Yes, you've missed the May 10th deadline for 50 free emails with the free version of Google Apps, but now it's just 10 free emails, so go there anyways and check it out - heck, we think it's a steal even you got the paid version for $50/year!

These are instructions for getting a free Google Apps account - for handling your email, calendar, and more.

Instruction Sheets

1. Getting a Google Apps Account (link will open in a new tab - PDF)

2. Migrating your old emails to your new Google Apps account (link will open in a new tab - PDF)

3. Allowing Others to Edit your Google Apps Calendar (link will open in a new tab - PDF)

More instruction sheets to come!

I have done the above process several times - post a question if you have one!

Here's a FULL recording of Jim Casey covering some GREAT content on what a real estate agent or team should have in their "arsenal" of technology tools.

Jeff Wilhems, Founder of www.TopAgentToolBox.com, interviewed Jim Casey for his members.

(Jeff gave us the recording to post for our members).

Here's the recording:

white space

Training video can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFWHfqc0uxQ

[i4w_youtube id=aFWHfqc0uxQ h=385 w=480 autoplay=0]

I Googled it here: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=laE&q=cannot+open+.wav+attachments+in+outlook+on+vista&aq=f&oq=&aqi=

And found this answer the best: http://www.brettg.com/2009/11/13/cant-open-wav-file-attachments-in-outlook-2007-on-windows-7/

Basically, you're error when attempting to open up attachments in Outlook will look something like this:

Can't create file: (file name). Right-click the folder you want to create
the file in, and then click Properties on the shortcut menu to check your
permissions for the folder.

The reason is, Outlook stores the names of opened attachments in a "Temporary Internet Files" folder, and if your attachments all have the same name, like mine did when I get email voicemails from my Vonage phone, then Windows, for some crazy reason known only to Bill Gates and his crazy team, have LIMITED it to 100 copies of the same name.

So, the SOLUTION: you have to go into the folder, and delete the "old" copies of those attachments, and voila, you can continue to open those attachments no problem!

Keep in mind, even if this solution doesn't directly help you, Google is a GREAT resource to find help like this!

There is - Microsoft Outlook.

This is part of the beginner series - just the basics here.

Setting up Microsoft Outlook on your computer

Questions we covered:

1. How do I know if I have Microsoft Outlook on my computer already?

2. Can I use my AOL, Gmail, or other emails within Outlook?

3. How can I best organize my email within Outlook?

4. How can I stop the flood of emails from filling up my Inbox?

5. How can I setup different signatures for my emails?

6. How can I use the Calendar in Microsoft Outlook?

7. Question and Answer time

This webinar included a look at how Sean has used Microsoft Outlook over the last 10 years to effectively communicate with clients, agents, and family - all in one easy to use, sensible solution.

Useful Articles:

For AOL Email and Outlook 2002/2003

For AOL Email and Outlook 2007

For Gmail Email and Outlook 2002/2003

For Gmail Email and Outlook 2007

For Yahoo! Email

Alert - I just found out Yahoo! is now requiring "Yahoo Mail Plus" in order to get POP3 access to your email - at $20/year. Not a ton of money, but still more than Gmail's $0 price tag!

My recommendation: If you're heavily using Yahoo with contacts, chat, etc. and you like, then just pay the $20/year to get POP3 access so you can use Outlook. Otherwise, you can set your Yahoo! mail to forward to another email account, and you could then pull all of your emails from that account into Outlook.

More Advanced How-To's:

Exporting AOL contacts to Outlook (still trying to find instructions - they've hid them!)

Exporting Gmail contacts to Outlook

Exporting Yahoo! contacts to Outlook

Basically, you just need to make this simple change once, and you'll have it fixed for good!

This fix is for Windows Vista - if you have Windows XP, it might be very similar.

Please keep in mind that if you disable User Account Control, it does make it easier to access files on your computer - do this at your own risk (but most people won't need to worry about this - it's just legal disclaimer stuff )

If you've ever owned a computer, especially a PC, you know the importance of backing it up. The only thing is, most people either don't bother taking the time and energy to back it up, or don't do it regularly.

In fact, every year, 43% have a computer crash so severe, that they lose emails, documents, photos and files. That means if you haven't had a computer crash in the last 2 years, you're number might be up!

As real estate agents, we are especially prone because we use a computer for almost everything now, but we are supposed to be out selling houses and listing houses - not wasting time on silly things like sitting around for hours on end to back up files!

In the past, I've used a lot of ways to back up my computer. Some people try to use a USB memory stick, but those generally aren't big enough. I, for the longest time, used a larger, portable USB hard drive. But even that took 2-3 hours for my backup! --- Precious time I'd rather spend with clients or with my wife and kids!

Enter Carbonite, referred to me by Jim Casey. When he first told me about it, I kind of ignored it becuase I thought "I had a better way". Plus, it sounded way too good to be true.

Then, 5 months ago, somebody walked right through our Broker's office during the middle of the day, and stole purses, wallets, and a busy agent's laptop. Which made me think, hmmm....what if that had been MY laptop?! I hadn't backed up my computer in like 3 months because I was "too busy".

What does Carbonite do?
Easy - you download a tiny little program (keyword "little" so it doesn't take up too much RAM on your computer), and it AUTOMATICALLY backs up your computer, at any time, no matter when you create a new file.

Oh, and did I mention it is UNLIMITED for one low price? I had Googled like 4 other software programs, some similar, but NONE offered unlimited space - which is important for most agents who are storing a large number of emails and photos and documents.

Now, I backup about 27GB worth of data - and the MOST important part - I do absolutely nothing - it does it when my computer is sitting idle at the office or at my home office.

