I have been spending time with version 2 of S4BB's NextAction! product, which is a Blackberry add-on designed to help manage your projects and next actions on your Blackberry - and is specifically intended for use with the Getting Things Done methodology. This product has been around for a while, but I felt version 1 was clunky with limited functionality, and significant usability challenges. In contrast, the new version 2 is a huge improvement, and I am now comfortable recommending it here.

NextAction! is add-on software designed specifically for Blackberry handhelds, and it adds a new dimension to your Blackberry task management. It syncs seamlessly with the tasks on your desktop, works with Windows, Mac, and Blackberry Enterprise Server (BES), and supports desktop apps like Microsoft Outlook, Lotus Notes, Act!, Novell Groupwise, iCal, Entourage, etc.

Better tasks for Blackberry

Why do you need a better way to manage tasks on Blackberry? The Blackberry's built-in task application is woefully inadequate. It does a poor job with categories, has a cumbersome interface, and offers very little in the way of filtering.

NextAction provides a clean way of viewing and organizing your tasks by Context (category) and Project (Contexts are automatically synched with the Categories you create on your desktop, while Projects need to be created within NextAction!). You can change your view with one click by selecting a new Context (see the view at right).

You can also create new next actions from within the NextAction! application, and mark existing tasks as complete. Furthermore, you hide completed tasks in your view so they get out of your sight when you're done with them.

You can try it risk free with the free trial version of NextAction! -- if you're a Blackberry user, and a GTD follower, I recommend giving it a spin to see if it will work for you.

Pros:

• NextAction! isell-suited for use with GTD
• NextAction is much better than the Blackberry's native Task application
• Excellent support for Contexts / Categories
• Coexists peacefully with built-in Blackberry applications
• Excellent integration with Desktop applications and BES
• Nice keyboard shortcuts to make managing next actions easier
• Available in English, German, and Chinese language versions
• Supports latest Blackberry models (Blackberry Pearl, 8800, Curve, etc.)
• Nice, long, free trial so you can check it out before you buy

Cons:

• Pricey - $40-$50 depending on where you purchase it (upgrades from v1 are $20)
• Limited sorting capability - can't sort by due date or priority
• Only supports Blackberry devices

Related items

• Jott a note to yourself (5/10/2007)
• TravelHack: Find good plane seats on the run (1/31/2007)
• GTD and ClearContext guidance (4/16/2007)

I've just been reading up on an interesting approach to tackling the Getting Things Done (GTD) - it's called "Wrike" and it looks very intriguing. They say they will save you 30 minutes a day if you use their tools properly.

Wrike is a web-based application, so you'll need internet access to use it, but that also means you can use it from anywhere. You get a simple "dashboard" to create and manage tasks, as well as reporting on future and completed tasks and projects. You can use tags and create heirarchical relationships to make it easier to group your activities.

Of course, Wrike wasn't specifically written for Getting Things Done, but they've recently posted great guidelines for how to use Wrike for GTD.

One of the more interesting features is the ability to create new tasks, projects, and delegation assignments via email. You compose an email to Wrike and the system uses that email to drive the task:

"Create a message with a task to one of your friends. Put wrike@wrike.com in the CC field and add the due date [yyyy-mm-dd] in the subject line. The template due date is currently shown as tomorrow. Then hit the send button.

Within next several minutes both of you will get an invitation from the system. You and your friend will be able to keep track of this task together. If the task is not marked completed by the due date, Wrike will remind both of you about it."

According to their documentation, you don't need to be online to update and manage these tasks - you receive email notifications, and can update the rest of your team via email through Wrike. Hard to visualize? Click here to see a video demo of Wrike in action.

They offer a free version and a Pro version ($5 per month) for individuals, as well as several flavors of team-oriented packages. For more info on pricing or to sign up, check out Wrike's pricing page.

I haven't really used this yet, since I tend to be more of an "offline" or Outlook-centric kind of person for GTD, but would love to hear your stories if you decide to use it. The free version should make it a safe experiment for the curious and adventurous souls among you.

I recently upgraded to version 2 of Speedfiler from Claritude Software. I've been a loyal v1 user for a long time now, and it's an awesomely easy way to file Outlook emails. If you're a version 1 user, you'll find that version 2 is much faster to load, and it has an eerily accurate ability to predict what folder you want to file messages in, even if they are on a new topic. I'm not sure how it does it, but it is way cool.

A full list of features is available on Claritude's site. Version 1 users can also find out what's new in v2.

Outlook's clunky old filing

If you ever use Outlook's [Ctrl]+[Shift]+[V] keystroke combo to move messages to filing folders, you know that it is a good habit to develop, but it requires a lot of steps if you use subfolders (the Outlook UI is a little clunky). I've been using this since I got hooked on David Allen's "Getting Things Done".

If, for example, I want to use the traditional Outlook UI to file a message in a folder called Inbox/Customers/Fictional, I have to:

1. type [Ctrl]+[Shift]+[V] to get the move dialog,
2. type "IN" to get to the Inbox folder,
3. hit the [Right] arrow to expand the subfolders under the Inbox,
4. type "Cust" to get to the Customers Folder,
5. hit the [Right] arrow to expand the subfolders under Customers,
6. type "Fict" to get the the Fictional folder,
7. hit [Enter] to save the message to that folder.

SpeedFiler's better way

SpeedFiler replaces Outlook's dialog for filing. To do the same thing with SpeedFiler, I would:

1. type [Ctrl]+[Shift]+[V] to get the move dialog,
2. type "Fict" to get the the Fictional folder,
3. hit [Enter] to save the message to that folder.

Much easier, and a lot less hand movement. By the way, you don't have to start with the first letter of the folder name. For example, if you have a folder called TwilightZone, you can just type "Zone" and it will show up in the list. This is handy when you can't remember the precise folder name but you know one word that is in the folder name.

Another cool thing - if you have multiple folders with similar names, SpeedFiler narrows down the list as you type - you can see an example in the screenshot I snagged and posted here, in which I begin to narrow down my various "...reference..." folders.

Other tips and observations:

• SpeedFiler helps with retrieval
  • One of the drawbacks of filing is that it gives you more folders to navigate through when you want to retrieve things. SpeedFiler helps there - their CEO, Itzy Sabo, turned me on to a very cool shortcut:
• When you want to navigate to one of your folders, hit [Ctrl]+Y, and the SpeedFiler dialog pops up and you can start typing to narrow down the folder you want to go to. When you've typed enough, hit [Enter] and you're looking at your folder. Beats the heck out of mouse-based navigation. Itzy's blog has some great productivity articles, as well.

So - what's the big deal?

As David Allen says in his book, filing needs to be easy or it won't get done consistently. SpeedFiler makes it easier to do mundane filing, therefore it is more likely you'll file things consistently.

If you're an Outlook user (using Getting Things Done or not), I recommend you give it a whirl and download the 30-day trial of SpeedFiler.

By the way, I use SpeedFiler in conjunction with ClearContext (which I've also written about), and the two work flawlessly together - there are some instances when I use topics with ClearContext, and others when I want to hit [Ctrl]+[Shift]+V to invoke SpeedFiler to do the job.

Other, gadget-related items

• Create the soundtrack of your life (6/15/2007)
• Can you watch your legally purchased DVD's on your video iPod? (5/21/2007)
• Fresh Gear: The flattest wallet ever (5/2/2007)