Author Archives: Patrick Rhone

OK, I have very little time. We are in the middle of getting our computer deliveries in preparation for the summer here at work so I am swamped. Personal time? Well that is swamped too but I owe you, the reading public, an update to my (now more than a) week with Backpack. Therefore, this will be a short one.

I have mainly been using Backpack for my work related items and for that it has been great. I really like it, though it is still young and has some potential that it is not quite reaching. The ability to create reminders and have those sent via e-mail and/or SMS to your cell phone is a godsend. I also like the ability to create free form pages that can include lists, notes, images, links (both to other Backpack pages or to the web) and to share those pages with others. There are already many tips, tricks and hacks to extend this built in functionality to it’s boundaries. It is a great place to keep some lists, notes or light projects (if you are looking for a heavier project management tool then look no further than 37 Signals other product Basecamp which I have mentioned here before). Not only that but you can add any of these items by sending an e-mail to any of your backpack pages. A great way to add content on the fly.

There are some things I wish it had that it currently does not. For instance, I wish I could re-order the items on a page. the order in which lists (only one list per page – therefore, separate lists must live on separate pages!), notes, images and links live is very static. I also wish there was a “move this item to page named pagename feature was there so you could easily move these items between pages. This would make the “e-mail items” feature much more useful because you could just send everything to one page and move it around later. All the same, it looks like the folks at 37 Signals are working very hard to take feature requests and feedback through the Backpack forum they have put in place and so i have no doubt that many new features will be forthcoming.

Therefore, i will continue to use Backpack as I have been, mostly for work related items and lists but may move a lot of my personal stuff there in the future if the promise of the potential becomes reality.

My week with Backpack part 2 post will be delayed by perhaps several days as several items in my life will take much higher priority and I will not have the time to sit down and type it out. This will also most likely mean that my next “week with” post will be pushed back as well. I am really sorry but time has not been on my side lately.

OK, so I have been talking about this now for weeks and it was finally released today. I really wanted to write about my first experiences with Backpack, the new web based organizational tool from 37 Signals, Therefore, I had to delay this week’s “Week With” and will post the followup a day late accordingly (Saturday).

Backpack allows one to gather notes, lists, reminders, links, images and files all in one easy to use web based application. What makes it even more innovative is the way in which you can add items like notes and to-do items. Besides being able to simply add them from within Backpack, you can e-mail notes and items to yourself. In turn, you can create reminders which can be e-maiiled to you or sent to your phone via SMS. All very useful to a forgetful organization fiend such as myself.

I will be attempting to use Backpack for all manner of personal items and work related items. While I doubt it will replace Now Up-to-Date for me quite yet, I will attempt to use it this week for as many things as possible. Those who know me know I am constantly looking for that one über-organization tool to rule my life. Could this be it? I will also use it for all of my Carleton related to-do items and reminders as I have been quite lax on keeping a system to track those to-do items for lack of wanting to take the time to develop one(All of the while needing to do so).

I also have another project that I am working on that is a good fit for Basecamp, a web based project management tool by the same company. Therefore, I may also do some comparison and contrast of features and uses. All in all it should be a fun ride. Tune back on Saturday week for Part 2.