We're willing to bet radiologists in Shanghai like to listen to music -- who doesn't? -- but that's not how they're using iTunes. At Renji Hospital and Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, they're using it to organize PDFs of important medical research and images that they say are more useful than many textbooks.
You can drop a PDF into iTunes and sort it just like you would with music. That means that the medical documents in Shanghai are searchable, ratable, and can be given multiple different tags. Before iTunes, they were keeping redundant copies of PDFs in directories by category. Now, they only need to keep one of each. So, if you've been looking for software that can organize your PDFs, think about an app you likely already have: iTunes!
SecondBrain is a personal aggregator that doesn't just aim to collect all your online content in one place - it helps you organize it. It's a bit del.icio.us, a bit FriendFeed and a bit Onaswarm, all rolled into one, with a new twist you're not going to find anywhere else.
You can import content from Twitter, del.icio.us, Blogger, Wordpress, Digg and StumbleUpon, and that's less than half the list. You can also get your content into SecondBrain by adding links directly to the site. With most other aggregators or social bookmarking sites, that's all you have to do. This is where SecondBrain gets interesting, because it allows you to organize your content into collections and share it with your people who follow your updates. SecondBrain's latest feature gives all users 1GB free storage.
It's still lacking certain features, the most significant one being the inability to export your links, but we've been told that's in the works.
SecondBrain appeals to that obsessive compulsive need to keep all your online content neatly tagged and filed away. And what better way to do this than with a service that allows you to share it with other like-minded people?
Earlier this week we previewed Bento, the new personal database application by FileMaker. Today we take a look at another Leopard-only Mac application aimed at keeping your files organized and easy to find: Together 2.0. Together, previously known as Keep it Together (KIT), is a pretty slick application from Reinvented Software that promises an easy way to keep all kinds of files in one place, making it easy to find them again later. Using a drag-and-drop interface and taking advantage of both Spotlight and Quick Look in Leopard, Together shows a lot of promise as an easy to use data organizer.
Together works, essentially, by dragging and dropping files and folders into either the application itself, or to a designated group or folder in the Shelf, a side menu that can be quickly accessed from the desktop, regardless of what program you are using. You can then label or tag those items and add notations or make small edits. Parts of the program reminded us of the Google Notebook, but without being exclusively web-based. For instance, we were able to drag and drop graphics from a web page directly into Together 2.0, without first saving or opening the file in a separate window. Likewise, selected text is copied (sans markup) to a new text file. Web archives can be created from within Together 2.0, either from existing bookmarks or a manual URL - and the text on those pages can be edited instantly.
FileMaker, Inc. a company best known for the cross-platform database app, FileMaker Pro, has just released a public preview of Bento, their new personal database program for Leopard users -- which to quote the press release -- "[is] as easy to use as your Mac." The program, which is expected to ship early next year, is available as a free, full-functioning time-limited Preview (it expires in February) from FileMaker's site. The shipping version will be $49 for individual licenses and $99 for a family license. Bento is a Leopard-only application.
We got a chance to play around with Bento prior to today's public pre-release, and are really impressed with both the interface (which is very similar to iTunes and the rest of the iLife series) and the actual power of the program. Bento automatically links itself with iCal and Address Book (so a change made in Bento will show up in the corresponding applications, and vice versa), while also taking advantage of some of Leopard's new features, like being able to play a media file without having to open QuickTime or iTunes, from within the database. This is really helpful if trying to organize a multi-media project, because everything is accessible from one place, and the files can be quickly viewed or opened on the spot.
Bento is also very customizable, both in Library types and in overall appearance. FileMaker provides 20 different "themes" that can be applied to a Library or Collection, and they look very, very Mac, which is to say aesthetically pleasing. Our pals over at TUAW have also previewed Bento, and provide some great screenshots of the program itself and some thoughts on the application as a whole.
