I've also had it with reaching behind my desk to retrieve plugs for the cell phone, digital camera, MP3 player and other gadgets that feed on Universal Serial Bus (USB) that are always slipping back there. Cordination Station makes a stylish clamp called the Freestyle cable organizer that nails this annoyance down. It can hold up to six cords neatly channeled through a box with a weighted base and rubberized feet to help it stay put. Think docking station for your cords. Annoyance solved for about $19.

For that bigger mess of cables on the floor, the Cordination Station Pro ($59) combines cable management and surge protection in a low-profile box. Ten grounded outlets are stashed inside the box, which allows you to plug in devices and hide the excess cord inside. The Pro features a 15-amp circuit breaker and 3,400 jules of surge suppression, and it can be mounted on a wall.

Finally, my spouse came home from work the other day annoyed about having to crawl behind a desk to reach a USB port. I whipped out a USB-to-USB extender cord to wipe out that annoyance, but a bigger pet peeve for me used to be bulky USB devices that wouldn't squeeze into tight spaces.

The Sidekick USB 2.0 adapter allows you to ditch the extender cable for an easy fit in a tight space.

The Sidekick USB 2.0 adapter allows you to ditch the extender cable for an easy fit in a tight space.