Expens'd is a simple application to be sure, but when it comes to finances, especially the complicated expense process, simplicity is a good thing. Four tabs let you enter in your expenses, manage users, and generate simple reports for comparisons. Read More »
For businesses and individuals managing expenses is an important part of fiscal health - not only does it help manage the flow of money, but it can tell you what expenses you can expect in the future. To help with this there are a number of web 2.0 applications that are designed to help manage expenses by tracking costs and generating reports. Read More »
Whether you are a retailer with moderate volume, or just looking to sell a few items, there are applications in web 2.0 that make your life easier. We are talking about creating an online store, and doing so through one of the e-commerce applications that provide hosting for your store, including products, descriptions, and payment handling. This week we took a look at the e-commerce applications ShopIt, Shopify, Cartfly, and FlyingCart with the user in mind; what could the applications do, how they supported the selling process, and whether they had tools for promotion. Read More »
Selling services or products online has been made simple with Shopify, the e-commerce site with customization and selling options to appeal to any seller. The customization begins with the setup, which offers the chance to select a theme which can be edited later with a theme editor. Read More »
Users with the desire to sell products and services do not always want a simple e-commerce application - there are times when they want one with tools for promotion, something that FlyingCart does well. Read More »
There are times when the things we sell are not only products but personal items too, and for this there are applications such as Shopit. With Shopit users can capitalize on social networks and a user friendly directory to sell their wares. Read More »
At first glance Cartfly appears to be streamlined to oversimplicity; its administration is handled through the basic tabs of Products, Appearance, Payments, Sharing, and Orders, and no tab has more than a few options. Yet the basic e-commerce page that is created by Cartfly belies the real strength of the application - the embeddable Flash shopping widget. Read More »
Just as with any business, there are various levels of online commerce: low sales, moderate sales, and heavy sales. Low sellers - ones that have only an item or two to sell or with small quantities - may want to use one of the online locations like eBay, Etsy, or Craigslist, and heavy sellers need the infrastructure and control to build storefronts on their own websites, but what do sellers with moderate sales do? Read More »
When thinking of how you want to remember your trip or how you might want to discover new destinations, a map is what you'll most likely visualize, and it's a map you'll get with the travel journal Driftr. Designed with a simple to understand and visually pleasing interface, Driftr uses a large world map as one its navigational tools. The map is everywhere in Driftr, even on your page, where it will show all the places you've been and are going to. Read More »
Producers of videos and advertisers may have more in common than they might think - both want to distribute video content across the web, and both rely on services that distribute videos across multiple networks. At one time these services were expensive, used only by professionals or businesses to promote themselves, but as web 2.0 has developed, these services have become accessible for everyone. Read More »
TubeMogul begins with a simple upload process - either upload your video to TubeMogul or use their application to upload it for you to one of over twenty networks. Once that's done there are options to launch, promote, and track your video(s). Read More »
The navigation of Vidmetrix is simplified - so simplified that you may wonder where the rest of it went. But behind the tabs are menu options that expand as you input videos, and those options cover the basic needs with video distribution. Read More »
As promoters and advertisers look to upload their content onto the web, they may see a particular advantage to Veoh. Veoh is not only a way to distribute videos, it's a way to showcase them. In case you missed our earlier review of Veoh as a venue of TV, film, and video hosting, Veoh hosts user videos. Unlike YouTube (for the moment) and similar video hosting sites, Veoh has a worked in audience for video content, making distribution with Veoh an attractive option. Read More »
A partner program with Hey!Watch, a video conversion application, Hey!Spread is designed to distribute video content across 20 different networks. It does this through a four tab navigational bar with features common to video distribution applications, helping you simplify the process. Read More »
So here's the setup - you've got video that you would like to put online, but you don't want to just put into YouTube - you want it all over the web. Maybe you've created a promotional video or creative short film. Maybe you've found a producer you like and are looking to partner that content with advertising. However you reached this point, you need some help - some web 2.0 help - to promote and distribute video content. Read More »
As we looked at the event management applications this week we were impressed by how simple it was to create an event and manage it - each of the applications could do this - yet there were some that stood above the rest. Navigation-wise, all of the applications were easy to move around, but Eventbrite, with its straightforward graphics and spacing was the most appealing. Read More »
For event planners and businesses looking to host a large event, web 2.0 event managing applications handle what once it took teams of people to handle, giving the tools to manage contacts, information and promotion. Amiando is one such application, covering the needs of event planning while offering support for ticketing. Read More »
The first thing you notice about Eventbrite is how effective the layout is, drawing you straight to the information in a visually pleasing manner. The next thing you notice, as you create an event, is that Eventbrite puts everything you need to create the event on the same page, centralized to keep it simple. Read More »
As event managers and public relation managers attempt to get a handle on events, eventsbot can help them, providing attendee and ticket management with options.
