In continuing my experimentation with some of the newer GTD tools, I started tinkering with TaskPaper a few days ago. While the app is built to run only on Macs, another developer provides a similar product, TodoPaper, for Windows. I have not tried the latter: more than 90 percent of my computer time is spent on the Mac.
What I like most about TaskPaper is its simplicity and ease of use. On the surface, it looks similar to a piece of paper:
Having grown up in a “paper world” and having used paper for years to manage tasks, I find the simplicity of this interface appealing. Plus, I can pretty much see everything at once, which is an advantage of paper systems. (Some might consider that a disadvantage … it is not one for me.)
It’s more than just a simple word processor, though. For example, if I want to start a new project I just enter a title for it and follow the title with a colon [that is, with a :]. Then, to enter tasks under that, I just start each task with a dash [that is, with a -]. TaskPaper handles the formatting for me.
Where it gets really neat, though, is in the use of tags. For example, if I put a @done tag at the end of an item, TaskPaper crosses it out for me. But even more neat is that I can assign GTD-like tags to it, such as @computer, @home, @work, … and I can assign priority-type tags to it, such as @priority[1], @priority[2], etc. Then, when I click on one of the tags, say @home, it takes me to a view that shows all of my @home items, sorted by project (and including ones that aren’t assigned to a project).
TaskPaper also has a quick entry screen, which can be accessed via a hotkey combination or via a menu item. This is nice for when you are in another app and all of a sudden think of something you want to add to your To-Do list.
These features make TaskPaper very appealing to me. I like the fact that it is so easy to use, and I like the fact that I can print out my list of stuff in a nice clean format. (A downside with Toodledo and some of the other task apps is that they do not give really clean printouts, at least not in a format that I like.) Since I like to occasionally just print out my tasks and set and study them, I really like this aspect of TaskPaper.
Plus, when you enter tags, TaskPaper remembers them and puts them into an auto-complete index, so you can start typing a tag, and it will do a pop-up you can select to finish the tagging.
From what I understand, the developers plan to make an iPhone version available also. Given that I can do nice printouts from TaskPaper, the current lack of iPhone support is not a major deal for me. So, I will likely purchase the app (it has a 15-day trial period).