View 2 docs or screens at once

Recently I was having to modify a Word document into a new format. This required me to switch between the old document and the new one which was a hassle. Fortunately I was able to set both docs up side by side so that I could work on them simultanesouly.  You can set up other screens to view side by side or one over the other very easily.

Word Documents: If you use MS Word and need to view two word docs at the same time:

1. Open both documents.
2. Click on “View”
3. Click on “View Side by Side”

To view any other combination of screens whether its a document and spreadsheet, or a document and website:

1. Open the document or application you need.
2. Highlight the two applications you want to view by holding down the CTRL button and clicking on the application tabs.
3. Right click your mouse button and select “Show windows side by side” in Vista or “Tile Horizontally” in XP. You can choose to “Show windows Stacked” or “Tile vertically” as well.

You can also select to have three or documents on the screen but if your computer screen is small, it may not be worth the effort as the screens will be narrow particularly if side-by-side.

Find A Job with MySkillsMyFuture.com

Struggling to find a job? MySkillsMyFuture.com offers help in finding jobs related to your skills and experience, and providing job listings in your area.

Simply visit MySkillsMyFuture.com and enter the job description of the type of work you’re most skilled at.

You’ll get a list of jobs that use the same types of skills and experience. Next enter your zip code and the distance you’re willing to travel to work and MySkillsMyFuture.com will provide a list of job announcements in your area.

What’s helpful with MySkillsMyFuture.com is that is provides a list of similar jobs giving you job ideas that you may not have considered. For example, my past work experience is in school and adoption social work, but MySkillsMyFuture.com provided social work job options in hospitals, senior facilities, probation, substance abuse programs and even law enforcement. The service also provides typical wage or salary amounts and needed education and training. If you find a job that sounds interesting, but you’re not qualified, the service will give you list of local training programs. At the top of each page are help resources and video tutorials to help you use the site.

MySkillsMyFuture.com is free to use and is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration. Visit MySkillsMyFuture.com to learn more.

Translate Website Content into a Different Language

The world wide web has made interacting with other cultures so much easier. Even so, many websites are in languages that I don’t speak. And I know that English isn’t the first language of many people who visit my sites. But there is help. Babel Fish from Yahoo can translate a bit of text or an entire web page for you.

If you’re on a website written in a language you don’t know, you can visit Babel Fish and type in the URL of the page you want to translate and the ‘from’ and ‘to’ language. Here is a screen shot of Better Living On the Web from English to French.

Better Living On the Web Translated into French

If you own a website and would like to make it easy for people to translate it into their native language, you can add the Babel Fish translation service to your site. You can test it using the one here at Better Living on the Web (scroll down the right side navigation to find it).

The translation may not be perfect, but hopefully it will be enough to get the meaning of the website.

Entrepreneur Assist Offers FREE Tools for Your Business

When I first started my business, I paid a fortune in tools and services to get it up and running. MS Office Suite cost hundreds of dollars. Then there were the planners, form templates and a host of other tools and services each with a fairly hefty fee.

Today the Internet offers many of these tools and services at an affordable price. Entrepreneur offers most of them for free. Entrepreneur Assist is a one-stop virtual officer where you can:

• Create text documents, spreadsheets and presentations.
• Customize and use business form templates.
• Hold live online meetings with customers and colleagues.
• Schedule events and reminders.
• Build your business plan.

You can even read and save articles from Entrepreneur.com as well as read free business related books.

The templates menu is vast including samples of accounting forms, starting a business checklists, sales receipts, business plans and more. The book selection is small but offers resources in retirement planning, project planning, marketing and more.

The appeal of Entrepreneur Assist is the ability to have a variety of office tools and service all in one spot. In a single sitting you can print out an invoice, write a letter, read and save an article, create your schedule and host an online meeting all from one site.

To learn more or sign up, visit Entrepreneur Assist.

Can’t Afford MS Office? Get OpenOffice for Free!

Microsoft Word and Excel are the most common document creation software used by home based workers. But at several hundred dollars a pop, it can price you right out of working at home. Not to worry. OpenOffice.org offers free wordprocessing and spreadsheet software. It doesn’t have all the features found in Word (has anyone used ALL the features in Word?), but it offers good document creation with the ability to be shared and modified by Word users as well. And did I mention its free?

Learn more and download OpenOffice.org here.