What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that app?

[Arlen _G_ Holder]

What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that app?

I haven't yet come up with a perfect solution, which is why I ask for what
you use for your Android todo/tobuy lists, where my goals are always
o Free, ad free, login free, cloud free, KISS apps (if possible)
o That do one job but they do that one job well

The problem with todo/tobuy lists that do one job well, is that you either
need a complex app that handles everything, or, you need multiple simple
apps that handle just one thing each (where the apps are essentially
duplicates).

For example, a tobuy list for Costco can be completely different than a
tobuy list for car parts or a tobuy list for gifts, so you need three tobuy
apps, where, luckily, even unrooted (at least with nova),
you can rename each original app name on Android to be something like:
o originalApp1Name -> buyAtCostco
o originalApp2Name -> buyAtBoxStore
o originalApp3Name -> buyAtAutoPartsStore

The problem is different with "task" lists, which generally have a date and
time and reminder alarm (and maybe even geofencing alerts), where the
complexity rises greatly from tobuy lists with these task list apps.

Since I'm still perfecting my system for todo/tobuy, I'd like to ask what
other users use for YOUR todo/tobuy lists, given the fact that most apps
can't be repurposed - so you often need multiple apps that do the same
thing, one for each store or type of task (e.g., work or home tasks).

What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that app?

Currently, I rename each of the following tobuy apps (as described above):
o OpenTasks <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.dmfs.tasks>
o ShoLi <https://f-droid.org/wiki/page/name.soulayrol.rhaa.sholi>
o Shopping List <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.woefe.shoppinglist>
o ShoppingList <https://f-droid.org/wiki/page/org.janb.shoppinglist>
o Shopt <https://f-droid.org/wiki/page/eu.domob.shopt>
o Simply Do <https://f-droid.org/en/packages/kdk.android.simplydo/>
o Tasks (LG system app) com.lge.task
o TickTick <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ticktick.task>
o Trolly <https://f-droid.org/wiki/page/caldwell.ben.trolly>

Given I need about five more KISS shopping lists (all of which do the same
thing, where I rename them for each type of thing to buy), I ask what app
do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists & why you like that app?

--
Usenet questions should benefit everyone from the helpful public dialog.

[MissRiaElaine]

On 13/11/2019 16:38, Arlen _G_ Holder wrote:
> What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that app?

Call me old fashioned, but I use a pen and paper. Less to go wrong..!


--
Ria in Aberdeen

[Send address is invalid, use sipsoup at gmail dot com to reply direct]

[Arlen Holder]

On Wed, 13 Nov 2019 20:57:24 +0000, MissRiaElaine wrote:

>> What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that app?
>
> Call me old fashioned, but I use a pen and paper. Less to go wrong..!

It's good to know that pen and paper work for you.
Me? I can write it down all I want; I lose the paper.

I do very much like the idea of 'geofencing' apps which contact you based
on where you are (but which don't need to use the Internet).

For example, as you drive by a Home Depot, Ace, Harbor Freight or Lowes, it
alerts you that you had listed "BR30 LED Light Bulbs" in the tobuy list for
hardware.

If anyone has a good geofenced task/tobuy app, please let the group know.

[The Real Bev]

On 11/13/2019 12:57 PM, MissRiaElaine wrote:
> On 13/11/2019 16:38, Arlen _G_ Holder wrote:
>> What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that app?
>
> Call me old fashioned, but I use a pen and paper. Less to go wrong..!

I use the back of junk mail envelopes and the notepads that various
charities send in the hope of guilting me into sending a contribution.
Those people also send me stick-on address labels.

Make a $2 contribution to one of those charities and you're set for life!

--
Cheers, Bev
"Faster, faster, until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death."
-- Hunter S. Thompson

[Arlen Holder]

On Wed, 13 Nov 2019 17:28:55 -0800, The Real Bev wrote:

> I use the back of junk mail envelopes and the notepads that various
> charities send in the hope of guilting me into sending a contribution.
> Those people also send me stick-on address labels.

Hi The Real Bev,

We've discussed a lot of things in common over the decades...

I appreciate your input, which is basically that you feel tasks lists and
shopping lists APKs are not useful, which I can understand.

For me, I (often) lose the paper whereas I (almost) never lose the phone.

