I've been looking for an electronic way to track my to-do lists, tasks, and projects. None of the online services I've tried does quite what I want, and anyway I prefer to keep the data locally. This morning I had the revelation that what I wanted was almost identical to the functionality of a bug-tracking system. I could use Bugzilla! I've used it as a client for years, but never tried to install it myself. Here is how the installation instructions begin:
- Install Perl.
- Install a Database Engine.
- Install a Webserver.
It seemed that a smart business model for commercial bug-tracking software would be to give away single-user licenses for personal use. And indeed, AxoSoft does this. However, I installed it, and it is incredibly complicated. I didn't look at it long enough to determine whether it just has way more functionality than I need, or is poorly engineered, but certainly its interface is overwhelmingly complex for the simple things I need to do.
I'd love to try FogBugz for this purpose, but even a single-user license is $200. I wouldn't mind paying, but that's far too much for what I need.
So, I keep looking. I might have to write something myself.
Labels: lists, organization, software, todo
Jira is free for personal use.
http://www.atlassian.com/software/jira/personal.jsp
Thanks, Lawrence. I've been trying that out for a couple of days now. It's okay, but a little clunky and far more powerful than is needed for this.
A tool being online is a showstopper for me.
I find having the perfect balance of features almost impossible to achieve. For work, I've used the same Excel template for 10 years and see no need to change. For home, the best I found was MonkeyGTD Wiki, but my whole planning process fell apart at home.