Things 8 and 9

Things 8 and 9 are both organizational tools.

Google Calendar

I've been using the calendar on my phone for personal appointments (which I have few of) and at work I have a paper calendar on my desk. I've always liked having my paper calendar visible at all times so I don't have to be on the correct screen on my computer to see what's going on. Generally I have very little scheduled so I don't have a need for an elaborate calendar.

Google Calendar is ok. I tried adding a few things to it but realized the only reminder that works for me is the email version. I'd prefer a pop-up but it ONLY works if you are logged in at the exact time of the reminder. I don't stay logged into gmail all day long because it's distracting and also it's my personal email and I do try to focus on work when I'm there. My phone calendar works better for me for now. It's portable and the reminders are more helpful.

Evernote

Described by the cpd23 people as a way to make comments about websites, I almost didn't try Evernote because I don't really need to store comments about websites. It sounded like the useless Pushnote (which is already gone from my browser as the last Firefox update wasn't compatible with it). But I decided to try it out anyhow and found that it's actually a system to organize your notes and you can also store web content if you'd like, and photos and voice notes. The example used on the Evernote tutorial was someone doing projects on his house and creating a task list but also storing photos for house projects ideas that he found on the web, etc. It's kind of like scrapbooking.

There's a desktop version, a web version, and a phone app, all of which I've been using this week. They all sync together well. They don't all work as well though. I tried dragging a photo from my computer into a note in the web version and it wouldn't save it. It works fine in the desktop version though, which I prefer anyhow because it has a better layout and functionality.

I've started using Evernote personally to work on blog posts (like this one), and for to-do lists. I used to write drafts of blog posts in Word and then paste them into Blogger. I've noticed the format is sometimes a little screwy when I paste from Evernote but I can keep my drafts more organized while I'm still working on them. I created another notebook for work and transferred my paper notes to it in hopes of keeping my desk area more neat and having everything in one place. It's weird to have work and personal stuff all in the same place though, as I like to keep separate parts of my life separate.

I'm not sure if there's much added value in adding Evernote for which I had to register, install, etc for the same functions I was already using Word for but may be able to organize my stuff in a more meaningful way. I can't see needing the picture and website functions for anything I currently do, but maybe some use will become apparent. However, I do think I need a cleaner, more organized replacement for my elaborate system of lists and post-it notes and maybe this is it. I've noticed that I still add things to my lists that I've already done so I can check them off. I don't think any software will change that.