Category Archives: Cool Software

Software that will help you do what you do, better.

GTD and Productivity Links – 28th September 2008

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Last week has been a very productive week. Not managed to do another email post but I have to do one pretty soon as some unexpected projects have turned my email testing upside down and I think I have realized some shortcomings of fixed systems that I would love to work around.

It just so happens that I also have a beta invite to an email solution that may fit the bill perfectly for me.

Anyway, more about that later so let’s get onto this weeks links.

Calling it a day now. It was my son’s birthday today and we have had a rather busy day.

Thanks, and good night all..

MindMaker – Mind Mapping for the iPhone and iPod Touch Review

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If you haven’t already subscribed to this blog, now is a great time to do so, especially if you want to be more productive in 2009! Follow this link to subscribe in your favorite RSS reader.

MindMaker
Being an avid Mind Mapper, I was excited to see the release of MindMaker, the first Mind Mapping application on the iTunes store for the iPhone and iPod Touch.

I have been using the app for a couple of days and thought I would post a little review of my findings of the app. I am quite experienced in using Mind Mapping applications having used them for around 8 years. My current favorite is Mind Manager from MindJet which works like a dream on my Mac. Mind Mapping works for me and has helped me pass many exams and helps me plan important events.

MindMaker initially presents you with a list of Mind Maps that you have created on the device. When you first install it there is a demo map that helpfully shows you some of the features of MindMaker.

MindMaker

Clicking on an existing Map name will take you straight to that Map in the map view mode. Clicking on the + icon at the top right of the screen starts a new Mind Map with a blank center map piece.

Once you get to a Mind Map the navigation is very simple and exactly what you would expect if you have experience of other Mind Map applications. Adding branches to your map is very intuitive making large maps very easy to produce. The ability to drag branches is nice and the animation of the branches moving is very slick and smooth.

So, what are my thoughts about the app. Well, it is a great concept but I have questions as to how much I would use such an app on my iPhone. I personally use Mind Maps for project planning as well as to brainstorm an idea or technology. I then use them as memory joggers when I need to refresh my knowledge on a subject. The killer for me is to be able to view Mind Maps on my iPhone rather than create them. I am more than happy to create the Mind Map on my Mac and then save it as a PDF and view it on my iPhone using the AirSharing app or similar. This works for me.

MindMaker

Note taking on my iPhone and idea collection is covered off pretty much with OmniFocus and Evernote. I cannot see myself using MindMaker to replace either of these functions.

Version 1.0 is lacking some very important features such as the ability to view the map in landscape mode and the ability to export and import maps. Luckily, the developers of the application seem to have covered these shortfalls in their roadmap.

The current version is 1.0. The developer has announced some features that are coming in later versions.

Version 1.1

  • Mind maps can be saved as images
  • Support for Landscape mode
  • Translucent hideable interface

Version 1.2

  • MindMaker will be able to upload mind maps to a web application from which users can download it in different formats.

Future features

  • Cross links between nodes
  • Reordering of nodes
  • Editable colors
  • Export to different formats

In summary, MindMaker is a great little iPhone app but I do feel that it is an app that has limited usability due to the input constraints of the iPhone.

I will update my iPhone with the latest versions as they come out and I will ensure that I follow this review up when the updates come out.

GTD and Productivity Links – 21st September 2008

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Time seems to have accelerated over the past week. It is a strange phenomenon that when you have a very busy week time seems to accelerate.

I have been out or away from home 5 out of the last 7 nights on work related trips and meetings. It is now Sunday night and I am eventually getting/making some time to write my thoughts down on my blog and letting you all know of what cool productivity and GTD links I have unearthed in the past week.

Well, without further undue, here are the links for Sunday the 21st September 2008.

Well, time to catch up on a few blogs and then off to bed, another busy week and I have a big project to start this week along with some learning I have to do for another looming project.

Hopefully back tomorrow with some more insights into my thoughts..

Thanks, and good night all..

GTDInbox – Review of the GTDInbox GTD and Productivity Application

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I am starting a process where I review all of the available GTD and Productivity applications available and then make them available via this blog and a simple applications page that lists the applications as well as links to their reviews.

GTDInbox

To kick this process off, I have provided a review of GTDInbox. I met with Andy Mitchell, the creator of GTDInbox at the recent Northern UK Bloggers Meetup so I thought it would be great to start with a review of hid GTD Application.

GTDInbox is one of the best (and most popular) applications designed to help advocates of David Allen’s Getting Things Done productivity model implement the system into their day-to-day life. Designed by Andy Mitchell and continuously supported by a community of users, GTDInbox is an ongoing project (started in 2006) that seeks to add greater functionality to the pre-existing and widely used, Gmail.

