Bain Labs

Todo Q is going Places

2011-07-12T17:18:00.000-07:00

As of Todo Q v3.0.3, we've dropped Foursquare lookup and enabled Google Places lookup. It produces results that generally match a lookup in Google maps.

Below is the list generated by searching for "Walmart" near New York.

Searching for a portion of an address, such as "123 West 123rd St." returns just one item.

Todo Q is still only $1.99 on the android market. Try it today.

bbb

Android-x86 on my EEE pc

2011-06-30T14:29:00.000-07:00

I installed Android-x86 on my ASUS Eee PC in a matter of minutes following the detailed installation instructions. The hardest part of the process on Windows was using UnetBootin to build a bootable USB stick.

Seems like a fun way to hack around with Android. You don't even have to wipe the drive since it will also run in LiveCD mode.

Give it a try. I tried to install Todo Q for grins, but installation failed. Not sure if they only support native apps or what... gonna try to find out.

bbb

Holographic Theme Support and Faster Task Entry in Todo Q v3.0.2

2011-06-28T18:17:00.000-07:00

Holographic theme support has been enabled in Todo Q v3.0.2 and provides a nice look and feel on Honeycomb devices. The most obvious changes include moving menu items to the action bar and colors suiting the "holographic" theme. (Xoom screenshot)

Also in this release is a new FAST task entry dialog that makes task entry even faster. (Droid screenshot)

Upcoming changes to support a more streamlined entry of tasks and a clearer separation of tasks vs events should make for a busy summer.

Todo Q is STILL only $1.99 on the Android Market. Try it today.

bbb

Todo Q v3.0.0 now supports Google Tasks

2011-06-19T17:22:00.000-07:00

Todo Q v3.0.0 adds support for Google Tasks with automatic synchronization, multiple task list support, completion and delete using the new Tasks API.

This has been a long time coming and I know some of you have been waiting for this feature. Glad the API finally surfaced.

Todo Q is still only $1.99 on the android market. The Amazon market will be a bit behind while I do the 27 steps required for publishing.

bbb

Todo Q featured on Lifehacker

2011-03-24T19:02:00.000-07:00

Todo Q was mentioned on Lifehacker last week. An accurate, positive review with a couple of screenshots to boot.

Version 2.1.2 was also recently released on the android market.

+ new indicators on task list for time, location, and timebound location alarms
+ fixed filtering for android 3.0 - now fully functional
+ fixed time alarm converting to timebound location alarm

This screenshot shows the recurrence editor on my XOOM. (which is awesome!)

Also, I just submitted the app to the new Amazon market and it awaiting approval. I'm excited about this new market. Some decent competition in the market space might prompt Google to make some improvements.

My Interval is Bigger than Your Interval

2011-03-13T06:26:00.000-07:00

One feature that's been a long time coming is custom intervals on repeating tasks. As of Todo Q v2.1.1, custom intervals on repeating tasks is supported. You can create a task that repeats every 3 day, 2 weeks, 4 months, etc. Another new repeating task feature is the ability to base the next task start date on the current completion date, instead of the original task start date. By default, the start date is used in the calculation.

Here's a shot of the new dialog on my stock droid.

Also added in a prior release is a new snooze dialog. This dialog appears when you click a notification in the status bar. Using this dialog you can set a snooze alarm, dismiss the alarm, or complete the task.

In the interest of keeping users informed, the release notes are now cumulative and outline the changes in each release back to v1.2.0.

Todo Q is only $1.99 on the android market. Give it a try.

Editor Redesign

2011-02-12T04:32:00.000-08:00

The task editor in Todo Q had always been functional, but not very pretty. Today v2.0.3 is released and includes an updated look & feel for the editor and some function changes. In prior releases, "clicking" the location field would bring up your existing locations. This causes an issue on a new install since, well, you don't have any and Todo Q displayed an empty list that had to be closed. The list would also popup sometimes when you really just wanted to edit. Less than great usability. This is resolved by adding a "Locations" button to the right to select a saved location. Other changes include adding the day to the date display and trimming the date & time values of their leading zeroes. Also labeled the icon.

Scrolling down a bit we see all the dropdown or spinners as android calls them have been made to fit the width. Plus we've added separator bars to break things up a bit. And finally, Save and Revert buttons. In the beginning, you just "backed out" of the window to save. Then I added menu items, and now buttons. It does improve the usability imho. Great advice "Bird Dog".

I hope users like these changes. I did run it by a couple who thought it was an improvement.

Todo Q is only $1.99 on the android market.

bbb

No Permission

2011-02-10T14:55:00.000-08:00

Recently I was reviewing the permissions on the new market website site. When I read the following, I thought WTF?

Act As An Account Authenticator
Allows an application to use the account authenticator capabilities of the AccountManager, including creating accounts and getting and setting their passwords.
Use The Authentication Credentials Of An Account
Allows an application to request authentication tokens.
Manage The Accounts List
Allows an application to perform operations like adding, and removing accounts and deleting their password.

