The PDK complements the Palm webOS Software Development Kit (SDK), letting developers use C and C++ alongside the web technologies that power the SDK and mix them seamlessly within a single app. The PDK enables new functionality, including immersive 3D graphics, and gives developers who have built games for other platforms an easy way to bring their titles to the webOS platform. Developers can download the beta PDK and start developing today, but distribution of games built with the beta PDK will require functionality provided in an upcoming Palm webOS update.

While a great deal for would-be Verizon webOS owners everywhere, especially on the heels of last week's webOS 1.4 update release and the ongoing "BOGO offer", the pricing still comes in above Best Buy's in-store pricing of $49.99 and $99.99 for the two smartphones.

The new v1.1 Facebook app brings an improved interface and much improved functionality allowing users to do all that Facebook stuff. Highlights include an enhanced inbox, improved news feeds (shake to refresh), profile views, better photo albums and photo video uploading, events and birthday support, people search and more Palm Synergy integration.

The application is free and is available from the Palm App Catalog and online.

Some of the highlights of the release include:

• webOS now incorporates WebKit 4, which features enhanced CSS support and numerous other improvements.
• The webOS implementation of the HTML 5 Media API has been updated, bringing closer conformance to the specification, and improvements to audio performance.
• The Camera API has been extended to let an application initiate video capture, in addition to image capture.
• The V8 JavaScript engine used in webOS has been updated.

The full changelog is now posted on Palm's support page. Major new features include: video capture and clip editing, performance and battery life changes, various new messaging, contacts & calendar changes and options and updates, LED based notifications, new ringtone/alert options, mail improvements and various other system tweaks and such.

webOS 1.4 also brings support for the Adobe Flash 10.1 Beta plugin. Adobe will presumably release their Flash beta for the Palm Pre sometime soon via the Palm App Catalog.

Update: Verizon users are reporting that the update is now available for the Pre & Pixi Pluses.

Palm's got a credibility problem, and it's the kind of thing that seems so insidious, and so systemic, that it might pose a deep threat to the company's ability to keep going. [...]

If the company knew three weeks ago that Verizon and Sprint were stopping orders, why not just announce it then? Why dribble the news out, and attribute a manufacturing stoppage to the Chinese New Year, which would ultimately not pass the smell test since the work holiday typically only lasts a week and Palm's manufacturing has been suspended for the entire month?

Sprint was the first carrier to offer the Palm Pixi back in mid-Novemeber. It's initial asking price was $99. Earlier this month Verizon began offering an updated Pixi Plus version which includes WiFi at the same price point. That too was initially offered at $99 and has already been reduced to $79.

Palm, Inc. today indicated that it expects that revenues for the third quarter of fiscal year 2010 will be in the range of $285 million to $310 million on a GAAP basis and in the range of $300 million to $320 million on a non-GAAP basis. Revenues for the quarter and full year are being impacted by slower than expected consumer adoption of the company's products that has resulted in lower than expected order volumes from carriers and the deferral of orders to future periods.

Accordingly, Palm expects fiscal year 2010 revenues to be well below its previously forecasted range of $1.6 billion to $1.8 billion. The company will provide more detail on its financial results during Palm's third-quarter financial results conference call currently scheduled for Thursday, March 18.

The biggest blow came from longtime BOA/Merrill Lynch analyst Vivek Arya who remarked in a note to clients that Palm's newest webOS phones have seen "sluggish" sales since debuting on Verizon.

Life at the Developer Conference gives you little chance for reflection; you're rushing around, trying to meet with people, see talks, catch the exhibit floor, spend time in the labs, do some networking, and getting the occasional nap to keep your energy up.  I'm writing this early on Friday morning at the gate for my flight back to Austin; this really has been my only break since my last posting.

Wednesday morning opened with a great keynote talk by author Don Norman.  It was about the emotional aspects of design, how the shape, functionality, and aesthetics of products affect how we perceive them.  He had customized his talk a but for the Palm OS world, using examples of good and bad PDAs and smartphones, and it was both entertaining and insightful.  After Don's talk, Larry Slotnik, PalmSource CTO, talked about their OS roadmap, about what they'd done in the last year and what was coming.  There are no big surprises; they are expecting an alpha-quality release of Palm OS for Linux to licensees this fall, with the 1.0 version coming in the first part of 2006.  They had shipped Palm OS Cobalt 6.1.1 to licensees a few months ago, an update to the release last fall to fix stability and five-way navigation issues.

Mark Bercow from palmOne gave a talk later that morning, highlighting the current product line.  He commented on the reports about palmOne losing market share, noting that a lot of the reports depend on how you define the PDA or smartphone spaces.  It's good to note that we've had seven quarters of year-over-year sales growth, our margins are going up, and volume continues to increase.  Also, about 70% of Zire purchasers are buying their first PDA, showing that there's still plenty of growth room in the entry-level market.

I had my talk on NVFS on Wednesday afternoon, right after Chris Dunphy's talk on the PalmSource Installer.  I really like where the PSI format is going, and they've built some nice tools to prepare both over-the-air and desktop installer versions of your application.  Chris really showed that it's easy to setup your XML files and configure the installation process, and the PSI system will generate all the HTML pages you need to automate installation of applications from your website.  My talk went better than I expected; I'll be posting both my notes and the notes from the follow up lab session in a separate entry.

Wednesday night featured a loud and dark party, and bright and active developer labs.  Some devs were busy getting their entries ready for the PalmHack VII contest, while others were just taking advantage of the many PalmSource and palmOne engineers that were hanging around.  I was one of the hack judges, so in-between giving people CodeWarrior tips and diagnosing memory leaks, I got to see some interesting and completely wrong applications.  The judges were up past 2:00AM debating which submissions should get which prizes and what jokes we were going to make onstage, but I think the late hours were worth it.

I missed the early presentations on Thursday; I slept in an extra hour and then was working the palmOne booth.  However, I did get to catch David Fedor's excellent talk on going wireless.  The main thing I took out of that talk was to try out the AppNetLib code that's on the conference CD; this is an HTTP library that PalmSource is providing in source form for all developers, and it makes it easy for your applications to ask a web server for information.

