Your business keeps you busy. You are juggling three projects simultaneously for your employer. You are on the road more frequently than you are at home, and your day planner is covered in ink. You need smartphone apps that will make your life easier, not complicate it. Thankfully, there are a host of smartphone applications available designed precisely to simplify life for the busiest of business professionals. Listed here are five of the top ones to explore.

Top 5 Business Apps

1. WhosHere: WhosHere enables you to locate freelance contractors in your area to help you complete projects. For instance, if you need to find a freelance illustrator in Philadelphia to close out your latest ad campaign, you can send out a search through your smartphone. Then you’re able to send free text messages or calls to the professionals who answer your search.
2. Locale: It’s embarrassing if your phone goes off in the midst of an important meeting. But with everything else you have to do to get ready for a meeting it’s tough to remember to put it on silent. This app lets you set unique modes for your phone determined by your location. So your phone will automatically go to silent when you enter your workplace, or the theater, even.
3. WaveSecure: This service enables you to track your phone, lock it, and backup your data remotely. This is useful for business travelers who are concerned they may loose their phone in an unknown city.
4. Bump: Bump is an incredible little app. It allows you to exchange contact information with fellow business professionals by simply tapping that person’s phone with yours.
5. Scan2PDF Mobile: This app lets you scan reports, receipts, or any other documents on the go with your smartphone’s camera. Then you’re able to turn them into color PDFs and email them to your computer’s desktop.

Do you remember what it was like to have downtime? Real downtime, when you could watch your child’s little league game without responding to an email on your smartphone, or take your dog for a walk without texting. But is downtime a thing of the past? In a world which is so connected it appears like we are seldom without our devices. And the question we must ask is; is this healthy?

It’s hard to deny that life is becoming easier due to connectivity. We don’t have to worry about getting lost as our smartphones can direct us. We can easily stay on top of emails, social media communications, and even Google data no matter where we are.

But are we paying for this connectivity more then just fiscally? As we are usually connected, we very rarely, if ever, are alone with our ideas. Lots of people have wondered if this is negatively affecting the philosophical, pensive, facet of humanity.

That’s a huge question, but there’s a much more important question for you to contemplate: Is your constant connectivity healthy? When should you unplug from your tablet, smartphone, and iPod?

We recognize that not taking breaks from working can take its toll, but so can constant entertainment. Whether that is checking social media sites, texting, or watching silly videos on YouTube. The human body needs time to rest; it stresses out our eyes and minds to be constantly mindful of so many different things, particularly if most of those things are on devices. It may be time to take a break if you find that you have anxietywhen you are away from your device.

If you find, too, that your constant connectivity is harming your relationships with friends, family members, or your spouse, it’s time to switch off the computer and put smartphone on silent. It can be all too easy to plug in and turn off. After all, making real human conversation is a more difficult task than surfing the Web or updating your Facebook page.

If you find that you’re seldom without an electronic gadget in your hand, consider unplugging, at least for a short while. You might find that working less makes you more effective and less stressed.

You may want to wow your boss because you want a promotion, or a raise, or you just want to differentiate yourself from the crowd. Regardless of the reason, the initial question is how?

Why not look into Excel? This spreadsheet program might appear to be just a basic, albeit important, business tool, but the truth is that there are several lesser-known Excel tricks that enable you to work more efficiently.

• Hiding Information: Did you know that you can hide columns, instead of deleteing them, when printing a spreadsheet? This can be convenient, for instance, if the spreadsheet has private information such as salary. In order to hide rows or columns, select the associated number or letter of the row or column to highlight it, then right-click on the highlighted row or column and select the Hide option. You are able to Unhide a row or column in the same way after you have printed or displayed your spreadsheet.
• Timestamping: It is possible to attach a fixed date and time — that will never change — to your Excel spreadsheets thanks to your computer’s “Ctrl” key. To put a fixed date into a spreadsheet cell, hold Ctrl as you press your computer’s semicolon key. To put the present time into a cell, hold down your computer’s Ctrl and Shift keys while pressing the semicolon.
• A Better-Looking Spreadsheet: Perk up your spreadsheet by utilizing Excel’s Themes option. This is found at the top on the Excel Ribbon. This feature provides you with a large variety of color schemes and fonts, or you can create your own and apply it to your spreadsheet.
• Tracking Trends: This is only applicable if you have a more recent version of Excel. The feature is called Sparklines and with it you can create charts that relate trends in the information in your spreadsheet. One way this can be used is to easily and quickly see how many software bundles your company’s salespeople sold in the first quarter of 2011.
• Conditional Formatting: This feature allows formatting only in cells that meet the criteria that you select. For example you could decided to have any dollar amount over 1,000 be a distinct color.