The 1st and 3rd permissions sound pretty scary and I wasn't sure why they were there. At one time, I considered automatically creating a "Todo Q" calendar in the user's google calendar, so that could be the reason. Anyway, I pulled both. Todo Q will still request a token for the "send to friend" feature. Send to Friend allows you to send tasks to another Todo Q user or anyone using SMS.

Following is a screenshot of the requested permissions in v2.0.2. Todo Q doesn't actually send e-mail, so I'll have to check on that one. It accesses the calendar for import and "add to calendar" functions. It accesses your contacts in order associate a contact to a task and use their address for the location. The SD card is for backups, and the SMS permission is the other half of "send to friend".

We need a way to pick & choose permissions at install and/or runtime. I could easily turn off features if the user didn't want to grant permission.

Todo Q v2.0.2 removes the two unused permissions and is only $1.99 on the android market.

bbb

Two Oh

2011-02-07T18:33:00.000-08:00

I recently merged a couple of branches that focused on usability and power management. The result is Todo Q v2.0 and includes many improvements in those areas.

What's new in the following screenshot?

Many things...

custom task list title color & font size
task list detail hidden, but you can customize its color and size too
due date on task list when detail hidden
completed tasks display with strikethrough and are sorted to bottom
custom category color is background on completion checkbox/star

Here's another shot with further color customization on the task list, with details visible.

Another theme of v2.0 is power management. Managing power effectively in a mobile application is an important task. Todo Q v2.0 addresses power management for location alarms by introducing a tiered alarm system and "power profiles". It's not perfect, but it is an improvement.

The new tiered alarm system respects the power profile selected in preferences. The ultralow, low and medium profiles use the cellular or wifi network to track location. The high and ultrahigh profiles use the gps to track location, assuming it is enabled.

The default profile is low. Here's a shot of the preference screen.

Once a potential location is nearby, Todo Q will use the best available provider (network, gps, etc.) and set a built-in proximity alert. If the location goes out of range, the proximity alert is cancelled. The two tiered alarm approach lets Todo Q limit battery usage while providing for a large number of location alarms.

Todo Q v2.0 is still only $1.99 on the android market. Please give it a try today.

bbb

Color Picker in Action

2011-01-31T20:15:00.000-08:00

Todo Q v1.2.3 adds the ability to choose the colors to represent the categories for tasks. Previously only A-D had colors, and they weren't configurable. Now all 6 categories A-F support custom labels and colors.

Also added this release was the ability to adjust the task list font size and icon visibility.

Here's a shot of task list minus the icon and displaying the category color behind each checkbox.

The preferences screen used to adjust the category colors displays the currently selected color for each category.

Colors are selected using the very nice ColorPickerPreference component developed by attenzione.

Todo Q is available for $1.99 on the android market. Give it a try.

Thanks.

bbb

Don't forget the VIBRATE permission

2011-01-29T08:47:00.000-08:00

Recently it was reported that Todo Q was having trouble responding to an alarm with a vibration notification. Somehow I removed the VIBRATE permission from the manifest.

The latest release of Todo Q resolves this problem. I also combined two checkboxes into a single dropdown to control the time & location alarms. This is in preparation for introducing timebound location alarms, i.e., a location alarm enabled only for a specific time period.

Todo Q is available for $1.99 on the android market. Try it today.

Thanks.

bbb

Todo Q v1.2.0 has support for repeating tasks

2011-01-22T11:52:00.000-08:00

Todo Q v1.2.0 has been released on the android market. The latest version adds support for repeating tasks with daily, weekly, weekday, monthly, and yearly periods.

We also recently released Todo Q Free, which is a time-limited version of Todo Q v1.1.28. (w/o repeating tasks)

Here's a shot of the repeat selection menu.

Future ideas include a custom item with support for end duration, particular days, etc. Working towards supporting more of the iCalendar specification.

Thanks for all the great input on this feature.

bbb

JavaOne 2010

2010-09-30T05:40:00.000-07:00

JavaOne turned out to be better than I'd hoped. I found the layout in multiple hotels confusing at 1st, but finally got the hang of it. Here's hoping Oracle keeps it separate from Open World next year.

The session quality was good and there were food & drinks everywhere if you knew where to look.

The Complete Photo Set on Flickr

Ironman had a presence.

As did Exadata.

Concurrency Discussions were everywhere.

Best Session was by Adam Bien

Agile too.

My coworker asks Mark Reinhold a Question

I guess I wasn't paying attention and couldn't believe it when Ray Kurzweil walked on stage.

He even had a Mandelbrot picture.

MLB was there and gave Richard Bair a Hat

And also demoed their Draft Software (Go Rangers!)

General Silliness for the Laser Scanning Demo.

