Fluidtask FAQs:
You don't understand! I have deadlines! Deadlines! Where's the support for deadlines?!
Yep, me too. Here's the thing - what matters more to me (and I suspect you as well) is not when the deadline is, but whether or not you can hit it.
This is where Fluidtask shines. By putting in what specifically needs done to hit the deadline, you a) better understand what you need to do, and b) get a good idea of when you can expect to be done. That information is darn useful.
Is the estimated date past your deadline? Try increasing your workday, and see how that impacts things. Estimated date's way early? Relax. And the closer you get to the deadline, the better the estimate gets - so you can actually know if you need to pull that all-nighter. See? Deadlines + real info = way better than just deadlines.
This is where Fluidtask shines. By putting in what specifically needs done to hit the deadline, you a) better understand what you need to do, and b) get a good idea of when you can expect to be done. That information is darn useful.
Is the estimated date past your deadline? Try increasing your workday, and see how that impacts things. Estimated date's way early? Relax. And the closer you get to the deadline, the better the estimate gets - so you can actually know if you need to pull that all-nighter. See? Deadlines + real info = way better than just deadlines.
How come I can't see the FAQ or any of those pages when I'm logged in?
Fluidtask is a minimalist. So, if you're logged in, it figures you're working, and don't want to be cluttered with links to random pages you don't want to visit. It's the philosophy: manage your tasks by getting out of your way.
Fluidtask saved my life. Can I give you money?
Yes. Yes you can. Were you expecting a different answer?
There's two ways I see this happening:
There's two ways I see this happening:
- If you really want to send me a couple bucks, shoot me an email, and I'll give you an email to paypal to.
- A better option (from my perspective): If you work at or with a company that's doing bright green things, and would be interested in being a featured sponsor of SixLinks (it's quite a good gig for your company, too), please email me. Fluidtask is neat, but SixLinks is my passion. If you can help keep it rolling, I'd be forever grateful.
I don't want tie-in! How do I export? How do I delete all my stuff from your clutches?
Cool.
Your new best friend is the Mass-edit page. Copy everything in that box to somewhere safe. Then, clear the box. Then click save. Voila! All of your info is gone from the server, and you have a full backup. Now, if you didn't keep your copy safe, sorry buddy, there's no going back.
Your new best friend is the Mass-edit page. Copy everything in that box to somewhere safe. Then, clear the box. Then click save. Voila! All of your info is gone from the server, and you have a full backup. Now, if you didn't keep your copy safe, sorry buddy, there's no going back.
Does Fluidtask support sharing tasks between multiple users?
Soon. Not today, not tomorrow, but soon, and for the rest of your life.
What about tags? I need tags!
Also soon. I love me some tags as well.
What sort of guarantee do you offer?
Guarantee? Seriously? This is the web, and the site's free for god's sake! I make no promises that Fluidtask won't eat your data, terrorize your cat, or go down at some really critical time. It comes with no warranties. Now frankly, most sites you visit have these same conditions - though they're not usually as up-front about the cat - they just don't tell you straight up. I'm telling you.
Now, that said, I use Fluidtask for all of *my* task management. The same version you're using, right on this site. So you can bet your button that if it crashes or something bad happens, I'm going to be fixing it ASAP. Just remember, no promises. I don't like the lawyer-types a-calling.
Now, that said, I use Fluidtask for all of *my* task management. The same version you're using, right on this site. So you can bet your button that if it crashes or something bad happens, I'm going to be fixing it ASAP. Just remember, no promises. I don't like the lawyer-types a-calling.
How does Fluidtask schedule things?
Simple. You tell it in your settings how many hours you're available each day. You tell it a time range for each of the tasks you have, and put them in order.
Then, it just goes day-by-day (starting with today, where it assumes you've got half a day left by default), and fills in the tasks to the time you have available.
Then, it just goes day-by-day (starting with today, where it assumes you've got half a day left by default), and fills in the tasks to the time you have available.
How does Fluidtask calculate estimated times and dates?
With a very complex, proprietary formula.
(high estimate + low estimate) / 2
There you go. Now, we could do some better statistics, figuring out probability distributions and all (I did even pass statistics back in college), but those essentially all boil down to the mean. And the mean of your two estimates is smack dab in the middle. Hooray! We've saved CPU usage.
(high estimate + low estimate) / 2
There you go. Now, we could do some better statistics, figuring out probability distributions and all (I did even pass statistics back in college), but those essentially all boil down to the mean. And the mean of your two estimates is smack dab in the middle. Hooray! We've saved CPU usage.
Will I ever be able to enter time ranges in days?
Short Answer: Nope. Absolutely Not.