GTDInbox

The program works as an add-on for the Mozilla Firefox web-browser and easily transforms Google’s Gmail into a less cluttered, productivity-friendly email system. In terms of the software itself, GTDInbox does as an admirable job of both adhering to the principles of the GTD model while still providing an inbox that you’ll actually want to use. Important organizational facets of Getting Things Done have been made a keystone design element so that users are able to sort their mail and tasks with a level of depth not present in any existing email inbox. Even for those who only want the cleanest, easily navigated email service, GTDInbox is a good bet. It provides an intuitive interface and focal emphasis on sorting so that users are able to keep their inbox under control rather than thrown into haphazard folders and lists.

One of the most interesting features of the add-on is the ability to use your email inbox for more than just sending, receiving and archiving mail. GTDInbox adds a personal database to Gmail so that daily planning, next-action steps and to-do lists can all be accessed easily. Considering that almost everyone uses their email inbox as their daily hub anyway, the extra functionality is one of the stand-out features of the program. Email can be transformed into tasks, which constitute a central concept of David Allen’s model (wherein the author advocates this very process but could only advise a roundabout process which didn’t yet exist) and makes for a fantastic, stress-free inbox. Each email/task can be assigned a priority in the same fashion as the personal database and these are all modeled after the general ‘inbox’ described in Getting Things Done (such as sorting by ‘Projects’ or ‘Next Action’, ‘Action’, ‘Someday’ or ‘Finished’ statuses).

GTDInbox

It’s difficult to identify any glaring flaws with GTDInbox and it’s at least worth a try for anyone who either wants to start implementing Allen’s model into their work-life or just take advantage of a great, email client add-on. Users should know that the initial add-on is free of charge but that accessing GTDInbox Pro requires a donation (from as low as $15 USD) through PayPal. The Pro version only adds minor features such as early release beta downloads, multi-computer (preference setting) synchronization and special recognition on the user forum so this is hardly a drawback and more of a way to show support for Andy Mitchell and GTDInbox as a program.

Obviously GTDInbox only functions as one part of the Getting Things Done whole but considering the wide array of practicality set out in Allen’s book, Andy Mitchell and team have done a fantastic job of giving consumers an entry point into the system. In terms of achieving the fundamental GTD philosophy of organization and pro-action toward increasing productivity, GTDInbox succeeds marvelously and is well worth the download.

I hope you have all enjoyed this review and look forward to hearing your comments and feelings about GTDInbox.

For those of you who missed the inline link, GTDInbox can be obtained by following this link.

This is the first review of many, and soon I will be accepting request to have products or services reviewed so we can build up a great list.

Thanks, Andrew..

GTD and Productivity Links – 14th September 2008

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Well, I completed my 10K run today for cancer research with my wife, Helen. It is the furthest I have ever ran and we did it in 1:07. I was hoping for a time under and hour but we were really held up over the first 3000 meters due to hilly sections and a very narrow path. There were 1200 people running and the hill was a bit of a bottleneck that we got stuck in.

I have loved having this as a goal and it felt great to do it. I will start to look for another physical challenge now.

So, here are some links for this week.

Well, I am shot, and about to go to bed.

Speak to you all next week.

GTD and Productivity Links – 7th September 2008

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Well, Sunday has come again and it is the time to bring together some great links over the past week. I started to write this post last week and I am saving the links to the post as I find them. Saves me from having to duplicate work when Sunday night comes.

Big thing for this week was the two excellent GTD Seminars from the Office 2.0 Conference. Be sure to check them both out as it is great free content.

Right, here are my links for this week.

  • My first link for this week is a nice list of 99 email security tips that I found useful. I found this post via Ian’s Messy Desk.
  • My second link is the 10 Best Firefox Plugins to Increase Productivity. Now, I just switched last week from Safari to Firefox and plugins like these are part of the reason behind my switch. More on that later.
  • My third link is a review of iGTD from Flipping Heck. I like reading Flipping Heck as it is written by a fellow Brit and we do seem to be way outnumbered by our US colleagues and friends!. I used to use iGTD before I started with OmniFocus and this is a great review of the application that is well worth reading.
  • My fourth link is good review of the Things GTD Application for the Mac by Digmo. Now, I have just installed Things and love the look and feel of it although it will take a lot for me to leave OmniFocus behind. I do have to write a comparison of both so I am going to force myself to play and learn Things to see both sides of the story.
  • My fifth and last link for this week is another link to the Office 2.0 Keynote with David Allen and the Office 2.0 GTD Panel. Check them both out if you have not already done so!.

Got a few posts coming this week including a review of the 4-Hour Work Week, a book I have just finished and another update to my Email Experiment.

Hope you all have had a great weekend and see you all next week.