And remember, don't feed the pigeons.

BBB

Todo Q Forums

2010-09-18T08:16:00.000-07:00

Todo Q now has official support forums at todo.io, which is also the future home of the web client. A FAQ has been posted and we are monitoring the forum.

A new landing page, video tutorial, and more information is coming soon.

BBB

Google drops out of JavaOne

2010-08-28T04:03:00.000-07:00

Very disappointed to hear that google has cancelled all their talks at JavaOne. Kinda has that "I'm going to take my football and go home" feeling to it.

In the post, Josh Bloch says:

Like many of you, every year we look forward to the workshops, conferences and events related to open source software. In our view, these are among the best ways we can engage the community, by sharing our experiences and learning from yours. So we’re sad to announce that we won't be able to present at JavaOne this year. We wish that we could, but Oracle’s recent lawsuit against Google and open source has made it impossible for us to freely share our thoughts about the future of Java and open source generally. This is a painful realization for us, as we've participated in every JavaOne since 2004, and I personally have spoken at all but the first in 1996.

We understand that this may disappoint and inconvenience many of you, but we look forward to presenting at other venues soon. We’re proud to participate in the open source Java community, and look forward to finding additional ways to engage and contribute.

By Joshua Bloch, Google Open Source Programs Office

I'm aware of the patent infringement action, but don't remember Oracle suing the open source community. A little whiny.

I have seen Josh speak many times at JavaOne and his talks will definitely be missed. The puzzlers talk was great. I also see that Crazy Bob Lee dropped out in support. A quick twitter search shows a lot of activity.

For the record, I will be at JavaOne.

BBB

Todo Q now compatible with DroidX

2010-08-05T18:03:00.000-07:00

Apparently there is a bug in the DroidX maps implementation. Recently I started getting bug reports in the maps area of my app, which is usually very stable. The app would crash, but w/o a FC dialog.

Luckily I was able find an article by another developer and release a patch as v1.1.21.

Hard to believe this basic class in Android is broken in the DroidX. I heard this is a leftover from 1.6 that didn't get ported, but have no proof.

Thanks go to Jonathan W. for helping me find & debug this issue.

Here's the stacktrace. Maybe it will help some other poor developer looking for this bug.

om.billybobbain.android.todoqueue.ToDoMap$1@45e159c0
08-05 08:50:44.839  4493  4493 W dalvikvm: threadid=3: thread exiting with uncaught exception (group=0x4001e278)
08-05 08:50:44.847  4493  4493 E AndroidRuntime: java.lang.ClassCastException: android.graphics.drawable.BitmapDrawable
08-05 08:50:44.847  4493  4493 E AndroidRuntime:  at com.google.android.maps.MyLocationOverlay.drawMyLocation(MyLocationOverlay.java:561)

Todo Q is only $1.99 on the android market.

Repeating Tasks Use Case

2010-07-11T15:11:00.000-07:00

Repeating Tasks are a common request for Todo Q & something I've been working on for a while. The implementation will allow the easy addition new or custom repeat rules. The following is a raw document I created and just decided to release. I welcome input on alternate repeat rules and or strategies that I might have missed.

Use Case: Repeating Tasks

Tasks can be marked as repeatable with a custom time period.

The user can select one of the following values in the dropdown:
Every Day
Every Week
Every Month
Every Year
Custom

The application will then store this value & use it when a task is completed
to schedule the next one. Custom repeating tasks require additional user input.

Custom Repeating Tasks

Daily
D1-Every day
D2-Every weekday
D3-Every N days

Weekly
W1-Every Sun/Mon/etc
W2-Every N weeks on {d1, d2, ..., dN}

Monthly
M1-Day X of every N months
M2-The first/second/etc Sun/Mon/etc of every N months

Yearly
Y1-Every year on MM/DD
Y2-The first/second/etc/ Sun/Mon/etc of Jan/Feb/etc

No end date
End after N occurrences
End by X date

Repeat Rules

D1 - no inputs
D2 - no inputs
D3 - how many days

W1 - which day of week Sun/Mon/etc
W2 - how many week apart, which days of week

M1 - which day of month, how many months apart
M2 - which one, which day of week, how many months apart

Y1 - which date MM/DD
Y2 - which on, which day of week, what month

RRTYPE
RRVALUE

RepeatRule
String ruleType
String ruleValue

DateTime calculateNext(RepeatRule rule, DateTime time)

---

Please comment below or email me if you have suggestions for the repeating tasks implementation.

Todo Q is available for $1.99 on the android market.

bbb

Todo Q for Android is now available in French and German

2010-06-17T03:20:00.000-07:00

Todo Q for Android has been localized to French and German. The screenshots below are from my eclipse development environment. Comments and better translations welcome.

