50 ways to an easier life with Windows Vista - stay organised

Staying organised should be at the heart of every PC experience, but more often than not they seem to complicate our lives. We've even got to the stage where if you're not flashed by a pop-up or a notification within a minute of logging on, you're considered lucky.

To help counteract this, here's some ways to take back the power of the PC and make it work for you.

22. Work anywhere

Why be tied to desktop applications when you have online access? ThinkFree Office and Zoho offer full office suites that run online, with free storage for documents, too. They’re quite different, though. ThinkFree looks and acts like a desktop app running in your browser. Zoho is less fully featured but is fast and lightweight.

23. Take note

Windows Vista has note-taking capabilities with Sticky Notes and the Snipping tool. Type the first letters of their names into the Start menu’s search box to find them.

24. Manage staff online

Project, expenses and staff management tool TOMMIE gives you the ability to access the schedules of all staff in an organisation, from any internet-connected computer. Sign up from 10p per user, per day.

25. Save energy

Windows Vista includes new and extensive conservation features. To see them go to Control Panel > System and Maintenance > Power Options. Select Power Saver to choose a plan that conserves energy more efficiently. Click Change Plan Settings then Change advanced power settings to access individual options for drives, displays, wireless performance and USB ports.

26. Wi-Fi Hotspots

When you’re on the road it’s not always convenient to whip out your laptop, boot into Windows Vista and scan for networks. We’ve picked two gadgets to fix that problem. The first up is the Digital Wi-Fi Detector. At £59.95 it’s a bit pricey, but for that it locates Wi-Fi hotspots, tells you whether they’re open or secure and what channel to select. A less expensive option is the Kensington Wi-Fi Finder Plus – £16.47.

27. Team worker

Shared resources enable you to collaborate with team members more effectively. Consider setting up a free message board that the company can use to exchange and troubleshoot ideas. Hostedboard enables you to set up your own bulletin board for work or play, without the hassle of hosting it yourself. You can create your own ad-supported forum with as many categories as you like.

28. Meet up

Collaborate with co-workers wherever you are with Windows Meeting Space. Built into Windows Vista, it gives you shared access to applications on the host PC.

29. Clean up

Scheduling - Delving into Task Scheduler reveals a host of tasks that your machine quietly launches in the background by default

Use Task Scheduler to remind you and trigger Disk Clean Up when you switch on your machine. Go to All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Task Scheduler. You can see a list of scheduled tasks in the Task Scheduler Library on the left. Select Create Basic Task on the right to add a new item – name it ‘Clean Up’ when prompted. In the next screen pick Start a Program, browsing for cleanmgr.exe.

30. Public calendar

Windows Calendar enables you to create schedules and task lists, then publish them online to share. Published calendars are automatically updated when edited.

31. Back-up to flash

Buy yourself a USB flash drive, such as the 2GB SanDisk Cruzer Titanium for £14.99, and use it to back up important documents throughout the day. Handy when your network goes down and you still have to deliver that report by lunchtime.

Get fitter tomorrow with our continuing guide on acheiving an easier life!

Nick Clayton contributes to Windows Vista: The Official Magazine and is a freelance journalist.