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MadeIt offers much of what makes event planning important; a chance to customize a webpage dedicated to your event, add maps, times, set currency, and manage tickets. MadeIt does this through simple tab navigation, breaking the event into two tabs which each have options on a sidebar. The product of this is a streamlined navigation that speeds the setup process. Just fill in the forms on the two tabs and your event is ready to go. Read More »
It's one thing to organize a party - something that most people will confess some frustration with - but to organize an event, a full sized affair with all the invites and lists, that's a special skill. To help with that task are Event Management applications, web 2.0 with the organizational tools to keep even the most complicated of events on track. Read More »
In a business climate where costs are rising and there is an increasing reliance on the web it is not surprising that companies are finding that web 2.0 applications such as help desks are a cost efficient way to keep satisfaction high and alert them to potential product flaws. This week we took a look at some of the help desk applications on the web. Each offered customers the opportunity to submit help tickets and businesses the chance to manage them. Email was the primary method for this interaction, though each of the applications allowed agents handling the tickets to enter in tickets manually. We evaluated the applications on the ease of use, the options available, and whether the applications were suited to heavy or light users. Read More »
Businesses looking for a way to handle customer service and bug reporting may seek applications that offer flexibility inside and outside the company. One such application is Ticketish, the help desk and ticket handler that keeps ticket handling simple and on the web. Read More »
Just as there are all types of businesses, not all help desks are designed for everyone. Helperoo, the low cost help desk, is designed for smaller companies with basic requirements. Read More »
To keep customers coming back, and to improve products and services, businesses need to communicate with customers and other businesses. In the past there were call centers and direct lines, but as many businesses have discovered, web applications can make managing a help desk easier than ever. HelpDeskPilot is one of those applications, a web based platform that lets customers reach you, and you manage your load of incoming tickets. Read More »
No matter what side you sit on it, dealing with a support desk can be a frustrating process - hard for the company, hard for the customer. Making the process a little less painful is ZenDesk, the web 2.0 application for help desks and customer support. Simplified, easy to intuit forms make the ZenDesk a timesaving platform for enterprise, and the customer. Read More »
With hundreds newspapers, magazines, blogs, and sites it has become even more difficult to keep up with the latest stories. So what's the best way to handle the information overload? Web 2.0 has a tool for the job, letting users compile feeds from their favorite sites and sources into one easy to handle application. We are, of course, talking about RSS feed readers, which can be used to not only keep up with the news, but in some cases organize and archive them as well. Read More »
Catching up on your blogs, news, and sites is no simple matter - unless you have a RSS reader, that is. RSS feed readers combine all the stories you care about into one place and some, like Bloglines, help you find new feeds as well. Read More »
Let's face it, whether you're flipping through papers, running through the channels, or even scrolling through a basic RSS feeder to get your news, it's not much fun. Voyage, the RSS feed reader that puts feeds into a three dimensional grid may just change the way you feel about your news reading. Read More »
With so much news and information out there, we all could use a little help to make it more accessible, but what if we want to share what we find? FeedEachOther is an application with this in mind; get the news you care about and provide a way to share information without pestering your friends with emails. Read More »
Anyone that has tried to keep up with the news knows that it's no simple matter. TV, radio, tens of newspapers, and hundreds of places on the internet to keep up with make just staying up on the latest events a full time job, but web 2.0 has a solution to this problem. This is where NewsGator comes in. RSS feeds are links to the source - references if you will, so to get the benefits and interaction out of them you need a reader that can combine them. NewsGator not only combines your feeds into an easily readable page, but it lets you sort and organize them as you wish. Read More »
As software costs rise and companies need more mobile solutions for productivity tools businesses look increasingly to web 2.0, where a new generation of tools allow companies to conduct their business anywhere, at low cost. This is true of all aspects of productivity, including time management. Businesses know that keeping a handle on time is one of the great challenges, and that companies who can rein it in are able to get more out of every project. This week we covered several of time management tools, judging them on their ability to track time, how easy they were to use, and which features they offered. Read More »
Managing time and tracking billable hours is an important task, but the way that FreshBooks sees it there are fine lines between tracking billable hours and invoicing, and project management. That's why FreshBooks is more than a time management tool, it's a project management, invoicing, and time management application with enough tools to make everyone happy. Read More »
Time management doesn't have to hard. Enter the time, track it, and apply it to a project. Time management application Tick does just that, offering an easy to use online interface to manage time around a project. One of the first things you notice about Tick is how streamlined it is; there are only three tabs (Timecard, Projects, Reporting), and how the page is laid out with plenty of space around items. Not sparse, but easy to read. Read More »
With time running away as easily as it does, having a time management tool is a boon to everyone, and with Cashboard, time is managed with billing in mind. Easily integrated with Basecamp, and with a number of invoicing tools, Cardboard can keep your receivables and timesheets organized. Read More »
An integral part of project management and business, time management can keep projects and people on the move, ensuring success. Fortunately for businesses of all sizes, complicated software that goes out of date is a thing of the past, and is being replaced by web 2.0 time management applications.