French

German

Todo Q is available on the android market for $1.99.

bbb

Todo Q now runs on Froyo

2010-06-13T09:16:00.000-07:00

Todo Q v1.1.18 was just released supports the "unofficial" Froyo build. I used the MyDroidWorld instructions to update a spare droid for testing. (thanks for the link Nathan!)

Todo Q is available for $1.99 on the android market.

bbb

Android Market Crash Reports, Release Info, and Froyo

2010-05-25T19:17:00.000-07:00

Just a quick update.

The android market crash reports have already helped me find a bug in Todo Q.

Recent releases have also fixed a couple of bugs in address lookup and added features to control the custom icons and category assignment.

The only other thing on my mind right now is Froyo. Seems the Calendar provider changes are breaking applications everywhere. Time to go back to gdata. Ugh. (bug on google code)

Todo Q is only $1.99 on the android market. Give it a try today.

bbb

Update 1:

This bug comment says the provider URI was updated.
Content provider URI
Old (2.1 and before): content://calendar/
New (2.2): content://com.android.calendar/

New Features in Todo Q for Android

2010-05-09T05:14:00.000-07:00

Todo Q was updated recently to make entering & reviewing tasks easier. The new button bar has buttons to quickly add tasks, toggle the display of completed tasks, open settings, and open maps.

The widget was also updated to a 3x2 and displays up to 4 items.

Todo Q is available for only $1.99 on the market.

BBB

Todo Q v.1.1.11 for Android has Faster Task Completion

2010-05-02T19:48:00.000-07:00

Todo Q v1.1.11 was recently released to the android market. The main enhancement was the addition of star-style checkboxes on the task list that can be used to complete a task. The long-click menu still exists, but the star-style checkboxes make it much more intuitive.

Currently working on a button bar for the list with common functions such as add task, show completed tasks, settings, and filter by location. On a longer term, trying to rework the location services to support additional location providers and improve battery life. These are harder problems, but definitely worth solving.

Todo Q is available for only $1.99 on the android market.

Follow billybobbain on Twitter

Todo Q v1.1.10 for Android Released with Widget

2010-04-17T05:43:00.000-07:00

Todo Q v1.1.10 includes several new features designed to make managing tasks easier.

improved help with new content and screenshots
new widget showing next task with time and location
improved foursquare venue lookup provider (beta) (see video)

My first task this morning is to replace my video card. It looks like I'm late already.

Clicking the widget opens the task list. (principle of least astonishment)

Todo Q is available for only $1.99 on the android market.

BBB

Todo Q Screencast

2010-04-16T16:57:00.000-07:00

Just ran across this really cool androidscreencast project on google code. Only a few frames a second, but I sort of like the effect.

Here's a capture of me walking through the app.

screencast

This uses the beta foursquare lookup to find the grocery store. What do you want to see me demo next?

Sorry, no audio at this time. Ya'll don't wanna hear my Texas twang anyway.

BBB

As the World Turns

2010-04-14T16:04:00.000-07:00

Eek! It looks like I let my frustration leak onto the blog. Sorry.

I REALLY want Todo Q to sync with google tasks, but need a reliable method.

I appreciate the input & haven't given up on it.

BBB

Blame Google, Not Me

2010-04-12T15:49:00.000-07:00

I'm getting beat up over the lack of google task sync. Flames for me instead of the software missing the API. If there was an API for google tasks, it would be integrated. I refuse to resort to screen scraping or use a backdoor that might end up in lost customer data.

Sorry, that's just the way I am.

Thanks.

BBB

Todo Q v1.1.9 for Android Released

2010-04-11T06:55:00.000-07:00

Todo Q v1.1.9 for Android adds a few new features to the the task editor. A new "All Day?" checkbox was added to allow the creation of all day events. The task editor also replaced the "Add to Calendar?" checkbox with a dropdown listing the calendars known to the account. You can now assign a task to any of your calendars, instead of only the default defined in settings. The default still affects the imported calendar. (for now)

Here's a shot of the task editor showing the "All Day?" checkbox is selected. This hides the normally visible start & end time buttons. The calendar dropdown is visible at the bottom showing the Billy Bain calendar is selected.

Since the last blog update, Todo v1.1.8 was also released with the following features.

using a contact address on a task to avoid retyping
a new preference to force use of the gps to autofilter the list
a very beta foursquare lookup enabled via a new global preference
and a few bug fixes

Todo Q is available for only $1.99 on the android market. BBB

Droid 2.1 update makes Todo Q maps say pinch me!

2010-04-02T05:07:00.000-07:00

My droid was updated to 2.1-update 1 this morning. I ran a quick test of Todo Q and everything seems to work normally. When testing the maps in Todo Q, I was surprised to find that "pinch to zoom" worked flawlessly. (!) I figured it would require additional work, but I guess they built it right into the component. Good job Google.

Todo Q is available for 1.99 in the android market.

