We released a minor update to the Vertabase Timer time tracking software today.

The biggest new addition is an auto-stop option which will automatically stop tracking time on an item when your computer is inactive for a specific period of time. You can choose if you want to use auto-stop or not and how long the Vertabase Timer should wait before auto-stopping.

This should be helpful for people who step away from their desk and the Timer was still running. Currently, you can edit the time afterwards, but this should help prevent accidental time being recorded in the first place.

You can read about the Vertabase Timer or click to Try or Buy the Timer directly.

As with all our features, this is a direct result of feedback from our users. Keep it coming.

A mid-level manager I know expressed concern that adopting project management software would give him less control of projects. He thought that if there were a plan everyone could see and update themselves, they wouldn’t need to contact him for instructions.  And thus, he would have less control.

I explained to him that, on an objective level, he would actually

1. Have more control
2. Identify people who aren’t performing more easily and
3. Could get more done.

He would have more control since he could objectively measure progress against the plan.  He could point to specific deliverables and deadlines.  Sure, their would be less politics -and fewer meetings, but he would still be able to direct people’s actions. Only this time, instead of it seeming like the random instructions of a manager, the directions would be part of a coherent plan to accomplish specific goals. In fact, politics could be further removed from the process by having upper management sign-off on the plan before it goes into execution.

Those same objective measures can help identify where people aren’t performing and make it easier to document.  If a manager continuously needs to harp on someone for them to get anything done, it might not be a good fit. Fingers could be pointed at either the manager or the team member. But if you can consistently show that someone is not meeting the stated objectives, the finger pointing becomes much less.

His team could get more done since less time would be reporting on what they were doing or waiting to find out what they should be doing.  Updates can be made and populated automatically in the software. There will be less time in meetings. More time would be available for people to get things done.

MANAGEMENT STYLE

Of course, their may be other factors at play within the organization that make this manager reluctant to put a plan on paper or in a collaborative tool. This is totally legitimate.  A huge percentage of managers still rely on a direct and personal authoritarian approach. It can be very effective.

The vision for a good implementation of project management software is a well-oiled machine. People doing their work and following a plan, following a process that sets-up a constructive feedback loop between management and team members.  While there will always be hiccups, project management practices and project management software can help overcome them quickly and efficiently.

Regardless of management style, collaborative project management software like Vertabase gives a level of visibility, control and accountability without the administrative overhead of having meetings to find out who is doing what.

We are excited to announce the latest version of the Vertabase Timer. This coincides with the launch of a new try-before-you-buy service from Adobe. We were honored to be part of only a handful of applications chosen to help launch this service.

The new Vertabase Timer (version 3.0) has a ton of new features like:

• A sleeker new look
• New charting and graphing functionality
• New personalization options including user names, skins and more
• Billing rates for profitability analysis
• Adding notes and contact information per task
• Reminders when you are working on tasks

As with the previous versions, it runs on Adobe AIR and is written Flex. It works on Windows and MAC as a desktop timer. It is a fast and fun way to track time on projects, clients or tasks.

The new Vertabase Timer is available for Trial Download or Purchase. There is a special introductory price of $5.

I have a few coupon codes from Adobe to offer the application for free. Contact me directly on the contact form if you’d like one of codes.

I’ve been talking to a number of people lately who don’t know what project management is all about and how it can help them. They tend to think of project management as something reserved for large engineering projects or specifically IT projects. Project management can be used on projects of all sizes and in almost any field. It is a way of organizing, tracking and managing resources.

At its most basic, project management and by extension, project management software, can help them:

1. Assign people to tasks
2. Keep all those task assignments in one place
3. Let people know when to start at task
4. Let people know when a task is due
5. Give managers visibility on where everyone is on their tasks
6. Keep all that information in one centralized place

It differs from creating simple tasks lists in that tasks here, are done in the context of completing a project.

That is, the tasks are a coordinated effort by individuals working over a period of time to achieve a specific goal.

Often, that goal has a defined due date and thus knowing how people are doing on their tasks gives you good information for knowing how likely you are to hit the due date or what may need to be done to get to that due date.

