[Llamagraphics Support Center] Recently Changed Articles

I can't get Life Balance for iPhone to sync to Windows

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 11:33:02 GMT

We've created an interactive troubleshooting guide to help you get Life Balance syncing between the iPhone and Windows. Follow those instructions, and contact us with details if you continue to have problems.

Where are iPhone backups stored?

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:32:11 GMT

Mac: Home/Library/Application Support/Life Balance/Backups/iPhoneName
Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\Username\Application Data\Life Balance\Backups\iPhoneName
Windows Vista and Windows 7: C:\Users\Username\AppData\Roaming\Life Balance\Backups\iPhoneName

On all versions of Windows the Application Data directory is hidden by default, so you may need to enter the directory name manually or show hidden folders in order to see the backups.

Life Balance for Windows crashes during iPhone sync

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 13:59:56 GMT

Symptom

When you perform a Network operation from Life Balance for iPhone to Life Balance for Windows, the Windows version of Life Balance crashes with the error:

Attempted to read or write protected memory. This is often an indication that other memory is corrupt.

The crash is accompanied by the creation of a "Life Balance crash.log" file on the desktop that contains messages like the following:

Life Balance crashed at 16/07/2009 20:42:26
Attempted to read or write protected memory. This is often an indication that other memory is corrupt.
System.Windows.Forms
   at System.Windows.Forms.Control.MarshaledInvoke(Control caller, Delegate method, Object[] args, Boolean synchronous)
   at System.Windows.Forms.Control.Invoke(Delegate method, Object[] args)
   at Life_Balance.LBDocument.SyncWith(String sqlPath)
   at LBEngine.IPhone.WindowsDocument.SyncWith(WindowsDocument* , basic_path<std::basic_string<wchar_t\,std::char_traits<wchar_t>\,std::allocator<wchar_t> >\,boost::filesystem::wpath_traits>* sqlPath)

Solution

This problem appears to be caused by a particular sequence of security updates to the .NET Framework issued by Microsoft. We don't know the exact sequence, but the problem can be solved by reinstalling or repairing the latest .NET Framework components.

One possible solution is to install a HotFix from Microsoft. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/923028

If you are on Windows XP, then you may be able to reinstall or repair the .NET Framework 2.0 using instructions from Microsoft. See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306160 and http://support.microsoft.com/kb/908077

If you are running Vista, then one customer was able to fix the problem by re-installing/repairing Microsoft Visual Basic 2008 Express edition.

How do I recover from a hard reset?

Mon, 13 Jul 2009 21:49:57 GMT

Problem:

I just had a hard reset on my Palm, and need to restore my Life Balance data. What should I do?

Solution:

Restoring a Palm handheld from backups can be tricky. We made some changes in Life Balance 3.2.4 and later to make this process easier, so be sure to choose the appropriate instructions for the version of Life Balance you were running at the time of the crash.

Please do not HotSync before you have completed these steps!

If you have Life Balance for the Desktop, turn the Life Balance conduit to 'do nothing' until you have reinstalled Life Balance on your Palm. Click 'Make Default'

Life Balance 3.2.4 -May 2004 -and later

Life Balance 3.2.4 and later simplify the procedure of restoring from backups by ensuring that you won't lose your Date Book links if your Life Balance data is restored before you Date Book data. However, you still want to be careful to keep a copy of your backups and to only restore the data that you actually need.

First, locate your Palm Desktop user folder. On Windows, this will be a folder named C:Palmsomething or C:Program FilesPalmsomething, or My DocumentsPalm OS Desktopsomething, where something is derived from your HotSync name. On Mac OS X, the folder will be Home:Documents:Palm:Users:HotSync name:. On Mac OS 9 it will be Palm:Users:HotSync name:. You'll know you've located the correct folder if it contains subfolders named "Backup" and "Life Balance", and the modification dates on the files match the time of your last HotSync.
Make a copy of your Palm Desktop user folder and put it somewhere safe, like the desktop, where it won't be modified by future HotSyncs. If the restore goes smoothly, you may not need this folder, but you'll be glad to have it if something goes wrong.
Look inside your Palm Desktop user folder (the original one, not the copy you made) and create a new folder there named "Archive". Move the file Life Balance.prc out of the Backup folder and into the Archive folder so it will not be restored when you restore your Palm.
Move any other files that you do not want restored from the Backup folder to the Archive folder. The Backup folder accumulates everything that you have ever had installed on your Palm, including applications and data that you have deleted. In fact, your Backup folder may contain more data than your handheld can hold! Your restore will go more smoothly if you archive any files that don't need to be restored.
Perform a HotSync, which will restore the files in the backup folder.
Examine your handheld to make sure that everything (other than Life Balance) restored correctly. In particular, make sure that your Date Book is correct.
Download a fresh copy of Life Balance.prc from the Llamagraphics web site and install it onto your handheld.
Launch Life Balance on your handheld and run the Verify Data command from the Options menu. If any problems are found, repair them.
Look over the Life Balance data on your handheld to make sure it is correct.
Remember to restore your conduits to their prior state.

