Project Templates and a Cool Menu!
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Posted: Jan 27th 2010
In our goal to constantly improve usability and listen to your requests here is a new feature that you will love.
Personally I love cool popup menus (as long as they are intuitive and don't get in the way). I've always wanted to make a little menu system like this. Now when you click the options button you will get a little menu that allows you to perform actions for a project.
The main option on this menu is a highly requested feature - Project Templates or 'Duplicate Project' functionality.
Duplicate Projects and Create Templates
This new addition is quite obvious to the un-trained eye. It simply creates a copy of the projects and tasks. Some might look at it and say "ah that might come in handy one day when I want to make a copy", but to the rest of you (those who highly requested this feature) it's an extremely useful tool.
Imagine that you always create a project that contains the same basic tasks, for example; a 'Web Design Project' that always contains the same 4 tasks - 'Wireframing', 'Web Design', 'HTML Build', 'Deployment'. They might all be ongoing tasks that have a basic fixed fee, and the Project always has the same currency and the same hourly/daily rates.
Normally you would have to re-produce these steps every time you started a new project for a client, but now all you need to do is create a template project with everything set up as you like and call it 'Web Design Template'. Then you just duplicate it every time you want to create a new project out of that template.
Sounds simple huh? There you go... enjoy!
A few notes: you can't duplicate the collaborators, you would need to re-assign these people for each project you create. Also, comments, to-dos, notes and statuses are not duplicated.
Posted by Stu GreenStu is the founder and lead developer of Project Bubble. He lives in London with his wife and has a seriously good left hand at table football.
Comments
By on Jan 27th 2010
Awesome. this is just getting better and better.
By Michael Murdoch on Jan 27th 2010
Very impressed! This is all shaping up very well! Do you do client projects / freelance work?
Thanks,
Michael
By Chad Tomkiss on Jan 27th 2010
Hi Stu,
My dissertation is based on simplifying project management so that more time is spent on the project rather than setting up and maintaining the project management software, as so many have exhaustive "features" that just arent required in my opinion.
Your application is definately one that has stood out from my research, and it is such a great achievement, not only from the functionality, but the ease of use, the constant interaction with the community, and the on-going improvements that do not seem to stop!
I am even using it to manage my final year modules!
I would suggest being able to type the project name in a pop up once the duplicate project is clicked (so that we don't have to click edit, type the name and then save changes?)
Other than that, fantastic work :)
By Stu Green on Jan 27th 2010
Hi Chad,
Yes I hear you, and that is a good idea. I'll look in to that for you at some point.
Glad it's working for you, and I agree about your comments regarding Project Management applications taking longer than the actual time spent on the project, I'm hoping to break that trend.
Stu