Best To-Do List Software?

JojoLinkyBob writes "Greetings, Council of Slashdot. I am curious what everyone here recommends as their favorite organizational software. Specifically, I am trying to find a simple freeware/open-source todo list manager. In the past, I've dabbled with TreePad, Shadow Plan, Mantis, and various virtual sticky- note apps ..all with mixed success. Currently, I'm back to my old-school ways of scribbling my todo's on the back of each Daily Dilbert Calendar page, which sadly means today is June 23 :)"

Comments

data managers

[Anonymous Coward]

there really is only one contender for me, and that's Richard Curnow's tdl, awesome for programmers and just day to day todo lists.

If you're looking for a structured way to store your random bits of data, there'
s treeline, a really simple but rea
lly effective little app.

I'm not really a bells & whistles type of guy, i like my apps streamlined and effective :)

Re:data managers

[thetoastman]

At the risk of starting yet another editor war:

emacs plus:

• calendar mode for diary info (optionally encrypted)
• todo-mode.el for emacs (should come with emacs)

If not, you can get todo-mode.el from any emacs source location.

A proposal has been made to add some simple fontification to the todo-mode.el. You can find the mail message here among other places.

I use it because it works with the calendar-mode, diary mode, and since it's emacs it runs everywhere emacs does.

I know, boring, boring, boring. However, when you have the kitchen sink of editors, you might as well turn on the water.

Re:data managers

[Boronx]

I use tdl. I've got it rigged so that my most urgent tasks appear in bright colors the moment I login. My eyes have trained themselves to completely bypass this list. I see it every morning, but I haven't read it in months.

A todo list is only as good as the one who uses it.

Palm Desktop worth a look

[KoriaDesevis]

I am trying to find a simple freeware/open-source todo list manager.

Even if you don't have a Palm Pilot, Palm Desktop under Windows isn't too bad. The price - FREE - is certainly right, too. It may not be the best out there, but it meets the basic requirements for a to-do list manager.

Re:Palm Desktop worth a look

[jackbird]

Here's how I make a text editor word as a to do manager. I use textpad on windows, but notepad or any text editor will do:

I have a file on my desktop called todo.txt

that file has a thing to do on each line.

each line begins with a character denoting the status of the item:

- thing to do
+ thing already done
~ thing in progress
X thing I decided/was told not to do
? thing I need more information to do

Priority goes to the first item with a -in front of it. Hard deadlines are annotated within items themselves.

When a task needs subitems, use tabs to indent.

I also have a clock on top of my monitor, a calendar on my wall, and a paper address book.

When one task gets so complicated it starts cluttering up the list, I start another text file. Since my text editor has a tabbed interface, it's pretty easy to keep a master list and several project-specific lists open at once.

It seems to work pretty well.

What's wrong with Old School?

[Anonymous Coward]

Perhaps we could be of more help to you if you would explain why the 'Old School' approach of using scratch paper is unacceptable to you. What features do you require in a to-do list that pencil and paper cannot provide?

Re:What's wrong with Old School?

[RockClimbingFool]

the pencil and paper will not remind you when its time to be somewhere or do something. or tell you your busy when you try to set up another meeting.

Re:What's wrong with Old School?

[Anonymous Coward]

the pencil and paper will not remind you when its time to be somewhere or do something. or tell you your busy when you try to set up another meeting.

What you are describing is a Planner or Calendar, not a to-do list. IMHO, a to-do list is simply a list of stuff that needs to get done without precise temporal constraints. If this guy really wants the features you list, then he didn't ask a very clear Ask Slashdot question. In any event, I think you'll have to agree with me that his question is pretty piss-poor because he gives NO explanation what features he needs. Maybe he doesn't need any of the features you just listed. We'll never know because he didn't bother to list his requirements.

Re:What's wrong with Old School?

[tekunokurato]

the pen and paper does not archive itself and is not back searchable.

Re:What's wrong with Old School?