Highrise, the popular web-based contact and correspondence app from 37signals, has a new dedicated Tags tab in the dashboard. This will help users filter and sift through their contacts and notes much more quickly, especially since the company built in the slick ability to select multiple tags with which to filter. Clicking one tag in the cloud begins the process, while clicking another will switch to filtering by just that tag. After clicking a tag, however, the upper right of the tag cloud (pictured) will offer a 'Multiple tags' option. Once clicked, each subsequent tag you select will add to the filter, not replace it. This is a very smart way to offer the best of both worlds for everyone, no matter how they work and use tags to sort their correspondence.
Remember the Trapper Keeper? That faithful notebook saw many a gen-Xer through his or her awkward teen years. Flash forward to today, and so much classwork is done online that the Trapper Keeper has nearly gone the way of the sulfur tipped match.
We don't know why they're accusing high-school students of drinking, but it's a neat service and worth a look if you're headed back to campus this fall.
In a day and age where everything from YouTube to Pownce are vying for both our free and shouldn't-be-free time, it's great to see a company like Remember the Milk figuring out an ingenious way to help keep our daily tasks organized while we're goofing off or micro-blogging with Twitter. On the company's blog today, RTM announced not only that they have a Twitter account of their own, but that you can actually get some clever use out of it. By adding the RTM Twitter account as a friend and then direct messaging it with a specific syntax they have put together, you can actually create tasks, send tasks to friends and even command tasks (mark them as complete, get an SMS of a list's tasks, etc.). This is a stellar way of combining such a dynamic service as Twitter with a way of being productive, and all it requires is some simple linking of your RTM account with your Twitter username.
Fortunately, both Twitter and Remember the Milk are free to sign up for, giving you a valid way to justify all that time you spend on Twitter to your boss.
There are many task-list applications out there, but not many with the impressive feature set that Toodledo has. Its deceptive simplicity of task entry using inline editing via AJAX makes for lightning fast tasking and better productivity, while providing integration with Google Calendar, Google Personal Homepage, Firefox, and IMified.
One of the best features of Toodledo is the distinction between folders (for projects) and contexts (the many hats you wear). Contexts allows only your current frame of mind for work, and doesn't show you your home tasks. This keeps the honey-do list away from your work list, so you aren't thinking about that darn swing-set you have to put up in the middle of working on Mr. The-man's presentation.
If that isn't enough to make you jump over and check it out, they also have a printable tasklist, email alerts for your top tasks (called a hotlist), but also the ability to import/export tasks to iCal, Palm OS, XML, CSV, and text. Task lists can be published to the web if you want to share your inner-workings with the world, and with a non-free but reasonable price ($14.95/year) you can have others edit and append to your task list among other things. Toodledo offers a free 7-day trial of their pro account for your enjoyment.
Wait, there's even more. There is a developer API, it fully supports GTD, tags, history and stats, a scheduler, some goal-setting functions, RSS support, SMS support, WAP support and more. Tasks can be imported from Outlook, Apple iCal, and Remember The Milk. Seldom is there such a complete feature set in a free application. It is a major time-saver for the quick-and-dirty type task person who doesn't want to spend 8 years filling out a task form. If you don't have a solid task-list manager yet, this is the ticket.
Okay, confession time. Despite being an early adopter for most things, I hadn't caught the basecamp train and got on board. Why you ask? I had no good use for it, though it is an excellently crafted application. I love software, and thus I checked it out, but for some reason I didn't see how its use would fit into my busy life, until now.
Becoming a self-employed web developer threw my daily routine out the window in a big way, and my preciously corporate sanctioned work-flow as well, giving me a new set of problems. One new problem I've had is process tracking, central information storage and updating, and project management. If this sounds like three problems, you're right, but they are tightly connected.
Having many projects and lots of information to track, share, and modify, basecamp handles with ease and makes me work less and takes care of these problems without taking too much of my time. I am finally "with it" when it comes to project management.
Developing software is no picnic (as you know), but now at least I know where the utensils are. Try eating potato salad without a fork, and you'll get the idea. If you haven't checked out basecamp (by 37 signals) it is worth it, there is a free account, awesome simple tutorial videos, and a great application to help you track life and work.
