Author Topic: Mini-Review: TimeKeeper v2.20c by TSM, Kevin Pluck, Crypto-Central (Read 31705 times)

Ampa · « **on:** March 25, 2007, 11:07 AM »

Basic Info...

App Name	TimeKeeper
App URL	http://www.crypto-ce...html/timekeeper.html
App Version Reviewed	v2.20c
Test System Specs	Aging desktop: Athlon 2400+ / 1GB / WinXP SP2
Supported OSes	Windows (all versions)
Support Methods	eMail
Upgrade Policy	Lifetime licence (?)
Trial Version Available?	Trial available HERE Annoyances... The About window will displayed at start up You can't set all the options available in the Options window Limited to 8 tasks before registration Unregistered version chooses a different random interval for reminder popup 15 second enforced delay before dismissing TimeKeeper when it pops up No preview or export of reports (only printing) NOTE: All these annoyances can be removed if you apply for a generous 2 month Demo Registration (via the About box)
Pricing Scheme	Single licence = $15 Reductions available for group licenses

The Main GUI

Intro:

From the helpfile...

TimeKeeper is a personal time tracking system that is designed to reduce the amount of time that you do not charge for.

In brief - A simple time logging utility that also has basic reporting facilities.

Who is this app designed for?

Freelancers
Employees working on a number of projects
Anyone who needs to know where their working hours are going!

The Good

Does what it sets out to do.
Totally stable - never crashed on me.
Easy to understand.
Unobtrusive (yet intrusive enough to ensure that one doesn't simply ignore it!).
Small and fast.
Has a lot of little details that are well integrated and thought out.
Simple reporting built in.
Simple billing codes built in.

The needs improvement section:

I came across a few very minor annoyances...

Several typos in the help file
Can't enter times via the keyboard
Can't tab between cells in the task log grid
The default reports are ugly! (However these are 100% customisable - just edit the RTF template)

Why I think you should use this product

I have used TimeKeeper to account for my time over the last few weeks, and have found that it helped me to keep an accurate record of the time I spent working on a variety of projects.

How does it compare to similar apps?

The only other application in this class that I have tried is Skrommel's TaskLog v1.1 which is freeware, but only really suitable for very basic time logging.

Conclusions

TimeKeeper is a much more developed piece of software that has obviously evolved over a number of years to perform a simple task superbly.

Links to other reviews of this application

None found.

Bonus quick tutorial...

When TimeKeeper first loads you are prompted to enter your current task. This can be typed directly into the cell, or selected from a convenient drop down list.

The drop down is filled from a list of predefined tasks set in the options, plus all other tasks logged within the past 7 days. By default these are sorted by frequency of use, but this can be changed to a simple alphabetical list.

The times all remain editable - either by clicking the (tiny)arrows that appear when a cell is focused or (more conveniently) using the Quick Picker, accessed with a middle or ctrl click.

The window is then dismissed, and will hide in the system tray (by default) for a while (this period of inactivity is also defined in the options). I chose a period of 15 mins - so after that time the window reappears giving me two choices... either I continue with the current activity, or I register a change to a new one.

And that is it! Continue to log your tasks when reminded to do so, and then at the end of the day, week or month produce a report...

Mini-Review: TimeKeeper v2.20c by TSM, Kevin Pluck, Crypto-Central

The registered version also allows export as a CSV file, which could then be imported into Excel (or other spreadsheet software) to generate invoices, plot graphs, perform statistical analysis etc.

Other Screenshots...

Mini-Review: TimeKeeper v2.20c by TSM, Kevin Pluck, Crypto-Central	Mini-Review: TimeKeeper v2.20c by TSM, Kevin Pluck, Crypto-Central	Mini-Review: TimeKeeper v2.20c by TSM, Kevin Pluck, Crypto-Central
The website: a bit primitive. Does the job.	The About box	The Help file
Mini-Review: TimeKeeper v2.20c by TSM, Kevin Pluck, Crypto-Central	Mini-Review: TimeKeeper v2.20c by TSM, Kevin Pluck, Crypto-Central	Mini-Review: TimeKeeper v2.20c by TSM, Kevin Pluck, Crypto-Central
Lots of options	More options	Even more options
Mini-Review: TimeKeeper v2.20c by TSM, Kevin Pluck, Crypto-Central
Add details to a task. Can also log the applications used while working on the task.

mouser · « **Reply #1 on:** March 26, 2007, 07:30 AM »

Fantastic mini review

tomos · « **Reply #2 on:** March 26, 2007, 11:58 AM »

I've downloaded that

tomos · « **Reply #3 on:** April 02, 2007, 03:38 AM »

Ampa
how did you get

NOTE: All these annoyances can be removed if you apply for a generous 2 month Demo Registration (via the About box)

I tried to email them but got no answer - maybe I misunderstood your directions?

It would be nice to be able to try it out without limitations ..

urlwolf · « **Reply #4 on:** April 02, 2007, 05:22 AM »

Their mail support is inconsistent at best.
When I bought this tool, it took them about a week to send the license (I posted about it here).

Later, I asked for a feature (global shortcut), and never got an answer.
You may have better luck, or things may have changed.

tomos · « **Reply #5 on:** April 25, 2007, 04:12 AM »

Actually two mails I sent to support via aboutbox were both returned, delivery failed ...

Ampa · « **Reply #6 on:** April 25, 2007, 07:11 AM »

I have to agree that the response to email is... erm... non-existant!

I wrote to them asking whether they would consider a discount for the good folk at DonationCoder, and had no reply.