[gl4ss]

for one, you can't read that paper list remotely.

unless you got some slav.. coworkers, fiancee or somebody to call and tell to RTFTDL.

Re:What's wrong with Old School?

[jafomatic]

There's no 'egrep' in my drawerful of notes and receipts. That's what's wrong with pen & paper.

With even a simple textfile solution, I can generate changelogs and (primitive) reports with a a single command.

Low-tech

[Joe the Lesser]

And by low tech I mean Notepad.exe.

=)

Re:Low-tech

[Skater]

Edlin!

Notepad...sheesh! You people have it easy!

--RJ

Re:Low-tech

[nucal]

Using text files is actually not all that bad of an option. A nice alternative to the truly awful Notepad is Metapad which is free and can seemlessly replace Notepad. Among other things it has active hyperlinks, auto indenting and can do a lot of simple reformatting (like caps to lowercase, etc.).

Re:Low-tech

[BW_Nuprin]

I scribble my todo lists in Paint. That way I can draw cartoon characters with it. Its more, I dunno, cheery :)

Todo:
Program vertex shader
Fix bug in network code
Fix 8 bugs reported by bug testers, 2 of which affect game
*picture of smiling bunny*
Put bullet in head

Re:Low-tech

[headisdead]

Definitely worth checking out Danny O'Brien's (NTK) "Life Hacks: Tech Secrets of Overprolific Alpha Geeks" speech (given for O'Reilly and at NOTCON '04), in which he argues on the basis of research that the most prolific programmers/hackers/geeks organise themselves via... text-based todo lists!

Check out
A summary or shorter summary

Apple's iCal software

[The I Shing]

I have experimented with free PHP to-do list software, but haven't found it easy enough to continue with.

What I use for my own to-do list is Apple's iCal, which has the ability, thanks to my $99-a-year Mac.com account, to put my list on the web and every Mac I use.

I must say, there is nothing quite so satisfying as checking the tiny "done" box next to an item on my to-do list. Sometimes I'm tempted to put trivial items on it like "take off shoes" or "read Slashdot" just so I'll have the opportunity to check off a done item.

Re:Apple's iCal software

[zhiwenchong]

Spymac is slow, difficult to configure, unreliable and generally ugly. Sure, they give you a 1 GB spymac.com email account, WebDAV space, webspace, iCal hosting etc. but the whole setup lacks finesse and elegance. I wouldn't recommend Spymac anyone except the desperate.

Did I mention it was sloooww?

For free iCal hosting, try icalx.com instead. There exists another free iCal hosting service but I forget the name.

Hardware based approach

[jrrl]

If I don't do something I am supposed to, my wife whacks me on the back of the head. Works great!

-John.

Post-it papers on my monitor!

[SpaceTux]

Perfect for passwords too!

Re:Post-it papers on my monitor!

[Bobzibub]

Put them under your keyboard you crazy fool!

Re:Post-it papers on my monitor!

[Anonymous Coward]

*sigh*
I set up my dad's office today with a wifi network, and he wrote down the WEP key on a stickey note on his monitor. I stared and said "wow.. I've read about you in a lot of security books"

Re:Post-it papers on my monitor!

[calica]

*sigh*

All that means is your dad cares more about the security of his house than his wifi network. I mean, if they can see the sticky they're either: A-a friend or family. or B-a burglar. If the former, he probably doesn't mind them using his cable modem. If the later, he won't have a computer soon.

Some people really need to put "computer security" into perspective.

Omni Outliner!

[viper21]

I really dig Omni Outliner from The Omni Group. It is, of course, for OS X--My platform of choice.

They also have some teriffic charting software, OmniGraffle, that I use to do flowcharts for all of my coding. You guys all do flowcharts, right? :)

-S

MS Project

[Anonymous Coward]

We use MS Project to manage our to do lists.

Sincerely,
Duke Nukem Forever - Dev Team

It's really not a technical problem.