Technology is ever changing, and cyber-criminals will be ever adjusting to it. Recently, MIT’s Technology Review published an article pertaining to technology security threats that we must be aware if in 2012. As many of us devote a significant amount of time online, being aware of these threats can help protect vital data.

Stolen, Spoofed Certificates

One difficulty that the article pointed out is stolen or faked certificates. When you log into a website, your bank for instance, the traffic is encrypted with a “certificate”. This proves that the site can be trusted. The faking and stealing of these certificates was a prevalent strategy employed by cyber-criminals in 2011. This can allow them to have access to confidential information.

A Common Security Mechanism in Trouble?

The use of certificates as a security mechanism is the most typical method used currently. If the trustworthiness of these are put into question then that will spell difficulties for all computer users including large companies who are in charge of protecting sensitive data.

Another common security challenge is what is termed “Hacktivism”. Cyber-criminals look at this as activism through hacking, hence the name. Groups like Anonymous and LulzSec target large businesses that they believe are guilty of wrongdoing. Additionally they target companies to show the susceptibility and weakness of them. Technology Review thinks that groups like these will continue “hacktivism” for a long time.

Home Automation

Home automation is a growing trend, and in 2012 this could be a security risk. This means that lights, thermostats, even locks are linked to the Internet so they can be controlled remotely. Imagine if hackers got into these systems, they could do some serious damage.

More and more cars are coming out that allow people to be connected to the Web from the front seat via Wi-Fi or 3G networks.  The Ford Edge, Lincoln MKX, and Audi A6 are all illustrations of this. With these connections people will be able to stream videos, get up-to-the-minute traffic information, in addition to speak their text messages. These things all sound good, and we generally greet technological advancements with open arms but this make us ask the question: Is full connectivity in a moving vehicle the best thing?

Challenges of the Connected Car

People get distracted when they text or chat on their phones while driving. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that 80 percent of traffic accidents include driver inattention within 3 seconds of the crash. So, if basic cell phone use is a disruption visualize what it would be like if an individual is video Skyping with their closest friend while driving or watching that funny Super Bowl advertisement.

Does Tech Distract Drivers?

Of course drivers should focus on driving, and many things like eating, talking on their phone, even talking to a companion inside the car can be a distraction. These distractions can cause serious accidents. This reason is in part why the notion of having more connected cars doesn’t necessarily make people jump for joy.

Browsing the Web Inside Your Car

Soon motorists will be able to receive Facebook updates and browse the web on in-car navigation screens. We might even see the introduction of short-range communication allowing drivers that are sharing the road to interact with each other.

Once again, this would normally be deemed a positive advancement of technology. The possible negative impacts, though—an increase in the amount of unfocused drivers on the road—do give pause. It is important for drivers to understand that these tech goodies are nice features. However, it’s equally important for them to stay focused on the road, no matter how badly they want to sneak a peek at the video streaming into their vehicles.

You hear the term “nanotechnology,” and what do you think of? Sci-fi, maybe robots, something along those lines? In reality, nanotechnology is making life easier for all of us. At its core, nanotechnology is the science of working with matter on an atomic and molecular scale. The hope is that scientists can use nanotechnology to produce new materials and products that boast a variety of purposes.

The practical side of nanotechnology

To give you an example of how nanotechnology can effect your daily life here is an article that Science Daily ran last month. The article states that scientists are creating a way to use nanotechnology to lessen the degree of friction in car engines and machines. This technology could make machines operate more efficiently; prolonging their lives. Based on the article, tiny polymer particles were created and dispersed in oils used in automobile engines. They were then tested in conditions akin to car engines and found to minimize friction tremendously.

More efficient motors

There are friction-reducing additives used by many industries currently, however when these tiny polymer particles were released at a low concentration they were able to decrease friction by 55 percent more than standard additives currently can. As the field of nanotechnology continues to grow we can expect more breakthroughs like this.

The emerging world of nanotechnology

Next time you consider nanotechnology think about your car’s engine. In the future nanotechnology could be responsible for helping you save lots of money due to your engine using less gas.