ForumsTips & TricksCurrent State of 3rd-Party Apps
Current State of 3rd-Party Apps
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Tripper |
I wanted see which 3rd-party apps people are still using with TD, and list out my favorites to compare.
In my case, I work most often from a Windows desktop and an Android phone. Sometimes from the Web or MacOS. In general, I've found things like batch editing to be way easier with Windows and MacOS desktop apps and I also prefer certain app UI's for quicker input and sorting than either TD's Web or Mobile apps. My app choices are currently TaskUnifier on Windows, Ultimate To-Do List on Android. More specifically, here are my observations on apps for each platform: Windows TaskUnifier - WinXP-style UI and runs on Java, but the most feature-rich. Calendar view for tasks with due dates/times. Full support and sync of all field types. Unfortunately it's been abandoned by its developer, and I worry it's only a matter of time before the app loses feature-parity or ability to sync as TD continues to evolve. A real shame. I wish someone would pickup the project... TaskAngel - Runs natively in Windows. Is missing Length and Timer fields, and doesn't handle subtask/project layouts very well. It is still actively developed, though. 2Day - By far the most beautiful, but displays tasks in a timeline style, which is not necessarily the best way visual presentation for all use cases. Like TaskUnifier, development has ceased, as its creator has gone to work on Microsoft's To Do app. So I see it stagnating as well... shame. gSyncIt for Outlook - Creative use of categories and other workarounds to support most TD field types. Also the only way I know to keep TD in-sync with Todoist or Nozbe at a flat level (task-subtask relationships are lost). MacOS 2Do - Very nice-looking app, but limited support for all field types. TheHitList - Better field support. Not quite as nice of an interface. Seems development has also stagnated. Android Ultimate To-Do List - The best choice for full field support. It even syncs how Goals relate to each other. Still in active development; hopefully that means a face lift at some point, as the UI is a bit dated. DTG GTD - Some nicer UI components than Ultimate, but an even more dated UI. Doesn't sync Goal relationships correctly. Slow development as well. 2Do - By far the best looking, but doesn't support Contexts, Goals, Length, Timer. Also cannot use No Folder as one's Inbox, like how you can with Ultimate or DTG. The state of things is obviously a mixed bag. IMHO, the perfect desktop app would be something with the power of TaskUnifier but the interface of something like OmniFocus. And the perfect Android app would have the same features, but the UI of an app like 2Do. One can only wish! What are your top choices and observations? This message was edited Dec 22, 2017. |
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coolexplorer |
+1 Ultimate To Do Android App for its two way sync and editing with Google Calendar and Persistent Nagging Reminders on mobile devices.
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mikael_be |
+1 on Ultimate ..., in my case because reasonably large amount of information visible at once in widgets (a.k.a. small font)
+1 on DTG for *very* much information in each unit area of widget (a.k.a. very small fonts available, if you like that) +1 on DTG for the option to request that completed recurrent 'Next Actions' gets the 'Next Action' tag removed, and thus forces you to review recurrent tasks (they effectively land in the inbox as soon as one instance is done). -1 on DTG for certain limits on what combinations (status/folder/context..) that can be combined to create a widget view -1 on DTG for issues (under certain circumstances that I never quite managed to pin down) with overdue recurring tasks that get completed - in some circumstances the completed tasks gets duplicated (next week, put out the trash two times!) |
| Legumen | Post deleted |
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Ummagumma |
Toodledo needs a native Windows sync app. Otherwise it's at the mercy of 3rd party apps none of which is a compelling solution.