[winkydink]

I've been a student of time management practices for some time, always looking for that perfect app, that will make me super efficcient. I've read many books on the topic. There is no silver bullet. Becoming an effective time manager is more akin to making a lifestyle change.

It really boils down to self-discipline, much more than some specific methodology. I'm a fan of Covey's methodologies, but unless you really, really, really commit to it (or some other one more to your liking), you're no better off with a slick app than you are with to-do lists on the back of a Dilbert calendar page.

Re:It's really not a technical problem.

[Lodragandraoidh]

The key with any tool - take CRM tools for example - is to actually take the time to use them on a consistent basis. One of the biggest barriers to consistent use I have seen is the variation of standards and interfaces of the tools that I like.

I think the future will see more XML and RSS based tools that allow you to integrate all of your systems (calendars, todo lists, issue tracking lists, blogs, etc etc) into one interface without regard for proprietary formats. Those companies that do put their eggs on the proprietary format basket will either be run around by smart filters, or wither on the vine as people see the lack of interoperability and go elsewhere.

That is the space where information management will reach a new plateau, imho.

Omni

[aarku]

OmniOutliner and OmniGraffle work pretty sweetly for me.

Mozilla Sunbird

[Aliencow]

Still a bit buggy, but with calendar, shared calendar support, publishing through webdav, it has the potential of being as good as iCal !

Re:It's called a "wife"

[winkydink]

Almost all versions are closed source and very expensive.

http://www.bestpractical.com/rt/

[Craig Shergold]

This software has completely changed my life. I use it as a TODO list, I use to to manage developers, I use it to manage myself, and I'm now using it to manage the process of renovating my house (will eventually require my contractor to use it). I will never go back to the days of using a TODO list that's bound to a particular phone, handheld, laptop, or desktop.

the best to-do list manager is analog

[Greg@RageNet]

I find the best to do list manager is a yellow legal pad. You never have to worry about the batteries running down on it; it won't lose your data due to a system crash; accessable even when you don't have internet access; it features an intuitive user interface (dubbed a 'pen'); it's ease-of-use is well documented; and best of all it is compatable with open standards such as english, french, and japanese.

One caveat, it's not freeware; it could be as expensive as a dollar, but you'll recoup that quickly with the electricity savings.

-- Greg

Wiki

[mcbevin]

I simply use a private wiki. The advantage being I can access it from work or at home or when travelling. Flexible enough to store a to-do list or store some bookmarks or whatever information you want to store. Lots of easy-to-install wiki software out there. I had previously quickly coded a simple PHP todo list but using existing wiki software is simpler and more powerful. Its not like a todo list requires some specialised software.

I use ToDoList

[telstar]

ToDoList ... currently on version 3.6.4 is a great To-Do list manager. Incidentally, the site it's offered through (TheCodeProject.com) is a great resource for Windows developers as well.

the cutting edge of TODO list technology

[mboedick]

My TODO list is ~/TODO. I edit it with vim. Sometimes I grep it. When I get things done I dd that line.

I can access it anywhere with ssh.

Re:the cutting edge of TODO list technology

[archen]

Ah, that's way too much work. Mine is "~/todo", so I don't need to hit shift twice ;)

alias todo='vim + ~/todo'

So there =P You also might want to look at the "+/{pat}" command line option for vim. Then you could search for the '[ ]' which would autoskip to the first task you don't have done.

Re:It's called a "wife"

[deadlinegrunt]

And not to mention the vendor lock-in.

Some of the EULA's you have conform to as well, I mean sheesh...

PINE - Postpone message

[GillBates0]

PINE works great for me. I write myself a todo list and "Postpone" it (Ctrl-O). This way PINE asks me if I want to continue my Postponed message, or write a new one. That acts as a gentle reminder everytime I send a new message - which is often enough.

Here're a couple of screen shots:
PINE 4.58 MESSAGE INDEX Folder: INBOX Message 2,444 of 2,444 ANS
.
.
Continue postponed composition (answering "No" won't erase it)?
Y [Yes]
^C Cancel N No

N 127 Jun 18 xxx xxxx (4422) To Do list

You missed the most important steps!!

