Remember The Milk / Forums / Tips & Tricks

Reply to Travel Checklist

davidbwagner (Pro) says:

This is worth a tip-of-the-week award just for suggesting this way of implementing templates. The e-mail approach is more flexible, because you can edit it in a text editor before sending it off, but this is very slick.

Reply to A Bit Better RTM

andrew.paprotsky (Pro) says:

Hi Funkeye,
Thanks for the bug report!
The problem is fixed in version 0.0.2.4

Keep Tag Cloud Visible: I guess I'll consider this in further versions.

Actually at the moment I don't have any plans to port the extension to Chrome. Mostly because of lack of time. Probably the situation will change soon and I'll find some time to look into it (I like Chrome and would be glad to have A Bit Better RTM functionality there)

Regards,
Andrew

Reply to Using RTM to capture ideas

kmoss11 says:

Very creative use of filters there! You might make it a bit easier if you set up a free account w/ Dial2Do, which works directly w/ RTM. Then you can just call their number, say "Remember the Milk" and dictate your idea directly into your RTM account.

Reply to Travel Checklist

formless (Pro) says:

This is a great system, I like the idea of duplicating the list and customizing for each trip. I travel quite a bit to different places and this would really help having the right equipment for each trip.

Reply to Using RTM to capture ideas

thomaskeene says:

Yes, that is also a great idea. But I like have a gmail label for Tasks, so then I can work out of RTM or Gmail.

Reply to My GTD implementation

kiketom says:

I don't know how to submit screenshots ....
can you help me?

Reply to Using RTM to capture ideas

mehardin (Pro) says:

Or, you could just leave them in gmail labeled "ideas". It seems to me they are already "caught" once they get there. I don't see how moving them to RTM helps. As a matter of fact, they are pretty much caught when they get to your drop. Seems to me like you are catching the same idea three times.

Reply to Using RTM to capture ideas

davidbwagner (Pro) says:

You could make this even simpler: set up your gmail filter to forward the task to your rtm email inbox.

RTM and Skype Add-on for Firefox 3.5.5

phattnuss says:

Just a heads up -- the Skype add-on for Firefox 3.5.5 cause RTM to freeze when ever I visited my home page and took my mouse pointer to my tasks.

Just wanted to throw that out there if anyone is having an issue they can't resolve. I was getting incredibly frustrated until I realize that my issues had been happening since installing that add-on. I disabled it, and everything was back the way it was.

That Skype add-on was also causing Firefox to use a tremendous amount of computer resources. Don't know why, but I'm happier now that it's disabled.

Using RTM to capture ideas

thomaskeene says:

I do a lot of public speaking and writing, and often an idea will occur to me at an inconvenient time--that is, when I don't have pen and paper handy. No problem, though, RTM makes a great idea-catcher! (Ideas can be anything, by the way, like "I need to do such and such of Friday").

The best way to catch ideas is through your phone. I have a special drop with drop.io that I can call and leave myself a voice message. Any internet-based voice messenger will work, though. I call my voice-messaging service and leave myself a message with my idea. I have it set up so that anytime I get a voice message it sends me a little notification in my email.

So how does this get added to RTM? Easy: using Gmail filters and RTM's awesome Gmail plugin. RTM lets you automatically create tasks from a Gmail Label, and Gmail in turn lets you automatically label incoming emails based on a set of preconditions. So I have Gmail set to automatically label all my voice-mail messages with the label "Task," and I have RTM set to automatically create Tasks from any email with that Label. Presto: instant automatic idea catcher.

Coordinating teamwork

cptwasp says:

I'm a software architect and I proudly manage a great team of analysts/developers. I created a personal list for each of them (using their names), and shared each list with the proper person. When I give them a task I insert it in RTM with priority, due date and so on. I have an agreement with them: when they complete a task they add a label, completed, so I can't miss completed tasks for overview. After my overview I mark them completed.
I have a smart view merging all the personal lists, so I can see at a glance open and near-to-we-are-late-folks tasks; team members use an RSS feed to this list to know the status of activities assigned to colleagues.
It's simply great, I never miss an activity now! And it's simple to move an activity from a person to a new one. Thank you RTM!

RTM-A lifesaver for a college student

mooryan (Pro) says:

I've used many different task management methods and systems, but RTM is here to stay. I love how I can really manage my whole life (work, school, personal, family, church, etc.) All within the same app and don't feel like any tasks really bump into each other unnecessarily.