The conference closed with Michael Mace's keynote talk about the Palm OS market.  He showed clips from several focus groups highlighting the three main markets for smartphones: communicators, information junkies, and entertainment users.  Each type of customer related to their PDA or phone in different ways: communicators tended to have a more emotional relationship with their device, but while they spent a lot of time with it, they didn't use a lot of extra applications.  The information junkies were most likely to use vertical applications and load their devices with data, but they viewed them more as tools and not something they used for fun.  The entertainment market was younger and easily bored; they saw a PDA as a necessary tool, but also something that they could use to keep stimulated during the day.

After the keynote was announcements of various contests.  I'm glad that my friend Scott Maxwell won the Aceeca virtual sheep shearing contest.  For PalmHack, we gave our grand prizes to a "Crazy Clock" application for Palm OS Cobalt and a WiFi Theremin application on Palm OS Garnet that varied the sound playback based on the current WiFi network signal strength.  A dishonorable mention was made of Scott Corley's "Sock Monkey Knife Fight" game which wowed the crowd with bloody puppets jumping around the LifeDrive's screen.  Scott had left already, so I accepted his award doing my best rabid monkey impersonation.

The first full day of the conference brought a lot of news and some good sessions.  The big deal was the announcement of palmOne's new license agreement for Palm OS, and their purchase of the name "Palm" from PalmSource.  I don't have any details outside of the press release; it looks like palmOne will be changing its name back to Palm in the near future, and that PalmSource has a few years to rebrand itself and its OS.

Outside that note, this morning's keynote address wasn't very surprising.  I caught a bit of the palmOne talk with new Senior VP Mark Bercow which mainly was about our product line strategy and how we rely on developers to produce interesting software.  While working the palmOne booth on the exhibit floor, the most common questions were "can I play with a LifeDrive?" and "what's the difference between the different Treo 650s you're selling in the store?".

This evening was fun; I was one of the on-stage experts for the "Stump the Experts" panel.  We didn't have a huge number of questions from the audience, but it was enough to fill the hour, and I got to pitch in on some NVFS and Sony questions.  After that, I hung out at the hardware labs and mostly answered CodeWarrior questions.  I also helped one of the PalmSource engineers get their PalmRC compiler plugin for CodeWarrior working better; this is one of the tools available as part of the PalmSource Inside Track program, and it's pretty nice for people who want to use the XRD format with the CW V9 tools.

I've registered here at the PalmSource 2005 Developer Conference, and my first impressions are good.  They are still getting a lot of the conference space setup, but attendence is high, and the talk schedule looks good.  Of course, the most important first impression for a conference is what kind of free stuff you get as an attendee.  The 2004 PalmSource conference bag was pretty sparse, but this year the contents are looking a lot better.

First, there's the bag itself.  It's a black backpack with the "Palm Powered" and "PalmSource" logos on it, but no mention of the event.  I guess that lets PalmSource reuse any leftovers.  It has a rubberized bottom, two deep side pockets suitable for holding water bottles or laptop power adapters, a primary holding area with a laptop pouch, space for papers in the main flap, and  a front pocket with a snap-off organizer.  All of the zippers have zip pulls, and the back straps look to be well constructed with lots of stitching..  I think it will be a useful addition to my collection of show bags, and I'll probably switch to it as my day-to-day laptop bag.

In the backpack was a variety of papers, gadgets, and software included:

• Don Norman - a trade paperback copy of his book "Emotional Design"
• Motricity - notepad
• Cingular - vinyl notepad and pen
• palmOne - a Treo-labeled pen
• Garmin - a CD with their latest iQue SDK
• BlackBerry - a small four-port USB 1.1 hub in translucent blue
• iambic - a DVD-case copy of their Agendus Professional application for both Palm OS and Windows
• PalmGear - a non-slip pad for your car that grips to your dashboard
• DataViz - a flyer for a free copy of their RoadSync over-the-air email sync program for talking with Microsoft Exchange 2003 servers
• Audible.com - a card for a free month of membership in their audiobook store
• Ultrasoft - flyer for free copy of Ultrasoft DataShield

Tonight is the Palm OS Users Group meeting, and tomorrow morning is the opening keynote.  It looks like David Nagel will still be delivering the talk, even though he resigned as CEO of PalmSource over the weekend.

Both the Tungsten T5 and the new LifeDrive have an application on them called "Files".  This is the file manager that lets you navigate the collection of files that's on your SD card or on the internal volume.  To support opening files on external media, palmOne has extended the Exchange Manager by defining some new values.

Traditionally, an application registers for a file extension or MIME type and says that it will process items that match that registration when they are received via a beam or some other exchange library.  This is done using the Exchange Manager function ExgRegisterDatatype along with one of the constants exgRegExtensionID or exgRegTypeID.  In the palmOne SDK, the header file "common/libraries/filebrowser/FileBrowserLibCommon.h" defines these values:

#define exgRegEditCreatorID     0xff7b // creator ID registry
#define exgRegEditExtensionID   0xff7d // filename extension registry
#define exgRegEditTypeID        0xff7e // MIME type registry

These are new values you can pass to ExgRegisterDatatype to tell the system that your application can handle opening files on a VFS volume that match a particular creator ID, extension, or MIME type. More details on registering to handle files on external media, how to register icons to go with those types, and what to do when the system tells you to open a file are in the palmOne Developer Guide in the "File Browser API" section. On devices with this API, there's also several shared library calls that you can use to present "open file" and "save file" dialogs.

While the file browser APIs are palmOne-specific, the methods of registering with Exchange Manager and having a file browser application activate registered programs have been submitted back to PalmSource for standardization in their Palm OS APIs. The scheme isn't too bad and fits in with the other uses of Exchange Manager, so I hope they accept it as an OS-wide standard.

[Note: if any of you are developers of software that have the ability to unzip files, adding support for this would be a very, very, very cool thing. Hint, hint.]