Online and updated by the developer at no cost to you, Intervals is one of these applications. Designed to track time, Intervals also provides a platform for invoicing, reports, and document storage. To get to know the application and its capabilities, let's take a closer look.
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Organizing events, either social or professional, can be complicated, but here to help you manage the guest lists and the information flow are a few invite and RSVP applications. Designed to create invites and keep a tab on who's coming, these applications offer services to help you keep it under control. All of the applications we reviewed for this comparison had the basics to manage guest lists: you could craft an invite, email it, and see who responded. Where they differed and where we judged these applications were on the how they let us do these things, and how what kind of features they added. Read More »
Pingg is an invite and event tool that has both flexibility and design sense. With a visually appealing interface, neither cluttered nor jarring, Pingg offers a web space to invite and mange your events. Read More »
Socializr knows one thing for sure. All events are social. That's why the invite and event tool has made itself more accessible to social networks, and has taken the invite to a new place. Designed to help users manage guest lists and rsvps, Socializr takes the simple event manager and builds on it with a variety of social tools. Read More »
Planning events can be difficult. You have to figure out who's coming, when to meet, and if there are things to bring. Thanks to MyPunchbowl, all these things are as easy as following a list. Read More »
There is always a lot that goes into an event or a party, from cups to name cards, so why make managing your RSVP list more challenging than it needs to be? That's the thought behind Meet With Approval, the invite and rsvp application that keeps it all to one page. Read More »
Whether you are managing a personal or business project, the need for organization is ever-present. Fortunately there are a number of web 2.0 applications that can help with organizing and tracking your projects. Called project management applications, these online organizers come in a variety of complexities and styles. Over the week we've talked about some of these project management tools and judged them on their interface, what features they offered, and how effective they were. Read More »
Project management applications all attempt to do the same thing, but as you might expect, some management applications are geared for enterprise users. Central Desktop is one of those, a robust application for project management with an impressive set of functions. Read More »
If there was one word to describe the project manager application 5pm, it would be simplicity, and that's a good thing. Projects have a way of running over budget or out of time, becoming disorganized, or just plain getting out of control, so when a clever bit of web 2.0 can bring simplicity to the process, we feel we should talk about it a bit.
A project management tool with a user-friendly interface, 5pm is a tool to help you with organization, project tracking, information flow, and project management. To see how 5pm... Read More »
Some people regard Basecamp as the original web-based project manager, since it has inspired so many similar products, and has helped launch a thousand interface look-alikes. Basecamp continues to have a loyal following, offering basic project management as part of the 37 Signals productivity suite. Its "web 2.0" methodologies allow everyone working on a project, not just a project manager, to contribute notes and files to a central location, and to collaborate on project deliverables and due dates.
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GoPlan is project management application that uses the simplicity of blog-style posting as an interface to manage projects, to do lists, and notes. It has a simple, straightforward functionality that gets to the essentials of project planning. As project managers go, GoPlan has all the elements you would want and a few more: tools for organizing, tracking, and communicating. Read More »
For artists, designers, and web professionals showcasing your work has become easier than ever, thanks to a number of tools available in web 2.0. As we went over some of these new tools one thing became immediately obvious. Not all online portfolio managers are designed for the same reason. As we put the portfolio managers through their paces we kept a number of things in mind; how customizable they were, what tools they offered, and how easy it was for the portfolio to be found. Read More »
Artists and photographers have been using online portfolio managers for some time now, but for the webmaster or designer whose projects and skills are too complicated to show in a gallery view, there are few webservices available. This is where Professional on the Web, a directory and resource for freelancers and web agencies comes in.
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As one might gather from his first visit to Carbonmade's colorful site, Carbonmade has been designed with ease and simplicity in mind. For the user that wants to manage their portfolio this translates to a quick, no frills setup. Read More »
Designed for presentations, Viewbook is a portfolio manager with tools to customize the look of your graphic portfolios. With streamlined features, a unique url, and embeddable Flash, Viewbook is a professional alternative to more community-based portfolio managers. It begins with signing into Viewbook, then an upload - a batch upload if you like - of the files you would like to show. Viewbook's simple interface lets you create the presentation as you like with simple editing and descriptors. Read More »
As the web has developed, so have some of the functions that initially drew us into the virtual community. Case in point is portfolio management, which has made the transition from a simple "hey, look at this," to source of information to be enjoyed, managed, and processed. Take, for example, the photo gallery Flickr. Once just a posting site for photos, Flickr has developed with web 2.0, becoming much more. Now it offers portfolio management tools, tagging, and new ways of exploring. Read More »
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