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What I'm Doing	7 Years On

Adobe Elements Premiere and Photoshop twin pack

It's a bundle of a digital photo and film editor and you won't need any of the high end software - this ought to be enough for anyone unless you work in the agency studio. It's the foundation of our multimedia course launched in ay 2005 - contact me for more details

Here's the link http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00064LGVW/planningaboveand

S3XP Vaio

It's a Vaio. Another Vaio. Designed for multimedia work. It runs at 2Ghz has 1GB of RAM and a 80GB hard disk. And weighs 1.7Kg. Wireless, blackberry and networking all built in of course. And a very clear wide screen. There's only one catch I can see which is that it does tend to get a little hot - all that processing power and the fans can't blow away the heat fast enough. I got it from Laptops Direct but check out price runner or kelkoo for the latest bargains

Here's the link http://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/asp/product.asp?recorprod=1&product=232&cat=75

Firestore FS4

This looks clunky and definitely could merit from the attention of a designer but it is a unique piece of kit.It allows you to record directly from a dvcamcorder as you film. Its a glorified hard disk. Why is this valuable? Two reasons. Because you can take the firestore and link it to your computer and drag and drop the files into an editor or onto a DVD. Secondly there's no compression - its RAW video so there's no messing about with loss of resolution or the time taken to re-encode into a different format which takes up less room but hours for the computer to proces. Result: up to 170 minutes of full quality video to put on the computer as soon as you have finished filming. The procams have big rigs for doing this. This is the only product I am aware of which does this for your bog standard bought in Comet camcorder.

Here's the link http://www.focusinfo.com/products/firestore/fs-4.htm

mp3 Headphones

OK for those of you who can't afford the Oakleys here's something for a third of the price which does exactly the same thing. These headphones have a USB 2.0 connection so you can drag and drop your groups or interviews in mp3 or wma format straight onto them in order to play them back whenever suits. Better still you have bags of room to carry your presentations around with you. This is exactly what I did with the Oakleys in the Middle East where I stored powerpoint decks and even photos. And of course you can also download music onto them as well. Not bad for £100.

Here's the link http://www.iwantoneofthose.com/MP3HEAVAR.htm?CMP=EMC-MUM_OFFER01

Oakley Thumpers

Now here's a silly but wonderful idea. A pair of Oakley shades with an mp3 player built in. I have a pair and have used them to listen to groups. The case can hold the USB cable as well so it can be connected to any computer and will act as a virtual drive for you to drag and drop files onto. My favourite way of carrying my powerpoint decks around and it always brings a room to a standstill when you take them out!The sound quality is fantastic too.

Here's the link http://www.shadestation.co.uk/oakleythump/index.asp

Benq PB2220 video projector

I bought this for less than £900. I'd been waiting for prices to drop for years so I could buy a portable projector to make presentations. The other problem this machine solved was that it shows films in 16:9 ratio. Most of the computer models don't do the film ratios forcing you to buy a bulky home cinema system. This weighs 1.7kg and has XGA resolution 10024x768 - which is fine. It comes with a remote and a wireless mouse with laser pointer. Very easy to use. It was a hit with the family over Christmas as well!

Here's the link http://www.wstore.co.uk/

Olympus

I finally gave up on the Archos for recording groups to mp3 and switched to this. NDeva were obviously baffled by my suspicious questions about stability formats and battery life. The 2200 is a dream to use - steady as a rock. It records in .wma or Olympus proprietary .dss format. You get a basic 6 hours but can buy flash cards for extra room. It uses aaa batteries and you get plenty of warning if these are running out. Microphones are powered from the device and good quality. Sound quality isn't as good as minidisk but comparable with mp3. You drop the device onto a cradle and use the software provided to drag and drop files back into the PC. Totally reliable - and half the size of any of my previous recording devices. Why did I wait so long?

Here's the link http://www.ndeva.co.uk

Links of London silver USB stick

I have run management team workshops for Links of London for the last 3 years now and have at last got hold of my very own silver USB stick engraved with the Planning Above and Beyond logo and put on a chain. It has only 64MB capacity which isn't a lot by today's standards but perfectly acceptable for carrying around your dayfiles with you. Easy to use and it looks good. Buy one!

Here's the link http://www.linksoflondon.com/Category.aspx/FortheofficeDeskAccessories!3010.0178

Archos 340

The AV340 will record 600 hours of audio (now that's a lot of groups) or 80 hours of video (that's a lot of viewing facility time), 400,000 photos - you get the picture. And it will record from your TV/video/computer or playback onto any of them. Though with earphones and the built in screen you can use it as a standalone video and audio player. It's about the size of a Palm Pilot and twice the weight. There is a catch though. It hangs about 50% of the time I used it to record groups. And now I've found an alternative in Olympus (see above) I'm off. There's too much competition now - you can record video straight to DVD or to hard disk.