BBB

Todo Q v1.1.7 for Android Released

2010-03-30T18:51:00.000-07:00

A weekend full of work resulted in a few bug fixes and enhancements released as Todo Q v1.1.7.

Todo Q is smart to do list that filters based on your current location. Todo Q unifies the calendar, contacts, and navigation functions seamlessly into a single interface. This integration plus advanced sorting & filtering, time & location alarms, gps/nav integration, gui configuration, send via sms, custom icons, backup to SD, and much more make for a full-featured application.

Here's a summary of the new features in 1.1.7.

New "Notify" field with Vibrate, + Audible, + Repeating Audible values is a dropdown located just above the priority dropdown that allows task level control of notifications.
Reminder field can now be a dropdown or slider and is controlled by a setting. The default is still a slider for now, but I like the dropdown.
Categories can now have custom labels which are established in the settings.
Fixed the bug where the task contents weren't being autoselected in the editor, causing extra keystrokes. This still seems to be acting differently since upgrading development kits.

Things I'm working on for upcoming releases that will hopefully see the light of day.

Foursquare integration, with other location providers coming in the future. (testing now, very nice)
Use a contact address with task for navigation, etc.
Better battery/power management for location alarms.
Google tasks integration (this is hard!)
Multiple gmail accounts (even harder!)
Usability

All of these features were requested by customers. I am too clueless to come up with this stuff on my own. ;)

Todo Q is available in the android market for only $1.99.

BBB

Droid 2.1 rollout

2010-03-30T16:32:00.000-07:00

Engadget says it's finally coming. Todo Q has been tested on 2.1 before, but not on a Droid. I bought mine day one & hope this all goes smoothly. They've had enough time to get it right.

If there are issues, please email me at billybobbain@gmail.com.

BBB

Plasma Fractal Generator source added to github

2010-03-28T09:42:00.000-07:00

The plasma fractal generator project has been added to github at http://github.com/billybobbain/Plasma. Maybe I'll find some time, but I really wish someone would add color cycling using a 256 color palette ala Fractint.

BBB

Todo Q v1.1.5 for Android released

2010-03-20T18:09:00.000-07:00

Todo Q v1.1.5 was just released to the android market and includes many new customer requested features.

Backup to SD Card
The Todo Q database can now be backed up to the SD card. If something bad happens to your phone and you have to reinstall your applications, Todo Q will automatically restore from the backup database.

Usability Enhancements

We added new save and revert menu items on the Todo Q Editor menu for users that prefer a direct command to save or cancel changes instead of the automatic save. Plus we added confirmation messages for anytime we save or cancel an update to a tasks to give you more feedback.

Clear Filter Button with Task Counts
The Todo Q list sports a new button adjacent to the filter field that displays the count of visible tasks vs total tasks as a label. When clicked, this button clears the filter and refreshes the list to show all tasks.

Here's a screenshot of the task list unfiltered...

... and filtered based on the string "3141".

Each item is visible for a different reason:

Find Me 3141 has "3141" in the description
Find Me Too has "3141" in the custom field
Find Me Three has "3141" as part of the address / location field.

Todo Q searches across multiple fields when filtering and updates the list and task counts dynamically as you type in the filter field.

Todo Q is available for only $1.99 on the Android Market. Give it a try today.

Follow me on twitter here.

Stealing Time with Todo Q

2010-03-12T05:30:00.000-08:00

A few years ago I met a guy at work named John that just had his hands in everything. He had more than a full-time job, did outside consulting, wrote papers, was on forums & expert groups and anything else that interested him. I once asked him how he found the time and he said it was really simple. You have to learn to "steal time." I'm like, WTF does "steal time" mean? He says, "You know those moments when you had a breakthrough, were interrupted, or maybe a meeting ended early?" View those as opportunities to "steal time" and work on something else. I started trying to do this and I do find it to be effective. Everyone does it... when you are paying a bill standing in line at the market, or even while supposedly listening to your wife. He just advocated taking it to the extreme. I'm not as good as John, but I've learned to apply this technique and it seems to have helped my career and life in general. Not sure wife would agree.

One of the other things I heard about a couple years ago on TED was the cognitive surplus that is wasted in the world by idle time, mainly watching TV. I especially like the comparison of TV to Gin in the past. (John would like that too) I've started apply stealing time to TV... so if I sit down to watch TV, I ask myself does this show suck? If so, then turn off the TV and do something else. Or if a (insert your favorite sport here) game blows out, steal that time and do something else.

The ultimate question becomes, what to do with all the extra time? So I made a list, which turned into a to do list or queue, which is now Todo Q. Available for $1.99 on android market.

Hope you enjoyed my little story. I stole the time to write it because the smoke alarm started a low-battery beep this morning and after that, I was up. Steal some time today.

Billy Bob Bain

P.S. - Here's John in the past with book and some trophy. Like I said, it was always something.

