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Hand Helper

Sitting in front of a computer for eight hours a day can take a toll on your back, neck, eyes, wrists, and hands. You can get a massage for your neck and back, and glasses can relieve eye strain. Now, you can also get a 5- to 15-minute hand massage with the Hand Reflexology Massager from Hammacher Schlemmer. This device applies gentle massage by putting pressure on trigger points on the palm and back of the hand using a mechanical air pressure system that kneads the hand. According to the company, the soothing rhythm helps to relieve tension, stress, and fatigue associated with extended keyboard and mouse use. US$119.95. hammacher.com

Deadline:

13 percent of IT workers rarely or never deliver IT projects on time, according to a poll of more than 500 business technology professionals. A plurality of 45 percent cited poor requirements planning as a top reason their projects don’t deliver expected results.

Source: InformationWeek 2012 Enterprise Project Management survey

Productivity Apps

“Innovation is unusual in most businesses and therefore it takes a low priority. Innovation must make a transition from an ‘unusual’ infrequent activity to a more common, consistent capability, regularly applied, to advance a company’s visibility, culture, and profits.”

—Jeffrey Phillips, author of Relentless Innovation (McGraw-Hill Professional, 2012)

Work smarter with these apps for your smartphone or tablet.

HQ: To Do

A straightforward task and project manager, this app assigns priorities, due dates, interim steps, and color codes to tasks and to-do lists. US$1.99 (iPhone). sleepinggiantapps.com

LogMeIn Ignition
This app lets you remote-control a PC or Mac over WiFi or 3G so you can move files, run programs, stream audio and video, and more. Price varies from free to US$100, depending on platform and features (iPhone, iPad, Android). logmein.com

SaveMeeting Record audio from a meeting to the cloud; have it automatically transcribed; then share the recording, transcription, and any handouts with attendees. Free, including 1,000 minutes of recording (iPhone, iPad, Android). savemeeting.com

Penultimate
If the virtual keyboard is too slow when ideas are flying, you can scribble and sketch using your fingertip. Then save your “notebook” and share it with coworkers. US$0.99 (iPad; free iPhone version is called Handwriting). cocoabox.com

Video, Starring You

Making a video of yourself using your iPhone is awkward. Enter Swivl, a device that holds an iPhone, or any other video camera under 6 ounces. The base unit holds the camera and has 360-degree horizontal and vertical following capability. The marker is a tiny device that wirelessly communicates with the base so it knows which way to turn. Wear the marker around your neck, or use it like a remote and point it at what you’d like to film (such as a whiteboard). US$179. swivl.com

Social Media Aren't All the Same

A survey of nearly 500 business and IT executives in the U.S. found that various social media platforms are being used very differently in business—internally, with customers, and with partners. Respondents were asked, “How do you and/or your company use these social media for business?”