Expert’s Rating
Our Verdict
I ’ve brush up a number of to - do - list programs over the years , devoting most of that coverage to software that favour ease of employment over feature article . As I noted in my reappraisal of TaskPaper , many of the job - management apps out there “ have difficult learning curves and need you to master the program ’s intricacies before you’re able to even start using it . ” On the other hand , many of the program that are dim-witted to expend do n’t scale well — once you take to track more than a few tilt or project , you execute into the limits of that simplicity .
polite Code’sThingsis the alone elision . At $ 50 , it ’s the most expensive to - do - listing apps I ’ve tested , but it ’s a reliable standout thanks to a great set of feature and an interface that make it a adept conniption for nearly any level of undertaking direction : It ’s elementary enough to employ for the most - basic to - do inclination — you could start using it with nary a peep at the manual — but it ’s sinewy enough to handle a full - blownGetting thing Done(GTD ) workflow .
say more …
(Image courtesy Cultured Code)
When you first set in motion thing , you ’re presented with your Inbox , a central place to put mixed project . If you ’re the type who needs only one tilt , this is where it goes : select New to add a new to - do and name it . Although you may stop there , you may also sum tag ( which are like class ) , notes , and a due date . ( If you drag an e - post message from Mail to the Notes playing area , you get a nifty link directly to the message . )
By clicking on the tiny Action menu on the right - hand side of a labor ’s entry , you’re able to also make a task a retell event , so a new loop of the project is automatically return based on the schedule you take . Repetition schedules include day by day , hebdomadary , monthly , or yearly;xdays after you complete the current loop ; or whenever a new event is created in a particular iCal calendar . ( Things does n’t have antecedence rankings . you’re able to either manually prioritise item in a tilt by dredge chore up or down , or you’re able to expend tags to simulate priority levels . )
When you ’ve completed an item , fall into place on its checkbox marks it as complete . Completed items are automatically moved to Things ’ Logbook immediately or at the terminal of each day , hebdomad , or month , depend on your taste . ( you may also lumber completed items manually . ) To take away an detail from a list without completing it , you have two options : delete an item moves it to Things ’ crank ; canceling an item strikes out the job ’s text and then move the task to the Logbook at the next cleanup position , keeping it around . The differences between the two options are subtle , but utilitarian .
One thing I like about Things ’ interface is that instead of a gang of different columns for data point that may or may not exist for each undertaking , Things shows due date , tags , and other info only if that information exists . So you get a blank , uncluttered visual aspect . In fact , even much ofthatinformation is hidden until you select an existing event , which might be a negative stimulation for some citizenry ; an selection to always show this info , so you may see it at a glance , would be useful . ( I also find it odd that if you ’ve assigned tags , but no due date , tags appear at the very right of an item ’s entry , but if you have both a due escort and a tag , the due date steals the veracious - script position ; in other intelligence , tags are n’t lay consistently . )
If youdouse shred and due dates , a commodious filter bar automatically appears at the top of the window , allow you filter the current inclination ’s position by tatter , by schedule , or both .
( look-alike courtesy Cultured Code )
Of of course , most people in the market for thing do n’t have a single leaning , so you’re able to create as many lists — Things call them projection — as you involve . Projects appear in the Active Projects lean on the unexpended - bridge player side of Things ’ window ; press one to view its job . Each project functions much like the Inbox , and you may move an item from a undertaking to the Inbox , or frailty versa , by drag it from one to the other or by using the File natural process . ( A couple departure between projects and the Inbox are that you could assign tatter and due day of the month to integral projection , and complete item stay visible in projection tilt so you could see what you ’ve accomplish on each task . )
A neat related feature is the Projects view . get through on Projects in the Focus segment on the left and thing shows you a list of every projection . To the left of each is a downhearted saloon that shows the routine of task in that project , as well as your current progress on the undertaking as a whole via the proportion of the bar that ’s “ filled in . ” you may also expend this sentiment to strike out an full project , and all its tasks , as complete .