Todo Q v1.1.2 for Android adds Custom Icon Support and Send over SMS

2010-03-06T07:39:00.000-08:00

Todo Q v1.1.2 adds the following user-requested features.

send todo & location over SMS as plaintext
custom icons can be assigned to a todo or location
added preference to define custom icon folder
ability to delete a location and optionally todos from location editor

Below is a screen shot showing both custom and built-in icons in the list.

Todo Q with Custom Icons

Todo Q is available for 2.0+ devices such as droid and nexus on the android market for only $1.99.

BBB

Five Great Applications for Android

2010-03-05T03:46:00.000-08:00

I am a developer with a Droid. Here are my five favorite android applications that don't have the word google in them.

Thinking Space is a mind mapping tool that is fun to use.

RealCalc is a multifunction calculator with the RPN I crave.

Minishot Basketball is one of my 6 yr old son's favorite games.

Solo Guitar makes even me sound pretty good.

Chess is great and looks better on my droid with each release.

That's my five. What are yours?

BBB

Mixing it up with Android and Google App Engine

2010-03-02T12:50:00.000-08:00

In my opinion, Google has solved the mobile development puzzle when it comes to networking and security. A handset only application is fine, but a secure networked application is much more fun.

I've been theorizing a "Send to Friend" feature for Todo Q for a little while. I have more than one user (ok, just one) who wanted the ability to send tasks to their spouse and/or kids. (we too are an all droid family)

I really liked this customer's idea, but had trouble deciding how to implement the feature. A few of the ways to implement:

a "break-it-up-over-SMS" idea
some kind of email kludge
shared calendar with auto import
or some kind of server-based solution

The "break-it-up-over-SMS" idea was workable, but looked ugly and cluttered the users SMS inbox. Maybe there is a way to send it to an application "port", but it wasn't documented well enough to figure out and you still had the multiple message issue. The email kludge was also possible, but I didn't like that solution really even though Mailinator would have made it easy. The shared calendar solution would get most of it, but Todo Q carries location data and mangling that into the google calendar would have resulted in ugly calendar entries. When I 1st wrote Todo Q, it didn't have its own database and just piggybacked on the google calendar. I didn't really want to go back that direction, so it fell to the server-based solution.

The server-based solution was a bit daunting due to security concerns. Was I going to have to write a whole security framework just to support this feature? Seemed like more trouble than it might be worth. I had written a couple of applications on Google App Engine (GAE) before and knew I wanted to use it again for this feature due to the minimal cost and maximum scalability. Amazon EC2 was another option, but the cost is just too high for a micro-isv like me. (I do have experience with EC2 costs)

Turns out that others, such as Gast Studios, have already been down this road with Android and GAE. Todo Q supports only 2.0 devices and higher, so my solution was a little easier than the Gast solution. His post at stackoverflow.com had all the details necessary to implement the security feature. Instead of inventing my own security, Todo Q could use the google account associated with the device. No username & password prompting, credential caching or anything nasty was involved. The final solution uses the device AccountManager to get the "authorization token" and perform an HttpGet to appengine which returns a cookie that identifies the user. Subsequent requests to app engine will automatically use this cookie and be authenticated as the app engine user. Once again Google let me focus on my application and not build another framework.

Todo Q for 1.1.0 has support for "Send to Friend" and is available for $1.99 from the android market.

Follow me on twitter here.

BBB

Todo Q for Android has Send To Friend

2010-02-28T17:53:00.001-08:00

Todo Q v1.1.0 is released to the android market with the new Send to Friend feature. This feature enables tasks to be sent from one Todo Q user to another. My wife loves this new feature.

Below is a summary of the new functions.

Task detail including description, location, start date, due date, reminder date, category & subcategory
Location details including icon, location text, and gps coordinates
Remembers last user to a quick send
Can receive one, many or all at once
Currently a manual pull function, but will be automated in a future release if demanded
Secured via google account for both sender & receiver

Todo Q is only $1.99 on the android market. Give it a try.

Follow me on twitter here.

BBB

A Little Can Be A Lot in Todo Q

2010-02-26T16:54:00.000-08:00

Recently we added a custom field at the request of a user. We labeled it identifier, and it is located below the priority field in the editor. The label for this field is customizable via the settings menu. This is why I love this model. In my day job, I NEVER talk to customers.

Here' a shot of the editor and the new custom field.

This field is indexed and you can filter on it from the task list.

Todo Q is available on the Android Market.

BBB

Todo Q on Droid Forums

2010-02-26T06:41:00.001-08:00

We will be monitoring the application forum on droid-forum.com for Todo Q related questions.

http://www.droid-forum.com/droid-applications-f7.html

If you have questions, or just want to talk about possible future enhancements, this is the place to do it. I have no ties to this forum, but have been chatting with the admin & can tell you he's a droid fanatic.

