[mgerbasio]

Originally Posted by robchow

I like the idea of wireless backup (Always*Safe) but am wary that I can't keep the backup locally (it is going to the developer's server). Let's hope this doesn't happen for a long time but what happens when the company goes away? Say tomorrow. How am I going to restore my files if I need to or backup the data on my BB when that happens?

Is it me or is this a concern for others as well?

If you backup your BB, the database is locally stored so you'll have a copy. The centrally stored database is synced with the one on your device. That's my understanding of how it works but you can always check with rexwireless.

Regards-Michael G.

[J-Mac]

Originally Posted by robchow

I like the idea of wireless backup (Always*Safe) but am wary that I can't keep the backup locally (it is going to the developer's server). Let's hope this doesn't happen for a long time but what happens when the company goes away? Say tomorrow. How am I going to restore my files if I need to or backup the data on my BB when that happens?

Is it me or is this a concern for others as well?

At first I thought the same thing, as I have mostly used Outlook for storing my calendar data. However a lot of people I know who exclusively use Microsoft Exchange to store all of their Personal Information data say that they have no problem with this type of online storage. Plus it allows a degree of access that Outlook does not: you can access your data stored on the REXWireless servers from anywhere and at anytime. If you lose your device and your home PC crashes or gets infected and you lose all your data, you can simply restore your data from their server. Even if you get a brand new Blackberry device, you can instantly restore your data before you even leave the cell phone store.

The interface in nice, you can print just about any sort you can imagine or save it in a PDF file. I'm liking it a lot!

Jim

[rexguys]

Originally Posted by robchow

I like the idea of wireless backup (Always*Safe) but am wary that I can't keep the backup locally (it is going to the developer's server). Let's hope this doesn't happen for a long time but what happens when the company goes away? Say tomorrow. How am I going to restore my files if I need to or backup the data on my BB when that happens?

Is it me or is this a concern for others as well?

Given that our business is growing nicely, I can assure you that REXwireless is not "going away" as you ask in your post.

However, on the topic of backups, we developed wireless backup because many people don't backup frequently. Mobile devices get dropped, lost, damaged, and stolen all too often. While the hardware is replaced easily enough, a person's data is much more difficult to recreate. Wireless backup gave us one clean solution, no matter if a person used Windows, Mac, or Linux at their desk. We then improved it when we added "one field at a time" sync backup, so a person's backup was normally very current.

We now have a better understanding of the "special situations" some people have. We have users on aircraft carriers, cruise ships, offshore drilling rigs, and safari trips. Far more people that we initially realized are "off network" for weeks at a time; therefore, we are planning on making our database backup via the RIM BlackBerry Desktop Manager relatively soon (probably early 2008). The only reason we have a delay is that 95%+ of our users are happy with the wireless solution and there are lots of enhancements that we want to do that are things the majority, instead of the minority, would appreciate.

So, the answer is that a second backup alternative is coming but getting the work into the active queue is a bit of a challenge. While it is planned for people with "special situations", it will answer your concern at the same time.

Thanks,

-- the REXguys --

REXwireless Software develops personal productivity, knowledge sharing, and corporate marketing software for BlackBerry smartphones and is a BlackBerry Alliances Partner. Free software trials and video demos are available at REXwireless: BlackBerry Software Applications

[jnyost]

Lack of desktop application cripples it in my opinion...

[J-Mac]

Originally Posted by jnyost

Lack of desktop application cripples it in my opinion...

Well, as a handheld user -- new to Blackberry, but using various other devices along with a lot of beta testing of both Symbian (all Series) and Windows CE and WM -- it's one of the better task/notes management applications I have come across. And the Web*Desktop access is more useful than most desktop counterparts to handheld PIMs I have ever used. It's pretty unique in that its speed it pretty amazing, especially considering I am used to being able to use a stylus and touchscreen to move things around quickly. The Grab/Drag/Drop feature is done about as well as I could imagine anyone does it.

The wireless synchronization and backup/restore feature itself is worth the price of admission.

In my opinion, of course.

[jnyost]

Originally Posted by J-Mac

Well, as a handheld user -- new to Blackberry, but using various other devices along with a lot of beta testing of both Symbian (all Series) and Windows CE and WM -- it's one of the better task/notes management applications I have come across. And the Web*Desktop access is more useful than most desktop counterparts to handheld PIMs I have ever used. It's pretty unique in that its speed it pretty amazing, especially considering I am used to being able to use a stylus and touchscreen to move things around quickly. The Grab/Drag/Drop feature is done about as well as I could imagine anyone does it.

The wireless synchronization and backup/restore feature itself is worth the price of admission.

In my opinion, of course.

I guess it crippled it in my opinion because I needed destop access to my data when internet is not available. The web interface proved pretty worthless to me.

