RELEASE: Actiontastic 0.8.2
Actiontastic 0.8.2 (Beta 3) is here.
Download It Now Update: 0.9 is out
(Mac OS X Tiger Required)
A follow up post is on the way with an overview of using Actiontastic for Getting Things Done.
Here are the changes in this release:
- Quicksilver integration for sending items to the Inbox
- New drawer for Notes on Inbox Items, Projects, Contexts, and Actions
- New menu item and shortcut for quickly turning an Action into a Project
- The enter key selects items for editing and ends editing a la Finder
- Context view now allows editing
- New Projects and Contexts are now correctly highlighted after adding
- Project and Context list items are vertically centered within their highlight
- Various drag and drop glitches have been fixed
- Behind the scenes data upgrade to support Notes
- Filters reset when adding new items if needed
- Complete overhaul of the back end Core Data code
- Other minor bug fixes
- Extended test period
Roger W wrote:
A first imprtession of the new beta:
Just installed it, seems to work as described. Now with notes. Good idea w notes on both action and pproject level as I now can use it both as a log file for a specific project and for small notes on specific actions. Good work!!
One small (graphical) feature request re: notes: If it would be possible to see in the list that there are notes on a specific action or project, it would be helpful. Maybe as an icon in the project and in the field next to the context field in the action list.
Just a suggestion.
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 1:19 am | Permalink
Uno wrote:
Good feature improvements. As a humble request, I would still like to make use of the TAB key for switching between the title and context field/coloumn when creating a new action. Seems more logical and intuitive to me than using the mouse to select the context :-)
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 2:00 am | Permalink
Roman Mandrick wrote:
Hi,
I dowloaded the beta. It’s amazing software. I would like to start using it. Can I buy it? It’s a pity that the beta expires. It’s a great software that I needed.
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 2:36 am | Permalink
dan wrote:
i just love it!
question: is integration with launchbar also possible?
thanks.
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 3:06 am | Permalink
Joel wrote:
Thanks for the update! Thanks especially for the Quicksilver plugin.
Now for two requests…
1. Is it possible to have a Quicksilver plugin called “Append to Actiontastic Inbox” so that anything sent to Actiontastic will not startup Actiontastic?
2. The close button still quits Actiontastic. It should just close the window.
Other than this is a welcome update! Keep up the good work.
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 4:33 am | Permalink
Jorge Otero wrote:
Wow, this is looking more and more promising. One thing that would be very important to me is to have empty contexts disappear from view (or mark them as empty). I plan on Projects but work on Contexts, so if I have, say, no calls, I’d rather not see that context in the list.
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 6:56 am | Permalink
Boris Jerenec wrote:
This is great sw, the first one that made me actually (try to) use gtd. I have a few humble requests/ideas too:
- window is too wide for me, it would be really great if the app could be made narrower - perhaps moving context/project column under the title? - I would like to have something that i could put to the right edge of the screen and have it always on the screen,
- right now, column widths are not preserved after restart (so I have to move them manually after each restart if I want narrow view),
- as uno expressed: use tab to switch between title and context :)
- would be great if the project could have default context (its actions would get this context by default)
These are just few details that I was thinking about when using this little great app. Of course, they are just suggestions… Keep up the good work!
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 6:59 am | Permalink
leslie wrote:
This is terrible software and a horrible release.
Actually, its not, but all the comments are so positive a little balance seemed appropriate to keep you on your toes.
Truth be told, this app looks the most promising to me and I’m really looking forward to your GTD post.
Thanks so much for the Quicksilver integration! Keep up the good work.
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 7:07 am | Permalink
Tim Walker wrote:
This is awesome sotware that’s really helping me get my world orgnanized. Many thanks. A request: any chance of adding an ‘Archive’ function for completed project? Seems like all I can delete them now.
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 3:13 pm | Permalink
puffymonster wrote:
Hi, great software, really easy to use and very practical, however the ability to set dates for projects to be completed by would be a useful feature, and the option to sort projects by their due date to help prioritize work.
Keep it up!
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 3:14 pm | Permalink
Wim Nuyts wrote:
Great piece of software! The combination with QuickSilver makes for very quick collection indeed.
A few suggestions:
Inbox:
Just pressing the return key should put you in edit mode for new stuff. Having to click on the + is too slow…
When you decide that stuff is an action, the app. should prompt for a project and context right away (2-level drop-down?) because normally you know these things right away
Actions and projects need a due date and a start date (optional attributes) to help with the planning and reminding.
Keep doing the good stuff! The race is on for the first proper GTD tool to be ready, and you’re leading the pack…
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 3:43 pm | Permalink
John Anthony Evans wrote:
Good update things seem to be moving along nicly, some rough edges but the simplicity is great.
