Absolutely, With Trello you can always scale from small beginnings to full fledged system with plugins. And if you have a DIY nature you can write your own plugins the same isnt true for say JIRA.
I've been using MS TFS scrum workow which is pretty much Trello without editable columns. Pretty good after other task management systems. Very responsive and easy to edit tasks/user stories.
Edit: also integrates with your version control, build and test systems if you manage them with TFS as well. Pretty much what atlassian was trying to do when buying Trello.
Also check out https://helloepics.com which adds parent child relationships across boards to Trello. I worked on it, but I wouldn’t (and didn’t) want to use Trello without it.
Ditto with Trello, and not just for software. I love the 'email to board' feature where I can forward supplier quotes/docs straight to the board from my inbox, so I can find them later!
I second the vote for Trello. I find it simple enough that even novice software users can understand it. As a team, we've recently switched to Asana which I find more feature rich, but overwhelming because of this.
Org mode. I put a Readme.org in every project I start, and it can help with most project management tasks. You can also hook these files up to your Org agenda, so that issues (i.e. TODO items) show up there.
Edit: I should also mention the Dired mode in Emacs, which is a directory browser. I use "% g" quite frequently, and it has useful extensions like wdired and dired-hacks.
If you add it to your agenda, you can filter things out by tags.
Org mode also has excellent mobile support. All your todo items, schedules etc. can also be viewed in your phone.
Another plus-side is that it is completely text based. You don't have to worry about internet access, operating system, age of the machine, the medium you want to use.
You can quickly export org-mode schedules as pdf/tex/html/txt etc.
If you cannot meet your schedules, you can make a note yourself on why you couldn't meet it and simply reschedule.
The core functionality of org-mode is actually simple. I'd suggest giving org-mode a chance.
1) Create an org document
2) Set some tasks as headlines
3) make them todo items by typing C-c C-t
4) schedule them to a certain date with C-c C-s
5) add the org-file to your agenda by C-c C-[
And you've got a working project schedule.
M-x org-agenda to view your schedule.
Not Google Keep, but part of "Simple tools/hack for small project management".
I do a lot of work from the commandline, and have a few simple macros to do simple timestamped tags. Eg "ttag started on proj ABC", "ttag debugging this", "ttag stopped for today". The tags are stored in a text file. Some work when going back to sum up hours spent on project X, hours on Y etc, but very simple.
Here:
alias ttag='/cygdrive/c/Dropbox/tools/ttag/ttag.sh'
alias ttagcat='cat /cygdrive/c/Dropbox/tools/ttag/ttag-logfile.txt'
alias ttago='open /cygdrive/c/Dropbox/tools/ttag/ttag-logfile.txt'
For me, its focus on text and deep hierarchical breakdown, in combination with tagging is potent. You may need to figure out your own way to adapt to your PM style though. For example, some common tags I use are "#next", "#someday", "#2018-02-08" and such.
If you like this I'd recommend giving dynalist a try. It's like workflowy, but less purist, with enough bells and whistles to really make it viable day to day.
I second Workflowy for reference, but I'd suggest using something else for todos. Having commitments and reference separated was a game changer for me coming from a GTD workflow without a dedicated reference tool. Personally I use OmniFocus for commitments, but that's neither particularly cheap or simple.
If you're doing client work or have other external stakeholders involved I'd recommend trello to keep things simple and transparent.
I just keep a text file near the project and jot down notes / other things accordingly in free form.
This even includes recaps for freelance work. Like I would have an entry of:
2/7/2018: 3 hours
- Did such and such
- Implemented this and that
- Fixed foobar to return foo
I keep to that exact date / hours worked format so when I invoice clients I just grep the file and cut / sum the total hours (if I'm not doing project based pricing).
It works really well for the solo developer / freelancer. No time is wasted on BS and there's a log of work rendered + notes + TODOs + etc..
I like it because I can do all of this from within my code editor which is where I'm doing the work. The efficiency level is very high.
I do this too, but I have 1 file for everything, with each project having a section. At the end of the day, I rotate the file and archive it in a directory. I can run a script and figure out how much time I spent on a project over several years.
