Best GTD Software

[seeker5]

What is the best GTD (Getting Things Done) software to use that you can carry around on a USB Stick?

I'm looking for something reasonably priced that I can carry on my USB Stick as I use different computers during the day and I do not want to get a PDA .

[SamBeaven]

GTDTiddlyWiki is quite good, I've used it before and the price is certainly right (free!) Haven't really used it enough myself to give it a total seal of approval though - but some others might be familiar with it.

What's great is that because it's just a small HTML file, you could just stick it on a web server, or back up as an email attachment to yourself so you wouldn't even necessarily need the stick.

[norbert]

I think their creators don't grasp the basic concepts well enough.

[RT Wolf]

I ended up getting an old Palm M125 (brand new, supposedly, but 6 year old model). This is excellent for my needs. Cost me 30 bucks. You can try craigslist or flea markets in your area to find one if you're interested. David Allen used a Palm, at lesat when he recorded Getting Things Done FAST.

[seeker5]

Thanks for the suggestions. The Palm idea looks interesting, but I'd rather not get one yet. I'm already carrying enough electronics as it is, and I'm not into writing on that small screen.

I've spent several hours looking and downloading different software but haven't found one yet that meets my need. I just need a simple tasks organizer that can be put on a USB stick and would have thought it'd be simple to get.

Well, I did find one that was very interesting and would probably have worked(thinking rock)- but it took 30 seconds to load up. The fact it was built on Java probably had a lot to do with that loading time. I need one that opens and shuts down within a few seconds each time or else I won't use it.

I've got several more options to explore, so hopefully I'll find something decent. If not, then I could go to just creating text files.

[Jacobm]

Not quite sure if it's quite what you're looking for, but I use Ultra Recall. It loads and searches very quickly, and is extremely flexible and customizable. However, if you want to be able to boot it from a USB stick you have to get the Professional Version, which isn't very cheap! Still, a very good feature-rich program in my opinion.

Here is a review: murtworld: Ultra Recall

[silicon toad2000]

I use outlook calendar and task lists which get synchronised with my phone.
if all the computers you use have outlook on them you could create a private outlook file on the usb drive and open that in any outlook on any computer you are using.
not sure about different version compatability.
lol sometimes when my outlook became clogged i switch to a pocket size notepad. cheap and easy to use.

[seeker5]

Jacobm, and silicon toad2000 - Thanks for the advice. I don't have outlook on my home computer, so I can't use that. I checked it out at my work computer though, the task list is pretty much what I need. If only it was a stand-alone product .

Silicon Toad2000 - you're right, $99 is a very high price to pay for such a program. I'm willing to pay up to $40 but not more at this time.

[seeker5]

Hmm, just had the idea that maybe I can implement GTD with an excel spreadsheet if I don't find suitable software. I'd use one different worksheet for each different major project, one for next action, one for possible/someday, and one worksheet for minor project. That could work, although I'm guessing here since I haven't implemented GTD yet. This weekend is my big organize everything into GTD weekend. Any cons to this method?

[silicon toad2000]

I use excel to keep track of my car maintenance.
I have the list of tasks, how often they need to be done and when they were last done. A formula works out when they are due next and a macro assigned to a button sorts them into order.
If you know a bit more than I do about computers you could put an autorun ini file on the usb ro automatically open your spreadsheet. Excel is also pretty advanced with a heap of features, you can with formatting make an excel spreadhseet look like it's not even a spreadsheet, more like a gui from another program.

[seeker5]

Originally Posted by silicon toad2000

I use excel to keep track of my car maintenance.
I have the list of tasks, how often they need to be done and when they were last done. A formula works out when they are due next and a macro assigned to a button sorts them into order.
If you know a bit more than I do about computers you could put an autorun ini file on the usb ro automatically open your spreadsheet. Excel is also pretty advanced with a heap of features, you can with formatting make an excel spreadhseet look like it's not even a spreadsheet, more like a gui from another program.

Cool, thanks for the tips. I don't really know more about excel then you do, but I can learn! What I like about using excel is I'm pretty much guaranteed I can use the programs for many more years, whereas a lot of the software I looked at developed by independent developers could be unusable by the next operating system change.

I've already put all of the next actions into the excel spreadsheet. I'm starting it without any macros or formulas to get the hang of it and I'll probably add more as I go along and see what I need to add to make it easier on me. I'm pleased so far.

[ottantaventi]

GTD is a very personal thing: it depends on which work you do and which habits you have. Every person has a different way to implement it. That said, there is no software or implementation that works for everybody, so I just share how I do it, maybe it give some suggestions to other.

I like to be mobile and to be able to update or review my list everywhere and at any time, that's why I own a Palm and use for my lists the sw Bonsai by Natara. I update and review my lists both on the Palm and on the PC.

Please note that Bonsai is available (and I recomend it) also for not Palm users as PC stand alone package.

Give it a try, it was the best money I've spent for a software up to now.

ciao
alexander

[dan_popovici]

Recently I started using Simple todo list and task manager: Todoist to organize all the things I have to get done.
Here are a few features I find indispensable:

• it integrates nicely with igoogle
• you can add subprojects and subitems
• searching for items by date, project etc is easy
• it integrates with gmail
• there are keyboard shortcuts for almost all actions
• it is made with usability in mind
• its free