After trying it out again and inputing some of my plain text todo’s I notice that the Quicksilver functionality is great but its lacks the ability to drop an item directly into a Project. Is there a chance that the Quicksilver action will be extended to include a “Send to Project” action?
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 5:05 pm | Permalink
garbanzito wrote:
suggestion: make the downloaded zip file expand to a folder with a quite similar name, so it doesn’t sort to a and out of sight spot in my downloads folder; i believe such a naming scheme is in keeping with GTD concepts (even if a cluttered downloads folder is not ;?> )
Posted on 20-Nov-06 at 5:16 pm | Permalink
Stevensmac On blog » Blog Archive » Actiontastic quicksilver integration wrote:
[…] Actiontastic, one of the contenders to be the go-to application for Mac using GTD-ers, has just been updated to version 0.8.2, and brings with it some spiffy upgrades including interface tweaks, a complete back-end database re-coding, and various bug fixes. But obviously those things alone don’t warrant a TUAW post do they? Of course not. The real reason I’m pointing out this update to you, dear reader, is the addition of a feature that I’ve long come to rely on in my GTD workflow: Quicksilver integration. One of the most basic tenets of GTD is brain dumping; getting all those projects and thoughts out of your head and into a trusted system so you spend less energy worrying about them, and more energy doing things that are actually productive. Having to switch away from the application I’m currently using in order to create a new item in my inbox totally trashes my train of thought, and being able to simple hit a hot-key to brain dump makes it easier to keep up with the GTD methodology. Actiontastic includes Quicksilver functionality as a QS action bundled with the app, which is much more elegant than the unfortunately clumsy Quicksilver Action Kinkless GTD uses to accomplish the same thing. […]
Posted on 21-Nov-06 at 4:19 am | Permalink
Steve wrote:
I like it. I think I am going to start using it instead of just watching its development. The more experienced I get the more I like apps like this that do one thing well instead of trying to take over all aspects of my life. I’m keeping an eye on Inbox but so far I suspect I will enjoy using Actiontastic more. One of the reasons is that I can assign a shortcut to it with butler and just bring it up when I need it. It’s small enough that it launches really fast as opposed to something like Inbox or OmniOutliner.
In the new version Command-I should bring out the Notes section. I also wish you would add alarms for items. Nothing too fancy But on some items I wish I could know that on date/time x I will get notified that I need to pay attention to a given item. The QuickSilver plug in only seems to work for me is actiontastic is already running. Is that the way it is supposed to work? I have always like QuickSilver but tend to stick with Butler because I can also use it to set up shorcuts in a much smaller memory footprint.
Posted on 21-Nov-06 at 5:31 am | Permalink
Hawk Wings » Blog Archive » Actiontastic GTD app gets Quicksilver plugin wrote:
[…] The public beta is available from his web site and expires on 18 December. […]
Posted on 21-Nov-06 at 5:55 am | Permalink
ScottC wrote:
Love the Quicksilver integration and the simple approach the developers are taking with this app. On the other hand … would like integration with iCal and the ability to see “What’s Due Today” or “This Week”.
Posted on 21-Nov-06 at 7:59 am | Permalink
Daily Clerks wrote:
[…] Actiontastic, one of the contenders to be the go-to application for Mac using GTD-ers, has just been updated to version 0.8.2, and brings with it some spiffy upgrades including interface tweaks, a complete back-end database re-coding, and various bug fixes. But obviously those things alone don’t warrant a TUAW post do they? Of course not. The real reason I’m pointing out this update to you, dear reader, is the addition of a feature that I’ve long come to rely on in my GTD workflow: Quicksilver integration. One of the most basic tenets of GTD is brain dumping; getting all those projects and thoughts out of your head and into a trusted system so you spend less energy worrying about them, and more energy doing things that are actually productive. Having to switch away from the application I’m currently using in order to create a new item in my inbox totally trashes my train of thought, and being able to simple hit a hot-key to brain dump makes it easier to keep up with the GTD methodology. Actiontastic includes Quicksilver functionality as a QS action bundled with the app, which is much more elegant than the unfortunately clumsy Quicksilver Action Kinkless GTD uses to accomplish the same thing. […]
Posted on 21-Nov-06 at 11:05 am | Permalink
MarcD wrote:
Good and clean and usable straight off - a great contender.
Can I bung in a request for sub-project levels and a means of throwing actions at projects via Quicksilver or by pop up in the inbox (Tab from action to Project pop-up with predictive text to Project/Sub-project).
I know one can drag-and-drop actions to projects, but it would require clean up time to do this. Doing it as you go seems more efficient to me.
Hey, we don’t ask for much do we ;) Thanks for what you are doing.
Posted on 21-Nov-06 at 11:11 am | Permalink
mp wrote:
hi, really nice app, coming along well. It would be great to have the number of tasks to do by each project & context e.g. iTunes puts the number of unheard podcasts, or Mail for unread messages.