You should have seen the palmOne announcement of our new LifeDrive mobile manager handheld this week.  It's been in the rumor mill for a while, and I enjoyed reading the slightly inaccurant rantings from the Palm OS enthusiast community.  The LifeDrive is new technology in the PDA space; it doesn't do everything you'd want it to do the speed isn't as good as I'd like, and I wish the hard drive was at least 20GB, but I already think it is really, really useful in its current configuration.

The LifeDrive works pretty well as an external hard drive for your laptop or desktop system.  It's got a FAT32 file system and enough space to store a lot of documents.  This tends to change the synchronization paradigm a lot; where before, you had conduits that reformatted or excerpted data between your PC and your device, now you can just have the data in one place -- on the LifeDrive -- and have your PC directly modify that data.  This opens up some real opportunities in the application development space for the PDA.

In particular, I'd love to see more applications that can parse and manage data from desktop apps.  I use Eudora for my email, and I think it would be really good to see an update to Eudora for Palm OS that works off VFS storage.  Eudora already is very portable from PC to PC, and being able to keep the same mail store when I'm mobile would be really, really nice.  I could see similar things for PC databases and vertical applications.

John Marshall just put out the notice on the emulator forum about a major update to the Palm OS Emulator source code to fix issues with building it with recent compilers and libraries.  It doesn't update POSE to handle Palm OS 5 or ARM code, it's just a fix for "bitrot", as John puts it.  Here's the text of his announcement:

To: "Palm OS Emulator Forum"
Subject: Patches for building with recent GCC and FLTK on Linux

There have been several threads over the last few months noting that the current Emulator source code does not compile on modern Linux (or other Unix variants). That's because the last Emulator release was three years ago :-(, we're all using tools (GCC, FLTK) that are much more recent than that, and the Emulator code has bitrotted somewhat.

At http://sourceforge.net/projects/pose/ you'll find a patch that fixes all this bitrot. With this patch, the Emulator should be compilable with any GCC (2.95.x or later) and any 1.0.x or 1.1.x FLTK. I've tested it successfully with GCC 3.4.2 and 4.0.0 and with FLTK 1.0.7, 1.0.11, 1.1.0, the current 1.1.6 release, and current 1.1.x CVS. I haven't tested it with earlier versions of GCC, but I would not expect the patch's changes to introduce any new problems with older GCCs.

When compiled with GCC 3.4.x or 4.0.x, this results in a working poser. In particular, the miscompilation with GCC 3.3.x described in http://news.palmos.com/read/messages?id=153083 has gone away. This may mean that this in fact was a bug in 3.3.x's optimisation and I was wrong to point fingers at aliasing violations in EmPoint.cpp :-), but it warrants further study. If you are using GCC 3.3.x, you will likely want to arrange for EmPoint.cpp to be compiled with -fno-strict-aliasing in order to get a working poser. Or use a more recent GCC. See that thread for details.

The patch addresses the following main issues:

• Renaming of filename_ext() to fl_filename_ext() etc, in line with the renaming in FLTK 1.1.x (trivial);
• Removal of spurious braces in struct initialisations, about which the compiler is more strict than it used to be (trivial);
• Various C++ obscurities about which the compiler is more strict than it used to be (decidedly non-trivial :-));

For obscure reasons involving the FLTK changes to configure.in and subverting automake, I've included a couple of build-related patches that I've had lying around for a few years. The only interesting effect of this is that building in a separate directory (even more separate than BuildUnix) now works.

The patch is recent-gcc-fltk.diff in the patches area at http://sourceforge.net/projects/pose/.

John

Ton van Overbeek's done it again.  The developer of the prc-tools patch for supporting debugging of multiple code sections now has developed a TCP/IP-to-USB bridge program for Linux and Cygwin, similar to the one that Florent Pillet did on Mac OS X.  This enables direct debugging USB-based devices on those systems, and it also bypasses PalmSource's USBPort.dll meaning it works around some bugs that prevent CodeWarrior or Palm OS Debugger from talking to some devices that don't identify their debug channels correctly.

I've quoted Ton's message about this below.  If you're using those tools, I'd urge you to check it out and provide feedback to him.

Subject: [ANN] tcpusb-0.1: USB debugging for m68k-palmos-gdb

Finally you can use m68k-palmos-gdb with USB devices.

I made a tcp-usb bridge (same idea as Florent Pillet's bridge for MacOS) which works both under Cygwin and Linux. For the impatient: the files are on http://www.v-overbeek.nl/tcpusb.

Since I have no way to test all combinations of USB devices and Windows and Linux versions, I need your help to try this out. The best way to send comments is to post them on the PalmSource tools-forum (http://news.palmos.com/read/?forum=tools-forum) and/or sent them to the prc-tools-devel mailinglist at sourceforge (prc-tools-devel@lists.sourceforge.net). When the code turns out to be usable with many devices I might integrate it directly into m68k-palmos-gdb, so you could say something like "target palmos usb:".

I have tried tcpusb 0.1 with a Tungsten T and T3 on WinXP/SP2, Win2K, Linux 2.4.27, 2.6.8 and 2.6.11. Also some limited testing with a Handspring Visor was done.

One caveat for Linux: The 2.6.11-rcx versions do not work due to a bug in the usbfs code. The major distribution affected by this is Knoppix 3.8.x which uses 2.6.11-rc3.

Enjoy.
Ton van Overbeek

I support a "Update my Application" feature in my SXSW 2005 schedule application.  I do this by setting up a series of URLs on my webserver, one for each version of the program that was released with the web update feature:

• http://2005.sxsw.com/pda/includes/downloads/update_4.1.0.html
• http://2005.sxsw.com/pda/includes/downloads/update_4.2.0.html

The application turns its own version string (retrieved from its 'tver' #1000 resource) into a URL using the format string "http://2005.sxsw.com/pda/includes/downloads/update_%s.html" and then it uses that to launch the device's web browser using code derived from the Web Browser Manager sample code in the PalmSource KB.

A user with an current version of the application gets directed to a "you're using the latest version" message, while a user with an older version gets a link to the PRC download. I could also have used HTML auto-refresh to just start the download automatically, using HTML code like <meta http-equiv="Refresh" content="5; URL=http://2005.sxsw.com/pda/includes/downloads/sxsw_2005.prc" /> embedded in the <head> part of the update page.

