Childrens Ministry Online

App of the week: Chrome Browser

Posted on 14. Feb, 2010 by Kenny.

This week’s featured app is Chrome. I know. You’re probably thinking, “Chrome isn’t anything new.” Or maybe you’re thinking, “I’m totally happy with the browser I’m using.” Well, at least hear me out. I have no vested interest to get you to switch. I really don’t care. However, this blog is dedicated to helping people. I just feel that I’m not being a very good friend to you if I don’t share what I know. So here it is.

Chrome is fast. Really fast. Just install it and try it. Open the browser you normally use and see how long it takes to open. Now try Chrome. Faster, huh? It’s faster at browsing the web too. Just give it a try.

However, here’s the really big thing. Chrome recently added extensions to it’s stable release. I’m not sure about exact times, but I’m pretty sure that both Mac and Windows users can use extensions… and they are AWESOME! It changes your whole browsing experience.

When viewing the most popular extensions, I’ve found many of the plugins I use on Firefox. Up until this point, plugins has been the only thing keeping me on Firefox as my primary browser. I’ve had a few Chrome bugs crash my tab when editing wordpress from time to time, but once that gets sorted out, I’ll probably make Chrome my primary browser and Firefox secondary.

When you install extensions on Chrome, it adds little buttons on your browser toolbar. I like the way it looks and it gives me immediate access to all my tools. Sometimes Firefox required me to go into the menu to access the plugins, so I like having the exposure that Chrome gives me. However, I wonder what happens if I go extension crazy. It looks like I might run out of room. Overall though, I love it.

So here’s a listing of the extensions I’m using:

Google Page Rank: Tells me what rank Google gives the page I’m viewing. I used to have access to this little tool when I had the Google toolbar on IE years ago.

GMail: Tells me how many unread messages I have and serves as a quick link to my gmail.

SEO: Tells me all kids of Search Engine Optimization details about the page I am on. Useful tool for SEO work.

Facebook: Seriously, this little extension may significantly keep me out of Facebook. It allows me to view my feed, friend’s feeds and notifications all from a little drop down box.

Wave: Tells me how many unread Google Waves I have.

Chromed Bird: Keeps track of tweets. From it I can view tweets, mentions and direct messages. I can also tweet right from it.

Google Reader: I can link directly to unread feeds  from the drop down box or access my Google Reader account from the button.

Google Tasks: I can access the tasks in my Google Task list right from the drop down box.

Eye Dropper: I use photoshop daily. Sometimes there is a color on a picture on a webpage that I want to use for a graphic I’m putting together. Usually that would mean taking a screen shot of that picture, importing into photoshop and then using the eye dropper tool in photoshop to get the color details. With this extension, I can get the color information right from the web page.

Google Talk: I can chat right from the tool bar. No longer do I have to have Gmail open.

Shorter URLs: It’s an URL shortener. Simple.

Picasa Web Albums: It’s designed to let me see comments left on my web albums, but I have it her to give me quick access to my albums.

Tab Saver: I can save all my open tabs at any time. If my browser gets shut down on accident, I can restore the saved tabs.

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Try anything once, do the things you love as often as you can

Posted on 08. Feb, 2010 by Kenny.

Today’s my birthday, so I took the day off. My wife made plans to take me to do something on Friday, so I had the day to do whatever I wanted. I chose to do something I don’t really get to do nearly as often as I like. I went to see a movie. A month ago I saw Avatar in IMAX 3D and fell in love with the world and experience created by James Cameron. I figured that watching this on my TV on DVD can’t compare at all to the big screen experience, so I figured I’d see it one more time. Rarely do I see a movie twice in the theater. I saw all the Lord of the Rings movies more than once (that’s a no brainer) as well as the new Batman movies. It’s got to be a special.

I’m the same way with my books. I love books. I also have a lot of books. People often come into my office for the first time and say, “Wow, you’ve got a lot of books. Have you read them all?” “Most of them,” I usually reply. But what I don’t tell them is “you see that shelf, I’ve read those 2 or 3 or 4 times.”Every year I add 20-40 new books to my collection which causes a bit of a dilemma.

1. Between my bookshelves at work and my bookshelves at home, my space is limited. Although the rule hasn’t been clearly defined, I know that there is a limit of how many books I’m allowed to own. So, when I put new books on my bookshelves, I’ve got to take some off as well.
2. With all the new books to read, how do I make time to repeat my favorites?

It’s an interesting balance. I love new adventures! I’ll try just about anything once. If I’m sitting in a restaurant and they’ve got something like crickets on the menu, I’m getting the crickets (actually I won’t, because I got those last summer and they weren’t that good). My wife an I are always looking forward to visiting new parks, new restaurants and new places to experience (why we’re currently trying to knock off our list of best BBQ in TX and best swimming holes in TX). When it comes to books and movies, it’s the same. It seems like there’s an endless flow of “new” to try. But how do you balance new adventures with the comfort of old favorites?

When it comes to books, what are your favorites that you come back to time and time again? What about movies? Places or experiences? Here are mine:

Books: I read my Bible through yearly (right now). I’ve got a short list of leadership books that I’ll pick one each year and read it again. Two books I’ve read 4 or more times are a Tale of Three Kings or The Life You’ve Always Wanted. For fun, I’ll re-read any of my Stephen Lawhead books again… although he’s got many new books I haven’t touched yet. Also, I feel a Lord of the Rings re-read coming soon.

Movies: My wife and I will watch the Lord of the Rings movies once a year (did I just mention Lord of the Rings three times in one post? Have I just outed myself?). I’ll usually watch Tommy Boy and Goonies every year as well. Every few years I watch other favorites like Braveheart, the Never Ending Story or other favorites from the 80′s.

Places: At least every year to 18 months, I’ve got to get into the mountains. I either need to climb one or ski down one. At least every 2-4 years, I’ve got to get my Outback prime rib fix. Most importantly, if I don’t get a muchaco from Taco Bueno every 3-6 months, I’ll go nuts.

What about you?

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