My setup is with Dropbox, though. I have a symbolic link named `/Projects/Foo/_misc` ( the root directory of the git repository ) pointing to `/Dropbox/Projects/Foo`. The link is excluded via .gitignore . Then I use the extra _misc directory for everything related to this project, like notes, assets, experiments that I run, etc.
With dropbox I can be sure that I have all the information on my laptop as well as on my work computer.
It hasn't gotten any love via Show HN, but it's relevant to the thread, so :)
Basically I wanted something sort of like Trello, but more geared toward Knowledge and Content management and collaboration. I was unaware of the existence of Google Keep at the time, but it does look vaguely similar, doesn't it?
Little bit of feedback: "Contabulo’s flexibility enables a wide variety of uses" would be a lot stronger if it specifically named a use for a problem that I encounter.
I recommend Asana. It is simple when you get started, but can also grow with you as your project increases in complexity with numerous task organization options.
Useful features:
- Browse tasks with keyboard like a text file.
- Tasks can be in multiple projects.
- Tasks can have sub tasks.
- Big ecosystem - lots of integrations with other tools.
I use the following alongside it:
- Everhour for time tracking.
- Unito to sync my tasks to Github to track commits.
- Github issues.
- Instagantt for gantt charting the Asana tasks to see how reliable your time estimates were and plan ahead.
I'm a fan of OneNote for this. It's not perfect but it checks all the boxes I need and it's free.
Rather than making a list of tasks I have a whole section of them, and so I can attach files or notes to each one. This makes context switching between tasks fairly efficient.
I use (and develop) Standard Notes (https://standardnotes.org). It's dead simple, but that's good enough for me. I use the task editor to keep track of todos for updates and other projects.
I open a Gdocs page and start writing a project diary. It serves the same purpose as the recording of transactions in accounting: rather than try to skip to a summary of tasks, bugs, or features, first I have to develop a "primary source of truth" about the project as a narrative - what I am developing, why I should prioritize something right now, and the feedback I hope to get from developing it.
As aspects of the project turn into specific tasks and data I can consider making formal artifacts for them, but it's unwise to do it too early in a solo project because of the added overhead and distraction from overall priorities. Structurally, coding on your own is really different from having a team to communicate with and leads or managers to specialize time allocation. You have the freedom to automate everything you are working with, and that's your biggest advantage. Where formality is added, it should be done with the support of a script that takes care of the technical details and keeps your friction down - it is not hard to automate turning TODO or FIXME source comments into a report, for example.
A simple GitHub or Gitlab repository is all that I need. Gitlab has the added advantage of a free CI (with 2k free build minutes per month), but for me git hosting + issues and boards + wiki pages are all I need for any project. I have used many, many project management solutions before, but if you use a sane methodology you don't really need anything else.
For small/solo projects I prefer to use a notebook with the first few pages reserved for an index. I complement it with a kanban board on the wall (post-it notes).
What I like about it:
No procrastination in a management tool (over-planning, formatting, etc).
No illusion of order (technology/computers have a tendency to make you appear disciplined, or to pretend you will be more disciplined by using them… I think it's bullshit. Discipline is a core skill, not the ability to use a tool).
No software can provide the feel of moving a post-it note to the "Done" column. Physical data (pages) is also supposed to help memorization.
> No software can provide the feel of moving a post-it note to the "Done" column. Physical data (pages) is also supposed to help memorization.
I tear mine into little squares.
Occasionally I throw them at my colleagues (very small, very intense, on-site dev team) assuming they were somehow involved in creating the issue, and we are aligned on sense of humor.
We have been using Teamwork for a couple of years. It offers kanban card based paradigm as well as PERT/CPM. Our PD teams like the former while we in Consulting services like the latter best. One can project delivery dates in a timeline and with that do more refined risk management. Currently there are 455 running projects and 1603 stakeholders using the system including internal, customer and partners teams.
We built https://usebx.com/app for managing a small business. It includes a simple to do list type of project manager. Most of our users love the simplicity and the fact that it integrates with time tracking and invoicing. You may find it useful too.