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DVD Catalyst transforms your DVD movies and TV shows into video files that you can use with your device. By installing DVD Catalyst on your computer, you can convert your own DVD collection (as well as video files you might already have) into something that will play on your Blackberry, PocketPC etc. No need to pay for the movies again, or worry about watching them within a day before they expire. With DVD Catalyst you can watch your own movies and TV shows in a waiting room, entertain the kids on a long ride, or show off your home recordings to your colleagues, regardless of what device you use." Use the promo-code TOOLS20 at checkout to get the 20% discount. Make the jump.

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brenda@brendagann.com (Brenda) wrote:

>Does anyone use the Sidetracked Sisters' methods? (It is sort of like 
>GTD in that they advocate putting what you need to do on index cards. 
>You file by date or day of the week so that when the item needs to be 
>looked at again, it will automatically appear in your card file on the 
>day you wanted to review it.) They are one of the original SHE's 
>(Sidetracked Home Executives)
>
>Here is one of their sites:
>
>http://www.shesintouch.com/
>
>I was thinking of implementing the card file with Bonsai.
>


I used to.  Now, I use Flylady with two Control Journals for checklists (once for Home and one for Office) and LifeBalance for both home and office tasks.

S.H.E. worked for me, except I kept losing the cards .  My Palm is welded to my hip (actually, the case is tethered to a belt loop) so I don't lose it.

K@
Kat Nagel
"The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing."
 - Walt Disney

David Allen is saying something about the use of a PDA for GTD and why it
might be holding you back, on his new cd GTD with Work Life Balance. What is
David mentioning here? He also uses a Palm, I thought.
https://secure.davidco.com/store/catalog/NEW-Getting-Things-Done-with-Work-L
ife-Balance-7-CD-Audio-Pro-p-16489.php



Peter

David Allen is saying something about the use of a PDA for GTD and why it
might be holding you back, on his new cd GTD with Work Life Balance. What is
David mentioning here? He also uses a Palm, I thought.
https://secure.davidco.com/store/catalog/NEW-Getting-Things-Done-with-Work-L
ife-Balance-7-CD-Audio-Pro-p-16489.php


Peter

I have written to Natara and had a quick reply. Thank you for that advice - a duh moment!! Didn't think of the obvious.

I'm now trying to resolve the problem with their assistance.

Thanks again for the responses,

Emily :)

--- In GtD_Palm@yahoogroups.com, "juci1960"  wrote:
>
> I'm a big user of Bonsai with GTD. However, lately I've had issues.
> 

Hi Brenda,

On Fri, Apr 17, 2009 at 7:22 AM, Brenda  wrote:

> an nutty way of looking at "going shopping".  I don't have a context list
> > for @Hardware Store ... I have a shopping list!   My mind was getting all
>
> I didn't think the context was @Hardware Store I thought it was just
> @Errands so when you went out shopping or whatever you would have a list of
> stuff you were supposed to do when you were out. You could have "return
> library books" on @Errands which is not shopping


I probably worded that poorly.  I have shopping lists but not a context for
each store.  I might have a shopping list for "hardware" which might mean
I'd go to any of a number of places ... depending.


> some people really are messed up enough that if they have a bunch of stuff
> to do they will drive all over the area instead of planning their stops so
> they get around town in the most efficient way.


I tend to look at my shopping lists before I run out ... to see what I want
to get, where I might want to go, if it is on the way, if I need to take
measurements or something with me, etc.


> > already knew how to do that.  I knew that if I had to call someone I did
> not
> > need to look at an @Call list ... I just picked up the phone.  Had I
> > continued to try to fit myself to this system of infinitely small baby
> steps
> > I'd have wound up drooling ;-)
>
> Well some people might have so many people to call that they can't remember
> them if they don't have a list.


My list might have "Call Joe" then pages away "Call Pete".  I don't have an
@Calls list because I don't view them as "calls" but rather as things to do
to advance some goal or project.


> I think it is a good idea like he says to have a list of stuff you want to
> talk to the person about when you call so you do not forget what you wanted
> to say.


Oh, I do that before I make a complicated call ... before renewing the car
insurance I read the policy and marked it up and made a list of possible
savings items.  It saved me $200+


> Maybe it is the difference between big picture/detail people. I am a
> details person.. sometimes I have a problem understanding the big picture
> unless I look at it from the details.


That actually seems to be more the AF mentality.  I've gotten just a bit at
odds with Mark over the concept of planning ... he seems to believe that one
lets the plan "grow organically" rather than lay it out in advance.  His
idea is that plans always change so they are pointless.  I agree they
change, but that is the nature of planning, not a problem with it ... and it
does save time and money when you can anticipate problems rather than wander
into them.  So when I used the example of moving one's home, I listed some
steps but he said just put "move" on the list and when you get to it see
what pops into your head.  (I think I'm citing the gist of what his position
is.)  So he is very bottom up in his approach ... and I see the advantage in
that for some things.  I believe a mixture of the two approaches is called
for.  I don't write out a plan to eat lunch, but I do for moving my home.


> > I have always had lists ... lots and lots of lists ;-)  And they are very
> > useful.  I could CALL many of them "context lists", but it is so much
> > simpler to call them: "Things do do when I'm in San Francisco", "Good
> > restaurants in Dallas", "Things I do every Monday", "Things I do every
> > month", "Things to buy at CostCo", etc.
>
> I think some of those could be called contexts but not most of them.


The real problem people seem to have with contexts is that the system does
not provide a way to CHOOSE a context.  Rather you "find yourself there"
then see what has to be done.  In order to get the RIGHT things done one has
to be "project centric" rather than "location centric".


> > Yeah, that is one confusion people have.  There are numerous posts in the
> > forum about what, when, and how to dismiss and what to do about dismissed
> > items.  Dismissed items are EXACTLY like "someday/maybe" items.  In fact,
> I
> > prefer the term "someday/maybe" because "dismissed" conveys that they are
> > gone.
>
> I noticed some of those posts.
>
> I think it makes more sense to call them someday/maybe but even if he knows
> of DA he wouldn't just want to use someone else's terms.


