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For Software Addicts: Yes!MaybeNah!
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December 31st, 2006

Nisus Writer Express: A Good Word Processor, But Not For Web Work

    
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December 31st, 2006

Getting Organized and Planning Projects: Another Rich Vein of Mac OS X Software

One of the problems I have had in picking a personal information management (PIM) application has been the large degree of overlap among various related categories. For example, where does a “To-Do List” application end and a “Project Management” application begin? Or how about daily journal software and applications that organize your notes? And let’s don’t forget “sticky notes” applications, “shoebox” software, “scheduling” applications, “file storage” tools, and so on.

Truth is, a lot of these categories are slowly merging, and that’s part of what holds me up: Surely the ultimate convergence will be upon us soon, so just wait a little while longer. Yeah, right. The problem with this kind of logic is that convergence is a trend that never stops, and if you never dive in and pick something to help you manage information and/or get organized, you never will. The reason convergence keeps going is that each new software idea sparks another one. Both users and developers participate in this amazing dance, and ultimately we all end up winners. This is why I stress the importance of avoiding lock-in. Whatever you choose, try to make it one that won’t let you switch to another one in a year or two, if the avatar horse you’ve chosen peters out before the finish line. With that brief intro, I’m going to start a new series looking at a category of software commonly known as “Personal Organizers.” These differ from PIMs mainly in their strict focus on project management, with the humble “to-do” list being the foundation for all of them. In 2006, there has been a rush to market by developers wooing converts to the “Getting Things Done” approach to personal organization. GTD, as everyone seems to call it, is the brainchild of David Allen, whose website and rapidly growing “flock” come across to the unenlightened as a serious religious movement. Obviously (I think), it’s not that, but just having arrived from Mars, it looks that way to me. GTD has numerous champions in the Mac world—in particular the popular 43 Folders website, which I first came to know as a champion of Quicksilver. It turns out that 43 Folders champions Quicksilver because it’s such a useful tool in adhering to the “GTD way.” Whatever you may think about David Allen and the specifics of his GTD prescription, most busy professionals today are definitely in need of help in Getting Things Done. Whatever tool or approach helps you with that worthy goal is worth adopting, and the arrival of so many helpful personal organizer tools will hopefully help more of us “get a grip” on all the “to-do” lists we’ve got floating around in our brain. What I’m referring to as Personal Information Managers (PIMs) are more “jack-of-all-trades” in their approach, recognizing that to-do lists are one kind of information we need to manage, but so are software serial numbers, online store receipts, web bookmarks, journal notes, blog entries, and so on. I’m starting the series with a software package that could almost be considered a PIM, and in fact I almost added it to that other list this evening. But ultimately, Process by Jumsoft is a Personal Organizer. Its focus is on helping you get things done, not on helping you organize all the information you have scattered around the house or office.
    
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December 31st, 2006

iTunes Volume: An iTunes Controller That’s Louder Than It Appears

    
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December 30th, 2006

Frictionless: To-Do/Project Software with Quicksilver/Mail Integration

    
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Posted in:Software AddictTags: , |
December 28th, 2006

Slashdot: Microsoft Bribing Bloggers With Laptops

    
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Posted in:Microsoft, Monopoly DamageTags: |
December 28th, 2006

Renkoo Thinks They Don’t Need Mac Users

    
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Posted in:Ajax, PC Prejudice, Web BrowsersTags: |
December 28th, 2006

DotFiles: Freeware Service App Toggles File Visibility

    
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December 27th, 2006

UnixServices: Turn Any Unix Command Into A Mac OS X App Service

    
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December 27th, 2006

GoodPage: A New WYSIWYG HTML/CSS Editor Debuts

    
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December 27th, 2006

FlyPath: A Finder Alternative That Flies?

    
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December 26th, 2006

WebKit Team Adds New CSS Methods for Text-Stroke

    
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December 25th, 2006

Windows Vista Set To Poison HD Video?

    
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December 25th, 2006

Interesting List of 10 Web-Based Operating Systems

    
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December 25th, 2006

MacResearch Website Tutorials Cover AppleScript, Cocoa

    
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December 25th, 2006

Art Text: Easy Text Effects

    
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December 24th, 2006

Clip Show: Upgrade Your QuickTime Player… for Free!

    
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December 24th, 2006

Classic Menu: Revive the Apple Menu in Mac OS X

    
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December 24th, 2006

Questions About Adobe’s Spry Ajax Framework

    
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December 24th, 2006

QueueMemo: Stickies Attached To Applications

    
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Posted in:UncategorizedTags: , , |
December 23rd, 2006

Democracy: Podcast Client Opens Up Internet TV

    
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Just Say No To Flash