This is a follow-up to a blog post I wrote last year, about using GTD with Outlook 2007. (Find out more about me here). That post got a lot of feedback and seemed to generate readership. It was wonderful to have a dialogue with developers working on solutions and with Outlook users looking for a solution.
I recently started using a MacBook Pro at my new job (you can find out more about my background). I absolutely love it!
But one thing is proving to be a difficult task: finding the right GTD application that I can use both with my laptop and with my iPhone. Let me explain what I am looking for:
- Dependent Tasks: I want to use my GTD app to plan multi-step projects in the David Allen methodology. I need a way to see which tasks I have to do next (next actions) and which actions can be undertaken after the next actions are completed.
- Next Actions by Context: This is especially important on my iPhone. I need to be able to see all of the tasks I can complete when I have 20 minutes to make calls, for instance, or what I need to talk about with my boss.
- Location Awareness: Since I have the new iPhone (sorta) with GPS, I would like to have my “trusted system” filter my tasks by my physical location.
- Calendar Interface: Time-specific tasks (“Call Joe at 12:30 on Thursday”) need to be able to easily be transferred from my inbox to my calendar.
- “Web 2.0” Compatibility: I currently use Remember The Milk, which does a great job of interfacing with apps like Jott (which allows users to call a number and dictate tasks, which are transcribed and put into my RTM system.
- Mind Mapping Interface: My last, and right now least important, desire is to be able to map out a project in a Web-based mind mapping program and then put that into a system like Remember The Milk.
As I said, I am currently using RTM. I am mostly happy with it. My biggest complaint, like many RTM devotees, is the lack of the ability to designate dependent tasks. You can read a lot about this on the RTM blog.
Here is a rundown of the applications I am looking at so far, which I outlined in a GTD/iPhone 2.0 post on David Allen’s site:
- Omnifocus: : This looks nicer than Thinking Rock, but I think for the most part they have the same functionality, except for the iPhone app. It looks great. But this is a pricey option $19.99 for the iPhone app plus $79.95 for the Leopard app.
- Nozbe: There is a nice review of Nozbe here. It appears to have similar functionality as RTM and since RTM is my trusted system, right now, Nozbe does not look like it offers enough more to prompt me to switch (I would love to hear from Nozbe users on that topic).
There are some interesting GTDish apps in the iTunes store (and some are free):
- EasyTask Manager (free): This app has a GTD interface with a dashboard (of actions), projects and contexts. At first glance, it does not appear to offer any system for dealing with multi-step projects, though. It looks too simplistic to satisfy a dedicated GTDer.
- My Lists ($1.99): This also seems too limited to handle projects well.
Several people have responded to the post, which is great.
But I would like to take it further. I have created a spreadsheet on Google Docs, so that people interested in GTD and the iPhone can collaborate. (Maybe we can get one of the “software” companies to listen to and respond to our requests, a la “Groundswell“?).