Life Balance 3.2.3 and earlier -before May 2004

In Life Balance 3.2.3 and earlier you need to restore files in a particular order so that you don't lose the links between Life Balance and the built-in Date Book. To restore smoothly for version 3.2.3 and earlier, you need to make sure that the Date Book is restored before you restore Life Balance.

First, locate your Palm Desktop user folder. On Windows, this will be a folder named C:Palmsomething or C:Program FilesPalmsomething, or My DocumentsPalm OS Desktopsomething, where something is derived from your HotSync name. On Mac OS X, the folder will be Home:Documents:Palm:Users:HotSync name:. On Mac OS 9 it will be Palm:Users:HotSync name:. You'll know you've located the correct folder if it contains subfolders named "Backup" and "Life Balance", and the modification dates on the files match the time of your last HotSync.
Make a copy of your Palm Desktop user folder and put it somewhere safe, like the desktop, where it won't be modified by future HotSyncs. If the restore goes smoothly, you may not need this folder, but you'll be glad to have it if something goes wrong.
Look inside your Palm Desktop user folder (the original one, not the copy you made) and create a new folder there named "Archive". Move the following files out of the Backup folder and into the Archive folder so they will not be restored when you restore your Palm:
- Life Balance.prc
- Life Balance Outline 3.pdb
- Life Balance Places 3.pdb
- Life Balance Appointments 3.pdb
- Life Balance Sync 3.pdb
Move any other files that you do not want restored from the Backup folder to the Archive folder. The Backup folder accumulates everything that you have ever had installed on your Palm, including applications and data that you have deleted. In fact, your Backup folder may contain more data than your handheld can hold! Your restore will go more smoothly if you archive any files that don't need to be restored.
Set the Life Balance conduit to "Do nothing", and make that the default setting. That will prevent the conduit from running when you HotSync.
Perform a HotSync, which will restore the files in the backup folder.
Examine your handheld to make sure that everything (other than Life Balance) restored correctly. In particular, make sure that your Date Book is correct.
Install the four Life Balance pdb files that you archived earlier onto your handheld by double-clicking on them or using the Install Tool. You can leave these files in the archive folder — they should not go back in the backup folder. Do not reinstall the Life Balance.prc file.
Download a fresh copy of Life Balance.prc from the Llamagraphics web site and install it onto your handheld.
Launch Life Balance on your handheld and run the Verify Data command from the Options menu. If any problems are found, repair them.
Look over the Life Balance data on your handheld to make sure it is correct.
Go back to the Life Balance conduit settings and set it to Synchronize by default again.

Do not launch or HotSync Life Balance if the Datebook databases are not already restored on your Palm because this will cause Life Balance to see that there are no appointments in your Calendar, and it will lose the links to your Datebook events.

If you have lost the links, please contact us. We have a utility that can help you recover the links.

Sync message "Network error. The list of remote documents could not be retrieved. Please check your network firewall settings"

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 20:29:29 GMT

Question: ------- Got my new iPhone 3G S and installed LifeBalance 5.04. When I attempt to sync with LB desktop (5.05) I receive the following message on the iPhone: "Network error. The list of remote documents could not be retrieved. Please check your network firewall settings." I have enabled iPhone synchronization under the Mac LifeBalance Menu item, but I left the TCP/IP port number blank. On the iPhone, under "More" and "Network" I can select "Sync" and see my Mac, but then the connection times out and I receive the network error message. I have a solid wifi connection with my Airport and have good internet connectivity. Any ideas? Answer: ------ Thanks for getting in touch with us. Here is how you look for those firewall settings. Go to the System Preferences. Choose "Security" which is in the top row. There are three tabs, choose the one for "firewall." Either choose "allow all incoming connections" OR the third option "set access for specific services and applications." If you choose the third option, you have to add Life Balance to the list of okay applications. It is also possible that you have a secondary firewall application installed. Be sure to add Life Balance to its list of approved applications too! I hope that is helpful and clear. That should be enough to get you going on that new iPhone.