Also, we're adding the ability to add files to tasks soon. If there's any particular functionality you're looking for but can't find, let us know - if we think it can make the app more useful, we'll build it. We're only at 30k active users, so are still small enough to be able cater to specific needs!
If it was just me, I’d use plain text files like people are suggesting in this thread. In particular, if you want to be able to track and do retrospectives of what’s been done, consider using jrnl[0] to log what you’ve done.
For small teams, I really like Dropbox Paper. It’s better than text files here because it’s real-time collaborative, but retains nearly all of the flexibility. It supports Markdown syntax, checkboxes, etc. You can tag members of your team, comment in the margins, and link to one doc quickly from another. For small teams that don’t need a heavyweight process, Dropbox Paper fills fits my needs here rather well.
[+] [-] nagarjun|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] davewasthere|8 years ago|reply
https://trello.com/b/4wddd1zf/kanban-workflow
[+] [-] pankajdoharey|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] nurettin|8 years ago|reply
Edit: also integrates with your version control, build and test systems if you manage them with TFS as well. Pretty much what atlassian was trying to do when buying Trello.
[+] [-] hmeh|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] janlukacs|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] outsideoflife|8 years ago|reply
I hope Atlassian look after it
[+] [-] giarc|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] mathiassm|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] _pfxa|8 years ago|reply
Edit: I should also mention the Dired mode in Emacs, which is a directory browser. I use "% g" quite frequently, and it has useful extensions like wdired and dired-hacks.
[+] [-] terminalcommand|8 years ago|reply
If you add it to your agenda, you can filter things out by tags.
Org mode also has excellent mobile support. All your todo items, schedules etc. can also be viewed in your phone.
Another plus-side is that it is completely text based. You don't have to worry about internet access, operating system, age of the machine, the medium you want to use.
You can quickly export org-mode schedules as pdf/tex/html/txt etc.
If you cannot meet your schedules, you can make a note yourself on why you couldn't meet it and simply reschedule.
The core functionality of org-mode is actually simple. I'd suggest giving org-mode a chance.
1) Create an org document 2) Set some tasks as headlines 3) make them todo items by typing C-c C-t 4) schedule them to a certain date with C-c C-s 5) add the org-file to your agenda by C-c C-[
And you've got a working project schedule. M-x org-agenda to view your schedule.
[+] [-] weavie|8 years ago|reply
Do you mean the command "Mark files containing"? I didn't know about this one before.. Could you expand on how you fit it in your workflow?
[+] [-] retSava|8 years ago|reply
I do a lot of work from the commandline, and have a few simple macros to do simple timestamped tags. Eg "ttag started on proj ABC", "ttag debugging this", "ttag stopped for today". The tags are stored in a text file. Some work when going back to sum up hours spent on project X, hours on Y etc, but very simple.
Here:
and works well enough for me.[+] [-] sriku|8 years ago|reply
For me, its focus on text and deep hierarchical breakdown, in combination with tagging is potent. You may need to figure out your own way to adapt to your PM style though. For example, some common tags I use are "#next", "#someday", "#2018-02-08" and such.
[+] [-] m_fayer|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] theodorton|8 years ago|reply
If you're doing client work or have other external stakeholders involved I'd recommend trello to keep things simple and transparent.
[+] [-] thecatspaw|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pankajdoharey|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] nickjj|8 years ago|reply
This even includes recaps for freelance work. Like I would have an entry of:
2/7/2018: 3 hours
- Did such and such
- Implemented this and that
- Fixed foobar to return foo
I keep to that exact date / hours worked format so when I invoice clients I just grep the file and cut / sum the total hours (if I'm not doing project based pricing).
It works really well for the solo developer / freelancer. No time is wasted on BS and there's a log of work rendered + notes + TODOs + etc..
I like it because I can do all of this from within my code editor which is where I'm doing the work. The efficiency level is very high.
[+] [-] hboon|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] drinchev|8 years ago|reply
My setup is with Dropbox, though. I have a symbolic link named `/Projects/Foo/_misc` ( the root directory of the git repository ) pointing to `/Dropbox/Projects/Foo`. The link is excluded via .gitignore . Then I use the extra _misc directory for everything related to this project, like notes, assets, experiments that I run, etc.