Haven’t read GTD book yet, but it would be good to set priorities on tasks & have them sorted in list by priority.
Posted on 21-Nov-06 at 12:13 pm | Permalink
Eirc wrote:
A couple things that would make this app really useful are:
* Start and Due Dates or possibly a box for deferred items
* Prioritys
* The ability to sync w/ ical
I really like the quicksilver integration and the overall simplicity of the app. Make sure you always keep the app simple as this is one thing that it really has going for it.
Remember Less is More!
Posted on 21-Nov-06 at 4:18 pm | Permalink
Jerome wrote:
First time I use the software, looks great.
There’s a new feature on MailTags today, “Copy Message URL”. Is it possible to add “Link” support (any kind of link, http:// or message://) in the Notes area of Actiontastic so I can link to my emails?
Thanks!
Posted on 21-Nov-06 at 5:32 pm | Permalink
New Release of Actiontastic, GTD’ing Quicksilver Users Breathe Collective Sigh of Relief at LifeDev wrote:
[…] Quicksilver is a great Mac app for smartly launching any application based on your preferences. In short: less clicks, more action. It can even do web searches. Now you can include killer GTD functionality with Quicksilver via Actiontastic integration. One of the most basic tenets of GTD is brain dumping; getting all those projects and thoughts out of your head and into a trusted system so you spend less energy worrying about them, and more energy doing things that are actually productive. Having to switch away from the application I’m currently using in order to create a new item in my inbox totally trashes my train of thought, and being able to simple hit a hot-key to brain dump makes it easier to keep up with the GTD methodology. Actiontastic includes Quicksilver functionality as a QS action bundled with the app, which is much more elegant than the unfortunately clumsy Quicksilver Action Kinkless GTD uses to accomplish the same thing. […]
Posted on 21-Nov-06 at 11:33 pm | Permalink
Roger W wrote:
Will the websync be in the next release?
Posted on 23-Nov-06 at 3:09 pm | Permalink
Chris wrote:
Actiontastic is in fact the first GTD application that really makes me getting my things done! It’s straightforward, clutter-free and intuitive. Perfect!
Some small issues that I encountered when working with the app:
• I agree with Joel that the close button should just ‘Hide’ the application instead of quitting it, especially because Actiontastic does not Auto-Save at quit. If you forgot to save and close the window, you lose unsaved notes / items (happened to me a few times…)
• Some font formatting options (like Bold etc.) in the Notes should be accessible without ctrl-click (like small buttons i.e.). Also, if pasting some text snippets from other applications, wouldn’t it be better to paste them without formatting (so that you don’t have to go to the context menu to apply the standard style)? If pasting formatted text (from a webpage i.e.) at the end of the note, the text-style also inherits to the next new items note section…
• last one: manual sorting (by dragging up/down) of contexts and projects should be possible imo…
keep up the great work!!
Posted on 23-Nov-06 at 8:23 pm | Permalink
Jason. wrote:
Hi,
Playing with Actiontastic, I have a few comments I hope will make this a great app:
- The multiple new items (inbox item vs. action) doesn’t match my workflow; I constantly have to think “am I adding a new inbox item or a new action”, and “inbox items” don’t seem to provide a benefit. Better that I’m always creating new actions (either in the inbox, if that’s where I am, or in a project, if that’s where I am), and have the ability to make the action a project.
- the above change means I can then have just the Command-N for New Action and I can use it from anywhere.
- Often-used commands should have a single-modifier keystrokes or be variations of existing, similar keystrokes; New Context and new Projects both qualify for this; For New Context, I suggest Command-K; for New Project, I sugggest Command-Option-N or Command-Shift-N.
- I should be able to hit Delete to kill a Project or a Context, and not just have an icon. You should also enable the Delete menu item across the board. Even though I can hit Delete to kill an Inbox item, there’s no menu item enabled to tell me that.
- I should be able to do multiple section and multiple actions on that selection. E.g. I should be able to select multiple Projects and delete them, or multiple Actions and assign them to a particular Context;
- My InBox should allow to select the project the item belongs to, along with its context. Now, if I capture an item “Send email to John re: car” in my inbox, I then have to click “Is action”, then go to the Actions pane, click “Single Actions”, choose my “Email” context, then drag it into my “Car purchase” project. Too much work!
- Your dialogs should conform to Mac standards. That means buttons should be verbs; e.g on your Delete Projects button, it should say “Cancel”, “Delete Project” and “Delete Project and Its Actions”.
- Another example, “Delete Context” should be “Delete” and “Don’t Delete”, not “Yes” and “No”.
- You should also ensure that the destructive behavior is NOT the default action. Deleting should NEVER be the default, even if you have Undo working. Using the Delete Context example, “Don’t Delete” should be the default (return) button.
