Asking for a raise can be a fearsome experience. If you're like most people, you worry that asking for more will make you appear uncommitted. Or that you'll be talked into settling for what you've already got. Or even that you'll be seen as greedy if you ask to be rewarded well for work you do well. "The first thing that people associate negotiation with is buying a car," says career coach Malcolm...

It's been a rocky start for Apple's MobileMe, but things look like they're settling down now and the service is, for the most part, chugging along. If you're an optimist, the botched launch wasn't such a bad thing after all, with Apple issuing free trial periods of up to four months before the subscription fee kicks in for affected users. I've been lucky—I haven't had to put up with any of the te...

Over the years, I've tried syncing my computers any number of ways, from trusting my entire life to a flash drive to uploading everything to Google Docs. Very few options have been idiot-proof enough to make up for my abilities to misplace things, forget to update file versions and generally fail to double check that my computers are all in sync. I need a forgiving synchronization method — someth...

One of the nicest things you can do for other people is make yourself easy to remember. Instead of burning their brains trying to recall who you are and what you stand for, a personal catchphrase is a elegant anchor to the rest of you. It serves as a compact memory assistant that melts mental blocks. You don't need to be a celebrity, but you do need to have personality. Ever heard of Rodney Danger...

Last week, I recommended over 60 productivity blogs, from the big name sites to some of the little-known discoveries I'd made in my travels through the productivity Web. At the end, I asked readers to recommend the sites that they'd come across that they felt deserved wider recognition, and this is what you came up with. Aim for Awesome: Vern Lovic shares his simple recipe for life ("smiles + smart...