Tag Archives: iphone

Productivity on the Apple iPad Links – 31st January 2010

The biggest news of the week has to be the Apple Media event that took place on Wednesday announcing the Apple iPad.

I will be writing my own initial thoughts on the Apple iPad hopefully this week before I go on my trip to Washington DC.

So, I thought I would share a great collection of iPad and Productivity links with you this week.

Here are my collection of links for this week.

  • My first link for this week is to a great post from John Kendrick on his blog titled iPad – the Perfect GTD Solution?. Great preview of the forthcoming iPad and a great look into how this can be integrated into your GTD system.
  • My second link is a link to iPad or Bust, the iPad blog post from the OmniGroup. OmniGroup are the company behind OmniFocus, my GTD app of choice and the one I use daily on my iPhone and Mac. Obviously myself and a lot of other folk are interested in hearing about the development plans for the Apple iPad and I am not disappointed so far in what I am hearing.
  • My third link is to the Evernote Blog post that announces their intention to provide support for the Apple iPad. Great news and I cannot wait to see what Evernote have in store for the Apple iPad.
  • My fourth link is a link to the iPad review from The Productive Organizer. As well as a review of the product this post goes and looks into some possible applications for productivity and how they will be enhanced on the Apple iPad.
  • My fifth and last link is a link to the official Apple Website for the iPad. There is a really awesome video on the Apple site that really shows off the iPad in all its glory.

Hope you all have a great week ahead!

OmniFocus, GTD, and You – Free Whitepaper

This white paper has been out a few days and I was meaning to blog about it sooner but only just got the chance due to my every increasing workload.

So, here is the news regarding OmniFocus and GTD.

OmniGroup, the team behind the Mac and iPhone Getting Things Done app, OmniFocus have released an awesome and free white paper titled OmniFocus, GTD, and You.

This is a 20 page white paper that looks at GTD and the way that you can implement it in a software application such as OmniFocus. Obviously this is very biased towards OmniFocus but the white paper is also of use and contains great information for those of you who do not use OmniFocus.

The white paper starts with a statement from David Allen, the creator of the Getting Things Done Methodology.

“OmniFocus is a stellar tool for keeping track of outcomes and actions in the Mac environment. It supports simple but important practices for keeping your head clear, staying focused, and managing your commitments.”, David Allen.

Great for OmniFocus to get this endorsement from David Allen, and an endorsement that is well deserved. DavidCo, the company of David Allen are now promoting OmniFocus as their Mac GTD app of choice in their online store.

I am not affiliated with OmniGroup or OmniFocus in any way so I have nothing to gain. I have used OmniFocus since the first beta versions and I have recommended it to many people.

Be sure to check out this white paper and if you do use a Mac, give OmniFocus a try!

PDF Productivity with iPhone and Dropbox

iphone dropbox pdf productivityThis is the first guest post that I have had on DidIGetThingsDone.com and it is written by Chris Garrett, co-author of the ProBlogger Book, speaker at many blogging and new media conferences and a genuine good guy.

In this post, Chris is going to provide an overview of PDF Productivity with the Apple iPhone and Dropbox.

Since I bought my iPod touch, and more recently upgraded to an iPhone 3GS, I have been making better use of my time by reading PDF documents while out and about. You can see more about my iPhone software productivity obsession here.

It is amazing how much spare time you actually have in a day. Think of all the times you are just waiting.

  • Daily commute
  • Waiting in line
  • Sat at a restaurant table
  • Outside changing rooms while friend or family member tries on their 20th item
  • Before meetings
  • After calling a taxi
  • Airport lounges
  • Security lines

Rather than sit and stare into space or doodle on a napkin, I have been reading ebooks, memorizing from mindmaps, and generally trying to fill the time while filling my head.

Up to now I have been getting these documents onto my iPhone using various methods such as emailing them to myself, or using an app called Files that allows you to configure your iPhone as a mini file server. Now I have a better choice, which makes moving files to your iPhone AND enabling offline storage much easier.

Dropbox now has an iPhone application!

If you do not know Dropbox, you are in for a treat. It is a free online storage space (up to 2gb, then you start paying) that allows you to sync files between computers and your online storage. It’s like a hard disk that follows you around. Now with the iPhone app you can sync to your iPhone too. And when you make the file a favorite you have instant access to the file even without an internet connection.

Go to https://www.getdropbox.com and check it out and create an account, then install the appropriate desktop application for your computer type (windows, mac and linux). When you have done that, grab the iPhone app and get logged in. Now any files you drag on to your Dropbox will appear on your iPhone – easy!

Of course my wife is not happy that I have my head down tinkering with my iPhone all the time … as yet I haven’t found an app that can help with that particular speed bump …

Do you see the iPhone as a productivity boon or a productivity pain? Please let me know in the comments …

MindJet MindManager iPhone Application

At long last, my prayers are answered and MindJet have today launched their Mind Mapping application for the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch.

I am a devout MindManager user and have been for years. Over the past few months I have been using MindMeister more and more, mainly because of the rather cool ability to syn between their awesome web app and the iPhone Application.

