Is there a place for new app for GTD?

[Zielun]

Hi there,

There is quite a lot apps that can be used but do you thing there is a room for a brand new one?
Do you think that apps that you've chosen once are perfect or good enough, or rather it's the best you could find but there is plenty things that should be added/modified to improve GTD model?
Do you think that there is a room for new application like this, with maybe different approach, design, functionality that you couldn't find in existed ones so far? If you could name a few things that's in your opinion is missing that would be great.

I'm trying to figure out if it's worth to invest quality of time and resources to build something new from scratch. I use one app and I'm quite satisfied with how it works but see some areas that could be improved i.e. web interface and UX on both desktop and mobile.

Thanks in advance for your opinions on this.

 

[GTDClone]

I'm not interested in having a new app for gtd however I think there is always room for new stuff for other people
For me it would not be worth it though

 

[Zielun]

Thanks

 

[Suelin23]

Yes I think so. I haven't seen any app that is designed to meet everything GTD, and if there was one I would definitely change. I am using Pocket Informant, and I can sort of manage to sort by context and time (using tags), or context and priority, but I'd really like to be able to sort by context, time, energy and priority and be able to change the sort order too. I'd also like to have a project list that I can group by area of focus. And links to my checklists and natural planning model.

 

[TesTeq]

Reliable, easy to use (easy data input) and ubiquitous list manager and calendar.

There is quite a lot apps that can be used but do you thing there is a room for a brand new one?
Do you think that apps that you've chosen once are perfect or good enough, or rather it's the best you could find but there is plenty things that should be added/modified to improve GTD model?
Do you think that there is a room for new application like this, with maybe different approach, design, functionality that you couldn't find in existed ones so far? If you could name a few things that's in your opinion is missing that would be great.

Reliable, easy to use (easy data input) and ubiquitous list manager and calendar - that's all that you need for GTD.

 

[mcogilvie]

I'm trying to figure out if it's worth to invest quality of time and resources to build something new from scratch. I use one app and I'm quite satisfied with how it works but see some areas that could be improved i.e. web interface and UX on both desktop and mobile.

Thanks in advance for your opinions on this.

I think it's a crowded space now for mac-iPhone-iPad apps that are useful for GTD. Windows seems dominated by Outlook. In the web+ arena, I suppose the question is whether you could do something that is clearly superior to Toodledo. It has a not-so-pretty web ui, but is very robust. Maybe there's a market for a good Android app, but I don't know.

 

[Vickie]

I totally agree that there are way too many of the productivity apps out there already that essentially all do the same thing but I would love to see an app for the latest podcasts, articles, newsletter, tips, etc from David co. I have a similar app for a site called Morning Coach and think that's useful. It would be great to get push notification reminders and tips.

 

[pxt]

If you want to do something unique, I would suggest you forget about the app idea and think instead in terms of cross-platform components that allow users to construct their GTD workflows from tools they are already familiar with.

Take a tiny example of collection.
I write notes to self via email to a mailbox called Collector.
When I see a cool website, I add it to a bookmark called Collector.
I could now write some script that regularly gathers my bookmarked web sites and emails them to me.
Now I have a single collector: my email inbox.
So I can do clarification anytime I have an internet connection, using my favorite email software.
Plus my data is in an open format (IMAP email) that I own and I can move my data to a different client or even a different email provider.
But what about when I have collected a website but want to do clarification when I'm offline, like on a train commute?
Well safari can save entire web pages to a .webarchive.
And GoodReader can display those webarchives perfectly on an iPad.
And Dropbox can sync and save those .webarchives to my iPad.
But none of it just works. I have to set things up and do manual saves and transfers and caching, etc.

So the trick is to leverage what already exists and make it all flow together and allow the user to insert their tools of choice where possible.

 

[May]

If you want to do something unique, I would suggest you forget about the app idea and think instead in terms of cross-platform components that allow users to construct their GTD workflows from tools they are already familiar with.

Sounds similar to Personal Brain, except you don't really need any other tools when you use it.

