Comments on: 5 Organizational Tools I Can't Work Without

By: Amber Singleton Riviere

Amber Singleton Riviere — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 20:41:38 +0000

Sounds like a pretty good setup, Newt. How do you like Dragon Naturally Speaking?

By: Amber Singleton Riviere

Amber Singleton Riviere — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 20:40:11 +0000

Thanks for the recommendation, Benjamin. I actually like writing out my longer-term goals on paper, too, and sometimes use a Zoho doc or a Backpack page to keep my big-picture view in one place.

By: Newt Barrett

Newt Barrett — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 14:09:49 +0000

Amber,
Since I have acquired an iPad and iPhone 4, I have begun to experiment with a ToDo/Toodledo combo. They sync with Google Calendar. That lets me function on both platforms plus the web via toodledo.com online.
Nothing is perfect though. I would really like an online + iPad tool that incorporates contact info.
As to blog posts, I love Live Writer the free tool from Microsoft and I dictate 90% of them with Dragon Naturally Speaking–it works with Google Docs, too.
I’m sure this is TMI. Sorry.

By: Benjamin

Benjamin — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 10:55:40 +0000

Pen and paper really is under rated isn't it! The ability to get things written down in an instant. What do you use for planning / goal setting (I ask with a bit of a bias, as I'm on the team behind Milestone Planner). Low level stuff is good, but how do you keep the 10,000 foot / strategic view in sight?

By: Amber Singleton Riviere

Amber Singleton Riviere — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 17:39:38 +0000

Agreed, Chris. I’m fairly picky about the notebook and pen I use and recommend splurging for note-takers. Interesting that you were using Google Wave for online notes. Springnote and Backpack aren’t bad, but I can see where Google Wave would just integrate with something you’re already using. Have you tried figuring out a Gmail work-around, maybe having one or more labels reserved for notes? Just thinking out loud here, but it might work.

By: Chris J

Chris J — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 15:26:16 +0000

My tools align very closely with yours. For all of us who use pen and paper I advise using a journal or a notebook that is more than a .99 cents deal at Wal-Mart. A 6-10 dollar notebook like a moleskin journal won’t so easily get lost in the pile. I use google wave for online notes and meetings and now that its been discontinued may have to move back to etherpad on my own server. Any suggested alternatives?

By: Amber Singleton Riviere

Amber Singleton Riviere — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 21:13:58 +0000

Thanks for the recommendation. I’ll have to check it out.

By: Amber Singleton Riviere

Amber Singleton Riviere — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 21:11:16 +0000

Good question. I used to use Google Docs and still do in some cases, but I switched about a year ago because it wouldn’t hold formatting when copying/pasting from Google Docs into my blog HTML editor. Zoho did a much better job of that for me, so I started composing blog posts there, and eventually, it just became my go-to online word processor. I was actually frustrated with having to switch, but it’s worked out okay, and now I’m used to it.

By: Amber Singleton Riviere

Amber Singleton Riviere — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 21:07:42 +0000

Glad you liked the post, Lorilee. I agree. Managing a simple to-do list can sometimes be the hardest part, which is why I’ve been experimenting with the one in Zoho (so far, so good).

By: MH

MH — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 19:32:28 +0000

Throw away your to-do spreadsheet and try this instead.

Light, simple, fast, fully featured and a doddle to sync about as it uses a simple file system (dropbox,livemesh etc.) and amzingly… Free!

http://www.codeproject.com/KB/applications/todolist2.aspx