mardi 20 septembre 2011

Toodledo Sync : Manual

Here's the how-to for using the toodledosync extension for Thunderbird.

Si vous recherchez une version française de cette documentation, c'est ici.

How it works 

it uses a toodledo feature : you can send tasks by mail. The subject of this mail has its own syntax, and this extension only modify the subject of a mail to match this syntax, allowing you to forget this syntax, and avoid errors typing a context or folder.

Initial configuration 

Toodledo account

You have to activate the "Email import/export" tool in your toodledo account (Tools, More..., Email Import/export). That will generate an email adress like 'letters.numbers@toodledo.com'. This allows you to send mails to this address, they will be converted to tasks. There is a special syntax for the "subject" of the mail, allowing you to decide in which folder, context the task will be created (and much more, like due date...)

Thunderbird part

You have to install my Toodledosync extension for Thunderbird. In order to use the links between Toodledo folders and mail folders (see below), you'll also have to install Eivind Rovik's "Quicker Filer" extension.

The account tab

This tab contains the following preferences :

     - your Toodledo mail address
In thunderbird, I have defined in my adress book that adress to be "TODO", it's easier to type... So here, I have  something like "TODO <letters.numbers@toodledo.com>" (without the quotes)
     - Lots of self explanatory check boxes
You can choose here to hide / show some fields, depending of your habits. You can also define some default values.
     - A not so self explanatory check box ; "Use doublequotes"
This checkbox is due to a bug found by DeWayne Rosene (many thanks!). The extension added some double quotes to the status (giving $"Next Action") and Toodledo doesn't understand that. So I removed the double quotes in the status, and, in case of problems with the other fields, added this checkbox. You can safely let in unchecked, and if you experiment troubles with fields not recognized in toodledo, check it, AND send me the exact content of the subject that cause problems, and the one that works.

Some Lists Tabs

     - For example : list of contexts
as all the following lists, this is optionnal if you don't use it in your toodledo setting. If you check the checkbox "Hide contexts", you will not be bothered anymore by contexts.
This list has to be, of course, the same list than your toodledo account contexts list. I know that's a pain to have to type it again, but, hey, I have to keep something to do for future versions...
You can reorder the list, the first item in the list will be the default one when you'll have to choose.
TIP : If you define the first one as a space (type a space, then click "add", and click "up" to bring it on top of your list, by default no context will be defined in toodledo.
TIP : To enter lots of contexts quickly, you can use only your keyboard and save the time needed to go to your mouse forth and back : enter a new context, hit , hit (or ), then hit + to come back, and start over.

     - other lists : folders, goals, status, locations, tags
Except from the content, same system than the context list.
A special tab : link between contexts and folders

     In this tab, you can create links between a Toodledo folder, and a Toodledo Context. Just select the folder you want, clic on "update", and choose the associated context. From now on, each time you'll choose that folder in the compose window, the associated context will be selected (you can override that choice).

An other special tab : link between Toodledo folders and Thunderbird folders

     To use this feature, you'll need Eivind Rovik's "Quicker Filer" extension. His extension provides a way to easily select a folder for saving a mail (and other cool features), works really well and provide an excellent autocompletion feature. Eivind Rovik kindly gave me the permission to use it, and that is a real time saver for what we need. You don't have to use his extension, nor configure it, if you just want to use the autocompletion feature in ToodledoSync. To the point : you can associate here, Toodledo folders with your local (or distant/imap) mail folders. Each time you'll send a task to Toodledo in that folder, the sent mail will be placed in the choosen local mail folder.

Now how to use it 

Compose a new mail (or forward one)

if the "To: " field is the mail adress generated in step one, a zone will appear above the subject line, where you can choose folder, context and other fields that will be sent to your toodeldo account to create a task.

A word about "due date"

The "due date" field uses a cool syntax : you can use things like "today" "tomorrow" "next week" "next month" "Next thursday" "5/12/2011"
That syntax allows you to fill a default due date in preferences, like Next month.