My tips are how to effectively use RTM as a college student. Some of these tips I have found useful from time to time, others I live by. Hopefully some will be useful to any out there striving to further their education:

-Once I get my hands on a class syllabus, I immediately go to the class outline where all of the assignment deadlines are and input them into RTM. This way, even though I may not know what the 'media law paper' due in 6 weeks, is even concerning, I'll know its been captured and know I don't have to worry about forgeting the assignments and can effectively plan out my nights and weeks.

-Tagging each assignment with the class name can quickly give you an overlook of what is coming up in that particular class and what the rest of that class's workload will entail. Most times I am only concerned about what is due the next day or that week, but many times you want to see the most effective way to plan out GTD'ing for a particular class. That is where tagging helps immensely.

-Tagging all school related assignments in my gmail firefox extension as 2nd priority (work tasks as first priority) can quickly give me a visual as to what needs to be done for school in blue, what needs to be done for work in red.

-Notes help immensely if the assignment involves greater detail that wha you want to have as the name of the task. You can also keep notes for an assignment as you think about them (i.e. ideas for a media law paper) well before it is due.

-Finally, if I want to capture a 'non syllabus' assignment real quick. I can whip out my iPhone and get it captured and tagged without having to pull out my laptop. Simple and inconspicuous. The iPhone is also great for pulling out to task manage while walking on campus between classes.

Nothing real earth-shattering here, but just a couple quick tips I've found helpful to keep on top of managing college. I hope you find something that works for you and that you each can share something for us all to try. Thanks!

Reply to A Bit Better RTM

funkeye (Pro) says:

Still in love with this. It's basicly the only thing keeping me from moving to Google Chrome, since I find RTM more or less unuseable without it.

Not sure if you check this often (Andrew), but I have a bug, and a request.

Request: Is it possible to add in the functionality of Keep Tag Cloud Visible? Extensions are easier to deal with that Userscripts, and since you made the move, the only other RTM script I'm running is that one. It also seems like a simple thing to add, and with your preference menu, you could also easily turn it off if people didn't like it.

Bug: The script is causing the Sort By window to pop up in the wrong location. Pretty weird. Here's a screenshot:

http://img.skitch.com/20091118-xwdxc8npwy69thjgjqsi6mpa1a.jpg

If this is able to be ported into a chrome extension, that would be SICK. Any plans on that?

Reply to Using Sleeper and Reminder Tags with a FocusedList

steveshay says:

It's like you said, the point is to not clutter up your mind with Stuff so I try to keep my current lists to the point and manageable. I trust my systems and I know I will be reminded when I need to be. I keep my mind clearer by only seeing what is important to me at this time.

I use Sleeper tags to keep things that can't be done yet off my list not to get them on my list. If I can't take any actions on an item at this time I don't want it on my list until I can. Most of the time I use sleeper tags with 0 to 3 days so I don't see them until right when they are due.

I use Reminder tags for future items that I will need some time to complete. I don't keep them on my daily list because I don't want to be burdened down daily with an item I don't need to complete for several weeks. I don't want to see "Finish Christmas Shopping" on my daily list every single day this month so I use a sleeper tag with it.

It is on the list with the tag Remind1Month and a due date of Dec. 23. On Nov. 23rd it will show up on my daily focus list as a friendly reminder. At that point I have several options:
- Change the tag to "Remind3Weeks" if I want a second reminder
- Remove the tag if I want it off my focus list right away
- Bump the priority up to a 1 to keep it on my focus list
- Create some more concrete actionable items towards this task
- Do nothing and it will stay on the focus list just for that day.

It provides me with the flexibility to decide how often I need to be nudged to get an item completed or a reminder to set up some more concrete actions items that will remain on the focus list every day until they are done. "Finish Christmas Shopping" and "Finish Term Paper" are not items you can take direct action on. "Buy gift for Mary" or "Write outline" are actionable items so those are the ones that stay on the daily focus list.

It's just a way of staying focused on what are the most important things I can do today. If an item has a due date it will eventually end up on the focus list but not until it needs to be there.

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

funkeye (Pro) says:

It's public. The title is:
Remember the Milk plugin for Google Quick Search Box.

You can also find it with a search for:

with:public tag:rtm

Reply to Using Sleeper and Reminder Tags with a FocusedList

davidbwagner (Pro) says:

I use sleeper tasks quite a bit and I love 'em, especially for recurring tasks. But I don't quite understand the reminder idea. A sleeper task will show up, say, 7 days before it's due and remain on your focus list. A reminder task will show up 7 days before, then disappear on days 6 thru 1, and then reappear?