Probably very true.


> > Right, and that is one way in which mixing things works.  The hard thing
> > looks easier than the harder thing so it is more likely to get done.
>  Also,
> > if you are faced with a hard rule that you must "dismiss" it or do
> > "something" on it, then you will most likely do "something" on it.
>
> Yes but it would seem as you continually do the hard thing because there is
> a harder thing you dont want to do.. eventually all that would be on the
> list would be the hardest things.. and then it would be procrastination big
> time.


Not so much as you will have seen that really hard thing about 30 times
before you HAVE TO ma 

Long message truncated by MailBucket.

If it were me, I'd post this problem on the Bonsai user forum at www.Natara.com.  Natara staff monitors those forums and in the past have responded fairly quickly to my queries.

Mark

--- In GtD_Palm@yahoogroups.com, "juci1960"  wrote:
>
> I'm a big user of Bonsai with GTD. However, lately I've had issues.
> 
> I have Palm TX and desktop Bonsai - latest version. The problem is that when I open desktop Bonsai none of the outlines are showing. I have to manually open each and everyone which is a real pain. This was not the case, and I've absolutely no idea why this has suddenly started to happen. I can't think of any setting changes I've made. Everything is marked to sync with Palm etc.
> 
> Any ideas on how to fix this?? I'd love to know! I'm going nuts trying to figure this out :(
>

Hi Teri,

Wednesday, April 15, 2009, 4:46:02 PM, you wrote:

> Yep, I read that book too. I am basically a productivity book junkie
> ;) (Yes, I am currently reading the book written by the Zen Habits
> guy.)  What I was thinking about is how LB will hide things for you

I don't know who that is.

> and let them come up on the list at the appropriate time. And it is
> tricky to set things to work just right. (You may not have adjusted
> the pie chart slices or set the importance correctly at the parent
> level.)

I don't remember how much I worked with it... I know I was afraid I might mess it up so that might have meant I never really tried it because I was too afraid I would lose my info coming up at the right time.

> There is a program for linux called Howm that does the same thing. It
> runs in Emacs and will bump things up and down on the list depending

I don't have linux but maybe someone else on the list does

> on importance and date due. I liked using it, but got tired of trying
> to deal with the Japanese translations. Oh well. The card file idea
> really does work well, if you like analog. And it can be fun to have a
> theme for different months of the year, to help you focus on different
> aspects.

I would think it would be easy to make the cards be digital.

-- 
Brenda                     

Hi Mike,

Tuesday, April 14, 2009, 5:05:29 AM, you wrote:

> Mark is from England and so English is not his first language ;-) ;-)
> Seriously, I have big problems with his instructions.  I had to puzzle it
> out and even drew a flow chart ... several others had to draw flow charts to
> understand it.  When I drew the chart I realized that I had misunderstood.
> Even after that, I STILL had some misunderstanding.  Mark does not get that
> his instructions read like Chinese instructions to connect a stereo ;-)

I think what I mostly read was the stuff up to the quick start info... I don't think he should have quick info because it is so "quick" the person doesn't understand it. There doesn't seem to be enough there.

I downloaded some of the flowcharts.

> The other thing is that it is not just a "list" but a method of processing
> and the method has to be experienced ... because how you process things
> affects your attitude toward them.  It is hard to explain ... it just has to
> be experienced.  

I think I get what you mean.

> an nutty way of looking at "going shopping".  I don't have a context list
> for @Hardware Store ... I have a shopping list!   My mind was getting all

I didn't think the context was @Hardware Store I thought it was just @Errands so when you went out shopping or whatever you would have a list of stuff you were supposed to do when you were out. You could have "return library books" on @Errands which is not shopping

some people really are messed up enough that if they have a bunch of stuff to do they will drive all over the area instead of planning their stops so they get around town in the most efficient way.

> already knew how to do that.  I knew that if I had to call someone I did not
> need to look at an @Call list ... I just picked up the phone.  Had I
> continued to try to fit myself to this system of infinitely small baby steps
> I'd have wound up drooling ;-)

Well some people might have so many people to call that they can't remember them if they don't have a list.

I think it is a good idea like he says to have a list of stuff you want to talk to the person about when you call so you do not forget what you wanted to say.

Maybe it is the difference between big picture/detail people. I am a details person.. sometimes I have a problem understanding the big picture unless I look at it from the details.

> I have always had lists ... lots and lots of lists ;-)  And they are very
> useful.  I could CALL many of them "context lists", but it is so much
> simpler to call them: "Things do do when I'm in San Francisco", "Good
> restaurants in Dallas", "Things I do every Monday", "Things I do every
> month", "Things to buy at CostCo", etc.

I think some of those could be called contexts but not most of them.

> Yeah, that is one confusion people have.  There are numerous posts in the
> forum about what, when, and how to dismiss and what to do about dismissed
> items.  Dismissed items are EXACTLY like "someday/maybe" items.  In fact, I
> prefer the term "someday/maybe" because "dismissed" conveys that they are
> gone.

I noticed some of those posts.

I think it makes more sense to call them someday/maybe but even if he knows of DA he wouldn't just want to use someone else's terms.

> Right, and that is one way in which mixing things works.  The hard thing
> looks easier than the harder thing so it is more likely to get done.  Also,
> if you are faced with a hard rule that you must "dismiss" it or do
> "something" on it, then you will most likely do "something" on it.

Yes but it would seem as you continually do the hard thing because there is a harder thing you dont want to do.. eventually all that would be on the list would be the hardest things.. and then it would be procrastination big time.

> It is not that the system is involved, as in complicated ... it is that the
> way it works on your mind is not obvious and you would not see that from the
> instructions.  So many people read the instructions and then write a post
> saying "That is stupid.  It is just a To Do list with complicated rules.

When I saw it, I was hung up on the dismissing items thing. I thought.. I don't want to write stuff and then if I don't do it when I read through my list I must "dismiss" it.. (which to me meant delete it)

I don't have a problem with following what "expert" people talk about doing... I do it the way they say at least at first. I don't just go off on my own thinking I know better when I am just learning the method.

