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Ask HN: Simple tools/hack for small project management

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Re: Ask HN: Simple tools/hack for small project management

#11

Post by terminalcommand »

_pfxa wrote: post #5

Org mode. I put a Readme.org in every project I start, and it can help with most project management tasks. You can also hook these files up to your Org agenda, so that issues (i.e. TODO items) show up there. Edit: I should also mention the Dired mode in Emacs, which is a directory browser. I use "% g" quite frequently, and it has useful extensions like wdired and dired-hacks.

Org-mode also offers tagging support.

If you add it to your agenda, you can filter things out by tags.

Org mode also has excellent mobile support. All your todo items, schedules etc. can also be viewed in your phone.

Another plus-side is that it is completely text based. You don't have to worry about internet access, operating system, age of the machine, the medium you want to use.

You can quickly export org-mode schedules as pdf/tex/html/txt etc.

If you cannot meet your schedules, you can make a note yourself on why you couldn't meet it and simply reschedule.

The core functionality of org-mode is actually simple. I'd suggest giving org-mode a chance.

1) Create an org document 2) Set some tasks as headlines 3) make them todo items by typing C-c C-t 4) schedule them to a certain date with C-c C-s 5) add the org-file to your agenda by C-c C-[

And you've got a working project schedule. M-x org-agenda to view your schedule.

Re: Ask HN: Simple tools/hack for small project management

#12

Post by binaryapparatus »

https://kanboard.org/ as self hosted trello alternative, very good and obviously completely private.

Org-mode or https://github.com/jceb/vim-orgmode if you are using vim (I do).

http://tailordev.github.io/Watson/ for cli time tracking. Works beautifully.

Re: Ask HN: Simple tools/hack for small project management

#13

Post by TeMPOraL »

terminalcommand wrote: post #11
_pfxa wrote: post #5

Org mode. I put a Readme.org in every project I start, and it can help with most project management tasks. You can also hook these files up to your Org agenda, so that issues (i.e. TODO items) show up there. Edit: I should also mention the Dired mode in Emacs, which is a directory browser. I use "% g" quite frequently, and it has useful extensions like wdired and dired-hacks.

Org-mode also offers tagging support. If you add it to your agenda, you can filter things out by tags. Org mode also has excellent mobile support. All your todo items, schedules etc. can also be viewed in your phone. Another plus-side is that it is completely text based. You don't have to worry about internet access, operating system, age of the machine, the medium you want to use. You can quickly export org-mode sch…

Could you and GP share more about your project management setup (and ways you use it) in org-mode?

I do use org-mode quite a bit, but for project-specific notebooks, I usually quickly get mentally overwhelmed with the volume and mix of finished/unfinished tasks. I can feel the problem is in the way I use it. Somehow the same content, put in a crappy kanban-style web board, doesn't seem as overwhelming (even though it's an order of magnitude less efficient to work on than it is with org).

Re: Ask HN: Simple tools/hack for small project management

#15

Post by aerique »

terminalcommand wrote: post #11
_pfxa wrote: post #5

Org mode. I put a Readme.org in every project I start, and it can help with most project management tasks. You can also hook these files up to your Org agenda, so that issues (i.e. TODO items) show up there. Edit: I should also mention the Dired mode in Emacs, which is a directory browser. I use "% g" quite frequently, and it has useful extensions like wdired and dired-hacks.

Org-mode also offers tagging support. If you add it to your agenda, you can filter things out by tags. Org mode also has excellent mobile support. All your todo items, schedules etc. can also be viewed in your phone. Another plus-side is that it is completely text based. You don't have to worry about internet access, operating system, age of the machine, the medium you want to use. You can quickly export org-mode sch…

Could you elaborate on Org mode's excellent mobile support? Are you talking iPhone, Android or both?

I've only got experience with Android and MobileOrg is a pain in the ass to setup and sync. The workflow is a hassle.

Orgzly looks nice and is good for read-only usage but entering notes in it is awkward. Takes too much time compared to, for example, Google Keep.

Are there other solution out there that I am not aware of or am I just not using the existing apps correctly?

Re: Ask HN: Simple tools/hack for small project management

#16

Post by gkya »

TeMPOraL wrote: post #13
terminalcommand wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Org-mode also offers tagging support. If you add it to your agenda, you can filter things out by tags. Org mode also has excellent mobile support. All your todo items, schedules etc. can also be viewed in your phone. Another plus-side is that it is completely text based. You don't have to worry about internet access, operating system, age of the machine, the medium you want to use. You can quickly export org-mode sch…

Could you and GP share more about your project management setup (and ways you use it) in org-mode? I do use org-mode quite a bit, but for project-specific notebooks, I usually quickly get mentally overwhelmed with the volume and mix of finished/unfinished tasks. I can feel the problem is in the way I use it. Somehow the same content, put in a crappy kanban-style web board, doesn't seem as overwhelming (even though it…

Org has archiving and sorting built in, you can sort entries such that the completed ones sink to the bottom, and archive them to an archive file. With sparse trees you can filter out uninteresting entries, and with org-goto jump around more easily. Frankly I haven't maintained any big or medium sized projects, and for anything with more than one regular committer I'd probably want to have something like Trac or Github or just make it a GNU project if applicable. Still though I can imagine using an org file in conjunction with a mailing list (a Google group, even), but I don't have practical experience with such setup.

A Readme.org for me is a description of the project followed by notes and a hierarchy of issues i.e. to-do items. Also, when starting out sometimes I use src blocks to write initial bits of a script while exploring the data or the library I'm planning to work with.

Re: Ask HN: Simple tools/hack for small project management

#17

Post by weavie »

_pfxa wrote: post #5

Org mode. I put a Readme.org in every project I start, and it can help with most project management tasks. You can also hook these files up to your Org agenda, so that issues (i.e. TODO items) show up there. Edit: I should also mention the Dired mode in Emacs, which is a directory browser. I use "% g" quite frequently, and it has useful extensions like wdired and dired-hacks.

> I use "% g" quite frequently

Do you mean the command "Mark files containing"? I didn't know about this one before.. Could you expand on how you fit it in your workflow?

Re: Ask HN: Simple tools/hack for small project management

#18

Post by paulgb »

I'm a fan of OneNote for this. It's not perfect but it checks all the boxes I need and it's free.

Rather than making a list of tasks I have a whole section of them, and so I can attach files or notes to each one. This makes context switching between tasks fairly efficient.

Re: Ask HN: Simple tools/hack for small project management

#19

Post by latte »

Telegram's Saved Messages feature (which is basically a chat with oneself) helps me a lot - it loads in the web interface instantly and works like an ultra-light notes app, where you can also post files and images, search your notes, edit and delete items. Everything is instantly shared between web and mobile.

The drawback is that you can have only one Saved Messages chat and no way to tag messages by project - it becomes messy when you use it for several projects at once.

For a small team, per-project chats are also very helpful - you can easily recall what you were discussing or planning to do several months ago.

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