Full Circle Magazine FR

Titre : Wunderlist & AirDroid This month, instead of my usual command-line ramblings, I've decided to share with you two very useful pieces of software I've started using: Wunderlist, which is cross-platform, and AirDroid, which is an Android app. For those of you wondering whether this article is worth reading, I leave that up to you. To save you reading the entire article though, I will explain that Wunderlist is a To-Do list application that offers syncing among most any commonly found OS, and AirDroid is a web-based interface for managing your android device. This is especially useful for tablets like the Asus Transformer (TF101), which doesn't play nicely with Linux due to it using MTP. If you have no need for either, feel free to move onto the next article. In the recent few months, I've looked for a method of managing To-Do lists on the go. My usual system of Dropbox, a text file, and conky/geekTool (on OS X) is lightweight, but doesn't offer the ability of actual reminders (without extra coding), and, unless I plan ahead and favourite/download the files on my phone, unavailable to me without Internet access. Beside that, not everyone wants to piece together a system like this.

Enter Wunderlist. It's a program available for everything from iOS and Android to Linux and Windows. It requires you to create a free account, after which you can sync your lists amongst any and all systems that you are logged into. It also offers a web-based login, so you can check it from computers outside of your usual circulation (library, public area, work, borrowed computer, etc). The astute amongst my readers may want to point out that Dropbox allows similar access to files, however, I've found formatting issues abundant when using Windows or OS X text editors, due to them using different formats for non-printing characters. The main menu will drop you into an area called “Inbox”—this is where all of your tasks are listed. Other options are: Today, Overdue, Starred, Done, Tomorrow, Next 7 Days, Later, No Due Date. You can configure notifications for your important tasks, and forgo it on any less important (or time-sensitive) tasks. The only feature I'd like to see implemented is the ability to see your tasks for today on your lock screen when it comes to mobile devices, and, possibly, lightweight/minimized views, or widgets, for normal PCs. If, however, you have no issue unlocking your phone to check the widget, or opening the program on your PC/laptop (or leaving it open constantly), you'll find this to be a great little tool to better organize your (work) life.

An alternative to Wunderlist is, of course, Remember The Milk. The upside to Remember The Milk is the plethora of third-party, and command-line, software available for it. That being said, I do find the interface on Wunderlist to be a little nicer. If, after continued trial of both options, I make a distinct decision, I will make a note of it in Command & Conquer. If anyone has a preference (or another option I haven't named), feel free to email me about it—see the concluding paragraph for my email.

The other piece of software I want to tell you about today is AirDroid. It's a web-based interface for Android, which allows managing of all multimedia, files and apps on a device. For those of you having a mini heart-attack at the thought of all that information being available on a network—relax, at least a little. AirDroid requires a QR Code to be scanned, or the password from the device to be entered at the login screen. Now, this doesn't mean I would use the program in a publicly accessible network, but for home use, so long as your network is encrypted/password protected, it should be just as safe as anything else you do online. Transfer rates, of course, depend upon the LAN you're using on either end of the line (sending/receiving), but will generally be slower than USB. That being said, I was able to put a 4 GB movie on my tablet via a regular ol' 802.11g network in about 5-15 minutes, depending on whether my source device was connected via ethernet or wirelessly.

If you're unable to connect your tablet to Linux, or the trade-off of security for ease (no cables) is worth it to you, I highly recommend giving AirDroid a shot. However, if you're a stickler for security (or have alternatives), I would suggest using something else. As always, if you want the best transfer speeds, using a wired option will serve you best. Lastly, I should note that quitting the app (and killing the server) is done by hitting the back button when at the main window. I, at least, needed a minute to figure that one out.

As always, I hope you've found my opinions useful—and that I've introduced you to some new (and possibly desperately needed) alternatives/solutions. If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions, feel free to email me at lswest34@gmail.com. If you decide to do so, please include FCM or C&C in the subject line, so that I don't overlook it.