Since all Usenet posts should ADD on-topic VALUE to the public
conversation, here are four TASK LIST apps I downloaded from F-Droid onto
Windows, and then slid over to Android and installed, to test:

I downloaded to Windows a dozen free "list" APKs, and then slid
them over to Android, & installed them (works on any Android device):
<https://i.postimg.cc/vmXqV4Vm/todolist01.jpg>

Then, one by one, I changed the names (some of which were duplicate names)
to something I wanted them to be named that made sense, to me, for my need:
<https://i.postimg.cc/V5yD8M3K/todolist02.jpg>

This is trivial to do simply by long pressing & selecting the "Edit" popup:
<https://i.postimg.cc/28hfBx88/todolist03.jpg>

To help others, here's about a dozen todo/task/shopping lists that are
free, ad free, do not use the Internet, and protect your privacy (AFAIK):

1. Tasks (14MB)
o Fork of Astrid Tasks & To-Do List
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.tasks/>

2. Tasks (2.7MB)
o Keep track of your list of goals
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.dmfs.tasks/>

3. Privacy Friendly To-Do List (2.2MB) [with PIN protection]
o Keep a list of tasks
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.secuso.privacyfriendlytodolist/>

4. Simple ToDo (1.3MB)
o To-Do / Task list with beautiful minimalistic design and reminders
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/apps.jizzu.simpletodo/>

Here are some shopping lists I downloaded from F-Droid to Windows
and then installed on the Android test device to test for the team:
A. OI Shopping List (1.9MB)
o Keep track of your shopping items
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.openintents.shopping/>

B. Trolly (36KB)
o Shopping list
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/caldwell.ben.trolly/>

C. Shopping List (1.7MB)
o Manage (grocery) lists
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.woefe.shoppinglist/>

D. Privacy Friendly Shopping List (3.3MB)
o Create and manage shopping lists
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/privacyfriendlyshoppinglist.secuso.org.privacyfriendlyshoppinglist/>

E. ShoLi (112KB)
o Shopping lists manager
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/name.soulayrol.rhaa.sholi/>

Some of these I already had, but all installed on my Nougat 7.
(I already listed the Google Play related APKs in another post.)

--
Each Usenet post should add on-topic value to the shared adult discussion.

[Anssi Saari]

Arlen _G_ Holder <_arlen....@halder.edu> writes:

> What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that app?

I like org mode in Emacs, I use its simple lists extensively for notes
and todos. There is some support for org files in Android (Orgzly) and I
use that on my phone. No painless sync solution between phone and PC for
org files though (AFAIK). Also it doesn't look like Orgzly has reminders.

So, as a task app I use "Tasks, Fork of Astrid Tasks & To-Do List",
https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.tasks/

It's a simple task manager with the plus that Pure Calendar Widget can
show tasks from it. Single dev though so it doesn't seem to be going
anywhere. Mostly what I'd like is hierarchical tasks but the
implementation here isn't great.

For lists I need to share with others, Google Keep.

[Joe Beanfish]

I use Grocery Tracker Shopping List by easicorp for shopping list. It
has a bunch of inventory and menu features, but I just use the multi-store
to-buy list features for groceries and other things. I can see the
entire merged list at once or just by store, the latter being useful
for checking stuff off as I pick it off the store shelf. I bought
the pro version to support the author, so I don't know exactly
if any of the features I use are premium vs. free.

For tasks and longer-term or wish-list type items I use a staggering
hodegpodge of things, including the occasional post-it stuck to the
back of my phone. Nothing like it's tactile presence to be a reminder.
As for apps, I mainly use google calendar for appointments etc., google
calendar tasks for multiple todo lists. But I use Jorte calendar to
interface to both of those instead of google's own apps. I've used
google's "Keep notes", but it's pretty primitive.

[Arlen Holder]

On Thu, 14 Nov 2019 15:50:19 -0000 (UTC), Joe Beanfish wrote:

> I use Grocery Tracker Shopping List by easicorp for shopping list.

Thanks for both suggesting a tool, and for outlining what you like:
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=easicorp.gtracker>

I picked it up from Windows and slid it over to my Android phone.
<easicorp.gtracker_82_apps.evozi.com.apk> 2,073KB

This is the first app yet tested that asked to "take pictures".
It opens with a reasonable ad to ask you to buy the pro version.
It opened to a "System Message Available" but I didn't read it.