If you are with it, and use basecamp religiously (or casually), do you have tips for a basecamp beginner like me, or ideas to get more out of basecamp? We're all ears.
With so many great webmail offerings out there, only two are considered the frontrunners. Yahoo, the oldest player, has just revamped with unlimited storage and some drag and drop interface changes, while Google has the threaded simplicity thing going on adding built in Chat, Doc, Calendar, and Spreadsheet applications with a less cluttered appearance.
In this battle, who is the real leader? Veronica Belmont from Cnet put up both Yahoo Mail and Gmail up to the test on which one of these AJAX email applications is the leader. She weighs in and compares all of the strengths and weaknesses of both services in interface design, features, speed, organization, and security to come up with the end winner.
Moms looking for a neat way to meet other mothers to compare notes and swap stories really ought to check out OpMom.com. A cross between iVillage and MySpace, OpMom -- shorthand for Operation Mom -- bills itself as a social networking and web service site for busy mothers. Though clearly in its infancy, OpMom already has sections filled with reader-submitted recipes, theme party ideas, and "circles", groups where mothers with common interests can gather and get to know one another in smaller settings.
Registration is easy and doesn't require users to cough up a lot of personal information. After registration, users have the option of creating a profile with as much (or as little) information as they are comfortable sharing. You can opt to simply provide a screen name for other users to see, or you can detail the ages of your children, your hometown, and even your religious affiliation. Privacy levels are easy to set as well, ranging from full access by all the site's users to only those whom you specifically allow to view your information.
BigContacts is a web based contact manager where users can upload both personal and business contacts from Outlook of Excel and simply keep track of all contacts in one place. From playing around with the free beta version, this does have a lot of potential. On first glance of the demo, the screen seems a tad busy, and overwhelming. It looks like there is a lot going on, and I wasnt really sure where I should click first. BigContacts might have been better off by making things look a little simpler and less intimidating to o users. Then again, they are still developing this online solution, so I assume things will be changed around a bit when the full launch comes around. BigContacts has used the Web 2.0 application standard, Ajax to build this tool. There are a fair share of features and options that are offered, including Contact clouds that blow up names that have had more activity over another, and team activities that can be tracked through RSS feeds. The contact manager also has the ability to attach photos, notes and files with contacts, which is a great feature for remembering important details about a person. There is a group calendar and Skype integration as well. Last but not least, the BigContacts has the added bonus of being able to review your contacts from any web enabled phone, where users can also review and write notes and tasks. I will be playing with this a bit more to get a greater feel for it. I'm not totally sold on using this yet, but it does have serious potential as a contact manager. The beta is open to everyone and pricing will range from $59.95 for a 10 users account, to a Free 3 user account.
Since I'm a card-carrying Google Reader convert, I've been loosely following the discussions in its Google Group. I'm constantly impressed with how active some of their engineers like Chris and Mihai are in the conversation, and just the other day they announced some small but much-requested updates and bug fixes to Reader, including:
First and foremost: An "Add to folder" menu after using the subscribe bookmarklet, the Firefox 2.0 subscribe button and the "Add to Google" button
The "Feed actions..." menu lets you rename the feed and change its folders
Some IE 7 display bugs have been fixed
Some IE 6 display bugs have been fixed
OPML import should be more tolerant of invalid characters
The filtering that can be done in the settings page now handles multiple terms (separate them with spaces)
The settings page should display faster when you have lots of subscriptions
Nothing major, though that 'Add to folder' button is a God-send (Google-send?) for adding new subscriptions and easily filing them away without breaking one's workflow.
Take Wikipedia, and mash it up a bit. That's what Cogmap is. Cogmap is a Wikipedia style organizational chart that maps out corporate structures. The application that they have created is pretty powerful and easy to use. Users can browse through organizations listed, and check out the corporate structures of companies including Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft. If you know of any incorrect information, or can add in additional names, members can make the changes. Cogmap is a pretty powerful tool. Like Wikipedia, if you need information on individuals like phone numbers, emails, job titles, and addresses, they could be listed here. Try it out.
