Projectizer

A blog focused exclusively on Project Management and Productivity.

Using the Backpack Firefox Plugins

		Thursday, 19 April 07 - 07:15 PM (GMT) By James Kramer in Task Management

Yesterday on Downloadsquad they had a post about two Firefox plugins that interact with Backpack. You can get the plugins here.

Backpack by 37Signals, is an easy to use notes, todo list and productivity organizer that comes with some extra bells and whistles for paying customers.

Here's the Projectizer public page on Backpack.

The Backpack Pages plugin provides quick links back to your Backpack Pages via the toolbar:



The Backpack Publish plugin allows you to select text on a page and send it to your Backpack Notes, ToDo List or Reminders.

 

To get started you'll first need a Backpack Account, you can sign up for free here.
Once you singed up take some time to get familiar with how Backpack works. 

Next you'll need to install the two extensions: Backpack Pages and Backpack Publish

This is a two part process: 1) install the extensions and 2) configure them with your Backpack API Key

I'll assume you've installed Firefox Plugins so I'll skip that part.

The next item you'll need is your Backpack API Key which you can find at the bottom of your Account page.

Backpack Pages - Options
 

Backpack Publish - Options

After you enter your keys you'll need to restart Firefox.

Now go find some text and send it to your Backpack via the Publish Plugin.

Links:

• Downloadsquad
• Backpack
• 37Signals

Huddle - New Features Announcment

		Thursday, 19 April 07 - 06:11 PM (GMT) By James Kramer in Project Management

 I got an email from Huddle today announcing some new features as well as some coming attractions.  The two items I am most excited about are Iimproved Usability and Improved Calendar

Released this week:

Thumbnailing on all major image types, even creative files like Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator and PDF. (This can be switched on by using the drop-down menu in your filing cabinet.) We hope this helps all you creative types get a much clearer idea of what images are being stored in the Filing Cabinet – and if you’ve got a more social huddle going you can see your photos too!

Sub-folders in the Filing Cabinet. This should make it much easier to manage large numbers of documents across your teams.

Improved usability. A new navigation bar that makes moving between huddles much easier, plus some nice ‘touch ups’ around the site to make it generally easier to use and nicer to look at!

Improved Calendar. You’ll now be able to see all events in the calendar no matter how far in the future they are. Plus you can now setup general project milestones that are not assigned to anyone in particular but that will still show in the team’s calendar.

Coming soon:

• Online forum for feedback and enhancement requests
• Interactive help desk where you can post questions into the knowledge base and see detailed answers to all types of questions.
• Free 1 month trial on premium packages

 Visit Huddle

Backpack add-ons for Firefox

		Thursday, 19 April 07 - 02:06 PM (GMT) By James Kramer in Task Management

 I haven't mention the offerings from 37Signals yet but DownloadSquad has just broke some cool news that there are 2 new Firefox Plugins that intergrate with Backpack.

Read more here: Backpack add-ons for Firefox - Download Squad

Zoho Services - Planner, Creator, Show, Sheet, Writer, Chat, Wiki all for Free

		Wednesday, 18 April 07 - 08:07 PM (GMT) By James Kramer in Collaboration

Ok so I said earlier that Foldera is "The Kitchen Sink of Project Management and Collaboration" and if that is the case then Zoho is the kitchen sink of Gropuware services. Why? Well, they offer 12 online services most of which are free. They have also added nice little intergration feature that allow you to manage each of the seprate services, that you sign up for, in a central control panel. Here's what they offer:

• Zoho Writer - Online word processor with collaboration features.
• Zoho Sheet - Online alternative to traditional spreadsheet applications.
• Zoho Show - Online presentation tool to create, edit, publish, and show presentations.
• Zoho Wiki - Wiki that is as easy to use as a word processor.
• Zoho Planner - Online organizer to maintain your todo’s, reminders, notes, attachments etc.
• Zoho Projects - Project management software to create, manage & collaborate online.
• Zoho CRM - Elegant & Affordable On-Demand CRM Solution
• Zoho Projects - Project management software to create, manage & collaborate online.
• Zoho Creator - Create Online Database Applications in minutes.
• Zoho Chat - Unique and intuitive way to make group decisions faster.

Not only do they offer a bevvy of services they also have:

• A plugin for Microsoft Office
• Zoho QuickRead browser plugin for IE and Firefox
• Desktopize Widget of Zoho
• Zoho API

I haven't had much time to look at each of the services soI can't say waht I like and don't like but I will do my best to give each one a fair test and report my findings.

Remember The Milk - Sharable Tasks and Schedule

		Friday, 13 April 07 - 06:53 PM (GMT) By James Kramer in Task Management

  "Remember The Milk makes managing tasks an enjoyable experience."

Remember the Milk this is a very nice application that is fairly easy to use. Along with the usual suspects of task management, scheduling and sharing they also off an API that in the right hands has some serious potential.

What I like:  It free and it has a very clean UI.  I like that they allow you to add locations on a map so that you can associate a task with a physical location and it has some ability to undo an action.

What I don't like: There is no calendar to look at for getting a picture of what the day, week or month has in store.

Visit Remember the Milk

HipCal - Calendar and Task Management

		Friday, 13 April 07 - 06:33 PM (GMT) By James Kramer in Calendar

  "HipCal is an online calendar, to-list, and address book developed by fraternity brothers, Garret Heaton, Pete Curley, Chris Rivers, Tawheed Kader, Glenn Dixon, as undergraduates at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in 2005."

What I like: It fast, It has a very clean UI and it's FREE!!

What I don't like: Nothing.  It's just about perfect.

Visit HipCal

HiTask

		Friday, 13 April 07 - 03:46 PM (GMT) By James Kramer in Task Management

 "HiTask is a simple task management application that is designed to satisfy both sophisticated followers of David Allan’s “Getting Things Done” methodology and anyone who just needs a quick and easy tool to manage their everyday tasks. HiTask gives you maximum comfort with minimum features to make your working day run smoothly and easily. Anyone can register and use HiTask service for free. For a small annual fee, users may enjoy HiTask Premium with advanced features and unlimited number of projects and teammates."

HiTask is a very flashy task manager, that is easy to use and has loads of features.  It comes in a free version and and a premium version for $15.  The free version is limited to a set amount of tasks and team members but I could not find an actual number.

What I like: It's free and it looks cool.

What I don't like: The calendar is too small and only show up as a side-bar item.

Visit HiTask

Foldera - The Kitchen Sink of Project Management and Collaboration

		Friday, 13 April 07 - 02:51 PM (GMT) By James Kramer in Project Management

"Foldera is a free and intuitive filing system of web-based folders that automatically organizes your work WHILE you work.

huddle - Project Management and Collabortaion

		Friday, 13 April 07 - 02:32 PM (GMT) By James Kramer in Project Management

"Huddle is a network of secure online spaces that combine powerful document, project & team tools with the simplicity of a social networking site. Huddle is ideal for brands, advertising, marketing, PR, design, legal & accountancy companies as well as freelancers & consultants."

What I like: As always it's free. 

What I don't like: It's a little hard to navigate. The free account is limited to 25MB of data.

Visit huddle

... More items are available in my News Archive