It has "Options" and "Settings" and "More" (and more than that!).

The "Settings" ask you to look at the "pro" settings (again, ok).
It seems to have a decent pricing setup, e.g., unit pricing.
It seems to have decent categories that can be set up.
It has quantity, and inventory settings.
It even has a default sales tax rate! :)
It can handle various monetary systems.
It can sort by name & then brand, or vice versa.
It can access a public database, but, thankfully, that's off by default.
It does seem to connect to user databases by default (I turned that off).
And it does seem to send new products to GTracker (again, I turned it off).
It seems to have its own built-in bar-code scanner (might be convenient).

In Options, you can set up to a dozen "stores" to track prices.
In Options, it comes with a list of a score or more of "categories".
It can handle coupons (thank God I never use them).

That's after a minute or two of flipping about.
I think it's a decent app, if a bit powerful (hence more complex).

Given my current strategy is one KISS tobuy app per type of store, I think
I'll set this app up as my price-comparison app across stores, e.g., Costco
versus Safeway versus Shop Rite versus Whole Foods versus Lunardis versus
Cosentinos versus Knob Hill versus Trader Joes, etc.

I think it's a keeper, although it will take some getting used to.

> For tasks and longer-term or wish-list type items I use a staggering
> hodegpodge of things, including the occasional post-it stuck to the
> back of my phone. Nothing like it's tactile presence to be a reminder.
> As for apps, I mainly use google calendar for appointments etc., google
> calendar tasks for multiple todo lists. But I use Jorte calendar to
> interface to both of those instead of google's own apps. I've used
> google's "Keep notes", but it's pretty primitive.

Thank you again for suggesting tools and saying why you like them.
o Bear in mind I'm well aware of the risk of doing so on Usenet. :)

I checked out the blurbs for Jorte which seem reasonable & nice:
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=jp.co.johospace.jorte>

I try to keep my "todo" lists off the net, so I'm using a grandfathered
freeware com.simplemobiletools.calendar which we discussed in the past:
<https://groups.google.com/d/msg/comp.mobile.android/_Hto6iG1ALA/i66e-hl_CQAJ>

I'm not sure if the suite of a score of Simple Mobile Tools are still free:
<https://www.simplemobiletools.com/>

In hindsight, I probably should NOT have mixed todo lists with tobuy lists,
simply because of the added complexity of the timing, alerts, alarms,
synchronization, etc. makes it pretty complex since most people use the
cloud for their calendar apps (but I don't put anything on the cloud that I
don't have to that is my personal data).

So I think my needs for a "todo" list with geofencing may be too complex
for this thread, where the shopping lists seem to be "easier" to source.

Thank you very much for hazarding what you use and like and why, as that's
the most valuable input we can get here on the Android newsgroup - but very
few people risk it - so I wish to say I much appreciate your helpful
suggestions.

--
Usenet is a potluck where helpful people share ideas around the world.

[The Real Bev]

On 11/13/2019 08:19 PM, Arlen Holder wrote:
> On Wed, 13 Nov 2019 17:28:55 -0800, The Real Bev wrote:
>
>> I use the back of junk mail envelopes and the notepads that various
>> charities send in the hope of guilting me into sending a contribution.
>> Those people also send me stick-on address labels.
>
> Hi The Real Bev,
>
> We've discussed a lot of things in common over the decades...
>
> I appreciate your input, which is basically that you feel tasks lists and
> shopping lists APKs are not useful, which I can understand.
>
> For me, I (often) lose the paper whereas I (almost) never lose the phone.

So do I. Still, keeping shopping lists on the phone requires either
thumb-typing or real typing on the computer and then sending the text
list to my phone. Much easier to write TJ: EGGS on an envelope!

> Since all Usenet posts should ADD on-topic VALUE to the public

Your efforts are much appreciated, honest!

Cheers, Bev
"I love to go down to the schoolyard and watch all the
little children jump up and down and run around yelling and
screaming...They don't know I'm only using blanks." --Emo

[sms]

On 11/14/2019 9:59 AM, The Real Bev wrote:

> So do I.  Still, keeping shopping lists on the phone requires either
> thumb-typing or real typing on the computer and then sending the text
> list to my phone.  Much easier to write TJ:  EGGS on an envelope!

I like using Google Docs for shopping lists. I can share the document
and my wife can enter the items she needs without constantly calling and
texting.

