Todoist
Sep 05 2007 Wed
2:54 pm PHT
Markku once talked about false productivity and asked for suggestions. I commented by explaining my organizational system consisting of scattered to-do lists and organizing mechanisms.
For tasks outside of work, I mentioned that I kept a “huge text file on my home PC containing to-dos.” That text file was a sophisticated list that is divided into projects and each task contains subtasks with priorities and optional deadlines. Unfortunately, managing that to-do text file was quite a work in itself.
When we finally subscribed for a broadband connection, I decided to scout out for a nice web-based to-do list application so that I can work on stuff anywhere where there’s an Internet connection. I initially checked out the web apps provided by 37signals because I’ve heard lots of praise for their many products and services—Ruby on Rails arguably being their best one. They are also known for creating really slick and thoughtful user interfaces so I expected quite a lot from them.
Well, Backpack and Ta-da List, two of their free products that provide to-do lists, fell vastly short of my expectations. Suffice it to say that they weren’t slick enough and they didn’t have the features that I needed.
I was sure that there are a lot of online to-do list web apps out there and one of the sites I scouted around for such apps is Lifehacker, a productivity blog. There, I read about a web app called called Todoist. While I was initially put off by the independence of the project and the lack of “name” of the developers, I still checked it out and I was pleasantly surprised!
Like any good to-do list app, Todoist enables you to place dates (deadlines or recurring) on to-do items, add tags to them, set their priorities, and group them under projects. Unlike 37signals’ products and other well-known to-do list apps, however, Todoist has hierarchical projects and to-do items! But the best feature of Todoist is its full AJAX interface coupled with really, really powerful keyboard shortcuts. (Really.) Never since Google Maps was introduced had I had my socks knocked off of me by an AJAX web application.
Todoist really hits the sweet spot for my to-do list needs. It has all the features that I need (and more are being added thoughtfully) and it’s UI makes it quite a joy to use. Ever since I’ve used it, my blogging has been more productive. (Really.)
Everyone has his or her particular tastes when it comes to organizing his or her life so Todoist may not be for you. But, if like me you prefer organizing via to-do lists instead of a calendar, I’d definitely recommend that you try Todoist.
Comments
Comment times are in Philippine time (+0800).
1
On 8:00 p.m., 5 Sep 2007, Jon Limjap wrote:
Nice. I’ll try that one out Eugene
2
On 8:19 p.m., 5 Sep 2007, Jon Limjap wrote:
Hmmm, how do you do the subtasks? Or are you using Todoist Premium?
3
On 8:33 p.m., 5 Sep 2007, karen wrote:
Hmm.. worth a try. hehe
4
On 9:32 p.m., 5 Sep 2007, urbano dela cruz wrote:
I started with Remember the Milk. (http://www.rememberthemilk.com/)—moved to Tada-List and graduated to backpackit. (I use basecamp for the more demanding projects.)
I briefly flirted with some of the systems recommended by 42 Folders and GTD but haven’t tried todoist.
Maybe I’ll give it a spin.
For me, this is part of the continuing pursuit (more aspirational than reality) of being more organized. This stretches all the way back to the days of yearly planners, day runners and filofax, to palms and handsprings. -None of which stuck long enough to make me dependent on the system. Not long enough to make me feel really successful either.
tasks -they have a way of falling through the cracks.
sigh.
5
On 10:14 p.m., 5 Sep 2007, Jon Limjap wrote:
Eugene,
I got it na, took me some time to find those little left/right arrow thingies.
6
On 11:08 p.m., 5 Sep 2007, seav wrote:
@John, the interface does take a bit getting used to.
While editing a task, you can also change the level by using Ctrl+Left or Ctrl+Right. And when reordering, you can press 1 to 5 while dragging a task around to instantly set its level.
@Karen, long time no hear! Try it and then tell me what you think.
@Urbano, I was planning to try Remember the Milk but Todoist intercepted me. Hehehe. I’m quite familiar with that “continuing pursuit” you mentioned. So far I’m liking Todoist and have yet to tap its full potential. Also, I’m actually trying out some GTD concepts for my office work.
7
On 11:24 p.m., 5 Sep 2007, joyce wrote:
unang basa ko was todo-ist. parang “todo na talaga ito!” hahaha.
oh well. ganon na rin di ba? para todo trabaho etc.
is there a mac version?
8
On 11:53 p.m., 5 Sep 2007, Rico wrote:
Sigh The more people come up with really great web apps, the more we become addicts to connectivity.
Is there an offline version that works in your browser? That would be a good idea, don’t you think?
9
On 4:28 a.m., 6 Sep 2007, markku wrote:
Gonna try this one.
10
On 6:58 a.m., 6 Sep 2007, seav wrote:
@Joyce, Todoist is a web app; you just need any modern browser. I tried it with Safari for Windows and it works!
@Rico, unfortunately, this is fast becoming a fact of life. The thing is, the tasks I place in Todoist are things that need Internet connection anyways (like a list of things to blog about).
I can even access Todoist from a mobile phone if I wanted to. I think there’s a plan to integrate Todoist with Google Gears and Firefox to provide offline access.
@Markku, try it and tell me what you think!
11
On 7:58 a.m., 6 Sep 2007, urbano dela cruz wrote:
remember the milk offers google gears.
12
On 8:19 a.m., 6 Sep 2007, seav wrote:
@Urbano, that they do. Unfortunately, they don’t have hierarchies, and I consider that a vital feature for me.
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