Daisho 4.5.4

CNET Editors' review

by: CNET staff on March 24, 2009

Daisho provides you with a datebook you can access anytime from any computer. This highly detailed calendar and organizational system has an impressive collection of options for busy people, however it is somewhat time-intensive to master.

Users who are familiar with Microsoft's Outlook program will find many of Daisho's features familiar. Traditional options that make choreographing daily life easier are here, such as setting up meetings, reminding users about important phone calls, e-mailing meeting reminders, and managing a contact list.

This free 30-day trial also provides some interesting details that many casual users may not find useful, but others may see as essential. Within the Contacts there are places to input where the user met a person and how they are associated, which may prove useful for users with enormous contact lists. Another unique aspect is the Radar, which maps future appointments into a radar screen for quick forecast of which days will be busiest in the near future.

While Daisho provides a great deal of services, it may take getting used to. The main navigation screen is cluttered and confusing, making practically nothing intuitive. Luckily, the Help menu has an incredibly detailed guide. Another issue is its promised compatibility with USB sticks, allowing it to transfer from computer-to-computer. We did not attempt this option, but had difficulty finding options to perform the task or information about how to do it when searching Help.

Although it may take a large chunk of the 30-day trial to figure out Daisho's many options, users willing to put in the time might find it to be the comprehensive organizational system they need.

Publisher's Description

From Daisho Blacksmith:

DAISHO is the integrated productivity software for professionals: goal, time and task management, contact management with CRM features, e-mail client and Skype integration. Synchronization with Smartphones (e.g. iPhone, Android, Symbian) via http://www.daishosync.com. Runs from USB stick on Windows, Mac and Linux - one license is valid for all platforms (freeware on Linux). DAISHO is the cross-platform Outlook alternative and has a special Netbook Mode for small screens. DAISHO is designed from ground up to help professionals to master the challenges of working in the 21st century: working in projects, for various clients, with high time pressure.

The integrated goal, time and task management combines your daily business tasks with mid- and long-term planning. Stay focused by budgeting your time according your main work areas and according to your goals, ensure you reach your goals by defining the tasks to reach each goal and milestone. You can keep track of the contact history with every person, and the innovative contact radar lets you identify the people in your personal contact network you should refresh your relation with. Install DAISHO on an USB stick and launch it from there, and you can work on any PC without the need for local installation. The e-mail client uses labels and label based filters to organize your e-mails without the need to assign an e-mail to one folder only. You can define work environments with specific settings for e-mail accounts to use and different network connection needs. You can synchronize your contacts, calendar entries and tasks between DAISHO and any SyncML-compliant mobile phone (SyncML apps for iPhone and Android available by various vendors) using www.daishosync.com. The free version brings full e-mail, calendar and contact functionality. Contacts are limited to 50 contacts, professional features such as contact radar, time planning or reports are available in the Pro version.

What's new in this version: Version 4.5.4 minor maintenance release