With dropbox I can be sure that I have all the information on my laptop as well as on my work computer.
[+] [-] jcadam|8 years ago|reply
It hasn't gotten any love via Show HN, but it's relevant to the thread, so :)
Basically I wanted something sort of like Trello, but more geared toward Knowledge and Content management and collaboration. I was unaware of the existence of Google Keep at the time, but it does look vaguely similar, doesn't it?
Oh yea, example (read-only) board: https://app.contabulo.com/boards/a5e413d1-8fe3-4b42-a8f1-b4f...
[+] [-] faitswulff|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] vaughan|8 years ago|reply
Useful features:
- Browse tasks with keyboard like a text file.
- Tasks can be in multiple projects.
- Tasks can have sub tasks.
- Big ecosystem - lots of integrations with other tools.
I use the following alongside it:
- Everhour for time tracking.
- Unito to sync my tasks to Github to track commits.
- Github issues.
- Instagantt for gantt charting the Asana tasks to see how reliable your time estimates were and plan ahead.
[+] [-] paulgb|8 years ago|reply
Rather than making a list of tasks I have a whole section of them, and so I can attach files or notes to each one. This makes context switching between tasks fairly efficient.
[+] [-] binaryapparatus|8 years ago|reply
Org-mode or https://github.com/jceb/vim-orgmode if you are using vim (I do).
http://tailordev.github.io/Watson/ for cli time tracking. Works beautifully.
[+] [-] mobitar|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] BobBagwill|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] gglitch|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] annywhey|8 years ago|reply
As aspects of the project turn into specific tasks and data I can consider making formal artifacts for them, but it's unwise to do it too early in a solo project because of the added overhead and distraction from overall priorities. Structurally, coding on your own is really different from having a team to communicate with and leads or managers to specialize time allocation. You have the freedom to automate everything you are working with, and that's your biggest advantage. Where formality is added, it should be done with the support of a script that takes care of the technical details and keeps your friction down - it is not hard to automate turning TODO or FIXME source comments into a report, for example.
[+] [-] smnscu|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jongpieter|8 years ago|reply
Next to that using https://trello.com for setting up Agile boards.
[+] [-] mariust|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] hashmal|8 years ago|reply
What I like about it:
No procrastination in a management tool (over-planning, formatting, etc).
No illusion of order (technology/computers have a tendency to make you appear disciplined, or to pretend you will be more disciplined by using them… I think it's bullshit. Discipline is a core skill, not the ability to use a tool).
No software can provide the feel of moving a post-it note to the "Done" column. Physical data (pages) is also supposed to help memorization.
[+] [-] a3n|8 years ago|reply
You might consider starting your index on the back page, and let it grow "backwards" toward the content, sort of like stack and heap do in memory.
I think I first saw this suggested by the Humphrey/PMP people, where a notebook is (used to be?) a prominent tool. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capability_Maturity_Model
[+] [-] mrslave|8 years ago|reply
I tear mine into little squares.
Occasionally I throw them at my colleagues (very small, very intense, on-site dev team) assuming they were somehow involved in creating the issue, and we are aligned on sense of humor.
[+] [-] rodolphoarruda|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] osrec|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] osrec|8 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|8 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] z1mm32m4n|8 years ago|reply
For small teams, I really like Dropbox Paper. It’s better than text files here because it’s real-time collaborative, but retains nearly all of the flexibility. It supports Markdown syntax, checkboxes, etc. You can tag members of your team, comment in the margins, and link to one doc quickly from another. For small teams that don’t need a heavyweight process, Dropbox Paper fills fits my needs here rather well.
[0] http://jrnl.sh
[+] [-] hermitcrab|8 years ago|reply
Where it differs from most other card-based planners is:
-any number of custom properties per card
-powerful visualization (layout and color your cards automatically by their properties or connectivity)
-powerful filtering
-supports dependencies between cards (including support for PERT type project scheduling)
-store different combinations of layout, coloring and filtering as 'views' you can swap between with a mouse click
-highly customizable appearance
-runs locally on Windows and Mac (which makes it very responsive) but plays nicely with DropBox