[Eric Pozharski]

with <sm0lfsi...@sci.fi> Anssi Saari wrote:
> Arlen _G_ Holder <_arlen....@halder.edu> writes:

>> What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that
>> app?
> I like org mode in Emacs, I use its simple lists extensively for notes
> and todos. There is some support for org files in Android (Orgzly) and
> I use that on my phone. No painless sync solution between phone and PC
> for org files though (AFAIK). Also it doesn't look like Orgzly has
> reminders.

Orgzly does notifications, but AI's logic around forcing them on me is
hard to grasp. Caveat: pretty stale (v1.7.8) and I don't use time
subfield of date-time fields.

*CUT*

--
Torvalds' goal for Linux is very simple: World Domination
Stallman's goal for GNU is even simpler: Freedom

[AnthonyL]

On Wed, 13 Nov 2019 16:38:44 -0000 (UTC), Arlen _G_ Holder
<_arlen....@halder.edu> wrote:

>What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that app?
>

If it's Android only then you'll find Colour Note very hard to beat
and very easy to use. Free, no ads that I've seen.

Entries can be "Checklists" eg things to do or buy, so I can have a
Supermarket Checklist, a D-I-Y checklist or whatever, or just
text/notes, and link to its Calendar so reminders pop-up if I want.

I gave up on "speciality" to do lists as trying to make me enter
things that were on their lists.


--
AnthonyL

Why do scientists need to BELIEVE in anything?

[Arlen Holder]

On Thu, 14 Nov 2019 13:52:49 +0200, Anssi Saari wrote:

> So, as a task app I use "Tasks, Fork of Astrid Tasks & To-Do List",
> https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.tasks/
>
> It's a simple task manager with the plus that Pure Calendar Widget can
> show tasks from it. Single dev though so it doesn't seem to be going
> anywhere. Mostly what I'd like is hierarchical tasks but the
> implementation here isn't great.

On Fri, 15 Nov 2019 09:18:39 +0200, Eric Pozharski wrote:
> Orgzly does notifications, but AI's logic around forcing them on me is
> hard to grasp. Caveat: pretty stale (v1.7.8) and I don't use time
> subfield of date-time fields.

Thanks Anssi Saari & Eric Pozharski for adding value to share for all
particularly since tasks are, apparently, harder than shopping lists, to
find one that fits, since they're a bit more complicated in some ways
(since they're tied to calendars, geofencing, reminders, etc.).

Because names like "Tasks" are not unique (and hence confusing), and worse,
often F-Droid apps are slightly better than Google Play copies (in terms of
lack of advertising mostly), but because a lot of people reading this don't
use F-Droid, we should try to reference the exact apps on both platforms,
so that many others can more easily follow these tests in our footsteps.

I tested the "Tasks, Fork of Astrid Tasks & To-Do List" that Anssi Saari
kindly suggested, which seems, upon initial inspection, to be a keeper.
o <https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.tasks/>
o <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.tasks>
o <https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00QHGTL7O>
o <https://f-droid.org/wiki/page/org.tasks>
o <https://tasks.org/>

I didn't know what "Pure Calendar Widget" was, so I ran a search:
o Pure calendar widget [official topic]
<https://androidforums.com/threads/pure-calendar-widget-official-topic.51919/>
"Pure calendar widget can show on your home screen all
your Google calendar informations and even tasks from
Astrid or gTasks.
From the widget, you can open official applications
(Google calendar, Moto Corporate calendar, Astrid, gTasks),
add events or tasks.
Tasks are synced RTM (Astrid) or Google tasks (gTasks)"

Surprisingly, I didn't see a link to it in that thread.
A Google search revealed these are probably the right links:
(If not, I'm sure someone will be glad to set me straight!) :)
o <https://koxx3.wordpress.com/2009/08/09/new-widget-comming-pure-calendar/>
o <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.koxx.pure_calendar>
o (I couldn't find an F-Droid version.)

