Effort: ModerateCost: Free
Collaborating with colleagues can make your life simpler, but the setup and coordination involved can add complexity to your workflow. A few no-cost, online tools have stress-free collaboration options built right in, so you can get down to business. provides tools for centralized e-mail (Gmail), calendar (Google Calendar), and document (Google Docs) collaboration with minimal setup. If you're looking for something that's a little more meeting-centric, check out , a free service (with upgrade options) that provides live online Web conferencing, whiteboards, file sharing, and more, inside its virtual meeting rooms.
Effort: ModerateCost: Free
On trips, you might have a laptop with you at all times, but if you forget an important file or if you need to access anything else on your desktop computer while you're traveling, give the tried-and-true favorite a try. With a free account, you can control your home computer remotely, from the comfort of any Web browser. With a LogMeIn Pro account, you get drag-and-drop file transfer for retrieving important items, file sync for ensuring unfettered access to critical data in the future, and a ton of other practical features.