Things also supply a number of other Focus view . My favorite , by far , is the Today list . you’re able to tot point directly to Today , but the list also includes anything from other tilt you ’ve manually marked as Today ( by selecting an item in its “ dwelling house ” list and clicking on the Today button ) , as well as anything — again , in any leaning — scheduled for today or overdue . ( If an detail is from another list , the name of the host project is shown next to the task name . ) In other words , as it ’s name implies , Today is a listing of chore you want to completetoday .
What crap the Today view unequaled is that you have n’t actuallymovedany of these item ; they all stay on to domicile in their original list , in their original contexts — the tasks justappearin Today , giving you a round-eyed , at - a - coup d’oeil list of thing you need to accomplish . This unparalleled approach to task helps you focus on what really needs to get done each day , and helps keep you from getting overwhelmed by list after list of task that may not need to be finish for Clarence Shepard Day Jr. or even week .
Other Focus views include Next , which exhibit any undertaking created in the Today leaning and the top three items in each project . The Scheduled view displays all repeating tasks , as well as any tasks you create from within the Scheduled view . ( Confusingly , it does n’t display one - time schedule chore createdoutsidethe Scheduled persuasion ; those are presumably covered by the Next opinion . ) Finally , Someday is a place for you to create or move tasks , or even intact task , you do n’t require to deal with right now — a sort of “ I ’ll get to this sometime , but for now , I do n’t desire to be bothered by it ” bucket . Doing so hides the tasks and projects in other perspective .
If you take reward of ticket , it ’s easy to create new tag using Things ’ Tags palette , and you could even create tags that are a subset of higher - grade tag . These sub - tags are utile because they permit you filtrate views by either the higher - level tag — which shows particular with both that ticket and any sub - tags — or just a particular pigboat - tag . For example , we ’re presently doing some remodeling to our menage , so I ’ve get both a Home tag and a house : Remodeling tag end . When I filter a view by the Home tag , I see items tagged with either Home or Remodeling ; when I filter out by Remodeling , I see just Remodeling tasks . you could also attribute keyboard shortcuts to tags to make it quicker to apply tags , including batch - applying tags to multiple items .
Things offers plenty of other features I could spend page cover : a spry - unveiling box let you iron out a keyboard shortcut to create a raw job from within any program ; you could create new tasks by drag URLs or text edition onto Things ’ bob icon ; the Dock icon can display the number of due detail ; you could synchronise various character of tasks between Things and iCal to - do tilt ; a Search field lets you search all task arena , or just the title , Federal Reserve note , or tag field ; you could create Areas Of Responsibility that can contain both projects and individual tasks ; and you could create teammate — mass with whom you ’re working on task — and designate especial tasks to those people .
at long last , Things has one other , um , thinggoing for it that really makes it resist out from the crowd : a capital iPhone app , also call thing , that include most of the key features of the Mac version and mechanically syncs whenever both interpretation are launched on the same local internet . Unfortunately , Things does n’t currently sync between Macs , either locally or via MobileMe ; such a feature would be a nice addition for those who want to use Things on multiple mack .
Over the past few years , I ’ve bounced between many different task managers ; each was appeal in its own way , but none terminate up sticking , for one cause or another . ( For case , TaskPaper ’s deficiency of iPhone syncing meant I eventually stopped inputting newfangled tasks , as it was important for me to have my lists with me on my phone . ) matter is the first app I ’ve preserve to habituate many month after I first started testing it . While thing is on the expensive side , it offers a unique combining of ease of employment , a with child interface , and flexibility that sets it apart from other to - do managers I ’ve used . And if you ’re an iPhone user , right now the combination of Things for Mac and Things for iPhone is my favourite task - direction system .
Updated 4/2/09 , 2:30pm : Added bill about the want of Mac - to - Mac syncing , an omission that was factor out into thing ’ military rating but omitted from the original article .