Looking up Eric Pozharski's suggestion of Orgzly, I found:
o <http://www.orgzly.com/>
o <https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.orgzly/>
o <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.orgzly>
o <https://github.com/orgzly/orgzly-android>

Apparently it's so loved, people emulate on the PC & Mac to use it:
o <https://www.techwikies.com/apps-for-pc/orgzly-notes-to-do-lists-pc/>

I downloaded the F-Droid version from the Windows PC:
o 5,191,883 com.orgzly_150.apk

NOTE: While there are so many ways to back up APKs it's not funny,
downloading to the PC is a great way to not only backup all your APKs from
the start, but is a great way to subsequently populate all your Android
devices over your WiFi network (see our thread on how to automatically sync
to all your Android devices over your WiFi network).
o Do you have a working freeware automatic sync between Android & Windows?
<https://groups.google.com/d/msg/comp.mobile.android/7aOWwoEwsZ0/3f5qTpwBAgAJ>

Upon installation, it did not ask for any permissions, & didn't crash.
It opened to a "What's New", which indicated WebDav support.
Up pops a screen, with "Getting Started" as one of the options.
One nice thing is that you can have as many levels of notes as you like.
Notes can have tags, can have states (e.g., done), etc.
You can save it as a plain text file (which is nice to print).
You can sync your notes across all your Android devices over your LAN.
Or you can sync to the sd card (or to Dropbox, but I don't use the cloud).

Orgzly sure seems like a keeper.

Thanks to both Anssi Saari & Eric Pozharski for adding detailed on-topic
value to publicly share on the Usenet potluck.

--
When Usenet works like it should, we all learn by sharing valuable ideas.

[Arlen Holder]

On Fri, 15 Nov 2019 12:36:50 GMT, AnthonyL wrote:

> If it's Android only then you'll find Colour Note very hard to beat
> and very easy to use. Free, no ads that I've seen.

Thank you AnthonyL for helpfully adding value to publicly share on the
Usenet potluck, where "Colour Note" has not been mentioned to date.

Bearing in mind your (Br)English spelling, my search results are confusing,
so I will unilaterally assume you meant "color note", since I couldn't find
"colour note" as an app (no big deal ... since we're sharing across the
world - we simply need to confirm that I found the correct suggested app).
o <https://www.colornote.com/download/>
o <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.socialnmobile.dictapps.notepad.color.note>
o <https://www.amazon.com/Social-Mobile-Inc-ColorNote-Notepad/dp/B004JZBGWI>

I downloaded the APK to my PC and slid over to Android to install:
o com.socialnmobile.dictapps.notepad.color.note_11000.apk 1,397KB

It didn't ask for any special permissions upon initial install.
But it subsequently asked for access to photos, media, and files.
It opened to a Welcome tutorial.
o It first has you create what it terms a "note".
o Then it walks you through created what it terms a "checklist".
o What's nice is that it pre-fills out the items for you (nice touch).
o Then it walks you through marking the checlist item completed.
o And it walks you through editing the note you created.
o It shows you how to change colors (but colors aren't my shtick).
o It's interested there is no "save" button (you just "back" twice).

Thank you AnthonyL for this suggestion, as it seems to be a keeper.

NOTE: When I test apps, I usually download a dozen to a score, and then
they get a single strike, and that's it; I delete them the moment something
obnoxious happens (e.g., like a full-page advertisement or a requirement to
log in, or a crash, or asking for too many permissions, or whatever).

One by one, I test each app for about a minute or two, where you can often
weed out the worst (although, as I noted, some apps only become annoying
after about a month when the advertisements start popping up left and
right, as we found out in the test of best SMS/MMS apps, where we had to
ditch an otherwise decent app for that deceptive first month of use):
o Best free SMS app for Android
<https://groups.google.com/d/msg/comp.mobile.android/up2NoEHr9M8/atinCKpaEAAJ>

So far, after a few minutes of testing, "Color Note" looks like a potential
keeper.

> Entries can be "Checklists" eg things to do or buy, so I can have a
> Supermarket Checklist, a D-I-Y checklist or whatever, or just
> text/notes, and link to its Calendar so reminders pop-up if I want.

Assuming that's the app, it does seem to come highly recommended:
o How to back up and restore data in ColorNote for Android [Tip]
<https://dottech.org/182816/how-to-back-up-and-restore-data-in-colornote-for-android-tip/>
"ColorNote is without a doubt one of the best notepad apps for Android.
Not only does it let you create and save checklists and notes,
you can also save them into your calendar.
ColorNote also provides a sync option so you can easily access
and update your notes across multiple devices."

o How to Sync ColorNote Notes from Android to PC
<https://www.guidingtech.com/sync-colornote-notes-android-pc/>
"ColorNote is one of the simplest yet coolest note-taking apps
available for Android. It has many nifty features including
online sync. In this post, we will discuss how to sync ColorNote
notes from Android to other devices such as iPhone and PC."

