Activity Monitor is the macOS version of the task manager that is found in all versions of Microsoft Windows computers. Activity Monitor shows a variety of processes in use, in real-time. So that you can view each of the processes running on the computer, and see how they affect the overall performance of your computer. Activity Monitor also lets you see hidden background processes.
Todoist has integrated a cool stats tab to see the data of completed tasks. The Mac app is right up there with the iOS variant. If you are looking for the best Mac app to manage tasks, then. Task Office is designed in a way that will allow you to navigate within app screens just in one tap Organize your tasks by categories, projects or priorities and make a logic order of all your plans; Detailed GTD. Add all important details to get things done: choose tasks category, status, priority and set dates. How to Force Quit applications from a Task Manager in Mac. If some application or program freezes and you can’t quit it normally, you can use the Activity Monitor to shut it down. To force quit an app from a Mac Task Manager, do the following: Open the Activity Monitor on your Mac and click on the application you want to force quit. Creating task - Create a task by simply entering the name of the task and hitting the add task button. Managing task - Update task information from the task details that shows up when a task it selected from the task list. Time-log entry - Add time log entries on task from the task list with the option for closing it if it is completed. Percentages is sublime, perfectly packaged, and is a tool for my iPhone toolbox. There isn’t an over-promise of an app that will change my life and make me the envy of my peers. Percentages is designed to do a simple task—help me with quick information that lets me move on with my life.
Activity Monitor is a utility app included in macOS. If you were/are a Windows user, it can be said that Activity Monitor is Mac’s Task Manager.
You can use Activity Monitor to troubleshoot your problems. For example, sometimes your Mac gets slow, your Mac stuck on a white screen, or your Mac displays a black screen. Activity Monitor may help you diagnose your problem.
If you think that Activity Monitor is not functioning properly, please see this article.
How to open Activity Monitor
You can access Activity Monitor by going to the Utilities folder of your Applications folder (Applications > Utilities). Or you can use Spotlight to open it. Simply press the Command and Space keys and type activity monitor.
How to use
There are five categories:
- CPU
- Memory
- Energy
- Disk
- Network
- Cache
And you will see that under each category, there is a list of entries that keeps changing every few seconds.
You can monitor your computer to check whether anything is using too much memory, CPU, etc or misbehaving.
You may force close applications or processes from Activity Monitor. You may want to do this if your Mac becomes unresponsive. You may want to close down CPU-hungry processes. Simply double click on the application or the process and then click the Click button (or choose the application and then click the “X” button in the top left corner). Please do not quit processes or applications if you are not sure. Some may not be safe to quit.
You may want to terminate frozen and unresponsive apps or websites. If you terminate an app, you may lose unsaved data.
The CPU tab
This tab shows your computer’s CPU (processor) activity. You will see more information at the bottom:
- System: You will see a percentage there. This shows the percentage of current CPU use. This CPU usage belongs to macOS.
- Iddle: This is the percentage of current CPU that is not being used.
- User: This shows the percentage of current CPU usage. This use belongs to apps you opened.
- CPU load (graph): This shows how much the processor is working.
- Threads: Total number of threads.
- Processes: Total number of processes.
The Memory tab
This tap lets you see how memory is being used. Like the CPU tab, more information is available at the bottom:
- Memory Pressure (graph): This shows the availability of memory resources. Green means memory resources are available, red means memory recourses are depleted, yellow means memory resources are available but they are being used by memory management processes.
- Physical Memory: Your computer’s RAM.
- Memory Used: Total amount of memory currently used. This has three subcategories: App Memory, Wired Memory and Compressed.
- Cached Files: Total amount of memory that is recently used but now available.
- Swap Used: Total amount of memory used on the startup drive by memory management.
The Energy tab
This tab lets you view your computer’s overall energy use.
Just like the other tabs above, more information available:
- Energy Impact (graph): The total amount of energy used by all apps.
- Graphics Card: The type of graphic card you are using.
- Remaining Charge: The remaining battery life.
- Time Remaining: The battery time remaining.
- Time on Battery: The time since you unplugged your device from the power source.
- Battery (Last 12 hours): The last 12 hours battery charge level.
The Disk tab
This tab lets you see the amount of data that each process reads (reads in) and writes (writes out). You can also see a disk activity graph in your Dock. If you want to do this, go to View > Dock Icon > Show Disk Activity.
The Network tab
This lets you see how much data your computer is receiving and sending. Like the disk activity, you can show a network activity graph in your Dock by going to View > Dock Icon > Show Network Usage.
The Cache tab
If your computer is running macOS High Sierra 10.13.4 or higher, then you will have this tab also, if content caching is turned on.
To enable this feature, go to System Preferences > Sharing and select Content Sharing. You will need to restart your computer after turning this on. As you can see enabling content caching will reduce bandwidth use.
This tab lets you see how much-cached content uploaded or downloaded.
See also: How To Use Terminal On Your Mac
The whole concept of GTD (Getting Things Done) revolves around the productivity tools like Calendar and To-Do apps. Especially, in the current situation of home quarantine and lockdown, where the majority people and teams are working from home, it’s essential to keep track of tasks and clear them before the end of the day.
In 2020, task management apps aren’t just limited to create and complete tasks. They offer more functions to increase overall user engagement. Some of the features include habit tracking, basic project management, location-based reminders, calendar integration, and more.
