Web Worker Daily

I really like Google Tasks. It’s free, easy to use, and well integrated with Gmail and Google Calendar, yet it’s flexible enough that it can be adapted for use as part of a Getting Things Done (GTD) system. Unlike many web apps, it has some very handy keyboard shortcuts built in, which can make it much faster to use and give you a real productivity boost. It’s well worth learning these shortcuts, particularly if you use Tasks a lot: Read the rest of this entry »

Google Tasks, the simple to-do system built into Gmail (previously covered on WebWorkerDaily), has just been integrated into Google Calendar. Tasks with due dates will now show up in the Calendar, and it’s possible to enter tasks directly into it as well.

Go into your Calendar, and you should see a “Tasks” link on the left-hand side of the window. Click it, and you’ll see a new Tasks sidebar spring up on the right, with all your tasks synced from Gmail, and a new “Tasks” calendar will be added to your list of calendars.

This means that tasks with a set due date will now show up in your Calendar in the “All Day” section at the top of the window (as tasks can only have a due date, not a a time).

You can enter tasks with a due date directly into your Calendar by clicking in the “All Day” boxes at the top of the window in “Day” or “Week” views (or on the day in “Month” view) and hitting  the “Task” link in the pop-up window. Read the rest of this entry »

Last month, in reviewing Taskpaper 2.0, we noted the desire for simplicity in to-do applications, while, personally, I was holding out for a good Google and Apple linkup to bring together Gmail and Apple Mail.

Well, we’re not quite there yet, but Google yesterday announced that Gmail’s recently-launched Tasks feature had been repackaged for mobile browsers for iPhone and Android as well as functioning  independently of Gmail. The feature works well on the iPhone, particularly when added to the Home Screen with it’s own icon, giving it the feel of a native application.

With the simultaneous availability of Tasks for iGoogle, it seems Google is taking baby steps to unbundle Tasks from Gmail; with some APIs and syncing capabilities, it could evolve into a valuable tool for web workers…and indeed, Google’s own advertising business! Now if only they’d unbundle Gmail’s Contacts, too…

The mobile Tasks feature is available at http://gmail.com/tasks, requiring users to sign in with their usual Gmail credentials.

Addendum: If you’re a Google Apps for Domain user, you won’t be able to access it through that URL. You’ll need to head to:

https://mail.google.com/tasks/a/yourdomain.com/

Or:

https://mail.google.com/tasks/iphone/a/yourdomain.com/

https://mail.google.com/tasks/android/a/yourdomain.com/

Hat tip to James for pointing this out.