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Tag Archives: GTD
Switching: Linux App Equivalents
I have been in the process of planning out switching to Linux in 2010 for my main development computer (a laptop), as well as for various web and database servers I am responsible for at work.
I’ve been making good use of Sun’s awesome (and free) VirtualBox program, which allows me to create any number of virtual computers to experiment on. I’ve had a couple of CLI-only server versions running (Debian and Ubuntu), as well as what amounts to a desktop system for the last three Ubuntu releases: 8.10, 9.04, and the just-issued 9.10.
My User has information that could… that could make this a free system again! No, really! You’d have programs lined up just to use this place, and no MCP looking over your shoulder.
I’ll cover the whys and wherefores of switching in the future. For now, suffice to say that the ever-increasing commercialization of Mac OS X, with accompanying restrictions, has been grating on me for some time now. I am also attracted to the notion of software freedom (having been a huge fan of the original Tron movie ;) and of course the cost savings can be dramatic. And since I work primarily in education, I think we would be neglecting our duty by not exploring the open-source world.
All that is visible must grow beyond itself, and extend into the realm of the invisible.
One of the first and ongoing steps is compiling a list of application equivalents to programs I am need of.
- Mail -> Evolution
- iCal -> Evolution
- Exchange -> Evolution \m/
- MacJournal -> Zim or RedNotebook or Lifeograph
- iPhoto -> filesystem + gThumb (still need EXIF editor: JHead?)
- iTunes (music) -> Rhythmbox
- iTunes (podcasts) -> Rhythmbox (audio ok, testing vidcasts)
- OmniFocus -> Getting Things Gnome (GTG) or spreadsheet?
- Adium -> Empathy
- Quicksilver/Spotlight -> Deskbar-Applet
- iFlash -> Mnemosyne
- NetNewsWire -> Liferea or Gregarius
- Tweetie -> Gwibber
- VoodooPad -> Zim
- MarsEdit -> Drivel, BloGTK, or Gnome Blog?
- Dictionary.app -> Gnome Dictionary
- RPG -> see http://www.shell-fu.org/lister.php?id=885
- Black Ink -> Xword
- Desktop Pictures rotation -> Wallpaper Tray (Gnome panel)
- GarageBand/podcasting -> Audacity + LMMS
- OmniGraffle -> Dia
- Minuteur/ApiMac Timer -> Timer Applet
Still looking:
- Time Machine (backup) -> roll-my-own or manual?
- Bluetooth File Exchange -> built into Gnome?
Stuff that exists in both places:
- Firefox
- MacVim -> Gvim
- Audacity
- GIMP
- VirtualBox
- ClamXav -> ClamAV
- VLC
- MySQL Administrator and Query Browser
- NeoOffice -> OpenOffice
- Google Earth
- MacNikto -> Nikto
If you’re looking into switching as well, or just are looking for new apps to try out whatever your platform, check out AlternativeTo, which provides alternatives for Linux, Mac, and Windows programs.
Note: Written before the current cold whacked me in the head and upper respiratory tract. Bits are incomplete. Suggestions are welcome.
End of line.
Tagged Apple, ClamAV, crosswords, Debian, email, Firefox, GIMP, Google, Google Earth, GTD, gThumb, iTunes, journaling, Linux, music, MySQL, OpenOffice, Rhythmbox, RSS, switching, tech, Tron, Twitter, Ubuntu, Vim, VirtualBox, VLC, wiki, Zim
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How to start from scratch in OmniFocus
If you’d like to re-start with a clean slate in task-management software OmniFocus, getting rid of all projects, actions, contexts, etc., here’s what you do.
- Just in case you change your mind, be sure to perform a backup of your database first, via the commands in the File menu.
- Quit OmniFocus if it’s running.
- Via the Finder, go to
~/Library/Application Supportand look for theOmniFocusfolder. - Move it to your Desktop for now.
- Re-start OmniFocus.
That’s it. After you make sure everything’s kosher, you can trash the older folder or back it up somewhere else.
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Tagged GTD, OmniFocus, tech
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OmniFocus feature request
I submitted this small feature request already to OmniGroup, but as they said if anybody else likes this idea, please go ahead and let them know yourself as well. (Use the “Send Feedback…” menu item under the Help menu.)
Continue readingHowdy, OmniFolk — thanks for a great product.
A small feature request that would be handy: how about when you mouse over the Sync button in the toolbar, the tooltip would show the last/next sync times?
Thanks again and keep up the great work!
Tagged GTD, OmniFocus, tech
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Useful Unix, Vim, and Emacs tricks on Slashdot
A couple of days ago, Slashdot posted a story asking about “(Useful) Stupid Unix Tricks?”:
So the other day I messaged another admin from the console using the regular old ‘write’ command (as I’ve been doing for over 10 years). To my surprise he didn’t know how to respond back to me (he had to call me on the phone) and had never even known you could do that. That got me thinking that there’s probably lots of things like that, and likely things I’ve never heard of. What sorts of things do you take for granted as a natural part of Unix that other people are surprised at?
It’s perhaps unsurprising that there have been over 2200 comments exploring the arcana of the Unix and Unixy command line. A lot of awesome lore to check out.
Yesterday came the next story, “(Useful) Stupid Vim Tricks?”:
I thoroughly enjoyed the recent post about Unix tricks, so I ask Slashdot vim users, what’s out there? :Sex, :b#, marks, ctags. Any tricks worth sharing?
570+ comments later, there’s a lot to check out there as well.
Today’s post was inevitable, “(Stupid) Useful Emacs Tricks?”:
Since the Vi version of this question was both interesting and popular, let’s hear from the other end of the spectrum. What are your favorite tricks, macros, extensions, and techniques for any of the various Emacs? Myself, I like ‘M-x dunnet’ ;-)
200 comments and counting.
One of the most enjoyable parts of the Vim story, apart from the various spiffy command tips and tricks, were links to other sites. Here are a couple, along with a few related others I’ve linked to before.
- Best Vim Tips (Wikia) (at the Vim Tips Wiki)
- Efficient Editing With vim
- GTD with Vim
- Vimperator – Firefox add-on that makes the browser look and feel like vim.
- Word War vi – “A retro styled side scrolling shoot’em up arcade game for linux. Your mission is to traverse core memory and rid the host of emacs.” (See my followup post “Compiling Word War vi on Mac OS X”.)
- 7 Habits For Effective Text Editing 2.0 – Bram Moolenaar on Google Video. (PDF of the presentation.)
Tagged CLI, Emacs, GTD, Linux, Slashdot, tech, text editors, Unix, Vim
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links for 2007-06-19
Using Emacs org-mode for GTD – A brief overview of org-mode Emacs and how it can be used to implement David Allen’s Getting Things Done methodology. GTD with vim – Using an outliner in VIM with dynamic todo lists
Tagged CLI, Emacs, GTD, productivity, tech, text editors, Vim
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iCal 2 todo class properties
Just in case you’d like to play around with the to do creation itself, iCal has a few properties for the todo class that can be added in a similar fashion to what you see in the PARTB string from totodo.sh:
- completion date (date) : The todo completion date.
- due date (date) : The todo due date.
- priority (no priority/low priority/medium priority/high priority) : The todo priority.
- sequence (integer, r/o) : The todo version.
- stamp date (date, r/o) : The todo modification date.
- summary (Unicode text) : This is the todo summary.
- description (Unicode text) : The todo notes.
- uid (Unicode text, r/o) : A unique todo key.
- url (Unicode text) : The URL associated to the todo.
Tagged CLI, GTD, iCal, productivity, Remind, Remind Like Water, tech
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