> I gave up on "speciality" to do lists as trying to make me enter
> things that were on their lists.

Oh oh... your suggestion brings up another flaw in my original request.

Originally, I had conflated "shopping lists" with "todo lists", where some
shopping lists were simply line-item notes as were some todo lists, but
where each can delve into complexity (such as geofencing & timing) that
complicates the distinction between:
o Shopping Lists
o Task lists

And then you brought up "notes".

What's the practical difference between these "things"?
o Task Lists
o Notes (aka Notepad Notes)
o Text editors (e.g., Emacs org mode)

--
The more we share on the public Usenet potluck, the more we each learn.

[Arlen Holder]

Both Bev & Steve bring up good pragmatic points about such apps as:
o Shopping lists
o Task lists
o Notetaking apps

Those two points Bev & Steve bring up are fundamentally (AFAICT):
a. Pen & paper are often easier than pecking at mobile phone apps
b. Google integrated online apps can pretty much do everything

Both ideas are perfectly apropos for this thread, which asked what people
do now, and for what reasons (e.g., being online has sharing advantages).

Personally, I eschew anything Google (for reasons already well known), and
personally, I use pen & pencil more than task lists - but - I lose the damn
pieces of paper more than I lose a phone. Or, those slips of paper are
never with me when I accidentally happen across a Costco sale and then
don't remember which type of batteries I'm low on in the battery drawer.

However, since this thread is for general use, Google apps are certainly in
the cards (I just won't be the one testing them for the Usenet potluck).

We note that Anssi Saari, for example, said he uses "Google Keep".

On Thu, 14 Nov 2019 13:52:49 +0200, Anssi Saari wrote:

"For lists I need to share with others, Google Keep."

Which hence, deserves mention in this canonical thread on tasks lists.

Searching found too much for me to dig through, particularly since I will
almost never be using anything from Google, so I simply mention for the
potluck sharing that "Google Keep" seems to be best compared with
"Microsoft OneNote" for Android (and not "Evernote" anymore), where the
goal for those free apps seems to be cross platform quick jotting down of
notes.

Everyone seems to have an opinion, where reviews abound on those 3 apps:
o Evernote vs OneNote vs Google Keep Review & Comparison
<https://techalook.com/reviews/apps/evernote-vs-onenote-vs-google-keep>
o Google Keep vs OneNote – The Ultimate Note Service in 2019
<https://techistech.com/google-keep-vs-onenote/>
"Google Keep comes with a simple interface. When you open the app,
all the notes are there, while OneNote is different. OneNote
shows your Notebooks, and within notebooks, you can create pages
(notes). Google Keep shows the type of note on the main interface,
while OneNote shows a list of all the notes, and you can see
what's in it by opening the note."

Download links to save others time looking them up (iOS added):
o *Google Keep*
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.keep>
<https://apps.apple.com/app/google-keep-notes-and-lists/id1029207872>
o *Microsoft OneNote*
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.microsoft.office.onenote>
<https://apps.apple.com/us/app/microsoft-onenote/id410395246>
o *EverNote*
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.evernote>
<https://apps.apple.com/app/evernote/id281796108>

I won't be tested any of those three apps but they certainly deserve to be
discussed by those who do have them and love them for what they do for you.

To clarify how best to distinguish between the following would be useful:
o shopping lists
o task lists
o note-taking (aka personal assistants)

--
When people purposefully help each other on a Usenet potluck, we all win.

[Bob Eager]

On Wed, 13 Nov 2019 16:38:44 +0000, Arlen _G_ Holder wrote:

> What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that app?

I do it a different way.

I have sheets of A4 paper on my desk, folded to A5. One per day. That's
my diary. Shopping etc. gets put in a particular place, anmd on the day I
expect to do that particular kind of shopping. Sometimes it gets carried
over. When I go out, I copy the relevant items to a 4 inch square notepad
that I take with me (well, one sheet of it).

If I have longer term things that I bneed to remember, I use Google Keep.
On all my devices, and just there.

