bioneural.net » productivity

Personal productivity on Mac and iPhone

Bruce — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 19:36:58 +0000

As mentioned in an earlier post on using faux Contacts for collecting, managing, and synching tasks offline on the iPhone, I've been reading Getting things done (GTD) by David Allen. I have to say I found the book a difficult, overly repetitive and non-engaging read, despite my motivation to learn from it. If you could get a lot of things done in the time it takes to read 267 anecdote-heavy pages, here's my somewhat condensed take on the bits worth sharing, along with a few Mac-specific embellishments. This is Part two of a two-part series exploring GTD using a Mac and iPhone. It may make more sense if you review Part one first. Introduction I've been hooked on task lists since I first installed Claris Organizer 1.0 from floppy disk (remember those?) onto my PowerBook 100. Organizer incorporated Calendar, Contacts, Notes, and Tasks into a single interface—and I do appreciate integration. That app evolved into Palm Desktop and when I bought a Palm V in 1999 my obsessive list-keeping became mobile and subsequently synchronised via various apps including Entourage, iCal, iSync, and Missing Sync. While recent apps like OmniFocus and Things are rather pretty and more GTD-savvy, I'd prefer to rely the Apple-supplied tools I already have. Doing so is simpler (the less tools involved the better—that's one of Allen's recommendations), less costly, and makes use of the typically well-executed integration between Apple apps and devices. Reconciling task and time management Notice I said "typically" well-executed integration. Sadly integration of calendars, tasks, and notes between ...

Using faux Contacts for GTD on the iPhone

Bruce — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 16:16:28 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

Despite strong indications of an imminent second generation 3G iPhone, the recent £100 price drop on the 8GB iPhone proved too tempting. I had hesitated because the iPhone failed to meet my minimum requirements for basic PDA functionality. With 1Password mostly overcoming the secure data exchange obstacle, the remaining challenge was to find a network-independent way of managing and synchronising tasks ("to do" items). I've also been wading through David Allen's book Getting Things Done in a search for ways to improve my personal productivity. Could I cherry-pick the key principles of the GTD religion and apply them on the iPhone using only the built-in apps? This is Part one of a two-part series exploring GTD using a Mac and iPhone. Part two is here. The essence of GTD The OmniFocus Basics Video does a good job of distilling the core ideas in the GTD method. It outlines three concepts: Actions are something you can physically do in a single step; Projects are activities that require more than one physical action to complete; Contexts are physical requirements for carrying out actions (e.g. being at work, at home, connected to the Internet, etc.) The video also summarizes three workflow steps to getting things done: Capture all outstanding individual ("atomic") actions; Organize those actions by grouping them into projects and/ or context; Do the outstanding actions. Let's put that graphically (adding horizontal reorganization as part of ongoing review): I'm not being strict about contexts being a physical place, person or thing: in my world a context can be a frame of mind, or an ...

Up-to-date apps via Dashboard

Bruce — Sat, 22 Dec 2007 14:58:31 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

In the "make dashboard useful" vein, freeware App Update is like Apple's Software Update for your third-party applications. It can be set to check what's in /Applications against VersionTracker, MacUpdate, or Apple—manually or automatically. Growl support too. Not always 100% accurate, but close.

Bridge v Lightroom v Aperture

Bruce — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 23:30:52 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

Ben Long nicely summarises the capabilities of Bridge (included with Photoshop CS3) in the context of dedicated workflow applications like Abobe's Lightroom and Apple's Aperture. The last word? "No piece of software will make you a better photographer... Instead, go out and shoot!". Perhaps too much efficiency could mean missing valuable lessons if not enough time is spent analysing individual images in order to improve capture, composition, and processing technique?

The Universal Packing List

Bruce — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 21:01:29 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

The Universal Packing List: And I thought I was organized with my list... Feed your trip dates, expected temperatures, gender, intended accommodation, dependents, planned activities, transport options, and more into this form to output a customized packing list. A list-followers dream!