Running Life Balance from a USB "thumb" drive on Windows

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 13:52:24 GMT

Problem:

Can I run Life Balance 3.4 from a Windows USB "thumb" drive, perhaps so that I can run Life Balance at work? Can I run the Life Balance conduit from a thumb drive?

Solution:

As long as the work computer has the Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 nstalled, Life Balance can be run from a USB thumb drive.

There are a couple of ways to install the Windows edition of Life Balance onto a thumb drive.

One way is to do a normal install of Life Balance on any Windows computer, and then drag the C:Program files/Llamagraphics/Life Balance folder from that computer to your thumb drive. You should then be able to plug the thumb drive into any Windows computer that has the .NET Framework 2.0 installed and launch Life Balance by double-clicking on Life Balance.exe. You can even uninstall Life Balance from the original Windows computer when you are done, if you don't want to leave it there.

The disadvantage of this technique is that you won't be able to HotSync on the Windows computer, because the Life Balance conduit needs to be registered by the installer to run under Windows.

Another technique is to do a single-user install on the Windows machine at work, which doesn't require administrative privileges. You can either install the software to your home directory (the default), or to the thumb drive itself! As long as the thumb drive always has the same drive letter when you HotSync, the HotSync manager should be able to locate the Life Balance conduit on the thumbdrive and perform a sync.

By default, the Life Balance conduit synchronizes with the file C:Program FilesPalmHotSyncNameLife Balance data.lbd, but you can change this to sync with the file on your thumb drive. Just open the file you want to sync with in the desktop version of Life Balance, and choose the correct Palm handheld name from the HotSync menu. This will configure the handheld to sync with the file you have open in Life Balance.

Running Life Balance from a USB "thumb" drive on Macintosh

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 13:51:40 GMT

Problem:

Can I run Life Balance from a USB "thumb" drive? Can I store my Life Balance documents on a thumb drive?

Solution:

Yes, Life Balance should work fine on a thumbdrive. Our installer puts the application into your Applications folder, but you can move it to a thumbdrive if that's convenient for you. You can also store your Life Balance document (.lbd) file on the thumbdrive, and HotSync with it from there.

The only file that needs to be installed on the desktop computer itself is the Life Balance conduit, which needs to go in the /Library/Application Support/Palm HotSync/Conduits folder of the Mac where you'll be doing the HotSyncing.

By default, the Life Balance conduit synchronizes with the file "Life Balance data.lbd" in your Documents:Palm:Users: folder, but you can change this to sync with the file on your thumbdrive. Just open the file you want to sync with in the desktop version of Life Balance, and choose the correct Palm handheld name from the HotSync menu. This will configure the handheld to sync with the file you have open in Life Balance.

How to send us a crash report and your data from the iPhone

Tue, 07 Apr 2009 19:11:38 GMT

How to Report a Crash If you encounter a crash in Life Balance for iPhone, here's how to report it: 1. Sync your iPhone with iTunes. This will copy the crash log to your desktop computer. 2. Locate the crash log: Mac OS X ~/Library/Logs/CrashReporter/MobileDevice/DeviceName Windows XP C:\Documents and Settings\UserName\Application Data\Apple computer\Logs\CrashReporter\DeviceName Windows Vista C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Roaming\Apple computer\Logs\CrashReporter\MobileDevice\DeviceName The log file names start with "Life Balance" and have the extension “crash”. They are just plain text files and can be sent by e-mail in original or zipped form, or even copy-pasted into your e-mail program. 3. Send the complete crash log, along with a description of what you were doing when you got the crash, to support@llamagraphics.com. Please also tell us the exact version number of Life Balance for iPhone that you were running. You can find the version number under More ▸ Settings ▸ About. How to send us your iPhone data Sometimes the easiest way for us to reproduce a crash in Life Balance is to get a copy of your data file so we can see the problem under the debugger. Your data will be treated confidentially, and used only to reproduce the problem you have reported to us. To send us your iPhone data: 1. Use the “Backup...” command under the Network tab to create a desktop backup of your Life Balance data. 2. Locate the data file: Mac OS X ~/Library/Application Support/Life Balance/Backups/DeviceName Windows XP C:\Documents and Settings\UserName\Application Data\Life Balance\Backups\DeviceName The backup files are named with the date and time of the backup, and end with “.lbsql”. Although they can be attached to an email message directly, it's generally a good idea to compress the file into a ZIP archive before sending it. 3. Send the data file, along with a description of what you were doing when you got the crash, to support@llamagraphics.com. Please also tell us the exact version number of Life Balance for iPhone that you were running. You can find the version number under More ▸ Settings ▸ About.

