Nested to-do lists

August 8, 2006 4:13 PM

What's the simplest to-do list software that will nest items as many levels deep as I wish?

Having experimented with the usual suspects (Ta Da etc.), I've slowly come to the conclusion that I only need three features in a to-do app - checkbox/alarm (duh) and to be able to start with a big vague goal and gradually add detail in levels, without cluttering up all my other big vague goals. I'd probably take a stab at coding it myself, but have no time, due to lack of progress on aforementioned goals.

Is there anything (free) out there already that fits the bill? Or should I be organising things differently?

posted by kersplunk to Computers & Internet (9 answers total)

There's a freeware program called ToDoList that almost makes me wish I was a PC user. I used it for a while at work, and it was wonderful (the boss made me switch back to Outlook for continuity within the office, go figure).

I just tested it, and you seem to be able to go quite deep with the levels. It's very feature-rich, but also really simple if you don't want to use all the bells and whistles, unlike, say, Outlook.

Good luck!
posted by rossination at 4:25 PM on August 8, 2006

For Mac...

I think Circus Ponies NoteBook might have what you're after. I've also been experimenting with MindBurn, which offers a novel approach to notes and alarms.
posted by evil holiday magic at 4:31 PM on August 8, 2006

I had a brief encounter with ListPro which is basically a list database. Any kind of list you can think of, you can create it with ListPro.

I tried using it for my GTD stuff, but now I have switched to text files :)
posted by eatmytag at 4:43 PM on August 8, 2006

Sproutliner's development seems to have slowed down, but it meets your criteria. You can use it on their site or host your own copy.
posted by Eater at 5:06 PM on August 8, 2006

I probably went through 10 or 15 Windows programs before I found one that worked for me. I was looking for a very clean interface, bells and whistles hidden unless needed, and a nesting tree structure. I've been using MyLifeOrganized (yes, horrid name) for about a year and it's perfect for what I need. One tab to throw everything in there, at as many levels as you want, another tab lets you assign places or contexts to each item, and the To Do tab lets you view only those items that fit the assigned context, sort of like a query in a database. Then there's a side panel for notes, so you can put links or text to expand on any item. And other stuff I don't care about (importance, due dates, etc.) Theres a VERY active user group that's always trying to get the developer to add a lot of features, which I hope he doesn't do, lest it get too bloated. It's the least cluttered, least colorful, least icon-filled program I've seen. I think there's a free version, and definitely a free trial.
posted by bigmuffindaddy at 6:38 PM on August 8, 2006

Check out TaskCoach. Amazingly simple to use and intuitively designed, but very effective and almost effortless time management and task organization:

http://members.chello.nl/f.niessink/

(Plus it's FREE!)

It's still in regular development with quite an active mailing list. The author is very good about responding to feature requests as well.
posted by sprocket87 at 7:48 PM on August 8, 2006

Circus Ponies Notebook looks interesting and thanx for the tip.

I use a nifty app called Hot Plan http://www.intuiware.com, which is essentially a list maker with progress bars. There's a small fee.

For my jounal, I am using Journler, which nicely integrates with all Mac Media and is FREE.
posted by DudeAsInCool at 8:47 PM on August 8, 2006 [1 favorite]

I'll second MyLifeOrganized (MLO to its friends). I've been using it for a while, after switching from LifeBalance (same idea but very slow to add new features and respond to user input). The hierarchical thing is totally the way to go. You can also turn off features you don't want to use, which is key to it not becoming bloat-ware. The developer makes a minor release about once a quarter, which is awesome. I actually paid for it, which says something about it (I typically stick to free / open source software).
posted by ivarley at 9:07 PM on August 8, 2006

What's the simplest to-do list software that will nest items as many levels deep as I wish?

I think Circus Ponies NoteBook might have what you're after.

And a whole lot more. Circus Ponies is just one of many info organizers on the mac but it's way more than you need it.

If you're serious about 'simple', cross if off your list.
posted by justgary at 11:57 PM on August 8, 2006