[Haydn Fenton]

Profit

what's awful about notepad?

[Rai]

A nice alternative to the truly awful Notepad

I know notepad is very basic, but what's awful about it? I can say that's the one MS program I've used that has never crashed and I use it a lot.

Re:what's awful about notepad?

[Jimmy_B]

It's the only text editor I've ever used which doesn't read Unix-style linefeeds. That alone is enough to make it unusable. It doesn't have multi-level undo, which makes it easy to toast your data. It's notorious for screwing up file extensions when you're saving. Some versions of it are unable to open large files. It is completely devoid of the many useful and necessary features which other text editors.

What sort of to-do list?

[Xerp]

It really depends on the sorts of tasks you are handling. If you are, for example, a builder then you will have a critical path and (hopefully ;-) strict deadlines. For something like this a calendar based task scheduler is fine. Things like KOrganizer or Plans could be used.

If there is a great number of tasks with no critical path, for example a call center, then you will want something a little more complicated. You'll need to be able to log a task quickly, give it an urgency, tie it back to a particular caller, be able to assign it, maybe even have a searchable knowledge base. For this area things like OTRS are great.

Then you could be a developer, where critical paths vary daily and tasks need to be assigned to specific modules and versions. The obvious choice here is bugzilla

Desktop or web-based is also a consideration. You may require access from multiple locations; maybe you are an off-site engineer; so that needs to be taken into consideration too.

You are so busted.

[loteck]

because, as we all know, Microsoft patented the to-do list, as previously discussed. Bill will be calling soon, no doubt. Hope your last name isn't Rowsoft ;)

Ecco URL

[buckminster]

Ecco is still the best. You are correct that it hasn't been updated since 1997, but it's definitely a Win32 application. I've heard rumours that it runs under WINE as well.

Netmanage essentially abandoned this product although you can still download for free from their ftp site:
ftp://ftp.netmanage.com/support/pub/utilities/EC40 1/

Users manual should be included as well.

This is way more than just a simple outline program. Think unlimited relational outlines connected by user definable columns. All fully integrated with the calendar and address book.

As I contemplate switching to various other platforms this is still the one application I cannot live without. No other outliner/pim comes close to ECCO.

Emacs Diary!

[Greyfox]

I put all my reminders in Emacs diary now. I usually have Emacs open (I read mail with vm) and it's pretty good about telling time and stuff. It'd be interesting to hack out a separate todo list generator that can export data to a palm pilot type device. Hmm... (Adding "investigate palm conduits in emacs" to todo list...)

RequestTracker

[rainmanjag]

I'm a big fan of the web-based software RequestTracker, affectionately known as RT.

Homepage

It is similar to Bugzilla, except it's not software bug oriented so much as "Stuff To Do" oriented. It has a simple email gateway, it keeps track of absolutely everything, it allows you to add custom fields quite easily, it changes priorities of your events over time, and it allows you to keep track of how much time you've spent on various projects. Around my office, it's pretty key.

-jag

Consider Full-Fledged PIMs like Zoot

[Akilesh Rajan]

There are some very interesting pieces of software out there that combine task management with personal information databases -- places to store bits of information collected from documents, web pages, and so on. Some go far beyond the information organizing capabilities of Outlook and other standard personal information managers (PIMs).

One such piece of software is a cult-hit, Zoot. See reviews here and here. Find out more at the Yahoo Group for it, which also happens to have excellent lists of other excellent but often underappreciated PIM software.

Also consider web-based task managers like Yahoo Calendar. The advantage is that they are easily accessible from anywhere and there's no need for backups. Yahoo task management also syncs with a lot of other stuff, I think.

OmniOutliner, hnb, vi

[strudeau]

I love OmniOutliner for OS X. I also used hnb (Hierarchical Notebook) which is a commandline outliner, for awhile. Otherwise vi/emacs/notepad.exe/whatever is great.