 

[May]

But what about when I have collected a website but want to do clarification when I'm offline, like on a train commute?
Well safari can save entire web pages to a .webarchive.
And GoodReader can display those webarchives perfectly on an iPad.
And Dropbox can sync and save those .webarchives to my iPad.
But none of it just works. I have to set things up and do manual saves and transfers and caching, etc.

I use Evernote separately just for a single purpose, as an inbox. It's cross platform, you can forward emails, photos, monitor a folder, save webpages, articles and etc.

I don't keep anything in Evernote though, it's just an inbox. Everything useful is moved to Personal Brain eventually. I don't really need Evernote though, it just works faster and more convenient as an inbox

 

[able222]

Every Note is Evernote

I use evernote to catpure all next actions, including capturing all misc reference material. Knowing whatever I capture on the go is accessible anywhere, I've found that besides an iphone calender and a strong project manager that's all I need.

Evernote is really good.

 

[Anitteb]

I have spent the last week comparing solutions, but even my frontrunners have major flaws.
Nozbe.com: Does not sync with iCal (big no-no), no ability to add notes to tasks, no sub-context, no desktop app (Supposed to be coming), too expensive);
GetItDone: not sure they've read GTD? No context(s) at all (has to be hacked by using tags or similar), no url links in notes (what's the point of a note if it cannot contain a link?), no desktop app;
toodledo: horrible UI - too much information that looks very cluttered, no desktop app (what do you do when you don't have access to the web???), no integration with Evernote.

It would be great to actually find an application that does things actually the GTD way

 

[TesTeq]

Subcontexts are not the part of the original GTD specification.

It would be great to actually find an application that does things actually the GTD way

Could you please specify what does it mean?

For example subcontexts are not the part of the original GTD specification - this feature is just your own preference.

 

[Anitteb]

Could you please specify what does it mean?

For example subcontexts are not the part of the original GTD specification - this feature is just your own preference.

Here us what "GTD way" means to me in the context of this discussion:

1. Basic Set-Up: Provide me with the core "infrastructure": inbox, actions (with someday option), projects, tickler and maybe altitude, ideally a tool that also makes my reviews cohesive and easier. For example: GetItDone does not have "contexts". The way tabs are used there is not very efficient - and does not replace that function.

2. Integration / Sync: In the digital age, it means that I am empowered to manage actionable items in an integrated way: that includes (for me) the ability to i.e. integrate with tools like Evernote, or Backpack,or similar, so I can easily find my materials (frequently materials for a project or action); it also should mean that I can have links in my notes (to i.e. the phone number of that person I am planning the call with, or the documents we need to go over in that conversation, etc.). It should also have the capabilities to sync with the most common digital calendar formats (i.e. iCal or Google Calendar).

3. Convergence: I know that mobile was not a major focus when GTD started: but for many of us, our mobile tools (phones and tablets) have become the remote controls for all of our daily activities.

To get things done today, I think, requires tools that live in all the dimensions of how we work (computer desktop, web and mobile) and must be able to seamlessly transition between mobile, desktop, web and (maybe) paper (in our case not so much: we're a green company, so most of our documents, means 90%+ of any reference and other materials etc. are digital and not on paper).

Hope that clarifies?

 

[ehpehp]

"toodledo: horrible UI - too much information that looks very cluttered, no desktop app (what do you do when you don't have access to the web???), no integration with Evernote. "

Yes, toodledo's UI isn't great. The project framework in particular is clunky. For me, it's good enough, and it accommodates my world of a Windows PC at work, and Apple devices at home. There's a nice ipad app that works off-line.

 

[mr.chris]

Anitteb's GTD app wish list

Here us what "GTD way" means to me in the context of this discussion:

My iphone project covers much of what you desire (what isn't covered is planned for the next version):

Regarding point (1): Basic Set-Up
* The Inbox is clearly labeled and is persistently located along the bottom of the screen as you peruse your Projects.

* Each Project is given its own summary view that displays (at your option) only the Next Action in series or all Actions (in parallel).

