Tracking DONE items

greenmug

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I've been using IFTTT to send my completed items from my to do list to a Google calendar. Can you recommend a better way of moving your done items for archiving?
 

mcogilvie

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Sorry, you didn't give very much information. What todo list software are you using? On what platforms? What would a better way of archiving look like for you?
 

Gnopps

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Not knowing what you want to do with the tracked items or how you want them displayed it is difficult to say. What I did for a while was to send all done items to Beeminder (via IFTTT) to track how much I was doing over time.
 

greenmug

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I've been using Toodledo (PC and android). I have many "one-off" next actions that don't really need to be archived. But I have other NAs that are part of a project that may need to be repeated someday, so having my completed notes and done dates could be handy. My calendar archiving isn't great because actions aren't connected. I probably just need to invest in better project management software.

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Gardener

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I suspect that the solution might depend on the project, rather than necessarily being defined by your GTD system.

I was thinking, "I don't record Done actions," and then I realized that my Bed Book, mentioned a couple of times in recent threads, is pretty much exactly that. It's a bound notebook with one page for each of my 120 garden beds, and when I do something meaningful to a bed, or notice something about a bed that I want to remember, I note what I've done in that bed's page. Since "do something" is often a result of an action, that means that it's effectively a record of Done actions.

Generalized, it's essentially a lab notebook, which is one classic way of keeping a record of done actions--though, again, it's probably not thought of precisely that way. I think that a lab notebook or binder could be useful for a lot of different projects. I'm not imagining sitting down to do a lot of writing at the end of the project, but instead keeping it as a companion through the project.

Other random examples:

When writing code, changes are often recorded through comments, test records, release notes, etc.

Meetings get meeting notes. Or the lab notebook could be used for taking notes.

In general, I guess I'm seeing the problem not as "recording done items" but as keeping a record of potentially useful items, throughout the project.
 

greenmug

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Gardener;190328 said:
When writing code, changes are often recorded through comments, test records, release notes, etc.

Meetings get meeting notes. Or the lab notebook could be used for taking notes.

In general, I guess I'm seeing the problem not as "recording done items" but as keeping a record of potentially useful items, throughout the project.

Gardener, I like your analogy of a lab notebook. That's exactly what I'm trying to track as I work my way through projects. I see that I naturally do that when the project has clearly defined edges (computer program with comments, new writing project with outlines, etc) but I start to feel like important info is slipping away when the edges of the project are less defined at the start (eg. Committee work with constantly evolving objectives)

I recently tried IQTELL after seeing it mentioned on this forum. I like how I can save all the work together for a project. The app is a little quirky and not entirely intuitive, so I haven't committed to it quite yet but I don't see anything better out there at the moment.

Thanks again

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Phillip

Registered
I got some apps on my Android, here's my review if you interest.

1. Any.do
Free
The best app. Easy to use, genuinely helpful and quality. No bugs etc. Only negative is when you want to set a task it automatically opens Google talk. I set reminders all the time during work and other places and having it talk out loud is not ideal.

Google Play:https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.anydo
apk: http://choilieng.com/apk-on-pc/com.anydo.apk

2. Asana: Team Tasks & Projects

Free; prices vary for Premium
Free at Asana
Useful companion for managers on the go Use it on the go all the time. Generally asana is good for single big project and becomes a mess when you have several teams in several projects. So if you have simple projects structure asana is for you. Also asana is very useful for home/family planning and repeating tasks like paying bills. That's what i like asana for. On the other hand it is a complete waste for any development work. There are no tasks ids, it is almost impossible to open several tasks in other tabs. Simple projects only.
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.asana.app
apk: http://choilieng.com/apk-on-pc/com.asana.app.apk

3. Evernote: Sync all data, documents. Very convenient
Easy organization I love this app- I mainly use it to keep track of my receipts. The only thing that bothers me, is that I can't organize them by date. I'm usually pretty good about entering them into the app in order, but sometimes I miss one, and it would be nice to be able to manually choose the date so I can find things later when I need to.

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.evernote
apk: http://choilieng.com/apk-on-pc/com.evernote.apk

4. Google Drive

Very poplular

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.apps.docs
apk: http://choilieng.com/apk-on-pc/com.google.android.apps.docs.apk

5. IF by IFTTT

Free

Very Useful One thing I like about this app is the user interface. It has a very beautiful design. Another great feature is that this app is very useful. For example: I get notified only my mom's home and get phone gets connected to the OnHub. This app is very useful if you have a bunch of smart devices.

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ifttt.ifttt
apk: http://choilieng.com/apk-on-pc/com.ifttt.ifttt.apk
 

acc.mcpherson

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"I've been using Toodledo (PC and android). I have many "one-off" next actions that don't really need to be archived. But I have other NAs that are part of a project that may need to be repeated someday, so having my completed notes and done dates could be handy. My calendar archiving isn't great because actions aren't connected. I probably just need to invest in better project management software."

I am totally befuddled by this comment as I have been a Toodledo user for many years and you can access all your completed items. The search is the most powerful tool and you can pull out whatever you want. If you have tasks that need to be repeated you can use the repeat task functionality or just clone the task that has been completed and move it to someday maybe. It's all doable it's just a question of how you manage your "process" and lists. In my experience, the search for better software is never the answer.
 

Jan Ernest

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I've been using IFTTT to send my completed items from my to do list to a Google calendar. Can you recommend a better way of moving your done items for archiving?

Notes already done with Evernote are tagged as "Completed", and "To archive", then transferred physically to an Archive Notebook. Those items that I have organized in placing into a calendar, and a task management app like Todoist, they simply function as checklist or to-do's in that app and once done, simply click them.
 

ggray50

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Don't laugh, but I use Excel for my lists. Its just very easy to use and I can use it at home and at work by keeping it on OneDrive. One of the tabs is for archiving completed actions. I simply cut and paste completed actions to the archive tab. Of course, you can program Excel to do this automatically if you've got the know how.
 

TesTeq

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Don't laugh, but I use Excel for my lists. Its just very easy to use and I can use it at home and at work by keeping it on OneDrive.
What smartphone do you use? Is it easy to access your Excel @Errands list in a store?
 

ggray50

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I don't do errands very often (thanks to my wife) but when I have one, I just include it on my home next action list. For those rare errands that I do need to do myself, I tend to jot the details down on a piece of paper before I go out, rather than use my phone in the store.
 
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