Syncing Advice for the iPhone and iPod touch

Tue, 07 Apr 2009 18:37:56 GMT

If you are having trouble syncing, first go back and read the iPhone Advice Book Chapter on Syncing: http://www.llamagraphics.com/resources/documentation/iphone/ChapiPhoneSync.html If this doesn't immediately clear up the problem, try the following: Check the wi-fi settings on the iPhone - they are in the launch page. They should be set to your network - not a neighbor's network. Check to make sure that your desktop computer is on, not completely asleep or turned off. If you are syncing to Life Balance for Windows, Life Balance should be running and your Life Balance outline should be displayed. The Windows desktop needs the free application BonJour to help the sync. The desktops should be the current version of Life Balance and the 'Enable iPhone Sync' should be marked. For both, the advice book will explain other conditions to be met on the desktop. If you do not have a license for the desktop and the trial is up, you need to purchase a license. If you are still having trouble, let us know by opening a ticket - and tell us that you have read this article and gone through the suggestions here.

Catching up, skipping, and postponing tasks on the iPhone, desktops and Palm.

Tue, 07 Apr 2009 18:13:57 GMT

Problem:

I need to skip a routine task but I don't want checking it to give me credit.

Solution:

On Macintosh 4/5 and Windows 5 desktops, there are new menu items for handling the catch up, skip, and postpone situation.

The Palm Life Balance 3.5 has those commands, too. You can reach them from the To Do screen Task menu.

Here's what happens to routine tasks:

Skip: Reschedules the task to occur one period later that it is currently scheduled to occur. So if it repeats every year and it's scheduled for 2/1/09, skipping the task will reschedule it for 2/1/10, regardless of what today is.

Catch Up: Acts as if you just completed the task, but doesn't give you credit for it. The next scheduled time will be one period from now, regardless of when it was originally scheduled for.

Postpone Until: You get to specify exactly when to reschedule it for. In that case, it becomes a due date schedule.

Credit card refused

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:09:24 GMT

Problem:

Your order system won't accept my credit card. What can I do? Do you support PayPal?

Solution:

The most common reason that a credit card won't be accepted by our ordering system is that your bank refused the internet transaction through Verisign. Each bank is free to set its own policy on this, and some banks only work with particular internet credit card authorization software.

You have several options:

-You can try placing your order with Handango or PalmGear instead of using our web site. In this case you will receive your license code by email, usually within 24 hours.

-You can open a ticket and ask us to process your order manually. Usually, we can retrieve your failed order from our online ordering system and authorize your credit card by telephone. This will often succeed when the automatic system fails. Just be sure not to resubmit your order once you've asked us to process it manually, or you may get billed twice!

-If you have a special situation where you need to purchase Life Balance using a check, money order, or purchase order, open a ticket and we'll let you know how to proceed.

-we have a PayPal account. If you would like to use PayPal,be sure to specify Macintosh or Windows if you want a desktop license. We'll handle your order manually.

There is more information about how to place your order without using a credit card in this page:

https://www.llamagraphics.com/orderalternatives.html

When is the next release coming? And does it do (insert your favorite feature request here)?

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:07:56 GMT

Problem:

What is the llamas' schedule for new features - what is in the next release?

Solution:

There are never any announcements on timelines or feature lists for future releases.

We are a three person company with very limited development resources, and if one of us should happen to get the sniffles, or if there are other outside factors to consider, it can easily impact our intended development schedules.

