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Show HN: TodoBot is an AI coach that helps you write a better todo list

todobot.ai

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Re: Show HN: TodoBot is an AI coach that helps you write a better todo list

#21

Post by jstarfish »

malfist wrote: post #5

This doesn't seem super useful to me. Personally my todo lists are all 2-5 words, quick to write and just enough to job my memory for what I want to do. For example, I need to clean the neck of my skimmer for my saltwater aquarium, I'd put "clean skimmer neck" on my todo list. TodoBot says this is poor because I didn't include location or what I'd clean it with. It suggested "Clean skimmer neck in the pool with a bru…

> Location isn't helpful here, I know where my skimmer is, saying "Clean skimmer neck underneath my 100 gallon saltwater aquarium in my office" would get high marks from the bot, but not actually be useful. "with a brush" is also equally useless. What else am I supposed to clean a skimmer neck with? I know how to clean a skimmer, I don't need to write where and how to clean my skimmer every time I add it to my todo list.

Ironically, it is helping you write a better to-do list. Going to this level of detail as a matter of habit makes it much easier to delegate the task to someone else, especially during emergencies. Future autocomplete features may make this easier, but it'll need precedent to extrapolate from.

Nothing is more irritating than agreeing to watch someone's house/pets and being told "I'll leave you a to-do list." Then you see the list and it's all items like: "clean skimmer neck" and "waste away 50mL." I'm more than happy to maintain your stuff but it looks like you left me instructions on how to take a urine sample in New Zealand.

Re: Show HN: TodoBot is an AI coach that helps you write a better todo list

#23

Post by gexla »

digdugdirk wrote: post #9
gexla wrote: post #7

My first problem with this idea (not necessarily this app) is that I don't know that I would want to hand over the control of my prompts to another service. I want to write my own prompts. I also want more control to give it wider context. Right now I'm using a couple of different AI add-ons for Obsidian for this.

Sounds interesting. What add-ons do you use and how do they fit into your workflow? Any use cases in particular seem more valuable than others?

"Smart Connections" and "ChatGPT MD" are the ones I use.

Smart Connections allows you to set Obsidian resources to be embeddings, which GPT can then use as further context.

ChatGPT MD has options for templates, where you can create a note based on a prompt template and then do a "user" and "assistant" back and forth.

In terms of workflow, it's experimental right now. I thought it might be interesting to create an assistant which can read my agenda for the day and act as an accountability partner. Right now, I have to manually run the sequence with a keyboard shortcut. But the plugin could add features such as automatically running every X minutes, and then sending a system notification telling you that it's time to check in.

That it's so experimental, is one reason why I wouldn't bother with a service someone else has already created. I would much rather tinker on my own implementation, which I have much more power over.

I can't say this experiment has been useful yet. Or that I can even see it as having potential. But I'll continue tinkering.

Re: Show HN: TodoBot is an AI coach that helps you write a better todo list

#24

Post by quickthrower2 »

For my "todo" workflow this isn't so good. But it could be tweaked to match it.

When I add a todo, I am usually getting interrupted by someone else, or my own brain, and the todo is a cache of my short term memory of something I need to do. I want my todo writing experience to be fast

Currently there is a spinner to wait for the AI suggestion. 5000ms is too slow. I want to leave the TODO app before I lose my original trail of thought. Even if the AI suggestion is instant, it is a context switch to even read it and consider it.

I think what would be better is a suggestion, maybe as a subtext or popover when I *READ* the todo list. Reading the todo list means I have some time free and I am prepared to crush some of the list. I might even have time to "groom" the list. This would be a great time for AI to help me.

Another thing you can do with AI is let the user tune what kinds of suggestions.

For example the AI could create "tiny habits" (probably a trademark so watch out!) style todos. So replace "go to the gym" with "put on my gym trainers" and so on.

It might be you want it to split todos, or suggest a todo you already have (I have about 50 todos at the moment. Some of them are reading lists for AI, a skiing trip prep list, some bank stuff, and so on, all different urgencies) it is likely I will add the same thing twice.

I also think the table stakes for a TODO app is feature parity with Microsoft TODO. If it can't do all that stuff (it isn't too much) then I would rather stick with Microsoft and forgo the AI.

This is where perhaps your AI thing could be a chrome extension that works with the established todo apps. That would make me much more happier to use it.

Re: Show HN: TodoBot is an AI coach that helps you write a better todo list

#25

Post by bgoldste »

Ilasky wrote: post #12
greytape wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

GPT-4. I tried with GPT-3, because GPT-4 is so slow, but it failed to reliably return JSON responses (perhaps it would work with better prompts?)

You should take a look at guidance [0] to help with JSON returns from LLMs. Have been using it for some side projects and it seems to work pretty reliably. [0] https://github.com/microsoft/guidance

Looks super handy, thank you!

Re: Show HN: TodoBot is an AI coach that helps you write a better todo list

#26

Post by hammyhavoc »

malfist wrote: post #19
itake wrote: post #15

I put in the task "floss" It gave me 1 star. It said I should put "floss your teeth with dental floss" I guess the task was too ambiguous and I might have flossed something else?

When I was in high school, one of the more hirsute students like to put people heads up his shirt as a prank...called it flossing. Maybe the AI was afraid you might to floss with chest hair?

The whole day is ruined. LMAO.
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