel

Why Lock an Excel Workbook

Protecting an Excel workbook with a password can work in two ways:

Prevent unauthorized... Read more

DocHipo Review: Create Beautiful Documents

Laura Tucker — Mon, 06 Jun 2022 17:25:00 +0000

While there are many design apps for every operating system, DocHipo is a web app that specializes in designing documents to showcase your business or events in your personal life. This review takes a look at DocHipo to see if it will be suitable for your design needs.

This is a sponsored article and was made possible by DocHipo. The actual contents and opinions are the sole views of the author who maintains editorial independence, even when a post is sponsored.

Starting with DocHipo

I’ll preface this review by stating that I spent 20 years as a graphic designer, so I can be a little picky. Because DocHipo allows for collaboration, I asked Phil South to collaborate with me, as he, too, spent some of his career in graphic design.

To get started, you only need to visit the DocHipo website and sign up for an account.

You can add your company and multiple users. You can also add multiple companies. I create graphics... Read more

8 Tools for Designing Amazing Social Media Graphics

Megan Glosson — Sat, 28 May 2022 21:25:00 +0000

Social media has become a key part of the marketing strategy for most companies and influencers. However, not everyone has the graphic design chops to make amazing social media graphics on their own. Luckily, there are several great online tools that can help you design graphics for your social media accounts, and many of these tools offer free versions.

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1. Desygner
2. Canva
3. Piktochart
4. PicMonkey
5. Snappa
6. QuotesCover
7. Adobe Creative Cloud Express
8. Pablo
Frequently Asked Questions

Also read:6 of the Best Photo-Editing Apps for iOS

1. Desygner

Price: Free, subscription starts at $9.95

Desygner (Web | Android | iOS) is one of the more elegant tools for creating eye-catching social media images with relatively little effort (though if you want to dive into more detail and spend... Read more

How to Move a Column in Microsoft Excel

Ojash Yadav — Thu, 26 May 2022 00:25:00 +0000

Microsoft Excel comes with a long list of shortcuts and formulas that help you execute a wide range of operations. Naturally, one might need help from external sources to discover all the tips and tricks that can be applied within the application.

In this article, we will look at three different ways to move a column in a Microsoft Excel worksheet. The following methods apply to Microsoft Excel 2019 and newer versions.

Content
1. Use Drag and Drop to Move a Column in Excel
2. Use Cut and Paste to Move Excel Columns
3. Use Sort to Switch Columns in Excel
How to Move a Table Column in Excel
Use Macros

Also read:The Essential VLOOKUP Guide for Excel and Google Sheets

1. Use Drag and Drop to Move a Column in Excel

The “drag... Read more

The Best Websites to Find Images with a Transparent Background

Ryan Lynch — Tue, 17 May 2022 21:25:00 +0000

If you spend a lot of time in Photoshop, you probably often have the need for images with a transparent background. Unfortunately, tracking them down can be frustrating. One would think that using Google Image Search to find images with a transparent background would be easy. Unfortunately, this is far from the truth. Thankfully, there are a number of websites that host images with a transparent background, making sourcing images for your next project a breeze.

Content
What is a transparent image and why would I want one?
1. IMGBIN
2. CleanPNG
3. StickPNG
4. PNGTree
5. FavPNG
6. FreePNGs
7. removebg
Frequently Asked Questions

Also read:How to Make an Image Transparent without Photoshop

What is a transparent image and why would I want one?

Transparent images are pictures that are partially transparent or see-through. Most often, transparent images refer... Read more

How to Add a Written Signature to Google Docs

Mehvish Mushtaq — Wed, 11 May 2022 00:25:00 +0000

Have you found yourself in a position where you needed to add a signature to a digital document? Perhaps you’re signing a contract or adding a professional flair to a letter. If you’re printing the document, it’s a simple case of signing after it’s printed. Of course, things are a little trickier if you want to email the document or print lots of copies of the same document.

Fortunately, if you do find yourself in a position where you need a signature on a Google Doc and want something a little more professional than just typing your name, there are a few ways you can add one.

Content
Using the Built-in Drawing Tools
Using an Add-on
Inserting an Image
Using a Cursive Font
Frequently Asked Questions

Also read:How to Embed a Google Form Poll Into an Email
... Read more

15 Great AutoHotkey Scripts You Have to Try

Robert Zak — Sun, 01 May 2022 00:25:00 +0000

AutoHotkey is one of the best Windows automation programs that can perform the simplest of actions to the hardest of tasks. AutoHotkey is a free and open-source program which uses its own scripting language to automate any of your daily Windows tasks. Even though the “scripting language” sounds intimidating, it is very easy to use, and you can do all sorts of cool things.

Let me share my favorite and most-used AutoHotkey scripts, which make daily tasks a little bit easier, and that may help you too.

Before starting, it’s assumed you already know how to install and configure AutoHotkey. Moreover, please note that the lines starting with ; are comments.