The application is awesome, don't get me wrong. I just couldn't justify spending the time to enter all of my data on my phone and then also to not have laptop access to it.

[jbella]

As a 1 week owner of a 7100 who has resisted any impulse buys on my own personal situation for information management, it looks like my wait paid off. I'd still like some sort of calendar view, but that can always be done on paper.

[jsanchez]

Originally Posted by geek_riot

This too bothered me. I've found a quick workaround. Obviously the program is always running. So to quicken the launch time, when I am through with the program I use the ribbon (alt + back) and switch to my desktop or any other program I need if it's always running. That way when I want to open ideaMatrix again, it launches almost instantaneously via the "I" shortcut or by clicking on the icon.

By the way, I don't know why this makes a difference, but it seems to for me.

When I press Alt and the Back key, nothing happens on my unit. Is there sometrick I should know?

Thanks.

[J-Mac]

Originally Posted by jsanchez

When I press Alt and the Back key, nothing happens on my unit. Is there sometrick I should know?

Thanks.

Make sure you are using the Alt + the Escape key: the one immediately to the right of the trackball, not the backspace/delete key. At first I got all mixed up as to which key folks are referring to. You should get a dialog very similar to the Alt + Tab task switch dialog you see on a Windows PC.

Hold the Alt key down while pressing the Esc key. Once the dialog opens, you need to keep holding the Alt key down, and use the trackball to select a program icon. Whichever icon is highlighted when you release the Alt key is where you will end up after releasing the Alt key. If you just do this to see it, check which icon is highlighted when it opens. If you want to stay where you are, select the icon for the program you are in -- otherwise it will switch as soon as you release the Alt key!

Jim

[rexguys]

Originally Posted by rexguys

While we try not to "pre-announce" much or estimate dates (since members of the forums really get unhappy with delays in releases that do happen from time to time), our next release is getting close and we decided to give you guys some details.

As many know, the next release was originally named "5D" for five dimensions. Today's ToDoMatrix is three dimensional with project, time, and delegates as the dimensions a person could use to view their tasks database. We had plans to add two additional, user-definable dimensions that would act like delegates. This capability would creating cross matrix views / folders designed to make it far simpler when implementing GTD, Franklin Covey, or one's own task management methodologies.

As we progressed, we changed the 5D plan and the upcoming release is now going to come out with seven dimensions. 7D allows a person to implement the "best of GTD" and the "best of Franklin Covey" within one application. David Allen clearly is the leader in daily tasks management process and workflow, while Stephen Covey makes a strong case for keeping a close eye on what's strategically important, keeping one's life in balance, and planning weekly. We don't think these are mutually exclusive thoughts.

In addition to 7D, we are adding Multi-Variable Filters, which can be saved as templates, and applied selectively to folders, drawers, or views. A person will be able to filter for one or more of the the user-defined dimensions. For example, this will allow a person to just see "status of next action, priority of high or critical, context of @office, in their due this week view". Folders will remember the last filter that was used within the folder, allowing a person to stay organized with their filter templates.

We have also created our Quick Review Wizard, which will speed up daily and weekly reviews of folders, using Hot*Keys to update dates and other fields such as task status. QRW will run on any folder, drawer, or view. Even better, QRW can run against any "filtered" folder, drawer, or view.

Another welcome change is that we are doubling the size of the task field to make "injection from BlackBerry e-mail" better, as well as adding additional options as to which fields are injected. This will give a person more room to capture the main paragraphs of incoming e-mail messages. We also doubled the size of the folder naming to better accommodate complex project names.

Please note that the 7D release lets a user turn on / off the advanced features in the user profile, so that people who want a simpler system can still have it.

There are over a dozen other enhancements. We have confidence that we are now only weeks and not months away from the release. As with all our releases to date, this will be a free upgrade for existing users.

Regards,

-- the REXguys --

REXwireless Software develops personal productivity, knowledge sharing, and corporate marketing software for BlackBerry smartphones and is a BlackBerry Alliances Partner. Free software trials and video demos are available at REXwireless: BlackBerry Software Applications

Since we are now receiving dozens of emails per day asking about the availability of the 7D release, we decided to give you an update in hopes of buying a little patience (don't know if it will happen tho )

This release is on course for a September release. The BlackBerry end is basically done and we are working to finish up:

a) testing on the BlackBerry client

b) the white paper that will come out with this release (yes, its that significant a change to require a special paper about "how" we think the advanced features should be best put to use)

c) the changes to the documentation

d) the upgrade procedure (this one is bigger than normal because of underlying database changes on the BlackBerry), and

e) changes to REXdesktop web access to allow REXdesktop to support customers that have or have not upgraded at the same time.

Of the remaining components, the greatest degree of difficulty is at the REXdesktop.

