OmniPlan or Merlin2 for project management?
Now that we're hiring and managing more projects, we need to move up from the melamine school of project management and into something that can handle all the variables.
Right now, I'm considering OmniPlan and Merlin2, both of which are in public beta right now. I've been trying them out and find myself having a tough time choosing.
Being a big fan of OmniGraffle, which I use for page layout as well as some miscellaneous graphics, I want to like OmniPlan more. But my first impression is that maybe Merlin2 is more comprehensive, especially when it comes to managing several projects all at once (which is the reality of our business). On the other hand, OmniPlan seems to export to more different formats.
My task is not made easier by the fact that neither beta has any help documentation whatsoever, which is a funny way to get public feedback, if you ask me, but hey, since beta has been the new black for many moons now, who am I to complain?
I'm also looking at iTaskX, but haven't had a chance to fire it up yet.
Anyone out there have any suggestions or insights?
I may just be a sucker for 37signals, but I've got to recommend Basecamp. Time tracking, to-do lists, file sharing, whiteboarding (er...writeboard-ing)...you can even text me when my code is late.
We're actually using it on a project we're collaborating with another company on -- and it's not bad for project communications -- but for planning and scheduling, it seems to be on the limiting side. I'm really looking for a desktop app that will help me coordinate several projects. It's getting nightmarish now -- or threating to, already. I need to find something before I'm forced to pin index cards up on the wall.
...um...when your code is your code late?... ahem ... ?
I don't have any personal experience with any of these programs, but several associates have mentioned good things about Merlin2. That probably doesn't help you very much, but I just thought I'd throw it out there anyway. Good luck!
Sorry about putting my URL in the subject line in that last comment up there. I'm using Firefox and the box outlines don't show up very well....
I'm still working out the kinks in this theme. Thanks for the feedback!
Hi - I came here from a rather good post of yours on the Blogher site. Why I was there, well, that's another story eh? Funny though, in my professional life I've been having the same growing need for project management software (MAC software) as our office expands as well. I've been evaluating OmniPlan, but hadn't heard of, or tried Merlin. Now I will. Thanks for the heads up.