Smart Software Programs Write Your To-Do Lists

Busy? A new kind of online organizer works like a personal assistant, interpreting loose statements—like “have brunch with Margaret on Sunday"—and turning them into scheduled events on users’ calendars. Free programs like Presdo, IWantSandy and reQall use natural language processing to organize casually written, and sometimes even spoken, commands, reports Technology Review.

Users can schedule events, reminders or “to-do” items by typing statements into a Web site text box, emailing or text messaging commands, or even calling an 800 number and leaving a message. "The system will interpret the sentence and put it in the right place,” explains the mastermind of reQall. All three programs are free, but may eventually charge for premium accounts. (More personal assistant stories.)