BBB

Todo Q v1.0.21 for Android Links Contacts, Calendar, And GPS

2010-02-25T18:39:00.000-08:00

Todo Q v1.0.21 for Android merges the Contacts, Calendar and Navigation functions of your phone into one application. This latest release adds a searchable, customizable field to the task entry screen. Very useful if you have a piece of "identifying information" on a client, etc. We've also recently added due date and a high priority indicator to the task list, plus even more sorting and filtering options.

Here's a shot of the task list showing location icons, contact icons, and the new mm/dd due date display and "!" indicator for high priority tasks.

Here we see the editor screen with the Quick Contact Badge enabled after we've selected a contact from the phone. The "Add to Calendar" checkbox will add the task to your phone calendar & sync with the online calendar.

The locations associated with tasks are mapped & available as navigation destinations from the task list, location list, and location editor.

Here are a few of the many preferences that allow you to customize the application.

Todo Q is available for $1.99 on the Android Market. Give it a try.

BBB

Todo Q v1.0.19 for Android Released

2010-02-24T03:07:00.000-08:00

Todo Q v1.0.19 adds additional user requested features to sort by due date, category, and priority, display the due date on the list and fixes an existing sort bug.

Below we see the due date field formatted as mm/dd next to the location name.

Todo Q is available on the Android Market for $1.99.

Todo Q v1.0.12 for Android adds animation effects

2010-02-20T04:49:00.000-08:00

Instead of an abrupt removal, a completed or deleted task will shrink until it disappears from view. Just a little eye candy to reward you for completing that last task. More to come, but only where it makes sense.

Todo Q for Android is available on the Android Market for $1.99.

BBB

Todo Q v1.0.11 for Android has traffic & maps

2010-02-19T15:22:00.000-08:00

Todo Q v1.0.11 adds support for a map view in addition to the existing satellite view of locations associated with a task. This, and a traffic layer are all enabled via preference.

Here is a capture of the map with traffic layer enabled.

And a satellite view with traffic.

Todo Q is available on the Android market for only $1.99.

BBB

Todo Q v1.0.10 for Android Released

2010-02-14T18:15:00.000-08:00

Release v1.0.10 adds a little more integration with the contacts on the device. The Todo list will optionally display the associated contact's icon, if it is available. Otherwise it will fall back & display the location's icon.

In the screenshot below, the 1st items are using contact icons, while the last two are using the location icons.

Todo Q for Android is available on the market for only $1.99.

Todo Q v1.0.9 for Android Released

2010-02-13T07:23:00.000-08:00

This release adds a user requested preference to control alarm notifications from within Todo Q. This allows for finer control since you can specify audible or vibrate only notifications. The setting takes effect immediately for both time and location based alarms. Alarm related preferences were organized into a separate category to make them easier to find.

Also added a release notes dialog to help users understand what changes are in a release.

Todo Q for Android is available on the market for only $1.99.

Here's a look at the preference screen.

And a shot of the Q.

Todo Q for Android Quick Tutorial in PDF

2010-02-10T16:05:00.001-08:00

Here is a copy of the tutorial in PDF format. Maybe I should call it more of an overview, but the point is that you don't need a book to use it.

Todo Q for for Android has Rebalance for Categories

2010-02-09T03:05:00.000-08:00

One popular time management technique is to assign categories and subcategories to a task.

In Todo Q, categories are represented by letters, such as A, B, C, D, E, F. Subcategories are defined as numbers, 1, 2, 3,..., 10.

When a task is created both category & subcategory can be assigned. The concept is that you ONLY work on each task in its order of importance until completed, or something is blocking the task. Each night you reassign the rankings so that those that become important can move up the list.

Todo Q helps with the reassignment step, we call it rebalancing the list.

Suppose you start with a full Q. Ok, not so full, but enough to demonstrate the technique.

After a busy day, you look at your list and see there are gaps.

So you open the phone menu and choose Rebalance Categories.

Now your list is rebalanced. Rebalance keeps tasks within the same category, while adjusting the subcategory to make them sequential.

Todo Q integrates with the calendar, contacts, gps, navigation, maps on your device and makes it easier to use them together. Todo Q is available for Android 2.0+ devices on the Android Market for only $1.99.

Give it a try... and Follow me on twitter here.

Todo Q for Android Quick Tutorial

2010-02-07T08:33:00.000-08:00

I posted a short tutorial on using some of the features of Todo Q.

Plasma Fractal Generator for Droid

2010-02-07T05:32:00.000-08:00

Learning about 2d graphics in Android, I decided to convert an old plasma fractal applet to android. It was surprisingly easy. It takes a few seconds to render on my droid.

I've posted the APK and source using google docs new publish anything feature.

A couple of other things I've hacked with lately are a julia set generator and a simple graph demo. Both are written in processing js. The julia set generator is based on another applet, whose link escapes me just now.