ScribeFire – Blogging Plugin for FireFox

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I am writing this post using ScribeFire, a plugin for Firefox that enables you to blog direct from the browser.

I have been using Safari as my browser of choice for the last year or so but Firefox 3 really has got my attention and I feel a switch to Firefox is real close. It is the plugins such as ScribeFire, Delicious, and a host of SEO related tools that really attract me to Firefox.

Check out this great video below for an introduction to ScribeFire and some of the features it brings. It looks like a great tool but one that has to be learned and hopefully it will save me time and improve my writing ability so I blog more.

GTD and Productivity Links – 24th August 2008

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In a bid to ramp up the content and readership of this site, I plan to start a new section of this blog with a collection of weekly links.

I am very active in the GTD, Productivity and Motivation arenas and I think it is great how many blogs are appearing right now.

I find some great things to read so it only makes sense to have a weekly summation of the weeks best links that I have found whilst surfing the web for relevant information.

So, for this week, my links are as follows.

  • My fist link is a great review of my current GTD app of choice, OmniFocus. The review is brought to you from Productivity501, a blog that I subscribe to.
  • My second link is another good review of OmniFocus. This time the review is from a neat site called MacApper. MacApper reviews all the latest Mac Apps and it has become a great site that I visit to find out about the little apps that are not mainstream and you don’t always here about.
  • My third link is a comparison of Things and OmniFocus from MirthLab. Now, I use OmniFocus at present but I am going to review Things. I like the visual look of Things, but the functionality of OmniFocus is what wins it for me. Again, a better look at Things is what I need to see if I am missing anything.
  • The fourth link is a collection of GTD tips for Microsoft Outlook. I used to implement quite a few of these tips before embarking on a journey with GTD and before I made the switch to the Mac. Worth a read.
  • The last link for this week is The 4 Ideas That Will Revolutionize Your Productivity from Organize IT. I love these tips and I will be dedicating considerable time to writing about all of them in the coming months.

That is it for this weeks links, hope you are having a great day.

Woopra – Track Your Web Site Visitors in Real Time Better than Google Analytics

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Woopra Web Analytics
At the Bloggers Meet-up I attended on Friday I had the chance to get a beta invite code for Woopra.

Woopra is a Web Site Analytics program similar in operation to Google Analytics. These type of Analytics differ from the log based Analytics Apps such as AWStats that is provided with most hosting accounts. The reason these differ is that these rely upon Javascript code on each page in order for the Analytics program to work.

In order to start using Woopra, you have to register for an account at the Woopra website. You can then add your websites to your account. If you have a beta invite code, your sites are enabled immediately. If not, you have to wait until they release some more codes and approve your site. I am unaware how long this takes at present.

Once your site is approved, you need to start using the tracking Javascript. There is a WordPress plugin that you enable and then enter the Website ID into the Plugin Configuration Screen, that is found on your WordPress Dashboard. If your site is not WordPress, you need to manually enter the Javascript shown on your Woopra Account just before the tag. I use a PHP Include for the footer for one of my non WordPress sites so this was very easy for me.

To view the Woopra Analytics, you either use the Woopra website, which shows limited information but the best way to view the stats is with the downloadable client. This client is available now for Windows and Mac. The Mac version has just been updated and works now without needing the latest 64bit only Java Runtime.

You enter your Woopra details into the client and it stars receiving stats for your account in real time.

Now, the killer use of Woopra is the real time alerting. You can see visitors as they come to your site in real time, along with information such as the referrer and also what page they are currently on. I have to date not used any tool that comes even close to what is offered by Woopra. You can also interact with the users by opening up a MSN Messenger type window in their browser. This seems like a really powerful tool for sales based companies to track web site usage and attempt to interact with the potential customer in real time as you can see how the visitor came to the site.

I have enabled Woopra on three sites. One is WordPress, one is hand cranked PHP and the other used RapidWeaver. I have got it working fine on all three with no fuss whatsoever.

Below is a screenshot showing a map of the world that shows which nation your visitors are coming from.

Woopra Web Analytics

The screenshot below shows one of the many representations of data. This case for referrers.

Woopra Web Analytics

I know a lot of fellow bloggers and webmasters read this blog. If you have not yet tried Woopra, what are you waiting for. I think this is the best analytics tool I have used and cannot wait to see how it develops in the future.

WordPress iPhone App

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Just a quick post as I am writing this blog post from my Hotel room in Winchester as I am working away for a while with a client.

The cool thing is that I am writing this using the brand new WordPress App for the iPhone.

The App allows you to add multiple blogs and view, edit, and write new posts.

This will be great for me to write little Twitted type snippets to my blogs although adding images and links may prove hard with no copy and paste yet on the iPhone.

Well, I am going to start my day now. Have a good one!