Project management software provides a framework for those tasks and the projects they roll up into. It makes it easy to what’s going on. The project owner or manager can track progress and make course corrections as necessary.

Project management software, like Vertabase, can also do micromanaging with automatic email reminders to managers or team members and notifications of when things change.

QUESTION (from LinkedIn): Forecasting the same as prediction? Which one is more realistic and easier to do?

ANSWER: Forecasting is different from predicting. Predicting is much easier but far less accurate.

Predicting is when you start making guesses about things. For example, you predict that laying sheet-rock will take 45 hours to do and you guess that it will be done in 2 weeks.

Forecasting, on the other hand, is when you take information from past jobs and apply it to a new job. For example, if you have seen that laying the sheet-rock for a 3,000 sq ft space takes 65 hours and it usually done in 4 weeks then the next time you have to quote out the same job you’ll be able to forecast how much its going to cost and how long it will really take i.e. when it will really be done after work starts on it.

The big difference is predicting is based on your best guess from experience. Forecasting is based on data you’ve actually recorded and tracked from previous jobs.

I’m happy to announce that Vertabase 4.5 launched today (official press release).

This is the biggest launch of our project management software to date.  It includes a totally new interface and tons of great new features. 

It was built entirely with a rich internet application approach powered by ColdFusion.   To me this means:

1. An intuitive, immersive user experience
2. Enabling quick visibility and access to information
3. Facilitating sharing, data portability and data visualization
4. Integration with the user’s eco-system.

You can see how Vertabase 4.5 adheres to these principles in the 2 minute Quick Tour.  To read about specific new features check out the Vertabase 4.5 Release Notes.

Along with the version, there’s a new, searchable video learning center and we added customer support via instant message using Skype (search for Vertabase Support).

We’re getting ready to launch the latest version of Vertabase project management software.  As always, before a launch, I spend time writing down the message behind the software.  When we release a new version its not just about adding new features. Each release encapsulates our specific approach to technology and its application to managing projects.

This time around, it struck me how intertwined our approach is with the continued development of rich internet applications (perhaps because of MAX) and how core ColdFusion has been to the evolution of RIA’s and to our product.  In putting the message down on paper/pixels I hope to describe why ColdFusion is so powerful for rich internet application development.

From the very beginning, we’ve relied on ColdFusion for the external releases of our professional product.   The main reason at that time was the speed at which we could build a high-grade web-based application.  The first wave of RIA development, remember, was getting applications to run on the web. There were numerous “thin client” approaches that would serve desktop applications over a network. But that was simply changing the deployment/delivery method of accessing the same old software.  Web-based applications were fundamentally different.

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Its been a whirlwind week and I haven’t had a chance to blog about three other events that took place this week in the world of Vertabase. Here is a summary.

1. Vertabase Project Management Software -we publicly launched the pre-release version of Vertabase 4.5. Clients are already using it and raving. Here is a link to the full release notes (on the pre-release).  Some significant changes are:

• New interface, new look and feel
• Resource Calendar view of projects, tasks, resources, etc. across calendar days and weeks
• Change request system with change logs
• Faster timesheet entry
• Enhanced MS Excel import for even faster template and schedule creation.

We launched the next version of the Vertabase site to go with it and a new Vertabase Video Learning Center.

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The tickler file is a classic time management tool. But it has its limits.  Understanding how a tickler file works, and its drawbacks, is a great way to appreciate the benefits of an online project management system.
 
The classic tickler file is a filing system used to keep things in order by due date.  A conventional tickler file consists of 43 files: 12 folders for each month of the year plus 31 files for each day of the month.  The files are organized by month and then by dates of the month.  Your tickler file can be created using anything from a box to a crate, or you can buy a plastic file box from your local office supply store. This classic format generally allows you to plan for tasks up to one month ahead.  The difference between a tickler file and a planner is that the tickler file allows you to place documents in the file.

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We are pleased to announce the acquisition of Accomplice task management software and to welcome the over 30,000 registered users to the Vertabase community.

Accomplice has been called the “Nirvana of Organization” and reaching “Holy Grail Status” of task management.

Here’s a link to the press release on the acquisition and there’s a ton of information on the product on the Accomplice site.

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