Here's the link http://www.archos.com

Socket gps

Bit of an indulgence this. Basically its a blutooth gps receiver. Which means it picks up up to 10 satellites and will locate you to within 10 feet on the planet. All you need is some gps software - when I bought it direct from Socket it came with the UK map software but there ought to be deals around. The software will work on a pocket PC or a PC and via the bluetooth connection the socket will tell you where you are. It has been brilliant for finding my way to addresses late at night when you can't see a thing - this will tell you where you are and what your destination time is. Best of all you can carry it with you unlike one of those expensive in car navivation systems

Here's the link http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00008W5X5/planningaboveand

HP Pocket PC

OK these things replace each other almost as fast as hit singles so I am pointing at the most recent model. Basically I bought the one with all the bells and whistles - bluetooth wireless you name it. It synchs with the PC so you should be able to carry around your diary and your contact list. I also got a hard drive and a sleeve so I could record my groups on it. It couldn't cope with playback. It went flat on me once so everything had to be reinstalled. And then stopped synching with the PC. It isn't worth the money to repair. So when I get my wireless network working I'll give the synching one more go. It is fantastic for gps see above. But that aside it has been a huge,timeconsuming, expensive unstable mistake

Here's the link http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000139HAA/planningaboveand

New Novelist

New Novelist. Ever wanted to write a novel? Ever wanted a resource to help you develop characterisation and the storyline? Let me rephrase that. Ever wanted to do some brand development? Ever get bored with brand essences, pyramids circles and the like? Well here's a tool I found as a demo in PC format magazine that will cost you all of 30 quid in PC World. It gives you all the prompts you need to write imaginative scenarios about brands and their competitors. It might even get you thinking about how brands develop instead of trying to find eternal qualities that stay stubbornly sameish. Are you still stuck? Well have a look in the training budget pot, give me call and I'll teach you how to use it! A very accessible way into archetypal thinking and the construction of brand narratives.

Here's the link http://www.newnovelist.com

Soundbug

This one's a bit of a weird one and it works (just) but don't rely on it in a big pitch! The soundbug is a speaker that connects to your laptop, mp3player, CD etc. You lock it onto a flat surface using suction and it turns that surface into a speaker! Whether a window, a fridge or a boardroom table. In theory it saves you taking a set of speakers for that all important creds presentation. It's OK but I wouldn't bet the farm on it! Around £35

Here's the link http://www.gadgetshop.com

Paint Shop Pro 7

Everyone ought to have a decent image editor. The reason your email box is clogged is because people send you bloated digital images which could be trimmed or compressed to a fraction of their size. And its easy to learn how - they have wizards which do it all for you. If you want to take screen shots from your computer or from websites then again this program will do it. However be warned it is fantastically powerful. Web designers use this rathern than Photoshop which costs hundreds. And you should be able to get hold of it for £30-40. You'll never need another graphics editor. Does animations too!

Here's the link http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00005U2EP/planningaboveand/

Cooledit 2000

Cool Edit is a shareware audio editor which will allow you to slice up your digital audio into quotes, balance sound levels and get rid of pauses and coughs and splutters. It is fantastically powerful - I use hardly any of the features. But there's a 30 days free trial download and it will only cost you £30 or so when it is as powerful as £300 products. Highly recommended

Here's the link http://www.syntrillium.com/cooledit/

Archos Jukebox 6000/Studio 10/Studio 20

This product changed my life. It's an mp3 recorder. Most mp3 players need you to convet your audio into mp3s before you download them. This one converts on the fly. So you put it downstream of your minidisk player and it stores your groups at less than 10% of the file size and you can connect to your computer and drag and drop the audio file where you want. I have the entry level version which is a mere 6GB. That means it holds 33 hours of groups each with their own file name. Not the most reliable of kit - I still use mini disk but amazing. I can carry my last years work around with me. The latest video juke box has 3 times the capacity and can hold several feature films. Unbelievable. If Amazon is no good then try www.dabs.co.uk. And get one.

Nisis Pocket DV camera

You wanna digital video camera for under £100. You got it. No kidding. Is it as good as a decent DV camera? No of course it isn't. But it's almost certainly better and quicker and more convenient than having nothing because you forgot the camera. Its a sound recorder so you can talk to it. Every planning dept should have a couple.

Here's the link http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000075B7L/planningaboveand/

Kodak EZ200

This was the first portable webcam I got in order to take photos and upload them to the laptop. It has the merit that if you drop it and break it then it isn't the end of the world. But it takes over 100 photos of reasonable resolution and a couple of minutes of video. So useful for spontaneous recces when no one will lend you a decent digital camera or camcorder. It's also a webcam. No sound though.

Here's the link http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000051TH1/planningaboveand/

Map Point

Yes its software not really a gadget but this is one of Microsoft's best kept secrets. It has the same engine as their route planning product Autoroute so it'll print maps out to where you want to go. But the real prize is that you can load Excel and Access data files and it'll plot them for you and turn them into stats. There's even basic household composition data preloaded at postcode region level. Genuinely practical. I use it all the time and while my version gives me street maps across Europe you can use it as a general atlas worldwide. Zoom out to planetary level. Fantastic.

Here's the link http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00005MOKH/planningaboveand

Minidisk Recorder

I think it was Mark Earls who first raved to me about the Joy of Minidisk. And he was right. It does transform the quality of doing groups. Not only because it requires you to use a proper microphone, nor because the sound quality is to die for - never a fluffed quotation again, nor even aut tracking so you can whizz around the recording inserting your own markers. But ultimately because you will have crossed the frontier into digital audio - stuff you can edit, store and email to your clients to your hearts content.If you're going to go for one then get a Sony network one because they transfer data in faster and have Sony compression which allows up to 300 minutes per disk

Here's the link http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00005YXSK/planningaboveand/