My Favorite 3 Productivity Apps for the iPad: Corkulus, 2Do, Next Thing

Task managers on mobile devices are so frustrating. Why do they design them to look like they are on paper? We're no longer on paper!

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• You should be able to see a small version by category of everything you have to do and be able to zoom in and out.
  
• You should be able to drag to categorize instead of having to type tags in for everything.
  
• You should be able to see a stack of all of the items in your "inbox" to do list and drag them into the proper day and proper category. VISUAL VISUAL VISUAL.

What is visual about these to-do lists? NOTHING. Most to do apps are text based.

I have to let you know my favorite three apps with a caveats.



Corkulus
Corkulus has incredible potential.It is a cork board that lets you add contacts, to do's, sticky notes, etc. Even boards within boards. I am using this for my goal setting and planning.

It does let you export the to-dos here into the Appigo ToDo list program, however, I wish the developers would see this handy app for what it could be: Version 0.1 of a new kind of visual planner.

Nothing else comes close. Unfortunately a lot more functionality must be added before I can use this as my only "to do" list. As a way to set goals and plan it is perfect.

2Do App
I still have to put my items into the 2Do app that syncs with Toodledo. It is my primary list manager

I have to have something that lets me get to inbox zero. I can email Toodledo messages from my inbox and it turns them into tasks that sync with 2do.It is very powerful but much of my time is spent typing things in. I wish it was less text.

I also have this on my iTouch and iPad and both sync on entrance and exit so it is very useful.

It is just easy to get lost in 2Do. 2Do is good, it just isn't VISUAL. That is what I want. I want corkulus.

Next Thing

Next thing is a simple todo app that I really like and helps me focus when I need it is the Next Thing. This simple flashcard system helps you focus and is good if you can break your tasks down and don't need repeating tasks.

Every evening I write DOWN my MITs. Every day I have 3 Most Important Things (from Leo Babauata's book  Power of Less and ZenHabits blog)

If I'm having trouble focusing, I'll type in the next 3-4 things and leave it up on my ipad and help me stay on TASK.

Not There Yet
Nothing is really there yet. Task management/ calendar management could be so much more. There are too many apps to use for different tasks but we are in the early days yet.

People who develop for the tablet need to understand the visual nature of the tablet.

My Circa Planner
I still have a lovely list in my Circa planner. The pages are customized by me and let me notetake and journal.

Note: I use my Circa/ Rollabind/ M by Staples customizable notebook. (They are from the same company. You can get the arc paper at Staples cheaply but I get the rings and punches from Rollabind and the coolest stuff is from Levenger but is more expensive.)

When I have meetings and have to write by hand, I scan and send the notes to Evernote. (I love my LiveScribe pen but right now a student is testing it to help with their disability and I don't get to use it.)

Eventually, we'll get there. So far, these are the apps on my iPad that help me get things done.