MindJet MindManager iPhone

I have just purchased and downloaded the MindJet Mind Manager application.

My initial thoughts are mixed. The layout and look of the application is great. I must admit that I am not so sure on the way you enter topics. You jump from the main window to a separate entry window where the details are entered for each topic. Do I prefer the much simpler on screen method as used by MindMeister and iBlueSky?

There are a lot more bells and whistles in this app over the competition. But, I normally use the iPhone as a capturing device where my Mind Maps are very basic, just capturing the key concepts. I normally refine the Mind Map at a later date on my Mac.

The transfer/sync ability is definitely not up to the same standard as MindMeister. It would be great to see the ability to sync my Mind Maps with the desktop version of Mind Manager but I am sure this will be out in a later release.

Here is a little video published by MindJet.

Mindjet for iPhone from Mindjet on Vimeo.

I know this is the first release of the software and I hope it will improve because I really do want to be able to use this and get the most out of this application.

I will be putting this through its paces over the next few days and I will return back with a more in depth review.

Looking forward to hearing any comments that you may have.

Productivity, Motivation, and Personal Development Links – 5th July 2009

I am now back from what has been a totally fantastic holiday with my family in Northumberland.

I was virtually disconnected for the whole week with only 2G on my iPhone and an unusable 20Kbps through my 3G modem on my MacBook Air. It was actually quite refreshing, especially for somebody like me is spends most of their time awake online in some form or another.

I will stop my thoughts here about my holiday as I really want to try to get these down in a blog post tomorrow if time permits.

I am writing this on my kitchen table as I still have to get my new home office sorted. I aim to get to Ikea at the start of this week to get my desk and chair sorted then I am hunting for a good filing cabinet.

Here are my collection of links for this week.

  • My first link for this week is a great blog post about GTD Hacks from Annie Anderson. In this post Annie presents a few hacks that she implements as part of her own system for getting things done. Great reading and I am happy these hacks are working for Annie and making her more productive.
  • My second link is a link to a post about coping with information overload from Mark Wilson. This is an adapted list from the 2005 issue of Management Today that Mark found after returning from a family holiday. A nice little list of pointers for getting through a work overload.
  • My third link is a link to a blog post titled Rely on Your Inner Strength from Raymond Blanc. This is more of a psychology link than a motivational link but it is a post that I enjoyed so I thought I would share it.
  • My fourth link is a link to a part one of a great series of tips about the Mac GTD Application, OmniFocus. These tips are aimed at the advanced user of OmniFocus and I have liked reading all of these as I would not class myself as a novice user. I will present links to the other parts in this series in future weeks or you can just work them out from the initial post.
  • My fifth and last link is a link to a blog authors top ten iPhone apps. I have not done one of these for a while and with the launch of the iPhone 3G S I thought I would as most of these apps are productivity related. I had never seen SugarSync and I am just checking that out now.

Wishing you all a very productive week ahead. I am looking forward to getting my head stuck back into work as I am working on some rather cool projects right now!

iPhone 3.0 Update Improves GTD Productivity Applications

The much publicized Apple iPhone 3.0 update was released around 1000 PDT yesterday.

I started my update as soon as I could and installed the latest version of the iPhone OS eagerly waiting to test out some of the new features. All very well and good.

Today, my two killer iPhone Apps, OmniFocus and Evernote both got upgraded to take advantage of the iPhone 3.0 features.

OmniFocus

OmniFocus version 1.5 for the iPhone has been released.

The main feature in this upgrade include integration of cut, copy, and paste features as well as utilizing the integrated maps.

OmniFocus iPhone

The full blog post for this latest version can be found at the OmniGroup Blog. The OmniFocus for iPhone product page is also worth checking out.

Evernote

Evernote version 3.0 for the iPhone brings some great new features all that are outlined at this Evernote Blog Post.

These improvements include better synchronization, no “Pending” Tab, Instant Groups, Advanced Searching, Way Better Audio, Landscape View and many bug fixes.

The great guys over at Evernote have made a nice little video of the latest features of 3.0.

This is a great time to own an iPhone if you are into productivity!

Thoughts, as usual are welcomed..

Things Apple Mac GTD App Review

I have eventually got around to taking a better look at the Mac GTD app, Things, and adding to a review that I did a while ago.

I currently use OmniFocus but Things and The Hit List are grabbing my attention. Anyway, here is my review and thoughts about Things.

Things GTD

Things is a blandly named but ultimately excellent organizational application designed for use through a variety of mediums.

The visual approach taken by Things is simple enough to keep everything easily accessible while still maintaining an impressive level of flare. Designers have given the software a certain level of sheen although the layout will look immediately familiar to users who are accustomed to the aesthetic of Mac-developed programs.

The most useful features are well-labeled and located in a well-organized and convenient manner. Icons are all colorful and easy to locate as well and this is something which helps in navigating them against the otherwise grey and white interface.