Attach files to iCal events

Bruce — Sat, 22 Apr 2006 11:46:51 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

An iCal user since the beginning, I never knew you could attach any file to an event and open it by clicking on the url field. Ideal for those larger memos, or for integrating the list-making ability of Word or diagramming tools of OmniGraffle.

Visiting the other PDA platform (first 48 hrs)

Bruce — Fri, 14 Oct 2005 14:31:03 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

Palm or Windows Mobile? I've been firmly in the Palm camp to date, but have just acquired a Pocket PC together with Missing Sync for Windows Mobile. This is not a review of the Dell Axim X50v, but rather a functional comparison with my Palm T3 from the point-of-view of a Mac user. How did a Palm user making a trial transition to Pocket PC fair when pairing the device with Mac OS X? For given applications and functionality, does Palm or Pocket PC have the winning edge? Will he or won't he become a "switcher"? First impressions count, so I decided to document my experiences during the first 48 hours with a Pocket PC. There will be plenty to revisit in subsequent bloggings... The outgoing Dell Axim X50v Now superseded by the X51v, Dell were having a 20% off clear-out of the previous model, now 1 year old. The hardware is the same aside from double the ROM. Buying direct saved £77 over Expansys (shop around!) and avoided having to fight it out on eBay for a similar price. It cost me less than a Fujitsu Siemens Loox 720 "Grade B" stock which seemed like a similar spec alternative. I chose a "Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PC Second Edition" device because Missing Sync (see below) doesn't yet support Windows Mobile 5.0 (free update pending); Dell has announced that there will be a WM5 upgrade for the X50v (not free), so I have options. The X50v doesn't match my recent wish-list, but then ...

The perfect PDA + phone

Bruce — Thu, 15 Sep 2005 08:22:44 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

I have a Palm T3 paired with a T610 which I'm generally happy with. It's my third Palm with the selling-point of flash ROM, and the third time I've seen the OS develop (slightly) with no upgrade path for existing Palm users. For example, the T3 shipped with VersaMail 2.6 which doesn't work with Gmail; 2.7 does work on the T3 although Palm does not officially support this (I guess they want you to buy a new device). So don't buy a Palm with a view to it maturing with age! What would I want to upgrade to then? A wish list: Things I don't need Flash ROM (Palm at least never deliver on upgradability); A multitasking OS (I can only do one thing at a time on a small screen); A web browser (surfing is costly over a mobile, not to mention slow, cramped, and lacking good CSS support); An IM client (I'll use the phone); An intrared port (there's Bluetooth + WiFi, I have no legacy devices, and prefer dedicated remote controls in the living room); "Push" e-mail (checking it manually once a day when abroad is fine—assuming you can get a GPRS signal). Why have WiFI? A number of apps (Palm and PPC) can update wirelessly—important functionality when there is no Mac conduit for synchronisation; Using a VNC client on the PDA allows control of a desktop computer from another room; Use Skype for PPC to turn your PDA into a wireless VoIP phone; You can apparently stream a DVD via VLC on a desktop to a PPC media player; Software ...

An iCal tip for hidden notes

Bruce — Sat, 26 Feb 2005 20:47:28 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net :

Apple's iCal has its merits, but it also has its faults. One of these is that in month view it is impossible to see if an event or task (to do) has a Note attached to it. Here's a quick tip to make sure that important notes don't get overlooked. Every event in iCal has a Notes field associated with it, which can be a useful place to store a variety of information. This might include, for example: driving directions; questions to ask at a meeting; gift ideas if the event is a birthday; itinerary information for a holiday; companies to check out when your insurance needs renewal; etc. A typical event will appear in the calendar as a title only (see "Lorem" below). Simply add a symbol to the title that will indicate to you that the event has a Note attached (I chose ">"): The same trick works for items on your to do list: Personally I find this easier than using an additional application just for memos/ notes. If all my organizing is done in iCal on the Mac, I know I can find the same information in Calendar and Tasks on my Palm; I don't need to reply on a third party Memo app for the Mac or Palm (with Conduit).