Tech Blog

[#1]

Ok, that's a bit over the top, I'll admit, but believe it or not, a spreadsheet certainly did help me out this holiday season, by helping me and my family stay organized as we worked through our holiday gift list, figuring out who is going to get what this year...especially if we're in different households or different parts of the country.

So,Google Docs, specifically, the free Google Docs spreadsheet and sharing functionality came through to help organize the chaos...here's how.

It's all in the details
Layout is really simple. Put all the people you want to get gifts for down the left side in one column. Then, across the top column, add columns for:

• Status - Bought, wrapped, Done, Delivered, no idea, etc
• Person - who you're planning to give a gift to
• 2009 Gift - this year's gift
• 2008 Gift - last year's gift, if you remember
• Suggestions - Your best idea
• More suggestions - backup or additional ideas

So, your sheet may look like this:

Listen up junior, this is important
Now, you may be wondering why I've included columns on Suggestions and More Suggestions. Well, that's because this spreadsheet is live, which means that when you share it with others (say in your family) any changes you make to the sheet will be immediately visible to them, as you make these changes. Of course, you can limit who you share it with, say, to exclude certain present-receiving-parties from seeing what you're planning, for instance.

So, if you were to update Little Timmy's gift from 'A New Pair of Crutches' to '25lb Turkey dinner with all the trimmings in Hawaii', anyone you've shared the sheet with  would see the changes as you made them.

This is great for when you're collaborating as a family to get gifts for other friends and family members.

Google Wave also works similarly, though it's not as nicely structured as Google Docs' spreadsheet, in my humble opinion.

That being said, this is a free solution I've used to help keep me organized at this uber-busy time of the year. It's mine, it may not be the best...so what do you do? Our lines are open, and inquiring minds want to know

Message Edited by bgrier on 12-14-2009 10:11 PM

[#2]

I've become something of an Evernote fan. I've got a whole section of gift ideas, subtagged by dad, mom, sister, etc. If I see something during the year that I think might be a good Christmas present, I just clip it with the necessary notes. When the holidays roll around, I'm less stressed about clever gift ideas because I've usually found at least one thing over the course of the year that's suitable for each recipient.

[#3]

I personally tend to favour SSuite Office’s free office suites. Their software also don’t need to run on Java or .NET, like so many open source office suites, so it makes their applications very small and efficient.

http://www.ssuitesoft.com

[#4]

@Katherine, Thanks for reminding me about the highly useful tagging function in Evernote. I tend to use Evernote as a clip and save service, not tagging anything and just searching for it. Tagging makes sense though, doubly so when you're using it to keep track of gift ideas!

@Tracy Numann, thanks for  letting me know about SSuite's Office product. I'd not heard of it before. Very cool to see a new office suite developer doing well.