TaskPaper = OmniFocus Light
Posted by Michael | Filed under GTD, Recommended
For the most part, the applications that are specifically designed for project organizing are way too complex, with too much horsepower to really be functional for 98 percent of what most people need to manage. — David Allen
Jered and I often mention the Mac OS X application OmniFocus. It’s a terrific application to bring the concepts of GTD to your computer in an elegant, yet effective way. If you haven’t tried OmniFocus, but are looking for a rock-solid project task manager, definitely head over to The Omni Group site and give it a try. You won’t be disappointed.
My first impression when Jered introduced me to OmniFocus was one of amazement. It does everything I’ve ever wanted in a task manager, so I gave it a trial for a few weeks. Unfortunately, OmniFocus was still a bit too much for me. I’m easily distracted by bright and shiny things (taking me shopping is a dangerous proposition), so I found myself managing (okay, playing with…) the application more than tracking and completing tasks. Not that I didn’t like OmniFocus; quite the opposite. I simply didn’t need all the features. On the other hand, Jered swears by OmniFocus, and given what I understand of his workflow, it definitely fits well. Sometimes we don’t need all the features applications such as Omnifocus have to offer.
As my workflow is a bit more straightforward than Jered’s, (at least for now) I decided that I needed something simpler… an “OmniFocus Light” if you will. Enter Hog Bay Software’s TaskPaper. The comany’s odd name aside, the application’s promise is simple: ”For Mac users who want a simpler way to stay organized and get things done. TaskPaper is a simple to-do list that’s surprisingly adept. Unlike the competition, TaskPaper’s text based interface is focused on paper-like simplicity.”
At first glance, TaskPaper doesn’t seem to be much more than the built-in Mac applications Stickies and TextEdit, which I often use for note taking and braindumps. The simplicity of TaskPaper is that it isn’t much more than these, but that seems to be the point. Just the basics, plus a bit more (e.g., the tagging feature is cool).
In addition to TaskPaper, HogBay Software is well-known for their other application, WriteRoom, the back-to-basics writing program that gives you a “full-screen writing experience” and nothing else. I’m giving both TaskPaper and WriteRoom the 3-Week Tech Trial (well, 15 days as that’s how long the trial version allows).
Tags: GTD