Do I have that right? If so, why would you want that? Why wouldn't you want to be reminded every day until the task is done? The whole point of GTD is to not have to clutter up your mind with stuff.

Reply to Using Sleeper and Reminder Tags with a FocusedList

steveshay says:

Just as a side note, there are two ways you could set up the reminder list. If you use "due:" in your criteria the item will show up in your focus list a single time as a reminder. However, if you use "dueWithin:" you will see the item in your focus list every day from that point on.

--- This will cause items to show up one time as a reminder ---
NOT tag:z_hidden
AND (tag:zz_RemindNow OR (tag:zz_Remind1week AND due:"1 week")
OR (tag:zz_Remind2week AND due:"2 weeks")
OR (tag:zz_Remind3week AND due:"3 weeks")
OR (tag:zz_Remind1month AND due:"1 Month")
OR (tag:zz_Remind3month AND due:"3 Months")
OR (tag:zz_Remind6month AND due:"6 Months") )

--- This will cause items to show up every day after the initial reminder ---
NOT tag:z_hidden
AND (tag:zz_RemindNow OR (tag:zz_Remind1week AND dueWithin:"1 week")
OR (tag:zz_Remind2week AND dueWithin:"2 weeks")
OR (tag:zz_Remind3week AND dueWithin:"3 weeks")
OR (tag:zz_Remind1month AND dueWithin:"1 Month")
OR (tag:zz_Remind3month AND dueWithin:"3 Months")
OR (tag:zz_Remind6month AND dueWithin:"6 Months") )
--

Reply to A good RTM-GTD setup

ralcazar (Pro) says:

Well I just choose any point of the google maps at random (for example, for online I have "Infinite Loop" street - Apple HQ)

I do not care about the physical location (lat,lon), as I do not use the "Near" functionality of the RTM iphone app

Using Sleeper and Reminder Tags with a FocusedList

steveshay says:

How to use a combination of Sleeper and Reminder tags along with a Focused List to maintain Daily Tasks.

Sleeper tags have been mentioned in previous posts as a method of hiding a task until closer to its due date. One use for this is to hide items that cannot be started until some point in the future. For example, if you have a task: "Call Mom on Birthday" it cannot be done early and therefore there is no reason for it to be on the Focus list. Another scenarios could be paying a bill that requires you to get a statement first.

Reminder tags are the opposite, they allow a task to show up on the Focus list before it otherwise would. These are useful for larger projects that may take some time. You want to see it on your daily list as a reminder to work on it but you don't want to set an arbitrary due date. A good example of this is: "Finish Christmas Shopping" due Dec. 23. You may want to see that on your focus list starting around Thanksgiving instead of only a couple of days before it is due.

When these concepts are used with a focus list it allows better control over what you do and do not see on your list of items to focus on today.

-----

There are 3 main components of this setup:
1. A Future List
2. A Remind List
3. A Focus List

-----
Future List:
A list of items that will show up at some point in the future.

tagContains: sleep
AND NOT (
(tag:zz_Sleep0Days AND dueBefore:"1 Day")
OR (tag:z_Sleep3Days AND dueBefore:"4 Days")
OR (tag:z_Sleep1Week AND dueBefore:"1 Week and 1 Day")
OR (tag:z_Sleep2Weeks AND dueBefore:"2 Weeks and 1 Day")
)

(I run mine this way so I can see a list of all items that are hidden for the future. You could choose to set this up in a more standard fashion if desired)

------
Remind List:
Items that should show up on the Focus list now regardless of other criteria

tag:zz_RemindNow
OR (tag:zz_Remind1week AND due:"1 week")
OR (tag:zz_Remind2week AND due:"2 weeks")
OR (tag:zz_Remind3week AND due:"3 weeks")
OR (tag:zz_Remind1month AND due:"1 Month")
OR (tag:zz_Remind3month AND due:"3 Months")
OR (tag:zz_Remind6month AND due:"6 Months")

-----
Focus List:

These are the items I want to be focusing on. It includes everything on the above Remind List and None of the items on the above Future List.

The remaining criteria is just what I have chosen to consider important based on how I use the system.

NOT list:Sleep
AND (
list:Remind
OR(
(dueBefore:tomorrow)
OR
(priority:1)
OR
(dueBefore:"2 days" and NOT priority:none)
OR
(dueBefore:"7 Days" AND priority:2)
OR
(due:never AND (priority:1 OR priority:2) ) )

Current List:
You can also add a current list which to see a larger picture. Just like the focus list it would include everything on the above Remind List and None of the items on the above Future List but it does not restrict the items based on due date or priority.