If your email volume is anything like mine, it's totally insane. Thousands of messages constantly streaming in and, only a tiny fraction of those are messages you need to see.
Surprising then, that only a few years ago I was literally living inside Microsoft Outlook. Rigid folders, the nightmarish rules "wizard", and that annoying inbox chime that dings regardless of which folder your new distraction message ultimately wound up.
I completely believe that Gmail saved my life. Okay, that's pushing it. Gmail didn't save my life. What Gmail (and a little bit of GTD-inspired respect for my own time) did was save my attention span. Some careful filtering and a bit of common sense returned a half hour or more of uninterrupted concentration per day.
That's 2.5 hours a week, over 10 hours a month and more than one whole day per year.
Earlier this week we previewed Bento, the new personal database application by FileMaker. Today we take a look at another Leopard-only Mac application aimed at keeping your files organized and easy to find: Together 2.0. Together, previously known as Keep it Together (KIT), is a pretty slick application from Reinvented Software that promises an easy way to keep all kinds of files in one place, making it easy to find them again later. Using a drag-and-drop interface and taking advantage of both Spotlight and Quick Look in Leopard, Together shows a lot of promise as an easy to use data organizer.
FileMaker, Inc. a company best known for the cross-platform database app, FileMaker Pro, has just released a public preview of Bento, their new personal database program for Leopard users -- which to quote the press release -- "[is] as easy to use as your Mac." The program, which is expected to ship early next year, is available as a free, full-functioning time-limited Preview (it expires in February) from FileMaker's site. The shipping version will be $49 for individual licenses and $99 for a family license. Bento is a Leopard-only application.
In a day and age where everything from YouTube to Pownce are vying for both our free and shouldn't-be-free time, it's great to see a company like Remember the Milk figuring out an ingenious way to help keep our daily tasks organized while we're goofing off or micro-blogging with Twitter. On the company's blog today, RTM announced not only that they have a Twitter account of their own, but that you can actually get some clever use out of it. By adding the RTM Twitter account as a friend and then direct messaging it with a specific syntax they have put together, you can actually create tasks, send tasks to friends and even command tasks (mark them as complete, get an SMS of a list's tasks, etc.). This is a stellar way of combining such a dynamic service as Twitter with a way of being productive, and all it requires is some simple linking of your RTM account with your Twitter username.
With so many great webmail offerings out there, only two are considered the frontrunners. Yahoo, the oldest player, has just revamped with unlimited storage and some drag and drop interface changes, while Google has the threaded simplicity thing going on adding built in Chat, Doc, Calendar, and Spreadsheet applications with a less cluttered appearance.
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BigContacts is a web based contact manager where users can upload both personal and business contacts from Outlook of Excel and simply keep track of all contacts in one place. From playing around with the free beta version, this does have a lot of potential. On first glance of the demo, the screen seems a tad busy, and overwhelming. It looks like there is a lot going on, and I wasnt really sure where I should click first. BigContacts might have been better off by making things look a little simpler and less intimidating to o users. Then again, they are still developing this online solution, so I assume things will be changed around a bit when the full launch comes around. BigContacts has used the Web 2.0 application standard, Ajax to build this tool. There are a fair share of features and options that are offered, including Contact clouds that blow up names that have had more activity over another, and team activities that can be tracked through RSS feeds. The contact manager also has the ability to attach photos, notes and files with contacts, which is a great feature for remembering important details about a person. There is a group calendar and Skype integration as well. Last but not least, the BigContacts has the added bonus of being able to review your contacts from any web enabled phone, where users can also review and write notes and tasks. I will be playing with this a bit more to get a greater feel for it. I'm not totally sold on using this yet, but it does have serious potential as a contact manager. The beta is open to everyone and pricing will range from $59.95 for a 10 users account, to a Free 3 user account.
If your email volume is anything like mine, it's totally insane. Thousands of messages constantly streaming in and, only a tiny fraction of those are messages you need to see. 
