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This tip is part of an automation series I’m running to showcase 24 of my most useful computer automation tips.

In the first post of this series, I’ve talked about how you can find and access any file in a split second using Google Desktop. While Google Desktop can also be used as an application launcher, it doesn’t do a very good job at that.

If you’re unfamiliar with what an application launcher is, here is a short description:

Application Launcher is a fancy term for a simple tool - a piece of software that stays in the background and, when you type a given key combination, gets up and helps you find the right application, file or action you want to execute. Instead of moving your mouse around, aiming and clicking at things, you just type a shortcut (usually Ctrl+Space), start typing the name of the program you want to execute and hit Enter. Simple and fast, and takes a tenth of the time you’d have needed to search the shortcut with your mouse.

Now if you’re wondering whether the title of this post is somewhat exaggerated, then let me break it down for you:

I did my homework: I’ve surveyed most of the popular Windows application launchers, including my all-time favorite one, ENSO. It turns out that the application launcher I’m presenting today requires by the far the least amount of keystrokes to do the job. Why? Simply because it doesn’t require you to type any shortcut (like the Ctrl+Space mentioned above) before you start typing the name of the application you want to launch. So let’s see how that’s possible. Click here to continue reading →

This tip is part of an automation series I’m running to showcase 24 of my most useful computer automation tips.How long on average do you spend finding a particular file or a document? What if you don’t remember the location where you placed this file? How long will it take you then?

No one really measures these kinds of things, but you’d be surprised to learn that I’ve personally watched countless people (including my mom) navigate mazes of complex folder hierarchy to get to some file or a document they’ve been working on. Worst yet, some of my very own coworkers still manage to use this old-school way of accessing files. And for the record, I work in a software development house. Imagine my frustration when I ask someone I’m working with to find me a file or an e-mail in their archive and they spend the next 10 minutes or so going through their folder mess, most of the time giving up at the end and asking me: “do you really need it?”.

So I decided enough is enough. Hey everybody, there’s a much much … much faster way to find and access any kind of file in your entire hard drive in a split second, even if you don’t recall the name of the file! Stop for a second and take a wild guess what that is. (Hint: it’s not this stupid dog)

Click here to continue reading →