----------------

Reply to Remember the Geek: RTM for GeekTool

heathercmiller says:

@filemakerdave

I had the same problem. I first copied and pasted the URL of my feed into rememberthemilk.py before I went into Settings and set private address "on".

I was still getting "unable to access the feed"

Then I went in and checked the URL again, and found that after I had turn private addresses on, it indeed gave me a private address (doh) that was much longer the the public address I had initially tried.

So I pasted the uber long private address into rememberthemilk.py, and voila, works like a charm.

Though I'd share my rookie mistake. Hope it helps someone :-)

Medical tracking

spw3336 (Pro) says:

I set up a daily repeating task for each of the several medicines I take that are due at 7 am (breakfast) and 6 pm (dinner). I have a Pro account so that I can receive push notifications to my iPhone, so whenever I hear the cowbell go off, I remember that it's time to take my medicine. If I ever forget to take the medicine, I delete that day's task so that I can look back at my completed tasks and be able to easily see how often I've missed taking the medicine at the correct time.

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

leah.shalom (Pro) says:

funkeye,

What is the title of the Wave? If you share the title, wave users can search for it as long as you have made it public. To make the wave public, add public@a.googlewave.com as a participant.

Reply to A good RTM-GTD setup

nicolas_thomsen (Pro) says:

How do you add contexts that are not tied to a specific location, such as phone, online ect.?

Reply to How The Devs Use RTM

crackd (Pro) says:

This post would probably have a better chance at being read in the "Ideas" forum since the developers would more likely be digging around in there. +1 from me as well =)

Reply to A Bit Better RTM

ezpzhosting (Pro) says:

Seemed to cause Firefox to crash often. Since removing it i've not had a problem.

Reply to Here Be My Tag Cloud

bvandeloo (Pro) says:

-1

i'm using more than one computer, so i need to keen the greasemonkeys into sync and it doesn't work on my android phone.

So to much of a hassel.

Reply to Using RTM as my trusted GTD system

bvandeloo (Pro) says:

I have a couple of settings:
- lists : .concept1, .concept2, .concept3
- tags : _next, _call, _delegated, @person1, @person2, @person3, someday-maybe
- locations : home, work, shopping, parents

smart lists for: calls, next actions @ home, next actions @ work, delegated,...

all the new tasks go into the inbox for processing:
it's being transfer to concept list, set the location, set the tags as "_next" or "someday-maybe". related tasks get no tag, but the "_next" tag when the other tasks has been done.

If the tasks has been delegated, it gets the tag "_delegated" and the person tag ex. "_delegated, @bob". So when i'm at "Bob". I can summon the tasks for Bob.

When i process the concept lists, i tag next tags with "_next" and they will appear onto my radar again.

Reply to A good RTM-GTD setup

janvanderploeg (Pro) says:

Nice setup!

Learning and preparing for school

raeuschel says:

I have three kids in school. For each I have a list in rtm. I write all appointments for tests or homeworks as tasks. I use the tags for the different school subjects as maths or history. If I do this we all have an overview, we can plan the time and don't forget this appointments.

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

joesparano says:

Shoot. That's what I figured.

An extra keystroke (t) is all it takes, so I can handle that. :)

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

funkeye (Pro) says:

If anyone has access to Google Wave, and would like to discuss this plugin, I have created a public wave for it here:

https://wave.google.com/wave/#restored:wave:googlewave.com!w%252B8aigfbRUA

You MUST be a member of Wave to follow that link. Won't work otherwise.

This is also my first time trying to externally link to a wave. Let me know if it doesn't work.

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

funkeye (Pro) says:

As far as I know, the order of the options is alphabetical. Everywhere in my code, the New Task option precedes the New List option. I was wondering how to re-order them myself, but I don't know if it's possible.

Theoretically, once the Plugin development takes off for QSB, there could be dozens of choices in that field. So you may want to get used to typing "task" to select the option as opposed to arrowing down to it. That will narrow your options down.

If any kind of preference pane system gets worked in, I will add the ability to turn on or off the New List action. I personally don't use it much myself, but see it as potentially being really useful.

Reply to A Fluid RTM

leah.shalom (Pro) says:

David,

In the application preferences you can set it so that the links you click open in the SSB.

Leah

Using RTM as my trusted GTD system

nicolas_thomsen (Pro) says:

I have been using both Omnifocus and Things before but for different reasons they are not yet good enough for my needs.

I have been using RTM on and off for a year but lately found a setup that makes RTM amazingly useful for me and it is now my trusted GTD system.