It seems most people just go off and do their own thing and then wonder why the experts' methods don't work. (Ummm.. maybe because you are not doing his method??)

> What's the big deal?"  But it is just those rules that make it different and
> make it work.  There are many on the forum who complain it is not working
> for them with the great results others express.  When asked to describe what
> they are doing, it turns out that they are treating the whole "list" as a
> big To 

Long message truncated by MailBucket.

Hi Mike,

Wednesday, April 15, 2009, 4:09:04 AM, you wrote:

> Hi Brenda,

> On Wed, Apr 15, 2009 at 3:05 AM, Brenda  wrote:

>> It's like doing the AF on speed. Its amazing how stuff I've been resisting
>> > gets done just because its the quickest way to get to the juicy task I
>> > really want to do. I love it.

>> I have been doing this lately. There is one book I want to read and another
>> one I need to but don't really want to read it. So I decided I cannot read
>> the book I want that day unless I read some of the book I need to read
>> first. I have to read a certain # of pages so it can go back to the library
>> on time. (Not just read one paragraph so I can say "done".) I am actually
>> reading more each day than the goal.


> Yes, it works ;-)

Actually I was not trying to do the system then. It seems kind of babyish to have to tell yourself you can't do what you want until you do what you don't want.. like telling a little kid you can't have your dessert until you eat your vegetables. But it works.

Interesting how I got myself to answer your longer letter.. I was avoiding it because it was long... but then I wanted to respond to some other mails and I didn't want to write to other people and not you because that would be rude. The person with the Bonsai question needed help and it is hard for me to resist helping people :-) (I also left this letter because I did not want to skip the longer to answer this one. That was supposed to motivate me but it didn't.)

> Yes, that is why I try to do it in order but do a quick scan of the whole
> list to see if there is anything that might ambush me.  It only takes a few
> minutes and it quiets my mind ;-)

good idea

> I actually do like office supplies.  I'm always thinking about how a
> different notebook, format, pen, etc. might work ... but I do draw some
> lines about what I will spend on things.  My handwriting sucks so why would
> I spend $500 for a beautiful fountain pen and more on superb inks and
> parchment paper ... just to scrawl my grocery list ;-)

Anne would say if it motivates you, you should do it. She said she used to not let herself get new office supplies. She would say stuff like you cannot have the new supplies if you cannot stick to the system you are currently using. Eventually she realized she should let herself have the stuff. (Of course I am not saying she would say to use a $500 pen for a grocery list...)

> I think one of those pictures (a few, perhaps) are of implementations in
> OneNote.

Thanks for the info. I don't have the Office suite.

> I love 3x5 cards.  I used to be organized around them ... in the days of
> SHE.  I used to have the colors and pads and the whole thing.  I still have
> my house cleaning stuff in my card box.  It is so much easier than booting a
> computer.

I think it is great that you did the SHE stuff. Some guys would have a hang up about it since it is aimed at a female audience. 

> The hanewriting thing has more dimenstions though.  Writting on paper is a
> different experience than doing it on the computer.  I find that rewriting
> things allows me to think about them and gives me some insight.  It is
> similar to doing mind maps on a computer vs. drawing them by hand.

Yes I can see why it would be different to the mind to do something on computer vs on paper. Even stuff like doing it on a dry erase board vs on paper.

-- 
Brenda                     

Hi juci1960,

Thursday, April 16, 2009, 4:37:15 PM, you wrote:

> The problem is that when I open desktop Bonsai none of the outlines are
> showing. I have to manually open each and everyone 

I don't know but you can write to support @ natara . com and they will respond back. (take out the spaces)

-- 
Brenda                     

Did you try removing and reinstall Bonsai desktop?

Peter

> -----Oorspronkelijk bericht-----
> 
> Any ideas on how to fix this?? I'd love to know! I'm going nuts trying
> to figure this out :(
> 
> 

I'm a big user of Bonsai with GTD. However, lately I've had issues.

I have Palm TX and desktop Bonsai - latest version. The problem is that when I open desktop Bonsai none of the outlines are showing. I have to manually open each and everyone which is a real pain. This was not the case, and I've absolutely no idea why this has suddenly started to happen. I can't think of any setting changes I've made. Everything is marked to sync with Palm etc.

Any ideas on how to fix this?? I'd love to know! I'm going nuts trying to figure this out :(

> I am now reading their Happiness File book. It is not about housework. It is about other aspects of your life. For example, they are going into stuff like "immediate action" cards that could be things like calling people or getting something at a store. (For Mike.. no it is not context related :-)

Yep, I read that book too. I am basically a productivity book junkie
;) (Yes, I am currently reading the book written by the Zen Habits
guy.)  What I was thinking about is how LB will hide things for you
and let them come up on the list at the appropriate time. And it is
tricky to set things to work just right. (You may not have adjusted
the pie chart slices or set the importance correctly at the parent
level.)

There is a program for linux called Howm that does the same thing. It
runs in Emacs and will bump things up and down on the list depending
on importance and date due. I liked using it, but got tired of trying
to deal with the Japanese translations. Oh well. The card file idea
really does work well, if you like analog. And it can be fun to have a
theme for different months of the year, to help you focus on different
aspects.


-- 
Teri Pittman
teri.pittman@gmail.com

Hi Brenda,

On Wed, Apr 15, 2009 at 3:05 AM, Brenda  wrote:

> It's like doing the AF on speed. Its amazing how stuff I've been resisting
> > gets done just because its the quickest way to get to the juicy task I
> > really want to do. I love it.
>
> I have been doing this lately. There is one book I want to read and another
> one I need to but don't really want to read it. So I decided I cannot read
> the book I want that day unless I read some of the book I need to read
> first. I have to read a certain # of pages so it can go back to the library
> on time. (Not just read one paragraph so I can say "done".) I am actually
> reading more each day than the goal.


Yes, it works ;-)


> I would worry though if the person only does the things with the quick turn
> around.. it would seem they would reach a point where all the hard items
> were left.