* You can easily associate contexts like Calendar Events, Full Contact Information, and mapped Places (with directions, phone number and physical address) with each of your Actions. Intention+ally makes use of data from the on-board Calendar and Contacts apps; it doesn't waste space on your device with unnecessary replacements for these apps.
-- for additional, specialized contexts, you can add Twitter-like hash-tags anywhere in an Action's title or description. For example, an Action that needs to be done at home, requiring internet access and an energy level of '5' can include hash-tags: #home #internet #nrg5 anywhere in the title or description of the Action. You can then use the included Search feature to search those tags. The more tags you search for, the more refined the results.

Regarding points (2) and (3) Integration / Sync and Convergence:
* Since Intention+ally uses your on-board Calendar and Contacts databases, syncing your device via iTunes will also sync that data with their desktop counterparts -- easy.

* My planned interface with Evernote, Twitter, and others is waiting on Apple's iCloud implementation to be fleshed-out. Apple has (necessarily, I suppose) been reluctant to "come clean" about what other cloud services will be allowed to interface directly with their iCloud. I am under NDA not to disclose specifics, but it would seem they may be willing to do much of the heavy lifting involved in interfacing with popular online cloud services.

* Clickable typed web- and phone-links are planned for version 2.0 (they aren't difficult to implement, but will require changes to the user interface that are significant enough to be justifiable only at a major version release).

Again, I am the developer for the app, and I view this forum as the primary spot to glean suggestions for its future. I am at your service; don't hold back -- let me know more about what you want!

Check it out: http://goo.gl/w2Jos

UPDATE: Thanks for the positive feedback! Orientation bug fixed.

 

[PeterR]

With Omnifocus on the mac, iPad, and iPhone, and all sync perfectly and do everything GTD requires (well, most of everything), you're up for some tough competition.

 

[mr.chris]

With Omnifocus on the mac, iPad, and iPhone, and all sync perfectly and do everything GTD requires (well, most of everything), you're up for some tough competition.

I suppose the reason I committed to this project is that I do not find the competition (OmniFocus, primarily) to be so tough. I covered a bit of the reason why on another thread in this forum (here: http://goo.gl/ZodXM), but to be brief:

(1) I admire OmniGroup for being able to create a GTD compliant iOS product so soon after the introduction of the iPhone. They had to create most of what is needed to make GTD happen on an iDevice from scratch at the time. Perhaps as a result, the user interface (UI) for OmniFocus was left as "vanilla" as possible. I purchased it right away (this was 2008!) and I found it to be very unintuitive. I had already devoted time to learning GTD, now I needed to devote more time to learning how to use it on my phone -- no good. It wasn't long before I went back to my old system -- also not good.

Having spent so much effort "training" customers on the UI, OmniGroup probably feel as though they are stuck with it. Changing the UI might cause a riot among its customers.

(2) Apple has since come out with application frameworks that simplify the creation of a GTD app for iDevices: UIKit has been significantly updated; Intention+ally connects directly with your device's onboard Calendar and Contacts as a result of these updates. You can setup ticklers right from within the app using your onboard Calendar and have them sync to iCal (or the calendar that iTunes syncs with on Windows if that is what you are on). CoreData makes database setup and communication easy, and, with the soon-to-be-released iCloud framework, sync will be a breeze!

OmniGroup spent money developing custom equivalents for these frameworks and needed to recoup its costs (and, of course, make a profit), so they charge US$20 for the iPhone client, US$40 for the iPad app, and US$30 for the desktop version.

My time isn't cheap and, thanks to Apple's updated frameworks, I'll be able to get away with a single app that works on all platforms (yes, iPhone/iTouch/iPad and desktop in ONE app) for significantly less cost to the customer.

Currently, Intention+ally is free to try and costs US$9 to buy.
The price will indeed increase once I implement the all-in-one feature set. I haven't done the cost analysis yet, but there's no way it'll come anywhere near US$90 for my one app that works on all platforms and syncs between all platforms via iCloud's free service.

That said, I hope to one day count you among my customers.

 

[Suelin23]

had a quick look, but couldn't find the next actions list, which is a major oversight! And no contexts either this is far from being GTD

 

[mr.chris]

had a quick look, but couldn't find the next actions list, which is a major oversight! And no contexts either this is far from being GTD

Hi Suelin23,

You are mistaken. Both "Next Actions" lists and contexts prominently exist in Intention+ally.