I have seen several different setups before, but frankly I found them quite cluttered and a bit too complicated.

Here is how I have set mine up:

Inbox, is used as it should, for dumping stuff that I need to process into.

Lists, I have a list for each area of focus such as "work", "finance", "health" ect.

Tags, I have tags for context such as @home, @computer @office ect. I have two tags, __someday and __scheduled. On top of that I have a tag for each project I have "vacation_italy" "buy_car".

I have some smartlists set up as well.
One for each context, that excludes the tags "__someday" and "__scheduled". Then I have one called "- >" for scheduled and one called "?" for someday.

As a result I only have to look at a screen that shows my areas, my someday and scheduled lists as well as my contexts that only contain my available actions.

During my weekly review I make sure to look at each project and the context tags with all actions in them, but during the day I don´t have to look at them if they are not available.

On top of that I use priorities for level of energi, so the actions that require a lot of energy will be !1

That means that a normal action would look like this:
"Take out trash" lives in the "home" list, is a !2 and is tagged with @home.

Example of a scheduled action

"Order tickets for Sherlock Holmes" lives in the "shopping" list, is a !2, is due at December 25. and is tagged with @online and __scheduled.

That way it will not bother me until then but will show up on my today list on the 25. when the tickets are available.

There are a few reasons why I love this setup compared to using Things or Omnifocus.
One is that it syncs brilliantly. I use an iPhone and a couple of macs and I can handle my lists everywhere and they sync instantly.
With something like GTD you should really feel that that you can trust your system. With Things I constantly have to worry if I closed the mac client for dropbox to work, and it keeps forgetting my tags. Omnifocus has OTA sync but it is unreliable and often takes about 2 minutes for me which basically makes it useless.

When I get a mail about some I need to do, I can just forward it to my RTM mail adress with a title that tells RTM what list I want it in, how it should be tagged ect.

Even if there is no mac client I have a very good solution with a flud app and Quicksilver for quickly dumping stuff into RTM.

It is so flexible I can keep on improving this system if I feel like it.

Happy to hear any questions and comments :)

Reply to A Fluid RTM

frazerporter (Pro) says:

I've been using RTM in Fluid for ages but had no idea about the menubar app. This is fantastic, thanks heaps for the tip, shocm.

Can anyone confirm that "stay logged in" option, or is there a way to achieve the same with 1Password so as never to have to log in?

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

joesparano says:

This is really wonderful, thank you!

One possible suggestion: reverse the order of the actions. Personally, I will never use "New List", and I'd imagine that many users won't either (or at least, much less than "New Task"). If "New List" can be eliminated altogether (to eliminate any accidentals), that's probably ideal for me.

Reply to A Fluid RTM

davidbwagner (Pro) says:

So I noticed last night that in the fluid app, when I click on any of the links at the top of the page, like Settings, it opens a new window in my browser! I want it to stay within the Fluid window. Has anyone else seen this problem, and is there a workaround?

Reply to A Fluid RTM

leah.shalom (Pro) says:

Glen,

In the preferences there is a setting to ask the app to stay logged in when minimized. (Sorry I don't have my mac laptop at work and can't tell you the exact language of the preference.)

Reply to Saving time and frustration at the video/music store

dhandall (Pro) says:

Great tip kristian.domagala!

I'm using this!

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

rob.hranac (Pro) says:

Awesome plugin. Great work.

Reply to A Fluid RTM

glen.brackett says:

Hey I got it to work. I dropped the .XML Thanks for the help. I also got it wofking for the regular page. Now to get to remeber my login info.

Reply to Remember the Geek: RTM for GeekTool

jinegao says:

yes

Reply to Sync RTM and Outlook

tolovana (Pro) says:

Reply to Using Dial2Do with Remember The Milk

bdturner says:

reQall is getting chucked... nice one !

Reply to GTD for RTM - delegate

andrewski (Remember The Milk) says:

Sent tasks appear in the Sent list, where you can review them. You could add an additional task—to check your Sent list, or to follow up on a specific task—to your own list. I'd think adding a task to check your Sent list as part of your weekly review as a baseline would work pretty well.

Reply to A Fluid RTM

leah.shalom (Pro) says:

I am also using fluid and enjoying it. Glen, have you tried using SSB on the regular http://rememberthemilk.com page? That is what I am using.

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

funkeye (Pro) says:

In other news, I made a minor update to the plugin. I added an icon to the actions.

