Many of us transitioned from the classic office to a hybrid model. This provides a great opportunity to look at some easy improvements to reduce a few of those daily steps when transitioning between workspaces.
1. Get a USB switch
A simple, cheap tool but saves you a lot of extra daily chores. You probably already have at least an external keyboard and mouse at home, maybe even a nice extra webcam or microphone. Plugging this off from your private laptop or desktop computer to your work PC can be tiresome. Get a USB switch and you just need to plug it into all your devices and you’re good to go. However, ideally, pair this with the next item on the list:
2. Get an extra docking station
If you’re strictly working on laptops you can probably skip this one. But for those of us relying on external monitors and keyboards, the constant switching between offices leads to many cables in need of unplugging (especially if you still have a desktop PC). The USB switch already covers your mechanical keyboard and an external mouse, but what about those monitors? Getting an extra docking station usually solves that very nicely, since most displays have multiple connectors. Set it up correctly and all you need to do is snap in your laptop at home and you’re good to go.
3. Get an external monitor
You probably saw that one coming. Since you already prepared everything in the previous tips, you might as well get a nice external display for your home office. Working only on a laptop screen might be feasible if you want to camp all day at a coffee shop, but not for long extended work at home. You should also consider getting a model with a higher resolution, depending on what field you’re working, and of course, why not get two? Well maybe let’s not overdo it.
Easy improvements
The home office is here to stay, if it’s not at your current company, your next job could be fully remote. Investing in those little tools does not cost you much but highly improves your daily comfort level: Do you enjoy searching for USB connectors that much? Having a docking station additionally helps with any external devices and opens the possibility to get a nice monitor at home. Of course, it’s also worth investing in nice (home) office furniture, but this is rather something for a different article.
- New specialty coffee shops in Austria in 2022
It’s long overdue to look back at last year and see what new specialty coffee shops opened in Vienna! In this blog post, we’ll take a closer look at some of the new third-wave coffee shops that opened in Austria and explore what makes them stand out and what they offer. - New Mozartkugeln in 2022
2022 was a great year for Mozartkugel fans. More than a dozen new varieties were launched. This includes variations of already established brands, new fruity seasonal ones as well as completely new brands entering the market. Therefore it’s time to look back at 2022, to give you a brief overview of the new additions. - Writing walkthroughs and game news in 2008
Even though I was mainly writing walkthroughs for video games, I always tried some other text formats on the side. I did write a few reviews for a no longer existing German video game website, a short event impression and I even did an interview once. But gaming news was rather new for me.