Since the announcement that Quicksilver was going open source (back last November), things have been moving slowly along.

Etienne Samson is now producing new alpha builds which he is posting on the Quicksilver Google Code page . The latest build is timestamped 25 June and another build is imminent.

These new builds are modestly described as “only a bug fix version”, a clean-up operation while the creator of Quicksilver, Alcor, is reportedly “working on a complete re-write of the frameworks of Quicksilver and should hopefully release it soon”.

Nonetheless, some users (including me) find that the new builds are slightly zippier and have a smaller memory footprint. However, they are not so good for people using Mouse triggers, which are apparently broken.

Although based on some of his changes, these builds are not the same as the tweaking that Ankur is doing independently. His work also promises a much slicker build, but progress seems to be stalled.

What is Quicksilver?

Quicksilver is act without doing, work without effort, do your work then step back; it is empty yet infinitely capable; the more you use it, the more it produces; the more you talk of it, the less you understand.

More accessible information on this absolutely kick-ass productivity tool can be found in the Quicksilver User Guide in the Quicksilver Google Group and/or in a beginner’s tutorial post by Lifehacker’s Adam Pash, MacBreak’s Quicksilver screencast and the AppleBlog’s screencast on using Quicksilver to send quick-fire emails.

Related posts

• EasyTask Manager 2.0 “syncs” with iPhone
• TaskPaper: Getting Things Done without distraction
• Quicksilver plugin for Yojimbo updated: Appending text
• GTD-style widget for iCal to-dos
• Coverflow for Quicksilver?

The marking is all done, the students are spread to the four winds for semester break, school holidays are upon us.

Thanne longen folk to goon on pilgrimages
And palmeres for to seken straunge strondes
To ferne halwes, kowthe in sondry londes;

(Then people long to go on pilgrimages
and pilgrims to seek strange shores
far-off shrines, known in sundry lands;)

In short, we are off to the beach house for the winter break, as Geoffrey Chaucer recommends.

Log fires, walks on the windy beach, books, Shiraz, S’mores, the complete boxed set of West Wing DVDs.

No broadband.

See you again in ten days or so.

Related posts

• Moving house…
• Getting back into the groove
• Zimbra launches Desktop client
• Yojimbo and EagleFiler updates
• WordPress update not as smooth as hoped

EasyTask 2.0 has been released, bringing a range of new features and bugfixes to this “mid-range” Getting Thing Done (GTD) app.

Hawk Wings has posted on EasyTask Manager before.

The changelog for the new version seems promising:

•    New 3-panel Preview. View and edit tasks faster.
•    Tasks can have system wide alarms (Leopard only).
•    Quick add system wide hot-key allows to add new tasks from any application (option+apple+right arrow key).
•    Improved Online Sync (fix various bugs with some tasks not syncing).
•    Automatic realtime sync with iCal / Calendar store in Leopard so tasks are visible in Apple Mail and emails can be converted to tasks. (Leopard only. Tiger syncs with iCal but users need to click Sync button).
•    Added option to sync using Projects instead of Contexts as Calendars (Leopard only).
•    New Outline look.
•    Fix problem with Online Sync and firewalls.

But what caught my eye was the claim on the developer’s web site that it can “Sync with the iPhone”.

This turns out to be only half-true (if that). It doesn’t sync with the iPhone at all. What happens is that app syncs up to an online interface accessible through an iPhone.

It’s not a beautiful interface, but will get the job done. However, when you mark a task as completed on the iPhone you are greeted with the screen on the right:

Hmmmm…. This is not the key to a seamless GTD workflow.

If you are looking for a solid GTD workflow that involves an iPhone, Remember the Milk remains a much better solution (although the launch of the 3G iPhone promises lots of new apps, like OmniFocus for the iPhone ).

(UPDATE: According to TUAW Remember the Milk has just won the 2008 Apple Design Award for best iPhone web app.)

With its much more polished iPhone interface (pictured), Dashboard widget , Quicksilver action and whatnot , it’s the best iPhone solution currently around.

The Republic of Geektopia (see all its RTM posts ) and David Chartier have both written fine posts on how they Get Things Done with Remember the Milk and its tools which I won’t repeat here.

I should point out, that in order to use the iPhone interface, you need to puchase a “pro” subscription (USD 25 a year) to Remember The Milk.

See too Bruce McKenzie’s fine post on Getting Things Done using an iPhone.

I’m torn about EasyTask Manager. On the one hand, it presents a fine mid-priced (USD 19.99), mid-featured GTD framework.

On the other, with Things and OmniFocus and others powering ahead, it’s simply falling too far behind the pack. Harsh but, I think, fair.

Check it out for yourself from the developer’s web site .

Related posts

• GTD-style widget for iCal to-dos
• TaskPaper: Getting Things Done without distraction
• Quicksilver plugin for Yojimbo updated: Appending text
• New Quicksilver builds
• Mail.app/iCal/kGTD/DEVONthink Pro to get things done

Gina Trapani has released an update to her excellent Better Gmail 2 extension for Firefox.

This is the Better Gmail extension that works with the new Gmail interface.

The new version adds four new features: One Click Conversations (quick access to previous emails from a particular sender), Hide Invites Box, Google Reader Integration (in the Sidebar) and Rollover Highlight Messages (which highlights message rows as you mouse over them).

It also marks the return of skins. Users can now choose between a Blue Skin and a Grays and Blue Skin (screenshot below):

The updated version is available from Lifehacker or from the Mozilla Extension Repository . Needless to say, it is freeware.

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• Better Gmail 2.0 for the new Gmail
• Zimbra launches Desktop client
• Yojimbo and EagleFiler updates
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Christina Laun at VirtualHosting.com has posted a killer list of 50 tips, scripts, extensions and hacks to make the most of Google’s Calendar service.

She starts off with some basic tips, keyboard shortcuts, integration with Gmail, reminders and so forth.

Things get more interesting for seasoned users with her collection of 15 (mostly Greasemonkey) scripts that offer skinning, interface streamlining and more, including the Better Gcal script, which combines several of the most useful scripts (à la Gina Trapani’s Better Gmail Firefox extension).

Finally, she provides a list of Firefox Extensions, hacks and some syncing utilities that help Outlook users and others get the most of Gcal. She doesn’t mention BusySync’s public beta that offers iCal-Gcal syncing or Spanning Sync , but I guess you knew about those already.

If you use Goolge’s Calendar, you will want to bookmark Christina’s collection of tips for sure.

Related posts

• Google Calendar-iCal sync app goes public
• Get more out of Google Notifier
• BusySync now syncs iCal over the Net, Google Calendar syncing not far away
• Better Gmail 2: New features, new skins
• Add Daily Agenda to your Gmail

No posts today. It’s Thanksgiving in the USA, which means that 82% of Hawk Wings readers (or so Google Analytics claims) will be counting their blessings and spending time with their families and/or loved ones.

I’m taking the chance for a day-off too, heeding Steve Jobs’ wise advice as portrayed by Joy of Tech.

My non-blogging friends tell me that there is in fact a whole world out there, which is something to be thankful for.

Related posts

• Zimbra launches Desktop client
• Yojimbo and EagleFiler updates
• Winter Beach Holiday
• Whimsy: Vista and Leopard, Protestants and Catholics
• The Seven Deadly Sins of Email