That point has been made on the forum in a number of instances.  What is
important is to keep in touch with what is going on in your mind when you do
things.  Doing things out of the order your system dictates can make good
sense or it could be a way of procrastinating.  It all depends on why you
are doing what you do.


> > So I am just bending one of Mark's steps; the one where I check if there
> is
> > another task on the current page that is ready to be done after I have
> > crossed off the first one.
>
> I can see where it would be good or bad to not look for an item on the
> current page. If you spend too much time going over the old then the new
> will back up. If you only focus on the new then the older stuff will never
> get done until it becomes a fire.


Yes, that is why I try to do it in order but do a quick scan of the whole
list to see if there is anything that might ambush me.  It only takes a few
minutes and it quiets my mind ;-)


> > I don't get that excited about my list ;-)  but I've seen so many people
> who
> > do!  LOL ;-)
>
> You would probably think I am too excited about my lists...


Ah, a closet list junkie ;-)


> > Just for fun, some of the people on the Mark's forum have been posting
> > pictures to Flickr ... gad, people do love their Moleskines!  I've tried
> and
> > tried, but I can't see a $15 bound book for a To Do list!  LOL ;-)
>
> In the Time Management book I mentioned by Anne McGee-Cooper, you would see
> how she is motivated by getting new office supplies. I would be more like
> her and you would probably be more like Duane her business partner. (I wrote
> Anne-McGee before which was putting the hyphen in the wrong place.)


I actually do like office supplies.  I'm always thinking about how a
different notebook, format, pen, etc. might work ... but I do draw some
lines about what I will spend on things.  My handwriting sucks so why would
I spend $500 for a beautiful fountain pen and more on superb inks and
parchment paper ... just to scrawl my grocery list ;-)

I WOULD spend money on a beautiful book if I were writing something
important.

> >  Anyway,
> > you can see books and software and all kinds of tweaks with lines, boxes
> > filled in, tracking metrics and tags ... oh, just about anything
> imaginable
> > ;-)
>
> > http://www.flickr.com/photos/sarahmichelef/3404249811/in/photostream/
>
> >
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonaz/3304749058/in/pool-autofocustimesystem/
>
> Thanks for the links :-) It helps to see how other people are doing things.


Yes, I like some of what I see there.  People can be ingenious!


> I think in this case I would do my list on the computer or Palm unless I
> could find a really good reason not to.


I think one of those pictures (a few, perhaps) are of implementations in
OneNote.  It is a nice product for this because it has the look of a
notebook ... it has books, tabs, pages and sub pages.  You can make it
really LOOK like a notebook with no effort at all.  You can also tag items
and like them to Outlook to form tasks and appointments.  You can have check
boxes, icons, and filter by any of these things.  You can also highlight,
crossout, etc, with just a click of the line and a search and ... all kinds
of good stuff.  And the good part is you probably already have it on your
computer ... if you have the full MS Office suite.  If you are computer
centrick there is a good reason to work in the MS Office world ... email,
appointments, tasks, projects, etc. are all interlinked.

(For example, I was thinking it might help me to have to
> manipulate the 3x5 cards vs just writing things in the computer.) I usually
> don't like to do stuff in handwriting.


I love 3x5 cards.  I used to be organized around them ... in the days of
SHE.  I used to have the colors and pads and the whole thing.  I still have
my house cleaning stuff in my card box.  It is so much easier than booting a
computer.

The hanewriting thing has more dimenstions though.  Writting on paper is a
different experience than doing it on the computer.  I find that rewriting
things allows me to think about the 

Long message truncated by MailBucket.

Hello Teri,

Tuesday, April 14, 2009, 3:24:05 PM, you wrote:

> Sounds like Life Balance would be perfect for this ;) I did the
> Sidetracked Sisters box years ago, still have it. It is a nice, analog
> way to track routine and not so routine tasks. GTD is very good for
> some things but short on how to deal with housework.

I tried LB years ago but I did not like it. I forget exactly what the terms are so I might have this wrong but you had to set it up so that things would come up at the right time, using its fuzzy logic. That meant I could not depend on if I would be doing it in the right way to make the things come up at the right time. Of course it could be totally different now.

In the updated SHE book, the sisters talk about using their system on the computer. They use Lotus Notes as an example. (Book is 2001.) I posted on their forum recently about if people were using a computer for the system, but all comments but one focused on using the analog method. One person mentioned using Outlook etc but did not give any details.

I am now reading their Happiness File book. It is not about housework. It is about other aspects of your life. For example, they are going into stuff like "immediate action" cards that could be things like calling people or getting something at a store. (For Mike.. no it is not context related :-) They even have a thing for new years resolutions.. well they don't do them that way. They list everything they want to change and then stick the items in appropriate places in their box. I am not describing it very well... that doesn't sound like it would be that helpful from my description. It is a way to better your life unlike resolutions that only last until Jan 9. One example is one of them needed to return a punch bowl, but they wrote it down to do it in June. The author said you might find that strange.. why are you waiting until June?? She figured if the person had waited 4 years for the bowl, another 8 months was not going to matter :-) The point was.. do the things that are more important first. (I would still think it is not that much effort to return the bowl when you are driving by the person's house anyway but maybe she didn't know where she had stashed the bowl :-) 

I am now reading the section where each month has a different focus such as January is clearing and February is romance. In the clearing section you are supposed to look at each item you see in your house and think about it. For example, when she looked at her china she realized she had never liked it. She got it because her mom and her sister had liked it. She had spent 20 years dusting china she hated. So she gave the pieces to her sister and mom, and then got herself china she actually liked. She told an example of a participant in their seminar who did not think the clearing would apply to him. He lived in a house he was trying to remodel. No appliances etc. With bare walls etc what could there be to clear? They agreed he was probably right. When he stood at his front door, he realized he did not want to live in the house, or even in the city he was living in.

-- 
Brenda                     

Hi Mike,

Tuesday, April 14, 2009, 5:48:36 AM, you wrote:

> I just came across this post on the AF list.  I thought I'd share it with

thanks :-)

> It's like doing the AF on speed. Its amazing how stuff I've been resisting
> gets done just because its the quickest way to get to the juicy task I
> really want to do. I love it.