In planning releases, we try to strike a balance among

-responding to customer requests,
-the needs of our various partners,
-supporting features on new devices,
-supporting new operating systems,
-providing consistent features across the product line and through the conduit
-working efficiently within the structure of the code, (similar features often get handled at the same time),
-and the needs of the business.

I would not make any assumptions on how those various factors interact. We try to plan our releases with a long term perspective so that they ultimately serve the needs of our customers, even if they don't necessarily get in everyone's favorite feature request every time.

-- Llamas

Beta expiring

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:06:42 GMT

Problem:

My beta is expiring in a few days/has expired, what should I do?

Solution:

First you want to be sure that we haven't posted a final release. If we have a new release, it will be on our downloads page:

http://www.llamagraphics.com/downloads/index.php

If we haven't gone final yet, be sure that you have the latest beta build, because the expiration date will later on the latest builds.

Check this article for new information.

I want to upgrade to the desktop from the Palm.

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:04:25 GMT

Problem:

I think I have a handheld license but I've lost it and anyway, I want to upgrade to the desktop. Where do I find the newest version and the desktop software?

Solution:

Thank you for your question about using the Life Balance desktop. This is
the downloads page:

http://www.llamagraphics.com/downloads/index.php

You should download the desktop package of your choice - run the installer
to upgrade and upgrade your Palm
version as well. You should end up with current version numbers
on the desktop, conduit, and Palm.

If you send a request to the helpdesk, we can search for your Palm license. We will send the license to you and let you know whether you need an upgrade to the Palm license or not.

You can use a current Palm license code to purchase an add-on license from our
orders page:

https://www.llamagraphics.com/store/bundles.php

Jobs at Llamagraphics

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:00:49 GMT

Problem:

Do you have any job opportunities? Can I send you a resumé?

Solution:

Right now we are not actively looking to hire any new people. However, if you think you have complementary skills that could help us to grow our company, open a ticket and we will let you know if you should send a resumé.

Software updates

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:00:11 GMT

Problem:

I worry that I'll need to buy an upgrade immediately after I buy my license.

Solution:

You don't need to worry about "timing" your purchase. If you purchase licenses for Life Balance from our web site within 30 days of a paid upgrade release, we will issue upgrade licenses for you without an additional upgrade fee, as long as we can confirm the date of purchase in our database. So contact support by email if you are in that situation.

Our official update policy for Life Balance is to decide, case by case, whether or not to charge for each release.

We try to be generous with minor updates, but we do not guarantee that all updates in the future will be free. You are welcome to look at our release notes - many minor updates to Life Balance have been free. Here is the address of the release notes:

http://www.llamagraphics.com/LB/MergedReleaseNotes.html

Pricing may change, or there may be charges for upgrade releases in the future. Always check the store for latest pricing information. In the past we have issued generous discounts to current customers when we have charged for a major update, and we would likely offer discounts to existing customers in the future.

How to become a reseller

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:59:16 GMT

Problem:

I would like to sell Life Balance to my clients.

Solution:

If you feel that our Life Balance software would benefit your clients in your practice as a consultant, Life Coach, Professional Organizer or other related specialty, Llamagraphics would be delighted to provide you with extra services and support designed to meet your needs. You can read more about our requirements for qualifiying for the Certified Associates program here:

http://www.llamagraphics.com/coach/

What about Tech Support?

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:58:34 GMT

Problem:

I want to make sure you will provide support if I need it! Or - I have a problem! What should I do?

Solution:

Llamagraphics is committed to supporting our customers... in fact we enjoy hearing from you!

Since we are getting more support questions as we grow, there are some things that you can do to help us out when you contact us.

Open a ticket and when you do, be sure to mention if you are using the iPhone, iTouch, Palm, Mac or Windows edition of the software.

Let us know what version of Life Balance you are using, and what version of the operating system you are using on each platform. See if you can find the answer to your question in the knowledgebase - we are adding new information all the time!

If you are using a Palm handheld, let us know the model.

If you post your question in the User Forums, you probably won't need to open a ticket as well. If you do open a ticket, you may want to hold off posting in the User Forums. Opening a ticket is usually faster and more certain. In any case, be sure to let us know if you post in both places so that we can track the question and responses appropriately.