The majority of desktops in the corporate environment run Outlook and Exchange, yet there's very little choice for syncing TD with it. If gSyncit for whatever reason fails to work - as it did for me - that's it. A CalDav access could be a viable alternative, but it's clear that Toodledo is not planning on providing it. I had a Silver plan that is still good through October but I am no longer using TD. I need to be able to create and see my tasks in Outlook and this means using Reminders. Or MS Todo once they work out the bugs. Toodledo is a great system but it's far too restricted. |
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Purveyor |
Posted by Ummagumma:
The majority of desktops in the corporate environment run Outlook and Exchange, yet there's very little choice for syncing TD with it. I can appreciate wanting to integrate Toodledo with Outlook but why in a corporate environment with Exchange?When you mention "Reminders", I'm guessing that you're referring to the iOS app that can sync with Exchange. There's a much more powerful app available. Take a look at: TaskTask. This message was edited Mar 06, 2018. |
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Ummagumma |
Posted by Purveyor:
Posted by Ummagumma: The majority of desktops in the corporate environment run Outlook and Exchange, yet there's very little choice for syncing TD with it. I can appreciate wanting to integrate Toodledo with Outlook but why in a corporate environment with Exchange?Because the majority of my tasks are work related, and many if not most are email driven, and I want to be able to easily and quickly create them from within Outlook and sync to my task manager. I think most users of Toodledo are in the same boat, I.e. the majority of their tasks are work related. When you mention "Reminders", I'm guessing that you're referring to the iOS app that can sync with Exchange. There's a much more powerful app available. Take a look at: TaskTask. Reminders serve as sync vehicle, using iCloud for Windows. There’s a number of apps that expand on Reminders functionality. My favorite app at the moment is Calengoo, which is a very good calendar and a decent task manager (supports task start date, custom alarms, tags, and “Today” function using Top priority). The advantage of using Reminders as the base for my task setup is that it’s not tied to any unique 3rd party tool. There’s currently two “1st party” ways to sync Outlook tasks to iOS Reminders - either via Outlook.com Tasks using MS provided tool, or via iCloud for Windows using Apple provided tool. I’ve tried both methods and they are both pretty reliable. I can then use Calengoo or some other 3rd party tool to expand the Reminders functionality (and with Calengoo at least, the additional functions can also be used in Outlook, i.e. I can add a custom reminder or start date in Outlook and it will sync through to Calengoo even though the Reminders app is clueless about that). The problem is, as much as I like Toodledo, it’s a thing in itself, I can only use it via Web interface or a mobile app. There’s no integration with Outlook. And having that integration more than makes up for some lost functionality. I did try gSyncit but it could not get through our firewall and I received zero help from developers. |
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Purveyor |
Posted by Ummagumma:
Because the majority of my tasks are work related, and many if not most are email driven, and I want to be able to easily and quickly create them from within Outlook and sync to my task manager. But Outlook has a powerful task manager. What additional benefit do you get from using Toodledo along with Outlook instead of just using Outlook?Edited: Sorry, I don't mean to put you in a position where you have to defend yourself. Obviously you have some good reasons for doing things the way you do. Just curious about those reasons. This message was edited Mar 06, 2018. |
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Ummagumma |
Posted by Purveyor:
Posted by Ummagumma: Because the majority of my tasks are work related, and many if not most are email driven, and I want to be able to easily and quickly create them from within Outlook and sync to my task manager. But Outlook has a powerful task manager. What additional benefit do you get from using Toodledo along with Outlook instead of just using Outlook?How do I get Outlook tasks on my phone and iPad without using some other app ? I am away from my laptop at least 50% of time (traveling, quick meetings, etc.) and having my tasks always accessible on my mobile devices is the key to productivity. |
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Purveyor |
That's why I posted a link to TaskTask.
Yes, it is a "3rd party app" but, until Microsoft adds Tasks to their iOS Outlook app or they dramatically improve their To-Do app, TaskTask is your best option for syncing an iOS device with Outlook/Exchange Tasks. Also, keep in mind that syncing between Outlook Tasks and Toodledo will require several compromises. What do you do with Outlook Categories, attachments, links and formatted notes? What do you do with Toodledo subtasks, Folders, Contexts, Tags, Locations, Goals and Stars? Probably you don't use all of those fields and features but any designer of an Outlook/Toodledo sync tool has to decide what to sync and what to ignore. This message was edited Mar 06, 2018. |
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Ummagumma |
Posted by Purveyor:
That's why I posted a link to TaskTask. Yes, it is a "3rd party app" but, until Microsoft adds Tasks to their iOS Outlook app or they dramatically improve their To-Do app, TaskTask is your best option for syncing an iOS device with Outlook/Exchange Tasks. There's a number of options as long as I don't use Toodledo. Also, no 3rd party mobile sync client is allowed to connect to our corporate Exchange account, and for all I know this is a pretty common policy. The best approach seems to be to use the native Reminders app as the sync conduit, and build the custom functionality on top of it so that it syncs through to Outlook. And this can most certainly be accomplished. Calengoo does it, AFAIK Informant does it, PlanBe used to do it (now it appears to have been taken off the US Appstore), Outlook.com does it, and there's no reason why Toodledo can't do it. Also, keep in mind that syncing between Outlook Tasks and Toodledo will require several compromises. What do you do with Outlook Categories, attachments, links and formatted notes? What do you do with Toodledo subtasks, Folders, Contexts, Tags, Locations, Goals and Stars? Probably you don't use all of those fields but any designer of an Outlook/Toodledo sync tool has to decide what to sync and what to ignore. Well, there's always a compromise. The most important task features that Toodledo offers *for me* is the start date, the star, alarm, tags, and the variety of filters and custom views. I can live without goals or contexts. All of these functions are available in Outlook, or can be achieved using filters and custom views. E.g. if I go in Outlook and start a new task "Task123 #Project 1" and assign the start date of 3/8, alarm at 1 pm on 3/10, and due date of 3/12, when it syncs to my iPad via Reminders and I open Calengoo, I will see Task123 with label "Project 1" and start date, alarm, and due date preserved. If I enter "Task 231" on Calengoo with start date of 3/10, alarm at 12 am on 3/11, due date on 3/12, and label "Hot" it will appearin Outlook as "Task 231 #Hot" with correct dates and alarm. Even though iOS Reminders app is completely oblivious to most of these values, it still works with it acting as a sync intermediary. Calengoo doesn't use Outlook categories, but because of the simple and straigthforward way the labels (categories) have been implemented by developer, it is very easy to use them in Outlook via searches / filters / custom views / conditional formatting. There's no reason why Toodledo developers couldn't come up with a similar way to syncronize with Exchange via Reminders without sacrificing much, if any, functionality. It's just not something they are interested in. (Or rather "he" as I believe there's really only Jake working on the code...) So, the choice for me is between using all of the Toodledo's functionality but without Outlook integration, or much of functionality + Outlook integration, but without using Toodledo. This message was edited Mar 06, 2018. |
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Purveyor |
Posted by Ummagumma:
Also, no 3rd party mobile sync client is allowed to connect to our corporate Exchange account, and for all I know this is a pretty common policy. The best approach seems to be to use the native Reminders app as the sync conduit If you can view your Exchange tasks in the Reminders app on your iPhone, then you're using a "3rd party mobile sync client".there's no reason why Toodledo can't do it. Well, then: Good luck.
... There's no reason why Toodledo developers couldn't come up with a similar way ... This message was edited Mar 06, 2018. |
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Ummagumma |
Posted by Purveyor:
If you can view your Exchange tasks in the Reminders app on your iPhone, then you're using a "3rd party mobile sync client". The "approved" sync client, which only syncs to OS "native" calendar and tasks. Well, then: Good luck. Not waiting for them to do anything, which is why I am no longer using the service. |
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Gnopps |
I've used Ultimate To-do list for Android for years and like it customisation. Since switching phones (to S7) however it keeps losing the sync every few days, meaning tasks are never downloaded from the cloud. To solve I have to reconnect which I guess would be ok every now and then but the problem is that the app gives me no warning when sync has stopped - I usually notice it by having tasks I know should be there that are missing.
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coolexplorer |
Posted by Gnopps:
I've used Ultimate To-do list for Android for years and like it customisation. Since switching phones (to S7) however it keeps losing the sync every few days, meaning tasks are never downloaded from the cloud. To solve I have to reconnect which I guess would be ok every now and then but the problem is that the app gives me no warning when sync has stopped - I usually notice it by having tasks I know should be there that are missing. My sync on Android 8 via OnePlus3T mobile is rock solid. Kindly post your complaint on the Ultimate To-do list forum as well, so that the developer can look into it. |
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Gnopps |
Posted by coolexplorer:
Posted by Gnopps: I've used Ultimate To-do list for Android for years and like it customisation. Since switching phones (to S7) however it keeps losing the sync every few days, meaning tasks are never downloaded from the cloud. To solve I have to reconnect which I guess would be ok every now and then but the problem is that the app gives me no warning when sync has stopped - I usually notice it by having tasks I know should be there that are missing. My sync on Android 8 via OnePlus3T mobile is rock solid. Kindly post your complaint on the Ultimate To-do list forum as well, so that the developer can look into it. Yeah, I did do that last autumn and was ask to either fix my internet connection (4G around Helsinki, so no issues there) or sync manually. The problem to me is less about the sync and more about the lack of information that sync has stopped. As said, except for the above it is a great app. |
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helge_2 |
Hi everyone,
it may be of interest for you that the native Toodledo MacOS App seems to have regained full functionality again since Toodledo has switched to responsive web design recently. I already suggested in another post that this app should be made available again to everyone. For MacOS you may also want to consider Air Browser App which also offers great customization options how you can permanently access Toodledo in the MacOS Status Bar: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/air-browser/id948620309?mt=12 Best, Helge This message was edited Jul 05, 2018. |
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