I have been doing this lately. There is one book I want to read and another one I need to but don't really want to read it. So I decided I cannot read the book I want that day unless I read some of the book I need to read first. I have to read a certain # of pages so it can go back to the library on time. (Not just read one paragraph so I can say "done".) I am actually reading more each day than the goal.

I would worry though if the person only does the things with the quick turn around.. it would seem they would reach a point where all the hard items were left.

> So I am just bending one of Mark's steps; the one where I check if there is
> another task on the current page that is ready to be done after I have
> crossed off the first one.

I can see where it would be good or bad to not look for an item on the current page. If you spend too much time going over the old then the new will back up. If you only focus on the new then the older stuff will never get done until it becomes a fire.

> I don't get that excited about my list ;-)  but I've seen so many people who
> do!  LOL ;-)

You would probably think I am too excited about my lists...

> Just for fun, some of the people on the Mark's forum have been posting
> pictures to Flickr ... gad, people do love their Moleskines!  I've tried and
> tried, but I can't see a $15 bound book for a To Do list!  LOL ;-)

In the Time Management book I mentioned by Anne McGee-Cooper, you would see how she is motivated by getting new office supplies. I would be more like her and you would probably be more like Duane her business partner. (I wrote Anne-McGee before which was putting the hyphen in the wrong place.)

> >  Anyway,
> you can see books and software and all kinds of tweaks with lines, boxes
> filled in, tracking metrics and tags ... oh, just about anything imaginable
> ;-)

> http://www.flickr.com/photos/sarahmichelef/3404249811/in/photostream/

> http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonaz/3304749058/in/pool-autofocustimesystem/

Thanks for the links :-) It helps to see how other people are doing things.

I think in this case I would do my list on the computer or Palm unless I could find a really good reason not to. (For example, I was thinking it might help me to have to 
manipulate the 3x5 cards vs just writing things in the computer.) I usually don't like to do stuff in handwriting.

I will answer the longer email later.

-- 
Brenda                     

Hello Anita,

Tuesday, April 14, 2009, 2:02:36 PM, you wrote:

> enough of us that she could / would write back.  Some of my e-mails
> back-and-forth to her ended up in her first book as shared tips .  

thats cool :-)

> like.  As I recall, her reasoning was that she had tried it once and it was
> too confusing or too overwhelming for her (Something like that).  

Well it could be she was intimidated with the Palm itself. It might have been the new thing on the block when she tried it. I almost lost my Palm years ago... if I had lost it back then, I probably would not have replaced it. Now I would replace it or at least get something similar.

Also I am sure there are people out there that would still rather write a letter with paper and pen than write one on a computer or typewriter.

> Whatever we do to organize ourselves has to work for us. My previous Palm
> crashed and burned and I didn't get my lists back on this one. 

You could get a backup program like BackupBuddy. If I remember right, HS lists did not automatically get saved back then. (Don't know about now.)
 
>  Nice
> conversation here -- it'll get me thinking about doing some more personalizing on my Palm.

glad you like it

Brenda

On Tue, Apr 14, 2009 at 2:28 AM, Brenda  wrote:
> Hello Tom,
>
> Monday, April 13, 2009, 4:53:26 AM, you wrote:
>
>> Well, how do the cards handle that?
>
> How the SHE system handles things if it was daily, weekly, yearly etc.. Let's say you want clean the gutters twice a year. You do it today in April. You would file your card in the front of your October section. When you get to October, you will look at your cards and decide when you want to do the thing. The card doesn't keep coming up every week or month.. you don't see it again until October.
>

Sounds like Life Balance would be perfect for this ;) I did the
Sidetracked Sisters box years ago, still have it. It is a nice, analog
way to track routine and not so routine tasks. GTD is very good for
some things but short on how to deal with housework.


-- 
Teri Pittman
teri.pittman@gmail.com

Brenda wrote --=20

>>...One of the main reasons I want to do stuff electronically is because I=
 do not want to be constantly rewriting my to do list...

Hey Again Brenda,

I just came across this post on the AF list.  I thought I'd share it with
you as it kind of captures the typical feeling of people who just took a
breath and jumped into the system.  (The subject of the thread is "What
tweaks have you made to AF?")

====================

I have now completed two hard backed notebooks worth of tasks since starting
AF in December. That's well over 1500 tasks completed. My confidence has
soared. I am relaxed and on top of things despite doubling my workload in my
business and taking on extra projects in my spare time.

And I have carefully stuck to Mark's original instructions. Every
modification I tried killed the productivity.

The only 'tweak' I have is this:

If I have a task I really want to do now, I harness that motivation to
'power thru' my list as follows.

I enter the task at the end of the list as normal. Resisting the temptation
to just do it now.

I go back to my current location and power thru the pages doing just one
item from each page - the minimum allowed by Mark's instructions. If I can't
find one item on the page then I dismiss the page without thinking too much
about it. That rarely happens.

Mostly I pick an item that has a quick turn round. Do it. Cross it off. Move
to the next page and keep going. Soon I have reached my last page
legitimately and can do my happy task with a clear conscience. It feels
great.

It's like doing the AF on speed. Its amazing how stuff I've been resisting
gets done just because its the quickest way to get to the juicy task I
really want to do. I love it.

So I am just bending one of Mark's steps; the one where I check if there is
another task on the current page that is ready to be done after I have
crossed off the first one.

Otherwise I am sticking to the original process on paper. I am so afraid to
mess with the voodoo magic that works so well but I don't know why.

==========

I don't get that excited about my list ;-)  but I've seen so many people who
do!  LOL ;-)

Just for fun, some of the people on the Mark's forum have been posting
pictures to Flickr ... gad, people do love their Moleskines!  I've tried and
tried, but I can't see a $15 bound book for a To Do list!  LOL ;-)  Anyway,
you can see books and software and all kinds of tweaks with lines, boxes
filled in, tracking metrics and tags ... oh, just about anything imaginable
;-)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sarahmichelef/3404249811/in/photostream/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonaz/3304749058/in/pool-autofocustimesystem/



-- 
Cheers,
Mike


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