You have a strong entry. The basic functionality is there, you just need to clean up the interface and add a few expected Mac behaviors. Good luck.
Posted on 28-Nov-06 at 12:46 pm | Permalink
Jamie Hill wrote:
We are working on a web-based GTD/project management solution, see “propelr.com”:http://www.propelr.com.
We are looking at a launch date of early ‘07, I was wondering if you would be interested in integration via our API when the time comes?
Posted on 29-Nov-06 at 3:45 am | Permalink
Chris wrote:
Another thing I’d really appreciate is the ability to (auto-)mask URLs within the Notes-Section behind a Link-Icon. This would be really helpful and keep things overviewable, especially with longer URLs. Something like: if I enter an URL (starting with http:// or www.) it automatically becomes a link icon, with the ability to edit the URL via ctrl-Click…
Posted on 29-Nov-06 at 5:34 pm | Permalink
Chris wrote:
one more small issue: it would be nice if the most common keyboard shortcuts for editing text (⌘B for Bold, ⌘I italic, ⌘+ / ⌘- text-size editing etc.) would be working in the notes area…
Posted on 29-Nov-06 at 5:37 pm | Permalink
Andrew wrote:
Great Beta. How about save on closing, hide instead of close and hot key to ‘un-hide’.
Maybe everybody said this already.
Posted on 30-Nov-06 at 4:06 am | Permalink
Steve wrote:
Is there a way to delete projects from the keyboard? Backspace and Command-Backspace don’t seem to work. Neither does the delete key.
Posted on 30-Nov-06 at 8:09 am | Permalink
Steve wrote:
Could we get a shortcut to move amongst projetcs/context and inbox items? Something like command-Up and Down arrow?
Posted on 30-Nov-06 at 8:21 am | Permalink
Steve wrote:
Maybe command up and down moves amongst items and option up and down moves amongst projects/context. Just looking for a simple way to not have to hit the tab key all the time.
Posted on 30-Nov-06 at 8:25 am | Permalink
Oskar L-B wrote:
Great stuff. Been waiting for Midnight Inbox to get its stuff together, and here you come.
One wish for now: I’ve totally fallen in love with CheckOff (carpeaqua.com, try it!) and the way it’s always available to me right there in the menubar, to add tasks quickly and unobtrusively.
I’d love for your app to implement something similar, but of perhaps with more functionality, like immediate sorting and dating.
But in its core it would just need to be a shortcut to the Inbox, so I won’t have to launch the Big App whenever I feel like ticking something off my mind and into the system as quickly as possible.
Posted on 03-Dec-06 at 6:43 pm | Permalink
Andy wrote:
Hi, I’ve noticed one thing that (at least I) would classify as a bug. Add a new task, and type in some text, but do not hit enter, then hit add new task. A new task appears, but the text you just typed in resets to its default!
Posted on 11-Dec-06 at 12:38 pm | Permalink
Steve wrote:
Could we get a super project or super context that show all items regardless of project or context. Maybe an extra column in each to say project or context the item belongs to and obviously we can sort on that column.
Steven
Posted on 16-Dec-06 at 3:29 pm | Permalink
Ian wrote:
I found a bug. Actiontastic won’t launch on my MacBook Pro. After double clicking it, It shows on the dock, but then quickly closes. I tried restarting, but it gives me the same effect.
Ian
Posted on 18-Dec-06 at 8:13 pm | Permalink
shockerspaz wrote:
I have the same issue Ian has. I own a C2D MacBook Pro and cant run the app.
Posted on 19-Dec-06 at 2:04 pm | Permalink
Jon wrote:
If you are having a problem launching this app, please check the 0.8.3 blog entry for a quick workaround. I am working on an update that will fix this and hope to post it this evening.
Posted on 19-Dec-06 at 2:08 pm | Permalink
Alex wrote:
Looks great!
Couple of questions: (at work so i cant install and see for myself)
How much writing space is there per action (e.g. for notes on the action etc)
Is / will there be a way to ‘attach” or link to files pertaining to actions to speed workflows.
Posted on 19-Dec-06 at 7:34 pm | Permalink
George wrote:
Does not work in my G4. Loads, but doesn’t accept new items in the inbox or new projects. Gets a message that an error occured while saving.
Posted on 28-Dec-06 at 5:53 pm | Permalink
Jon wrote:
@George:
Please check that the About box shows version 0.8.3b. (If it does not, try downloading and installing the latest version.) If it does and you don’t already have data in the app, try stopping the app, deleting ~/Library/Application Support/Actiontastic and restarting it. If that doesn’t help, please send an email to jon at kaboomerang dot com and I will help troubleshoot.
Posted on 28-Dec-06 at 8:39 pm | Permalink