If there is anyone out there who has a better icon for this, please let me know. Or if the RTM Team would like to allow me to use their beautiful cow logo for this. Right now, I'm not very happy with the glass of milk.

Reply to A Fluid RTM

davidbwagner (Pro) says:

Use http://www.rememberthemilk.com/services/modules/googleig/ (i.e., chop off the rtm.xml part).

I've used this successfully with fluid and with chrome. I like it a lot -- much less obtrusive and uncluttered view of my tasks than the full web app.

GTD for RTM - delegate

chg2winter (Pro) says:

How do you use RTM to keep track of task that you delegate to other people? When you use the Send To option, doesn't it remove it from your view so you can't go review later?

Thanks

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

funkeye (Pro) says:

Interesting. Thanks for pointing that out.

If anyone has any feedback, let me know. This has been a fun project.

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

rajjan (Pro) says:

Couldn't get github.com/gfontenot/RTM_QSB/Downloads to work, it seems that the capital D in Downloads screws thing up.

Try github.com/gfontenot/RTM_QSB/downloads instead.

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

funkeye (Pro) says:

Nevermind. Just fixed it. It was a typo. Re-download and re-install, and you should be good to go.

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

funkeye (Pro) says:

Yep. I guess I messed up the auth. If you want (for now), download the 1.0 version. It has all the same features, it just doesn't create the lists.

I will see if I can push out a fixed version with the lists addition tomorrow.

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

chris.matheus (Pro) says:

I downloaded the plugin with list support today, coped it to the plugin folder provided by the dmg, and restarted QSB. when I try it it does appear as an option (New task in RTM) after I enter space, the task and hit Tab but then QSB beeps at me and disappears without prompting for authorization and the task never appears in RTM.

Reply to Here Be My Tag Cloud

rajjan (Pro) says:

Tags become lowercase by RTM design.
They must be one word (hence the underscores).

Reply to Create a task from an email in Outlook with one click

ryansteele (Pro) says:

Thank you for this macro. Perfect for what I needed.

Reply to Here Be My Tag Cloud

fry10ck says:

I'll be re-reading this thread and trying to pick up more but right now I'm an ultra-noob.

Should tags be all lower case? Even names? Should mulit-word tags be connected with underscores? Does it matter?

Reply to RTM for Google Quick Search Box

funkeye (Pro) says:

For no particular reason, other than as an excuse to play around with Classes, I have added the ability to quickly add a new list into RTM as well.

Same download link as above:

http://github.com/gfontenot/RTM_QSB/Downloads

Restaurants

aripap (Pro) says:

I always read restaurant reviews or get recommendations from friends then instantly forget where I want to go out to eat. To solve this, I created a "toEat" list, that I can quickly add new restaurant names to. I use priorities for the ones I really want to go to and cut-and-paste reviews or Yelp pages into the URL field. Finally, since I travel a good deal for business I use locations to track different restaurants in the New York area vs the San Francisco area.

Reply to Power Grocery Shopping

rajjan (Pro) says:

Interesting that you have managed to go directly from recipe to an isled shopping list, sound perfect! I'll do a test to see if it's worth adding a lot of recipes to RTM.

Power Grocery Shopping

jwhite.rtm (Pro) says:

I've been reading through how different people use RTM for grocery shopping, and thought I'd chip in with what I do.

General Methodology:

Placeholder List:
I keep a list of items that I shop for titled "Shopping, Grocery". In it, I have all the things that I might buy from the grocery store in a particular month.

Dish tags:
I tag an ingredient with the names of the dishes it's in. I usually go through a recipe and tag the ingredients, not consider an ingredient and try to remember what it's in. :-)

Preparing to shop:
When I'm going out grocery shopping, I decide what I'm making first. I pull up a search for that tag. Select all, then duplicate. None of the duplicates will be selected. Modify all the selected ingredients to indicate that it's for a specific shopping trip. Creating a list that gets used for one trip seems like overkill, so I usually add a tag with today's date like "shop-20091104." If you need to create a smart list based on the tag, that's fine. If you want to create the list before starting then move all the duplicate items to the list that's fine too. The point is that you have a copy of the item in your Placeholder list AND one that's marked up for your actual shopping trip. Important note when adding a tag, most likely everything you have doesn't already have an identical tag. You want to preserve the existing tags and add a new one, so make sure the tag is "Multiple, MyNewTag" to _append_ your tag, not wipe out the existing tags.

Repeat with each dish you're shopping for.

In-Store:
Since you have a copy of the ingredient in your placeholder list, it's fine to complete the item as you put it in your shopping cart.