As for the trial period, I used the automated system...

This continues to work even after the 2 month trial is up, but only extends your certificate for one day at a time!

Armando · « **Reply #7 on:** October 10, 2007, 01:29 PM »

This software seems like it's been abandoned. Was never able to register it and it's not really possible to use it if you don't get the "certificate". Too bad...

Anything similar exists?

NigelH · « **Reply #8 on:** October 10, 2007, 05:05 PM »

This is not as cheap as Timekeeper, however it's pretty good software for $49.
As there is interest in this category, perhaps they can be contacted regarding a discount for DC members.

Timeless Time & Expense
http://www.magsoftwrx.com/singleuser.htm
http://www.magsoftwrx.com/screens.htm
http://www.magsoftwr...eaturecomparison.htm

Armando · « **Reply #9 on:** October 10, 2007, 05:33 PM »

This is much much more complex... To me, it's almost another type of software altogether.

Did you try it?

NigelH · « **Reply #10 on:** October 11, 2007, 07:13 AM »

Yes, I used it when I was a contractor.
It handled various project's billing and reporting aspects like a dream.

Dormouse · « **Reply #11 on:** October 13, 2007, 02:41 PM »

I use ToDoList (see https://www.donation...dex.php?topic=5057.0 and http://www.codeproje.../tools/todolist2.asp) which is free and has a button that allows you to measure the time spent on each task. It's not the reason I use TDL, but it is a nice extra and TimeKeeper doesn't seem to add much functionality (if any).

Createdfromtheheart · « **Reply #12 on:** January 24, 2008, 11:51 AM »

Hello,

I'm new here so I'm not sure if you can help or not. I purchased TimeKeeper through crypto-central and I'm trying to add the program back to a clean system. I can't reach them through the website, it appears the url is no longer active. I've got the free version now, but need to figure out how to make the full version operable again. Does anyone know what I need to do??

Thanks!

Armando · « **Reply #13 on:** January 24, 2008, 04:15 PM »

Hi Createdfromtheheart, welcome to DC !

You could PM Ampa or urlwolf since they possess the software and might be still using it.

Otherwise, you could try TitleLog, an AHK script by brett (DC member). It works pretty well (that's what I use) and it's... free. The latest version (v1.05.83) can be found at the end of the thread. if you don't have AHK installed, download the .exe,

urlwolf · « **Reply #14 on:** January 25, 2008, 07:15 AM »

I stopped using timekeeper and created my own, the interruptron.
Does the same thing and it's a lot simpler and lest obstructive.
You can get it (free) from the second url in my sig.

Armando · « **Reply #15 on:** January 25, 2008, 11:19 AM »

I stopped using timekeeper and created my own, the interruptron.
Does the same thing and it's a lot simpler and lest obstructive.
You can get it (free) from the second url in my sig.
-urlwolf (January 25, 2008, 07:15 AM)

oooohh. I didn't know that urlwolf. Thanks for the info. I'm going to try it too!

Armando · « **Reply #16 on:** January 25, 2008, 11:53 AM »

interruptron is nice urlwolf. The only problem is the CPU usage. I wonder why it's always between 20-30%. Any idea?

urlwolf · « **Reply #17 on:** January 25, 2008, 01:59 PM »

Yes,
the problem is that it's monitoring applications you tell it to so it can switch to interruption time if you enter one. This is a CPU hog. There was another method that was not CPU demanding, but it failed quite often.

If you want to have no CPU usage, just switch off the option to "chalk off as interruptions the following applications".

A pity that this couldn't be achieved better. Anyway.

There's one user who wants to rewrite the interruption in ruby. He may do a better job at it. In the mean time, just do it 'by hand' (if you know you are in a procrastination streak, at least press the key that marks it as an interruption

)

Armando · « **Reply #18 on:** January 25, 2008, 03:00 PM »

Ok, I see... Thanks for taking the time to explain urlworlf.
Have a productive day! (or what what remains of it...

)

Kevin Pluck · « **Reply #19 on:** February 12, 2008, 06:40 AM »

Hello, I'm Kevin Pluck the guy that made the original TimeKeeper.

Thank you for the excellent review, I am very pleased you like using it.

I wrote TimeKeeper as I was working for a company in New Zealand that required me to keep track of pretty much every minute of the day. I was rubbish at that, completely, I was excellent at my job but was always getting called up on my timesheets. So TimeKeeper was created out of frustration.

After working for a year in this company I decided to emigrate to the UK. This is where I parted ways with TimeKeeper as I simply didn't have the time to continue. TSM expressed an interest in it so I allowed them to continue developing it. My understanding is that TSM is not operating now, I have no idea what has happened as the last communication I have had with them was years ago.

All I can offer is that TK version 2 is available for free, version 2 is the last version I worked on and does not have many of the features mentioned here, but it is free!

You can find it here on my website: http://www.kevinpluck.net/timekeeperv2/.

In the years that have passed since I created TK I have lost the sourcecode so unfortunately there will be no further development.

I hope you all enjoy using TK.

tomos · « **Reply #20 on:** February 12, 2008, 06:44 AM »

You can find it here on my website: http://www.kevinpluck.net/timekeeperv2/.
...
I hope you all enjoy using TK.
-Kevin Pluck (February 12, 2008, 06:40 AM)

nice one

Armando · « **Reply #21 on:** February 12, 2008, 10:09 AM »

Thanks Kevin ! And welcome to DC !

Maybe will you find other interesting software here to download too.