The program provides users with a solid level of productivity access through a great list of truly useful features. Among the laundry list of options are GTD staple categories such as Today, Next, Someday and Postpone sorting categories with appropriate sub-lists available within each parent grouping.

Things GTD App

Perhaps most useful is an included HUD option, something which is a truly fantastic feature and allows for quick, no-nonsense inputting of any upcoming task on the user’s mind.

Things also does a great job of keeping the main window clutter-free by way of a feature which removes columns and instead opts to display only relevant information for upcoming tasks.

Mobile access is set up and ready to go through a few different platforms including the ever popular support for both the iPhone and iPod Touch Apps. While it seems that smartphone access may initially be limited to the two aforementioned devices Things does do a little bit to extend remote usage by programming a built-in collaboration feature which promises to link any user’s work with any desired colleague.

As of now an exhaustive wiki accompanies a regular blog and burgeoning forum to provide quite a bit of promise for those users who hope to find other Things devotees to discuss the program with. If this element of the project is kept up with then it would seem that peer support and company interaction won’t be an issue upon release.

Things is impressive with a clean interface, excellent user support and great list of features could make Things one of the few productivity programs worthy of plunking down any real money for. It’s definitely worth the time necessary to check out to decide for yourself.

I am sticking with OmniFocus for now. But Things has officially got my attention!

Well, over to you, my readers. How many of you use Things and how many use OmniFocus or another app to get things done?

Evernote for the Blackberry is Here

At long last, the awesome collection tool Evernote is available for the BlackBerry mobile platform.

I love Evernote and currently use it on the web, my Mac, and my iPhone. I used to be a Blackberry user and I know that a lot of Blackberry users have been waiting for this for quite a while.

This was announced on the Evernote Blog where you can find full release information.

I will leave you with a little video from Evernote about the Integration.

Productivity, Motivation, and Personal Development Links – 15th March 2009

I have just returned from a great four day break in the English Lake District with my wife. We were lucky to get babysitter for our children and we escaped for three great nights in the Lakes.

On Friday we did an 8 mile walk of Loughrigg Fell. Taking in Loughrigg Tarn, Grasmere, and Rydal Water. On Saturday we walked three of the Langdale Pikes, Pavey Ark, Harrison Stickle and Pike Of Stickle.

Had a great relaxing weekend away from the usual stresses and strains. I manged to eventually start reading “The Creative Habit” by Twyla Tharp. I bought this book around Christmas and I am enjoying reading it. Full review to follow.

Quite a big GTD week this week with the GTD Summit taking place in San Francisco. No doubt there will be loads of news to follow.

Here are my collection of links for this week.

  • My first link for this week is a post about Email Zero! – We have all heard of Inbox Zero, well how about Email Zero!. This is a post that outlines what an MIT Professor has done to only read his email once every three months.
  • My second link is a link to a 7 Step Program of Stress Management. We all have stress and we all handle it in different ways. I do not tend to show stress but that can be the worse way to handle it as it is there building up inside of you. This is a neat little post with 7 steps on how to handle your stress.
  • My third link is a link originally from Twitter about the way one user uses OmniFocus. I love OmniFocus and I love reading about how other people use it in their lives.
  • My fourth link is a link to a new GTD application called Getting Things Gnome. Getting Things Gnome, or GTG is the first true GTD application for the Linux GUI, Gnome. This is a great step forward for any Linux GTD’ers and I will be trying this app out in the coming weeks on one of my Linux laptops.
  • My fifth and last link is another application. This is Pocket Informant, and the fact that it is coming soon to the Apple iPhone. I used to use Pocket Informant way before GTD when I had my old Windows Mobile iPaq. Great little app and I will love to see how it shapes up on the iPhone.

Wishing you all a productive week, as always!

Andrew..

Productivity, Motivation, and Personal Development Links – 8th March 2009

Had a great day yesterday at ThinkVisibility which was a one day social media, SEO, and blogging conference that was held in my home town of Leeds. Great speakers and I left the day feeling inspired!

Here are a collection of links for this week.

  • My first link for this week is a great post on GTDTimes from David Pierce explaining why the Web Works for GTD. David is a reader of this blog and regular commenter and it is great to see him turn his hand to writing, well done and great post!
  • My second link is a link to a post that reviews Things for the iPhone. I briefly tried Things but I am still firmly routed to my GTD App of choice, OmniFocus.
  • My third link is a link to a Helpful Guide on how to Reduce Stress. Nice little post where the author identifies Procrastination as the largest issue. Worth a read or listen as they have the facility to play the blog post via a podcast.
  • My fourth link is a nice list of Top iPhone Apps from the Molanphy Blog. I am posting this link as I read the short review of Ambience and then went ahead and bought it.
  • My fifth and last link for this week is a link to a competition on the Nozbe Blog to win a free pass to the GTD Summit in San Francisco. This is a free gift with a $2295 value and if you are around the bay area a great prize to win! You have to comment on the post at the Nozbe blog in order to stand a chance of winning.

Wishing you all a productive week, as always!

Andrew..