If I need to add an item to a shopping list, I phone it in. Either from
somewhere in the house (e.g. the kitchen) or from any other phone. It
gets emailed to me as an MP3 file, and I can update the central list.
(there is a dedicated extension on the internal phones, and a dedicated
'proper' number for use externally)

Low tech, but it works.

[Arlen Holder]

On 15 Nov 2019 20:13:01 GMT, Bob Eager wrote:

> I do it a different way.

Hi Bob Eager,

Thanks for that input which helps everyone since we're all different.

It's good to know _how_ people keep track of tasks, shopping lists, and
personal-assistant stuff (notes, I guess they're called), simply because I
believe it's a functionality we all need, have, & desire to be even better.

> I have sheets of A4 paper on my desk, folded to A5. One per day. That's
> my diary. Shopping etc. gets put in a particular place, anmd on the day I
> expect to do that particular kind of shopping. Sometimes it gets carried
> over. When I go out, I copy the relevant items to a 4 inch square notepad
> that I take with me (well, one sheet of it).

I have some fancy leather-bound personal diaries like that which the
company bought for me every year (I was able to choose anything I wanted
out of a catalog).

They look beautiful! :)
But they don't fit in my pocket, whereas your folded sheets of paper would!

> If I have longer term things that I bneed to remember, I use Google Keep.
> On all my devices, and just there.

Others mentioned Google Keep, which is certainly a keeper.
I'm not going to test it; but I did do a quick comparison with OneNote and
Evernote in this post which others might reference since Google Keep keeps
coming up (as it should).
<https://groups.google.com/d/msg/comp.mobile.android/GVnN_bnHzGk/ADyHGtd1BAAJ>

> If I need to add an item to a shopping list, I phone it in. Either from
> somewhere in the house (e.g. the kitchen) or from any other phone. It
> gets emailed to me as an MP3 file, and I can update the central list.
> (there is a dedicated extension on the internal phones, and a dedicated
> 'proper' number for use externally)
>
> Low tech, but it works.

Hmmm... I'd consider that relatively HIGH tech, in that it's a dictation
that ends up being a note, which is a functionality I would love to have.

Way back when, I searched for offline speech-to-text translators which
could do what you said you do, but without the need for anything other than
the phone.

In fact, here's a screenshot taken at that time of the huge number of
speech-to-text dictation personal assistant apps I started testing.
<https://i.postimg.cc/T186yqvF/speechtotext02.jpg>

I put that testing project on hold long ago, where, as I recall, the main
flaw was that I needed a completely offline speech-to-text translator which
didn't exist then (they exist now).
<https://groups.google.com/d/msg/comp.mobile.android/8rHYBivfNtU/jT9_mJLtDAAJ>

What would be perfect, for me, would be a KISS simple app that did,
offline, what you do now with the phoning into your Google Voice number (I
presume), where the MP3 is transcribed by Google, and then you cut and
paste that as needed.

That requires an offline speech to text translator that works on my LG
Stylo 3 Plus, which, to my knowledge, doesn't exist yet (I wish it did).

Moving forward on possible apps that work offline, once we get to "note
taking" apps, there are so many that it's too many for me to test, where
I'll just list some free open-source tasks apps I found today when I ran a
search.

Note: None of these have been previously mentioned in this thread (AFAIR).
o Notes (View & edit notes on NextCloud)
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/it.niedermann.owncloud.notes/>
o Swiftnotes (Take notes)
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.moonpi.swiftnotes/>
o Scarlet Notes FD (Quick and beautiful note-taking)
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.bijoysingh.quicknote/>
o Carnet (Powerful note taking app with sync and online editor)
<https://www.f-droid.org/en/packages/com.spisoft.quicknote/>
o Simple Tasks Cloudless
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/nl.mpcjanssen.simpletask/>
<https://www.f-droid.org/forums/topic/simpletask-cloudless/>
<https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=nl.mpcjanssen.simpletask>
o Timesheet (Time tracker)
<https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.tastycactus.timesheet/>
<https://fossdroid.com/a/timesheet.html >
o Mirakel (task management app)
<https://f-droid.org/wiki/page/de.azapps.mirakelandroid>
o Pomodoro Tasks (Task Manager)
<https://fossdroid.com/a/pomodoro-tasks.html>
o Simple Deadlines
<https://github.com/casimir/simpleDeadlines>

I didn't realize this at the start of the thread, but a big part of these
a. shopping lists
b. task managers
c. personal assistants
Is simply the ability to write notes quickly & easily, and to have those
notes be 'special' in some kind of way (e.g., in task lists, they can be
set to a reminder schedule, or in a shopping list they can geofence an
alarm near shopping centers).