A word about "length"

Here again, a special syntax is used : 30min, 4hours... You can also define a default in the extension preferences.

Remember
     - the extension will never modify a subject if the "To: " field is not the same mail address than your toodledo mail adress.
     - the dropdown lists will not appear neither

     - sometimes the fields doesn't appear right after entering the correct "To:" adress. They will appear on the next key press into the compose window.
I hope it will make you more productive and happy !
Christophe

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15 commentaires:

  1. Hello Christophe, it is a shame cause this app is not working with my mac, do you think thats the problem?

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  2. Hello,

    Itried to install the program, but my Version of Thunderbird (3.1.17) is not compatible. How can I make it run? Since I use a print-add-on (which is not compatible with TB > 3.x) I wish I could use your add-on with 3.1.17

    Sincerely, Hans
    sommer7@gmx.de3

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    Réponses
    1. Hello Hans, sorry for the delay, a new version is just uploaded to mozilla repository, it should work for you, can you try it ?

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  3. Hi Christophe. I feel like I'm being really slow, but how I actually view the Toodledoo tasks in Thunderbird.

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    1. Hello Anonyme,

      it's not the goal of this version. The extension only allow you to send mails so that they will be converted into tasks on the toodledo web site.

      I personnaly use the WAT (Web Application Tab) extension to have a tab with toodledo in thunderbird.

      Hope this help,
      Christophe

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  4. Hi I've been trying to get this to work, and I think Ive followed all the steps above, but when I compose a new mail, no 'zone' appears above the subject line. Can you suggest what I might have done wrong? Thanks

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    1. Hi siddlington,

      did you get the last version (1.5.4-4) of the addon ?
      does the mail adress in the preference window is *exactly* the same than you type in the "to:" field when you compose a message ? The check is done on an exact match between these two informations.
      Once you typed the same address, try to modify the subject of your mail, so that a keystroke is catched, the addon should present the fields above the subject line.

      I can't see anything else wrong, really double check the mail address, tell me if it works. If not, please send me the version number of thunderbird that you're using,

      Best regards,
      Christophe

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    2. Hello, I have the same problem: I installed the add-on about one year ago, but it never worked. Now both the add-on (1.5.4-3) and Thunderbird (15.0) are updated. Maybe because Thunderbird is in Italian? Or because other add-ons interphere?

      Thank you

      Alessandro

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  5. Christophe,

    I have installed the latest version in Thunderbird 11. I am having the same problem as siddlington, but I also noticed that if I do add syntax to the subject, it seems to get stripped. All that is being registered at 'toodledo' are the default settings I indicated in your tools configuration. So it's doing *something*, but not offering any ability for me to specify options.

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  6. Hi, I've installed your cool add-on but so far am having problem getting it running properly.

    Basically I did get the extra "zones" appeared in my composing window, but they would simply disappear when I do one of the following:
    1) change the title of the email;
    2) type in a due date or time;
    3) start typing in the body text.
    After disappearing there's no way to get them back. I'm using thunderbird 3.1.17 and the latest version of your plugin (1.5.4-4).

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  7. Installed with no problem at all, TB 14. Excellent add-on that works perfectly.

    Lennart

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  8. Dear Christophe,
    I have the same problem than siddlington. I checked that the "TO:" is correctly filled in, I also pressed a key into the compose window ... and nothing appears. I know I'm a little bit "slow", but would it be possible please to have a screenshot of how the compose window should appear when everything works fine ?
    I have TB14 and the last version of the plugin.
    Thank you in advance for your help.
    Yves

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  9. Sorry, please forget my previous reaction. The problem was that I have a "reply to address" that appears in the first field. If I remove the reply adress, it works. Yves

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    1. That was the solution for my issue also! Thanks a bunch.

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  10. Using latest version and TB 16.0.2

    The default due date in Options does not show in the zone - the box is always blank

    Utilisant la dernière version et TB 16.0.2

    La date par défaut en raison des Options ne s'affiche pas dans la zone - la zone est toujours vide

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