"Next Actions" lists are components of "Projects". Following GTD methodology, you would:

* add items to the "Inbox" as you think of them (or simply *do* them if they'll take less than a couple minutes)

* later, you would gather those items into "Projects" (Intention+ally: tap an Inbox item or tap and hold to gather several items into a new/existing Project).

* Those items each become part of that Project's "Next Actions" list.

Optionally, you can tap and hold on the Project Summary pane, create a new Project, and tap its "Next Actions" button.

To simply have a "Next Actions" button out in the open and not associated with a "Project" is akin to having a simple, flat to-do list -- which is certainly "far from being GTD".

I understand that people coming from OmniFocus are a bit indoctrinated to the way in which the OmniGroup team have setup their user interface (UI) after finally getting used to it. I created Intention+ally because I think the OmniFocus UI is unintuitive; Intention+ally is easy to get used to. All the same, I knew it would be necessary to prompt customers coming from OmniFocus (and other systems) the first time around, so I implemented instructional pop-up windows for first-time users. The first pop-up window welcomes customers and prompts them to enter items into the "Inbox". Customers can choose to ignore this prompt at which point they will see a prompt at the top of the Projects Summary pane telling them they can "Press and Hold the list to create a New Project". Did you not see/read the prompts the first time you opened Intention+ally?

"Contexts" again, according to the methodology, are the people, places, things, events and circumstances needed to perform an Action:

* People: Intention+ally uses your onboard Contacts app to attribute People to Actions. Said another way, adding people to your Contacts app, makes them available to Actions in Intention+ally.

* Places: As soon as you open the app, you will see a "By Place" button on the Projects Summary pane. Tapping that, you'll see a prompt to "Press and Hold the map to edit place listings", or if location services are enabled on your device, Intention+ally will allow you to quickly add your current location to the list of Places.

* Events: Also on the Projects Summary pane (visible as soon as you open the app) is a "By Event" button which, when tapped, will show a list of past, present & future events as well as a prompt to "Press and Hold the list to view/edit all events". Intention+ally uses your device's onboard Calendar app to glean events and adds to that Calendar when you add Events to Intention+ally. Those events sync to your desktop Calendar when your device syncs with iTunes.

* Things/Circumstances: Here is where those Twitter-style hash-tags come in. As you enter an Action (remember, Actions go under Projects), you can add Twitter-style hash tags to those Actions which will permit you to enter as many Contexts and Sub-Contexts as are necessary to perform that Action. For example, if "Reply to Comments on DavidCo.com forums" is my Action I would append the following hash-tags: #internet #10mins
Intention+ally picks-up these tags and allows you to search for all Actions containing a particular tag (or set-of-tags). I chose this style because Twitter's hash-tags have become a well-known UI element.

This has become a lengthy post, and I'm certain someone out there is thinking "Wow mr.chris, if your app is so intuitive why did you have to submit such a lengthy explanation regarding its use?" My response would be that "I don't think I *had* to, I am considerate of those who are willing to break away from their established GTD implementations to try my app." However, the most important word in my response is "willing". If one simply reads my app store blurb and does not download the app, or if one simply downloads and opens the app and does not read the first-time user prompts or enter anything into the Inbox, then of course nothing good will come of those token efforts. A more concise post would read "Please first *use* the app before deciding to publicly condemn it.", but that would have come across as terse and unwelcoming.

UPDATE: I forgot to thank Suelin23 for her comment. There really is no such thing as bad feedback. Thank you very much!

After some careful thought, I've decided to end the try-before-you-buy concept. It occurs to me that customers tend to more fairly evaluate a product if they are asked to pay for it. Said another way, giving your product away seems to result in a less-than-fair evaluation of the product. This change will take effect at the next maintenance release (version 1.6) and will only affect *new* customers. Those who have downloaded the current version (version 1.5.x) will continue to have the try-before-you-buy experience after upgrading to version 1.6.