Thanks for your patience. Just a few more weeks is our best estimate unless some really unexpected substantial item pops up in testing.

Regards,

--the REXguys

[harryzuluberries]

Outlook sync sounds good so that it's all in one place, but after looking at the rexdesktop, i'm very sure i can live without it. NextAction doesn't even compare to this app! I have tried todoMatrix before, and loved it but the Outlook sync and seperate database were deal breakers for me. Not anymore. Well done REXguys!

[DaBlackberryBoy]

Originally Posted by rexguys

Since we are now receiving dozens of emails per day asking about the availability of the 7D release, we decided to give you an update in hopes of buying a little patience (don't know if it will happen tho )

This release is on course for a September release. The BlackBerry end is basically done and we are working to finish up:

a) testing on the BlackBerry client

b) the white paper that will come out with this release (yes, its that significant a change to require a special paper about "how" we think the advanced features should be best put to use)

c) the changes to the documentation

d) the upgrade procedure (this one is bigger than normal because of underlying database changes on the BlackBerry), and

e) changes to REXdesktop web access to allow REXdesktop to support customers that have or have not upgraded at the same time.

Of the remaining components, the greatest degree of difficulty is at the REXdesktop.

Thanks for your patience. Just a few more weeks is our best estimate unless some really unexpected substantial item pops up in testing.

Regards,

--the REXguys

rexguys,

Thanks for the update, looking forward to the new release!!!!

[harryzuluberries]

So rexguys, reading back your list of enhancements for the update it appears that you've expanded some of the fields. I'm finding that the current version doesn't have enough space for me in the "notes" field. Will the "notes" field be able to hold more info in the next version?

[rexguys]

Originally Posted by harryzuluberries

So rexguys, reading back your list of enhancements for the update it appears that you've expanded some of the fields. I'm finding that the current version doesn't have enough space for me in the "notes" field. Will the "notes" field be able to hold more info in the next version?

Next version doubles the length of the task-note (512 vs 256) and doubles the length of the folder name as well. Additionally, we have added several new selections to the inject-task-from-email dialog to give the user more control over what is injected (like less headers ).

Cheers,

--the REXguys--

Need to share timely product or competitive information across your BlackBerry empowered sales team? Try ReferenceMatrix from REXwireless Software.
REXwireless: BlackBerry Software Applications for Knowledge Sharing and Company Teams

[DaBlackberryBoy]

rexuys,

You may have nailed this one too, just checking...(SORRY FOR THE FOLLOWING MINI-EBOOK)

Scenario: I am in my Today view, it is the end of the day and I am either moving todos to the next day or deleting them since I have completed them. Lets say I have two todos for today that are left...

What I do: I click on the Today view, then I go into the first todo on the list. I click enter, and it takes me into the view only screen that shows details about the todo. Lets say I choose to edit the first todo at this point, and change the date due to tomorrow. I change the date and save it, now there is just one more todo left (my second one). Now since I was in the view mode, it returns me back to that screen for the viewing of the second todo that was left in my list for the View that I was working in (which is usually the Due Today or Due Today and Past Due view - it happens in both of them). Now it will load the second todo and show me that one in view only mode. Lets say I move the second todo to tomorrow as well or do something to get rid of it out of the current view filter. When I save it, I always without fail get an application error. It says the following:

Warning: Error occurred on last run. Error count 1. Error java.lang.ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException

This is no deal breaker for me, just an FYI to you. I saw you have posted lately, so though I would throw this one out to you in case it is a "quick fix".

[rexguys]

Good news - this little bug was causing no harm but is already fixed in the upcoming release.

Thanks,

--the REXguys--

[DaBlackberryBoy]

Originally Posted by rexguys

Good news - this little bug was causing no harm but is already fixed in the upcoming release.

Thanks,

--the REXguys--

Coolbeans, thanks
Now I will anxiously be patient for your upcoming release!

[ShelW]

Seems like the only update is to ToDoMatrix, nothing for IdeaMatrix....

is this the case???

[DaBlackberryBoy]

Originally Posted by ShelW

Seems like the only update is to ToDoMatrix, nothing for IdeaMatrix....

is this the case???

I would believe that you are correct...just todoMatrix at this time.

[J-Mac]

I believe that both are being released -- maybe not at the same time, but I'd be surprised if they weren't.

From what I understand there will be some ties between them. Maybe just the ability to inject one into the other, like with other BB apps.

Personally I have been asking for ideaMatrix to be directly tied to todoMatrix. IOW, create ideas in ideaMatrix and then convert them to ToDo's when their time is right. Also, use ideaMatrix as an extended "Notes" field for ToDo's.

That's not happening, though -- according to the REX guys no one else seems interested in a direct link between the "Matrix twins".

Jim