Remember that we are a small company handling many thousands of customers. We usually respond quickly and personally to all the messages we receive, and you are talking directly to the development team.

Thanks,

The Llamas!

Are there educational and military discounts?

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:51:54 GMT

Problem:

I am a student or a teacher or in the military - can I have a discount?

Solution:

Llamagraphics does offer discounts on desktop and Palm for students, teachers, others with educational status, and those in the military. There are no discounts for iPhone/iTouch Life Balance purchases. The available discounts are one-time only discounts to get you started - the discount won't be extended to paid upgrades or add-ons.

Educational discounts, with proof of student/educational/military status are:
$10 off desktop/palm
$8.50 off desktop only
$5 off Palm-only
Discounts of this sort are handled manually - so the purchase must be made at full price from our orders page:

https://www.llamagraphics.com/store/bundles.php

This is the procedure:
Open a ticket through the support center with your request for a discount, and information about your educational or military status.
When we give the go-ahead, purchase your license/licenses from the orders page.
Notify us that you have purchased.
Then the helpdesk will take care of issuing a credit against your transaction. Once again, we can only offer this discount if you purchase from our orders page.

I have a suggestion!

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:49:00 GMT

Problem:

I've thought of a new way for Life Balance to behave.

Solution:

This is the best way to send us a suggestion:

Open a ticket
Let us know what platform is involved
Let us know what is happening that seems to require a different behavior
It also helps to let us know how long you have been using Life Balance so we don't provide information you already have. For example, a new user might not know about proxy icons or places - so we frequently try to give suggesters some information about how Life Balance already works. If you have been using Life Balance for years, this effort to inform would be unneccessary.
We don't often have the time to discuss your suggestion in depth when it is sent in. However, your name, ticket number, and suggestion are recorded in our development database if they are new suggestions or new aspects of existing suggestions - to be reviewed the next time we go through the virtual index cards.
We are truly appreciative of the time and thought involved in sending us suggestions. Thank you!

I like to have CDs just in case my computer crashes.

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:47:21 GMT

Problem:

It makes me nervous not to have a backup CD of Life Balance software - could you send me one???

Solution:

Llamagraphics maintains a downloads page -

http://www.llamagraphics.com/downloads/index.php

where you can go to download a fresh copy of Life Balance whenever you please at no charge. This is the 'real' software - all it needs is your license. If you don't have your license, we can send it to you, given an email address and/or name as a locator!

We only send out CDs in cases of unusual need (no internet connection, for example) since the software is always available to you online.

Does Life Balance run on other operating systems except iPhone/iTouch, Palm OS, Windows and Macintosh???

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:42:45 GMT

Problem:

I have a machine which does not run on the iPhone/iTouch, Palm Os, Windows, or Macintosh operating system... will Life Balance run on my machine?

Solution:

Life Balance runs on the iPhone/iTouch, Palm OS, Windows desktop, and Macintosh desktop.We are concentrating on the platforms we have - especially the iPhone - at this time.

Recent efforts to run the Windows desktop version of Life Balance (and .NET Framework 2 Redistributable) under an emulator on a Linux operating system have not been successful.

We are always reassessing the situation regarding possible platforms for Life Balance so if you are interested in news about other operating systems, please make sure to sign up for news about Life Balance:

http://www.llamagraphics.com/email/index.php

We do not send out much mail so there will probably be general news releases. If you are interested in our progress and development, you might want to look at our company's front page, where we post news and twitter what's going on.

I'm not getting the newsletter

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:38:01 GMT

Problem:

I signed up for the Life Balance Newsletter and I'm not getting it. I wrote to you about my lost license and you never replied, too!

Solution:

Spam filters like SpamArrest are not letting our Newsletters get through and aren't even letting us verify ourselves as humans, though we have been trying hard to respond to all the verification requests. We are also getting reply email address which have been altered so that we can't respond. We have seen several 'lost license' letters and original letters like that - and our responses bounce right back to us. Please, please make sure that we are allowed through your spam filter and that your 'reply to' address is correct, especially if you want us to help you with a lost license or other problem!

How do I maintain my list in Life Balance? What is weekly planning like?

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:36:56 GMT

Problem:

How do I maintain my list in Life Balance? What is weekly planning like?

Solution:

Life Balance is not so much about static weekly planning, but more about continuous dynamic planning.