Example Run-through:
I want to make lasagna and hummus this weekend, and am swinging by the store on my way home. I search for the ingredients (tag:lasagna or tag:hummus), select all, append my "shopping today" tag, and I'm off to the races. While at the store, I can use either my mobile device or a paper printout of the items.

Refinements which you might or might not find helpful:
1) Tag ingredient with store.
I can't find Lee Kum Yee soy sauce at any local shop but Cost Plus World Market. Hence, it gets a @costplus tag. You can create a separate Smart List if you like (I tend not to).

2) Brand Preferences
I use "Cooks Illustrated" taste tests of staples to guide my shopping (Along with RTM, one of the few premium content services I find worthwhile). So I list the various Highly Recommended and recommended brands in the order they appear in the taste test in the name of my items. Thus, I don't have "dijon mustard," I have "Mustard, dijon - Grey Poupon, Maille; Jack Daniels". That I used Cooks Illustrated as the basis for my preferences isn't important (though you should check out their free trial). That I have multiple options _is_. I'll take both Pepperidge Farm or Orowheat whole wheat bread, whichever happens to be cheaper. I'll take Welches or Smuckers Strawberry preserves (not jam or jelly!), whichever is cheaper. And so on. I list that in my item name when appropriate.

3) Aisle/Section sorting
When I've got long lists, I might not want to retrace my steps dozens of times, so it helps to have "like items" grouped together on my list(s). Prefix the name of the item with the section:
CannedVeg - Tomatoes, Diced - Muir Glen preferred
CannedVeg - Tomatoes, Sauce
Dairy - Cottage Cheese, Nonfat
Dairy - Yogurt, Plain

4) Quantity
How much heavy cream did you need? I tagged each dish item with the dishes name. I can also add the quantity as a note to check out in the store. For those who are willing to spend more prep time at home to speed up the shopping process, you can copy the quantity into the description after duplicating and tagging for the shopping trip. Remember, this is a duplicate entry of the item, not the original, so marking up the description doesn't have a lasting effect.

5) Coupon based shopping
When you shop a couple cycles like this, you can identify (in completed tasks) which items you buy a lot. Start tracking the price in the notes section of your placeholder item, then start comparing that price to the sale prices in the weekly flyers. That way, you'll have a list of items you buy a lot and what you've paid for them. Buy lots of service deli items? Helps to know that when you see smoked turkey is on sale this week for $5.99/lb. Is that a good or bad price? How often do you use it? If it's worth it, tag it with a date-coded tag: "coupon@Ralphs-20091111" Now you can look at your ingredients list while searching for coupons to see whether a specific dish is worth shopping for this week.

6)Analysis and bulk shopping
Search your completed list to see what you're buying all the time that isn't perishable. Canned corn is cheaper by the case in a big box store. So is rice. Maybe you do buy enough 2% milk to make 2 gallons at once a good idea. Ground meat is on sale? You might use enough to make buying a lot and freezing a good idea. Based on how often it's purchased and how much the product costs, you can save money by shopping differently. This area is wide-open.

This is working really well for me and I'd love to hear any feedback or tweaks others might have.

Reply to Automated ordering with RTM and Gmail

mehardin (Pro) says:

Ok, one more necessary tweak. I guess I should have tested it better before my initial post. The "canned response" is sent back to remind@rememberthemilk.com and is not added to the forwarded reminder that is sent to the vendor. So.. It's necessary to include your own name and contact information in the task name, so it's included in the forward sent to the vendor.

My task name is:
Order CPAP mask for firstname lastname DOB mm/dd/yyyy 404.555.1212 #Personal *after 3 months

Reply to Automated ordering with RTM and Gmail

mehardin (Pro) says:

Well, on second thought, you DO have to mark them complete for it to keep working, because the repeat value is set up to repeat X months AFTER completion. But if I'd set them up with "every x months" instead of "after x months" them marking them complete would be unnecessary.

Reply to Automated ordering with RTM and Gmail

mehardin (Pro) says:

Yes, it works without marking them complete, marking them complete just keeps them from cluttering my list.

Reply to Travel Checklist

steveshay says:

I do a very similar technique except I email the list in from a text document.

I have the text document in sections so I can choose only the relevant tasks depending on the type of trip including:
Driving or Flying
Bringing the pets or leaving them home
Temperature of destination

I have the smart add syntax set up in the text document with high priority to essential items and tags for last minute stuff.
I also include ^{DUE} in the text file and so I can do a find and replace of {DUE} with the date of my trip

When I am planning a trip I create a new list in RTM, copy the sections I want from the text file into an email, then email in the tasks with the appropriate tag, priority and due dates already set. This way I can complete them as I go along, search for them by text or tag and have them end up on my focus list if desired without cluttering up my task list the rest of the year. When the trip is over I just delete that list and everything is back to normal for the next time.