So you might want to check it out - I've only heard good things, and it's working well for me. I wish all business offered such a great bang for the buck!

p.s. I've created a little video above so you can see what it looks like installed, and how it actually works. I've also recorded a few short tutorial videos for members on how to make sure everything gets backed up, and to tweak a few of the settings.

If you've already watched the videos on using Carbonite, which is posted here, then you can the below 2 videos show you how to better use Carbonite.

How to make sure ALL of your files and folders are getting backed up:

How to get rid of those annoying little folder icons:

If you haven't already, I recommend you get Carbonite. I've tried a lot of different backup options, and this is the simplest one I have found.

I figure if it saves you 3 hours per month in backup time, at $50/hour, you just saved $150 per month!

There's some little known secrets in the computer industry, one of which is many people don't know IF they have computer support, or where to get it.

As I have supported real estate agents through the years, I've come to figure out some quick ways to determine if you can get some free computer support.

First, check with the maker of your computer maker. Most manufacturers like DELL and HP generally provide a default, limited services warranty for 1 year. Which means you can call them up and they can try to resolve it over the phone.

If you didn't upgrade to one of their other warranty products, and they CAN'T solve it over the phone, then you're often left with the option of sending it into them for processing, and then they either send it back fixed, or they send you a new one - not exactly ideal if you need a computer for the 2-4 weeks it takes them to get it back to you!

Lesson Learned - Either spring for the Warranty Upgrade upfront, for however long you plan to own the computer ( I recommend 2-3 years max.), or simply take it to Geek Squad or similar, reliable computer repair company and pay them to to do it.

NOTE - If you bought you DELL or similar at a store like Best Buy, then Dell will generally NOT support the computer, and you'll have to navigate your way through their help department and/or bring the computer in for their team to fix - maybe a little faster because of no shipping time - but still not ideal. If you want Dell support, you have to purchase directly from Dell, in most cases.

Secondly, you should keep in mind that if your computer problem is related to a Microsoft product such as Microsoft Word, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Excel, or Microsoft Power Point, then here is how support is normally handled:

1. If you bought the software pre-installed on your computer, the manufacturer is normally charged with supporting the Microsoft software.

2. If you bought the software SEPARATE from your computer, then you probably will have to contact Microsoft direct.

I recently got some great help from Microsoft support when my Outlook acted up. Just go to http://support.microsoft.com/ and click your way through to the product you need help with. I choose the CHAT option, and it puts you in a queue right away and they people I dealt with were very helpful and figured it out. If you need, you can always call them, but they will probably need you to be near you computer, and internet access preferred.

NOTE - make sure you have your software license key available, if possible. The other way Microsoft is making sure you have a "valid" version of their software is by requiring you to install the "Windows Validation Tool" which installs fairly quickly now.

Finally, as a real estate agent, dealing with computer problems should be minimized as much as possible. Watch your time carefully, and weigh your options. I recommend taking your computer to a local repair store for fastest service and to minimize down time. Yes, it will cost you certain amount of money, but you'll more than make it up by sending that time making SALES.

Useful Links

http://support.dell.com/support/
www.hp.com - great support for both computers and printers
http://support.microsoft.com/

It's amazing to me how we can send a man to the moon, but we can't make a computer that doesn't crash.

If you're using a computer even a few hours per week, you'll quickly find that problems occur - programs stop working, screens freeze up, things don't show up the way you expect them to, you can't get them to print out,....the list goes on and on.

Before you go ahead and waste 2 hours trying to figure out the problem, or call up your geeky nephew, or worse - pay someone $100+ to fix it, you'll often find these simple, but often forgotten steps, can solve most of computer problems.

1. Try restarting.

Have you heard this one before? Yes, it sounds simple, but a lot of people don't understand just how many problems (especially PC problems) can be solved by restarting you computer.

Many people have their computers set to "sleep", and after a few days or so, Windows gets clogged up with programs, old memory, settings, etc. and can become unstable. I recommend only putting a PC into sleep mode twice before doing a complete shut down and restart.

Also, make sure you close ALL programs before doing a full restart. Programs like Outlook generally perform better if you close them down first, before shutting off your machine. If you don't, and you restart and open Outlook, you might find that it wants to "scan your .pst file" since it "wasn't closed properly". It slows the performance of the computer for normally 10-15 minutes.

Apple users will find their systems much more stable after multiple sleep modes, but a restart can help, occasionally.

2. Make sure you stay updated on the latest Windows patches.

Open an Internet Explorer window, click on Tools, then Windows Update. Some computers are set to do this automatically, at say 3AM -- IF your computer is turned on (not sleep mode) during that time.

If you never have your computer turned on at that time, or if that option is not selected, you might be missing out on some very important security updates and patches that Microsoft releases every few weeks or so.

Those updates are free to download, and generally work very well. I will mention that I recently had a support call with Dell, and they recommended not yet downloading the Windows XP Service Pack 3 update (as of 11-12-08). They said they had found it to make Dell computers unstable (who knows whys!). Service Packs are really just a fancy name for a bunch of updates, all rolled into one big update for your machine.

Apple users will find that their computers are normally updated automatically, in the background, at times of inactivity. Too bad Bill Gates didn't include the same feature with Windows!!

Also, with updates, choose the option to "manually select my updates". You'll find they often try to include software from Microsoft, or other items that you just don't need to install. Obviously, if you're not sure, I would say download it. But for those more savvy computer users, you'll want to only download the updates you know will make a difference and not bloat your computer with unnecessary programs.

As I mentioned, you'll typically find that the above 2 steps will solve 95% of computer problems - which means there's still that ugly 5% of problems that aren't easily solved, and require more support.

So restart, update, and keep your computer a well-oiled machine to perform the tasks you need it to!