While choosing an app over the other, it’s essential to invest in a platform that is easily available on rival platforms. That way, all your tasks get synced over multiple platforms, and you don’t lose data when switching between the devices.
We have hand-picked top five task management apps for iOS and Mac. In this post, we are going to talk about their features, price, theme engine, and more. Let’s get started.
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Microsoft To-Do vs Todoist: Can Microsoft Beat the Ace
Read More1. Microsoft To-Do
In a bid to accelerate its ‘Mobile First, Cloud First’ vision, Microsoft purchased the popular task management tool Wunderlist and shut down the further development in favor of its app Microsoft To-Do.
After four years of acquisition, I can safely say that Microsoft’s version of task management is right up there with the rivals. The company recently redesigned the whole app to make it more familiar to the Wunderlist users.
Microsoft To-Do offers the My Day function, which lets you add tasks for the day. You can quickly add terms like ‘Conference call 8 PM,’ and the app will suggest the time for the task. You can also add sub-tasks for the prime to-do task.
Being a Microsoft product, it nicely integrates with other services as well. For example, you can flag an email in the Outlook app, and it will get saved in the Flagged mail section in the Microsoft To-Do app. One can also view the tasks in the Outlook desktop app.
The other functions include the ability to create a list, Siri Shortcuts support, dark theme, Wunderlist import tool, and more.
The company’s macOS app is right up there with its iOS counterpart. It supports keyboard shortcuts too. The app syncs the theme and wallpapers from the mobile app, which looks nice on the big screen.
Microsoft To-Do is completely free to use, and it’s available on Android, iOS, Windows, and Mac.
Download Microsoft To-Do for iOSDownload Microsoft To-Do for macOS2. TickTick
This one is my favorite. TickTick is a multi-featured productivity app. Best mac app duplicate file finder. It’s full features, but more importantly, the overall implementation is better than the others.
The theme support is the best I have ever seen. It’s not limited to light/dark theme. You can implement colorful ones based on seasons and well-known cities around the world.
Besides creating a list and adding a task, the app also has integrated habit tracking and the Pomodoro function. You can add habits and complete them to see a cool chain of habit building in the calendar widget. Pomodoro helps you keep track of the productive hours throughout the app.
The Mac version is more powerful. In a task list, one can switch to a Kanban-style to view and manage tasks. The desktop app also supports notes function.
TickTick is free to use. But the premium subscription at $2 per month lets you unlock functions like theme support, habit tracking, app icon customization, and more. It’s accessible on iOS, Android, Windows, and macOS.
Download TickTick for iOSDownload TickTick for macOS3. Apple Reminders
After neglecting the default Reminders app over the years, Apple finally gave it the much-needed makeover with the iOS 13 update. It’s now head to head with the third-party apps there.
For starters, the new design looks much better than ever. It lets you add tasks as well as location-based reminders. I use it all the time. I have set the relevant tasks to remind myself wherever I reach my workplace.
You can ask Siri to set tasks and even add a reminder when you are messaging a particular person. Check out the best tips and tricks for the Apple Reminders app.
The Mac app also got the redesign to resemble the iOS version. It’s not as fluid or intuitive as the others. I’m hoping to see tight integration with other Apple services, including the Notes and Email app in the future.
Apple Reminders is only available on iOS and macOS. It’s completely free to use.
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4. Todoist
Used by millions of users around the world, Todoist has nailed the task management in the app. The app uses a fairly standard UI with the hamburger menu.
It terms lists as projects and even lets you add tags to find the tasks later. Todoist recently announced Foundation function, which lets you convert big projects in the small tasks to manage them more efficiently.
One can also use Siri Shortcuts to set tasks. App logo maker mac. The app supports icon customization to change app icons. Todoist has integrated a cool stats tab to see the data of completed tasks.
The Mac app is right up there with the iOS variant. If you are looking for the best Mac app to manage tasks, then Todoist will easily top the list. It’s available on Android and Windows as well. The app is free to download, but the premium functions such as icon customization, stats, etc., come with a subscription of $50 per year.
Download Todoist for iOSDownload Todoist for macOS5. Any.do
Any.do brings fresh UI to the table. It shows the tabbed list from the home screen. The app has rightly integrated the calendar function to use it as a calendar app too.
Opening Task Manager On Mac
The biggest highlight of the app is how it plans your day. It will suggest all the tasks one by one and will ask you to take action on it.
A couple of things to mention here. I experienced a few crashes while using the app, and adding a new task screen was quite cumbersome. It’s not minimal like others and asks way too many details upfront.
The Mac app is much better. One can quickly add tasks from the floating menu, and it supports keyboard shortcuts too.
Any.do is available on iOS, Android, Windows, and macOS.
Download Any.do for iOSDownload Any.do for macOSAlso on Guiding Tech
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Use any of the apps mentioned above, and you will be completely fine with flying through the day without missing any task. Microsoft To-Do is free, TickTick is an all-rounder, millions favor Todoist, Apple Reminders makes the best out of Apple ecosystem. At the same time, Any.do is perfect for task and calendar combo.
Next up:Looking to ditch the Apple Reminders in favor of richer third-party apps? Read the post to find the top five alternatives for the Apple Reminders app.
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