--
Everyone benefit on the public potluck when adults share value on Usenet.

[AnthonyL]

On Fri, 15 Nov 2019 16:35:32 -0000 (UTC), Arlen Holder
<_arlen....@halder.edu> wrote:

>On Fri, 15 Nov 2019 12:36:50 GMT, AnthonyL wrote:
>
>> If it's Android only then you'll find Colour Note very hard to beat
>> and very easy to use. Free, no ads that I've seen.
>
>Thank you AnthonyL for helpfully adding value to publicly share on the
>Usenet potluck, where "Colour Note" has not been mentioned to date.
>
>Bearing in mind your (Br)English spelling, my search results are confusing,
>so I will unilaterally assume you meant "color note", since I couldn't find
>"colour note" as an app (no big deal ... since we're sharing across the
>world - we simply need to confirm that I found the correct suggested app).
>o <https://www.colornote.com/download/>
>o <https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.socialnmobile.dictapps.notepad.color.note>
>o <https://www.amazon.com/Social-Mobile-Inc-ColorNote-Notepad/dp/B004JZBGWI>
>

Yes that's the one - I never learnt USA spelling and it grates, though
the type was unintentional.

Checking my installation and I did it from Play Store.

I'm sure you've worked it out but a Note is just a note, maybe about
some place I want to visit or some instructions for some item I've got
to install.

A Checklist is a list of items held together and individual items can
be checked off as in a shopping list, leaving just unchecked items
left to buy. If you click on the 3 dots you can choose to Check all
items, Uncheck all items (handy for next week's shopping list) or
Remove checked items. You can have as many Checklists as you want -
you name them, and each Checklist can have as many items as you want.

You can have reminders, you can have Checklists and Notes in your
Calendar. The search will look throughtout.

I just wish it would sync to a Linux app and I'd be well happy.

Oh, and you can Send/share via Email, Bluetooth, WhatsApp.

From my point of view all the others seem to make life hard or awkward
or I have to let Mr Google know.

[John McGaw]

On 11/13/2019 11:38 AM, Arlen _G_ Holder wrote:
> What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that app?

snip...

3 X 5 filing card. Easy, cheap, reliable and double the storage if you flip
it over.

[Mayayana]

"The Real Bev" <bashl...@gmail.com> wrote

| >> What do YOU use for your todo/tobuy lists and why do you like that app?
| >
| > Call me old fashioned, but I use a pen and paper. Less to go wrong..!
|
| I use the back of junk mail envelopes and the notepads that various
| charities send

Me, too. I keep a small pad at the frig for grocery lists.
And I have a 5x7 notebook for appts and work notes/lists.
But I try to re-use envelopes when possible. I don't generally
get junk mail, but there are still lots of envelopes. Blank
white paper that will otherwise be thrown away.

The habit of doing everything on electronic devices has
baffled me ever since PDAs came out. I still remember waiting...
and waiting... and waiting, as someone who wasted $300 on
a PDA would carefully type in my name and phone number.
Meanwhile my 5x7 notebook only costs a couple of
dollars every few years to buy more notebook paper. My
current notebook is probably more than 5 years old. If it
dies I'll reinforce it with duct tape.

[123456789]

Mayayana wrote:

> The habit of doing everything on electronic devices has
> baffled me ever since PDAs came out.

Synchronization is why I do it. I enter an event on one
device and it's reflected to all. If I need to make an
appointment I always check my phone first to see what the
wife may have already planned for me that day... :-/

> someone who wasted $300 on a PDA

Achhhh. I loved my Palm Pilot. And IIRC it cost me $400...

[Arlen Holder]

UPDATE: (uk.telecom.mobile removed from crosspost)

Here's a screenshot of the todo lists I've been testing, where the few at
left have their app icons renamed for their specific purpose, where the
ones at right are still being tested.
<https://i.postimg.cc/7htCcc8r/iconnaming01.jpg>
--
Usenet is where purposefully helpful adults publicly share solutions.

[haha pipa]

good app
https://wordcounter.tools