Reply to Automated ordering with RTM and Gmail

andrewski (Remember The Milk) says:

Indeed; a very clever use of both systems!

rajjan, you'd need to mark them completed so the next instance would send a reminder.

Reply to RTM gift list

xaandria (Pro) says:

Woo hoo! Thanks :D

RTM useful as a Book Reading List

andrew.macgregor (Pro) says:

I use RTM to keep track of books I'd like to read using a Books list. I have a task for each book and add the URL to the library catalogue or to Amazon, Book Depository etc to each one. I can also look at completed tasks in that list to see what I read and when.

Reply to Automated ordering with RTM and Gmail

rajjan (Pro) says:

Really clever setup, having RTM/Gmail ordering these items automatically for you sounds ideal! Actually, you don't even have to mark these task as completed, it will work anyway.

Automated ordering with RTM and Gmail

mehardin (Pro) says:

I have been diagnosed with sleep apnea, and sleep with a CPAP machine each night. The masks, tubing, filters, and headgear can be replaced at different intervals according to insurance guidelines. I have a hard time remembering when to order what, so I asked my provider to just order everything for me as soon I become eligible for a replacement. She said she didn't have the software for that. Immediately I thought of RTM.

I ordered one of everything on Monday. I made a three repeating tasks, one for the items that could be ordered once per month, one for the items that could be ordered every three months, and one for the items that could be ordered every 6 months. I set each item with a due date of today at 12:01 am. I immediately checked them complete since I'd just ordered, so now I'll be reminded to order each as soon as insurance will replace it. But thanks to email reminders and Gmail, it gets better.

I've set up a filter in Gmail for emails that come from remind@rememberthemilk.com and contain the word "CPAP" to be forwarded to my provider, with a "canned response" containing my name, address and phone number. Now not only does RTM remind me to order these items, but in partnership with Gmail, it will actually order them for me. All I have to do is check the item off whenever it shows up as overdue.

Reply to A Bit Better RTM

jbinfrisco (Pro) says:

Also having trouble getting it working in fluid....

Reply to Travel Checklist

calipidder (Pro) says:

Excellent - I just came to the forums to look for exactly this thing - using RTM for packing list. In my case, I do a lot of outdoor sports which require the same core items (mostly camping/hiking gear), as well as specialty items depending on the specific sport I'm doing on any given trip (climbing gear, photography gear, ski gear, etc). I'm going to play with this technique to manage my complex packing lists. Thanks!

Reply to RTM gift list

emily (Remember The Milk) says:

Hi xaandria,

Great tip! Just wanted to let you know that your tip is a Tips & Tricks Tuesday winner. We've upgraded your RTM account to have a free year of Pro. :)

Reply to Travel Checklist

durtle (Pro) says:

This is another awesome way to use RTM that I hadn't thought of yet. I actually have a camping list that I created a while back in a plain old document that will convert nicely to this RTM format.

I second the nomination for a Tips & Tricks winner! People will be traveling a lot in the coming months.

Reply to Script for associating tasks with projects and subprojects

charlie.hawkins says:

someone installed this application in my firefox. i was told to create an account here and someone would let me know how to remove it. it keeps showing up in my firefox browser and annoying. it says something like i'm not logged in. Thanks for any information.

Reply to Here Be My Tag Cloud

bzpilman says:

@tomweaver leading the change! That's amazing someone picked that up quite some years down the line, where are you from, mate? (hope you even get to read this)

@marc.garcia.marti I feel your pain! I think rajjan has it down, though, if you use as short as possible tags for projects then you can have a lot of them. I try to keep by the books and create a project for every.. er... "projected" outcome. Go loose!

@emalminator your version of the script looks neat and sweet, congrats on it! Cool that it creates headers even without needing source tags. I especially like the subheaders with colons. I believe they could be the areas of responsibilities on and within themselves. Seems someone could go quite mental with it.

Reply to Travel Checklist

coreb (Pro) says:

With the holidays coming up, this should be a "Tips and Tricks Tuesday" winner.

Reply to Tip for getting work done on the go

ghovnanian (Pro) says:

Since I wrote this, I realized that there are 2 more things to do "on the go" - any task with the word "buy" in it, and any task with the word "return" in it (my shopping tasks)