Here's something to think about. I have a different set of steps that I do for review, that take far less time to acccomplish than the traditional weekly planning session. One Life Balance customer recently told us that he was able to trim back his daily planning session from one hour each day to just a few minutes. What could you do with an extra hour each day?

What you get done now today dynamically affects what Life Balance suggests that you do next in the future tomorrow. One problem with most to do lists is that they are perpetually out of date from the time that you make them. You are affecting the "system" in which you are working, and your list needs to reflect that to truly represent what you are doing and where you are going!

Overall, it is our observation that people who are first starting to use Life Balance tend to try to do quite a bit of extra manual work to maintain a traditional style of static weekly system that they are familiar with. Carrying tasks forward from day to day, putting everything into buckets for particular days, making artificial appointments with themselves, etc. Often that is work that they don't necessarily have to do.

What I generally do for a review is more like the following, and it is the process that I personally recommend for use with the Life Balance software product line:

1) Subdivide and Conquer. Look over the list for any existing project headings that have popped up, or things which look too big to tackle and that need to be broken down some more. Things like "Update the web site" which is not something that I can just do in one sitting since it involves fishing around for the next essay or review idea and then following through with the posting to the web site. So I add in tasks under that for what the specific next steps might be. I won't necessarily do all of these tasks, but I can capture them for now.

2) Top Down thinking. Are there long term projects that are not on the list at all that I want to think about, reasearch or do? Happy with my top level tasks? Usually this means looking at the second level and saying WHAT ELSE could I possibly do for that long range goal which would make that top level goal happen and be wonderful!?

3) Bottom up thinking. Are there tasks that I AM already doing that I need to add to the list? For instance, I may get a phone call from someone with a project that needs follow up. Customer support is frequently in this catagory. We recently had a customer support case that involved quite a bit of back and forth interaction with our contacts at PalmOne. That was a project that sprouted up overnight, and when it was done, we even had a new beta tester!

4) Adjustments. What has changed? I look at the list with "Include Closed Places" and "All Places." Does the order reflect the current state of things? If not, I select a task that seems like it is too high or too low and travel up the hierarchy until I find the HIGHEST project that needs adjustment in importance. This will then take care of all the related tasks that also need adjustment.

5) Weeding. Are there any things on the list that I should just delete as being dead ends?

6) Balancing. Switch to the Balance section. Is the Actual pie chart reflecting where I want to put my effort in the coming week? If I caught the flu, then I might cut back temporarily on work. If I'm preparing for a trade show, then I might increase that slice to the max and let the laundry take care of itself until it is time to pack the suitcase.

Not all steps need to be done each time, and I tend to do this quickly whenever I feel the need, but that is more or less the list that I go through for what the equivalent of a "Weekly" planning regimen would be.

--Catherine E. White, President

What is Life Balance?

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:36:21 GMT

Problem:

I'd like to know what Life Balance is - a short description of what it is supposed to do!

Solution:

Life Balance is a time and task management program that helps you focus on what's really important to you and actively balance the often conflicting demands of career and personal life. Life Balance emphasizes the intrinsic importance that you've assigned to your projects and life goals, rather than arbitrarily filling every slot in your calendar. This helps you to spend your time and energy on what matters to you the most. You can be self-directed, and know that you are working toward long term goals while still managing your day to day routine.

Some of the features that set Life Balance apart from most to-do list software are:

A built-in outliner so that you can organize your tasks into projects
The ability to reprioritize all the tasks in a project by dragging a single slider
An unlimited number of places (categories) that you can use to filter your to-do list
Dependencies, so that Step B won't appear on your list until Step A is finished
Routine tasks, like laundry, can be scheduled to happen with a flexible interval rather than scheduling for a particular day and time
Lead times to gently bring your attention to approaching deadlines
Integration with the schedule in your Palm's built-in Date Book
Pie charts that provide feedback on how you are spending your time
Unique "balance" feature nudges your to do list to help to bring your actual time and effort allocation more in line with your desires
An active and knowledgeable User Community available in the User Forum to help answer questions and discuss how to get the most out of Life Balance software.

Ultimately, Life Balance is software designed to help you achieve that feeling that you are living authentically and following your own unique path.

We have customers who have been successfully using the Life Balance self management methodology since 1995.