Content
1. Adjusting Volume
2. Get Mouse Coordinates
3. Show and Hide Hidden Files
4. Change Keyboard Shortcuts
5. Google Search Shortcut
6. AutoCorrect
7. Repurpose those Function Keys
8. Open Webpages Quickly
9. Open Favorite Folders
10. Move Up a Folder in File Explorer
11. Set Default State of Lock Keys
12. Reconfigure Caps Lock
13. Empty Recycle... Read more

The Best Cross-Platform LaTeX Editors

Ramces Red — Fri, 29 Apr 2022 15:25:00 +0000

LaTeX is one of the most popular markup languages for academic and professional use. Chances are, you are reading a LaTeX document whenever you come across either a textbook or a journal article. This is because LaTeX is a highly flexible language that can easily adapt to any situation — the logic that your document is based on stays the same across formats.

If you want to take advantage of these features of LaTeX to create documents yourself, take a look at some of the best cross-platform LaTex editors below.

Content
Why Use a LaTeX Editor?
1. Texmaker
2. TeXstudio
3. LyX
4. Kile
5. Overleaf
Frequently Asked Questions

Also read:7 of the Best LaTeX Editors for Linux

Why Use a LaTeX Editor?

You can easily create a LaTeX document with nothing but a text editor and... Read more

EaseUS Video Downloader Review

Phil South — Thu, 28 Apr 2022 17:25:00 +0000

There are many reasons you might want to secure an online video and have it offline for later use. Perhaps you are doing some research and you don’t want to risk the videos you are using as reference becoming unavailable. Maybe you want to keep all the videos in one place so that you can go through them all without searching or waiting.

In another scenario, for example, you uploaded a video to a streaming site and no longer have the original but would like to recover it. If you have it saved offline, at least you can have a backup of it. Perhaps you are going away somewhere remote with no Wi-Fi for a month. You can line up a bunch of videos to keep you entertained. This review takes a look at EaseUS Video Downloader to see how it could help you out in these scenarios.

This is a sponsored article and was made possible by EaseUS. The actual contents and opinions are the sole views of the author who maintains editorial independence even when a post is sponsored.

Going Offline

Read more

10 of the Best Photo-Editing Apps You Can Get for Free

Megan Glosson — Thu, 28 Apr 2022 15:25:19 +0000

Thanks to smartphones, most of us now carry high-quality cameras around in our pockets. But what happens when the pictures you take are less than ideal and need edits or color adjustments? Well, that’s where photo-editing apps come in — they let you turn decent photos into digital masterpieces you can share across social media. However, you don’t have to shell out big bucks for programs like Adobe Photoshop to edit your favorite photos. Instead, use any of the amazing free photo-editing apps we’ve rounded up below.

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1. GIMP
2. Canva
3. Fotor
4. Adobe Photoshop Express
5. Darktable
6. Pixlr X
7. RawTherapee
8. PhotoDirector
9. Fotoxx
10. PhotoScape X
Frequently Asked Questions

Also read:How to Use Lightroom Presets to Edit Photos Faster

1. GIMP

GIMP is one of the most widely used open-source... Read more

5 Online Diff Checker Tools to Compare Text in Two or More Files

Princess Angolluan — Wed, 06 Apr 2022 00:25:00 +0000

Looking for an easy way to figure out the differences and similarities between two text documents? We recommend using a diff checker. It’s a nifty tool that will do all the tedious work for you in a matter of seconds.

While there are plenty of desktop applications for various operating systems, you can try any of the top online diff checker tools below, as they are web-based and can be accessed from any platform.

Content
1. Diffchecker
2. Text Compare
3. Editpad
4. W3Docs
5. AppDevTools

Also read:5 Useful Emacs Packages for Better Productivity

1. Diffchecker

Diffchecker is hailed as the best tool of its kind. It’s capable of comparing text files, images, PDFs, Excel sheets, and entire folders. While it’s fully functional in its online state, you can download a desktop version for your Mac, Windows, or... Read more

How to Create a Logo Using Google Drawings

Ojash Yadav — Tue, 05 Apr 2022 15:25:00 +0000

As if starting your own small business is not challenging and expensive enough already, online logo-making services charge anywhere between $10 and $100 for a basic logo design. But do you really need to use these paid services when you’re just starting out? We recommend investing in a professionally-created logo after you have landed a few clients.

For now, instead of paying for a logo, you can design a simple logo yourself for free using Google Drawings. We show you how to do that and the prep work you need to do.

Content
Where to Begin
How to Create a Logo in Google Drawings
Frequently Asked Questions

Also read:8 Tools for Designing Amazing Social Media Graphics

Where to Begin

Before you set off on your logo design venture and fire up Google Drawings, you need a bit... Read more

How to Import and Export OVA Files in VirtualBox

Ojash Yadav — Sat, 02 Apr 2022 19:25:00 +0000

One of the biggest strengths in working with virtual machines is their portability. It’s great to be able to create VMs on one machine and move them to another or create and clone an entire deployment of VMs.

At the same time, you can find pre-configured virtual machines online that you can import in a snap and get working right away. Here we show you how to import and export OVA files in VirtualBox.

Content
What Is an OVA File
Importing an OVA
Exporting an OVA
Frequently Asked Questions

Also read:How to Test Various Linux Distros Online

What Is an OVA File

An OVA file (Open Virtual Appliances) is a package that contains files used to describe a virtual machine. It includes a descriptor file (.OVF), optional manifest (.MF), certificate files, and other related files. All this data is... Read more