Long Answer: I've got no plans to support anything bigger than hours. The main reason for this is that no single task can take more than a few hours, 10 at the max to complete. Now I know some people out there are chomping at the bit to disagree, but they're wrong. If something takes more than a couple of hours, it can be split into smaller, more manageable tasks. Smaller tasks make for better scheduling, and more realistic planning. They also keep you on-track by allowing you to click that "Done" button more often than every couple days, and that's just satisfying.
"But", you say, "I need to dig a twelve foot hole, and that's gonna take at least 3 days."
Wrong. You need to dig a one-foot hole, or a two-foot hole. Then, the ground gets harder, so likely you'll have to change tools. So change tools, then dig those next few feet, etc. Sounds like a few different tasks to me.
Look, task-creation is very cheap, especially using the mass-add tool. Making smaller tasks is good for you and good for scheduling. If you want monolithic tasks, this just isn't the site for you.
Long Answer: I've got no plans to support anything bigger than hours. The main reason for this is that no single task can take more than a few hours, 10 at the max to complete. Now I know some people out there are chomping at the bit to disagree, but they're wrong. If something takes more than a couple of hours, it can be split into smaller, more manageable tasks. Smaller tasks make for better scheduling, and more realistic planning. They also keep you on-track by allowing you to click that "Done" button more often than every couple days, and that's just satisfying.
"But", you say, "I need to dig a twelve foot hole, and that's gonna take at least 3 days."
Wrong. You need to dig a one-foot hole, or a two-foot hole. Then, the ground gets harder, so likely you'll have to change tools. So change tools, then dig those next few feet, etc. Sounds like a few different tasks to me.
Look, task-creation is very cheap, especially using the mass-add tool. Making smaller tasks is good for you and good for scheduling. If you want monolithic tasks, this just isn't the site for you.
How does Fluidtask compare to remember the milk? or basecamp? or liquidplanner? or your mom?
Remember the Milk:
Remember the milk is god-like. Seriously. They kick so much ass it hurts sometimes. I'm an avid, fanatic user for all of my everyday stuff, appointments, and generally life. It's a second brain for me. Now, that said, and I think the RTM folks would agree, it's not a task-scheduling system. RTM is designed for specific tasks that you generally know when they'll happen. It's to help you remember the stuff you have to do. Fluidtask is here to make sense out of lots of tasks on different projects with conflicting priorities, and give you a good idea of when you can say they'll be done.
Basecamp:
I hate basecamp. I know it's all the rage with the cool kids, but its task management is a glorified todo-list. No flex, no interaction between different projects, just one monolithic structure. That said, if you don't like my answer to the time-in-days question, check it out. It might be what you want.
Liquidplanner:
I like Liquidplanner. It does about 85% of what I wanted in a task-manager, and about 400 things I will never, ever need. It's also (as of now) really slow. The projects I tend to work on are small, with teams rarely exceeding 5 people. We don't need overhead, or management functions. If you're a big organization, and if your team includes someone with the title of "project manager", check Liquidplanner out.
Your mom:
I hear she makes great cookies. This site makes zero cookies (alas). So, in my scientific analysis, I'm gonna give the edge to your mom.
Remember the milk is god-like. Seriously. They kick so much ass it hurts sometimes. I'm an avid, fanatic user for all of my everyday stuff, appointments, and generally life. It's a second brain for me. Now, that said, and I think the RTM folks would agree, it's not a task-scheduling system. RTM is designed for specific tasks that you generally know when they'll happen. It's to help you remember the stuff you have to do. Fluidtask is here to make sense out of lots of tasks on different projects with conflicting priorities, and give you a good idea of when you can say they'll be done.
Basecamp:
I hate basecamp. I know it's all the rage with the cool kids, but its task management is a glorified todo-list. No flex, no interaction between different projects, just one monolithic structure. That said, if you don't like my answer to the time-in-days question, check it out. It might be what you want.
Liquidplanner:
I like Liquidplanner. It does about 85% of what I wanted in a task-manager, and about 400 things I will never, ever need. It's also (as of now) really slow. The projects I tend to work on are small, with teams rarely exceeding 5 people. We don't need overhead, or management functions. If you're a big organization, and if your team includes someone with the title of "project manager", check Liquidplanner out.
Your mom:
I hear she makes great cookies. This site makes zero cookies (alas). So, in my scientific analysis, I'm gonna give the edge to your mom.
Just who made this site, anyway?
Me. And me's Steven Skoczen. I run a development company called Quantum Imagery. Most of my efforts these days are in getting a new business,
SixLinks off the ground. Check it out, if you'd like. I'd say it's way more interesting and revolutionary than Fluidtask. You know, if you're into changing the world and all that.
Can I go make a site called Fluidtask?
No. You can't. "Fluidtask" and that cool f/l/t logo are copyright Quantum Imagery, 2008-forever. This would be plastered across all the pages, but frankly, I think that's ugly. The notice is here. It's copyrighted. So again, let's keep the lawyers in a far-off land, grazing on malpractice lawsuits.
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