Follow me on twitter here.

Todo Q v1.0.7 for Android Released

2010-02-06T15:20:00.001-08:00

Todo Q v1.0.7 adds several new features:

integration with the Contacts database
spell check and autosuggest enabled on text fields
new preference to enabled improved alphabetical, priority and category sort order for the Todo Q
new preference to select default location icon

This screenshot shows the Q populated with category coloring and sorting enabled.

Next we have the updated preferences screen with the new sort preference default icon gallery.

And finally a shot of the updated Todo Editor screen showing a contact's icon and the new QuickContactBadge ready to initiate a phone call, open contact editor, send text or an email. (different icons appear depending on the completeness of the contact entry)

These change requests were all submitted by users of Todo Q. Give it a try today.

And also... Follow me on Twitter here.

Todo Q v1.0.6 for Android

2010-01-31T06:48:00.000-08:00

A few more minor fixes and enhancements in version 1.0.6.

option to delete Location with last related Todo
algorithm change to rebalance within categories
example: {A2, A3, A5, B2, B4, C3, C5} rebalances to {A1,A2,A3,B1,B2,C1,C2}.
location insert by name and address using google maps api lookup for gps info
example:
Mount Rushmore
Hoover Dam
101 Elm St. Dallas, TX, etc.

Todo Q v1.0.4 for Android with new Categorization

2010-01-30T05:16:00.000-08:00

Version 1.0.3 and now 1.0.4 introduced the concept of category and subcategory in the Todo Q. Todos can be assigned a category (A,B,C,D) and subcategory (1-10) from the editor and also for the list. The automated rebalance feature helps keep everything in proper order. A new preference was also added to allow finer control of the location alarm radius.

New in 1.0.4

Added category and subcategory for a Todo
Category and subcategory automatic rebalancing
Location alarm radius now controlled by a preference

Todo Q is available for download on the Android Market.

You should follow me on twitter here.

BBB

Todo Q v1.0.2 for Android released with Google Calendar Sync

2010-01-25T16:10:00.000-08:00

Lots of changes in 1.0.2. You should follow me on Twitter here.

In the past, Todo Q just piggybacked on the calendar database. With 1.0.2, you now have the choice to keep the todo local, or push it to the device calendar. Calendars can be imported at anytime are automatically reconciled with the Todo Q.

Other new features:
- Ability to trigger the in-phone navigation from anywhere a location appears in Todo Q.
- Ability to enable & disable location based alarms on demand.
- You can now "Complete a Todo", not just delete one. A new preference was added to "Show Completed Todos".

A few screenshots of the application in action follow.

This is the Todo entry screen. The user has entered the address and "long-clicked" the field. Not every location needs to be in your personal DB for ever... so you get a choice.

Below is the Todo Q, empty for our new entry, but showing the menu options.

And now we have the Q after an import. The "more" menu has these hidden... the ability to clear and restore alarms. No one likes to work all day! (works for time & location alarms)

Locations can be edited to assign icons, and you can view Todos associated with that location. (complete or not)

Getting back to the Calendar feature... here's the Calendar selection list on my phone. A few of these are subscribed calendars... never know when you might need to know the stardate!

Please give Todo Q a try. It is available on the Android Market directly from your 2.0+ device.

You should follow me on Twitter here.

BBB

Todo Q v1.0.1 for Android released with Maps Support

2010-01-21T19:31:00.000-08:00

Released 1.0.1 to the Android Market tonight. At the request of a user, I added a "location as address" feature. The "location as address" feature allows a location to be entered as an address with the Todo item. Optionally, this location can be saved for later use with other Todos.

From the Todo Q, long-clicking an entry causes the Android map application to open. The current location is used as the starting point & the Todo associated location as the destination. From there you can get driving directions and then fire up the turn-by-turn navigation.

Android made this too easy too code. I'll present some details in a future post.

BBB

Todo Q for Android Released

2010-01-17T02:34:00.001-08:00

Todo Q for Android was released to the market today. Support questions should be sent to billybobbain at gmail.com.

Todo Q for Android in limited beta

2010-01-10T09:48:00.000-08:00

We are getting closer to releasing Todo Q on the Android Market, but need to do a little more on device testing.

Todo Q is designed specifically for the Droid, but should run fine on any v2.0 or higher Android device.

Todo Q displays the calendar on your device as a location-based Todo list or "Q". Locations are added from the Map view and are represented by a user selected icon for easy identification in the Todo Q.

Todo Q is designed to keep your todos in front of you with easy filtering and sorting. The location aware Todo list or "Q" filters your Todo Q by your current location. What this means is your home Q is seen at home and your work Q is seen at work.

The Todo Editor allows you to specify the details of the item and set time and location triggered alarms.

All these features are preference driven for complete customization.

Anyone interested in beta testing the application can contact me at billybobbain at gmail.com.