What's the difference between to-dos and milestones?

The biggest difference is that milestones have dates while to-dos don't. To-dos are intended for all the little things that need to get done eventually. Milestones are for things that have distinct dates.

To-do lists allow you to make lists, add items, assign responsibility, and check off items when you're done.

Milestones let you track date-based items in a project. You can keep track of what's due, when it's due, and who's responsible.

How do I delete a to-do list?

It's easy. Just click on the name of the list to go to that list's permanent page. Then hover over the title of the list. You'll see a trashcan icon appear on the left. Click it, confirm it, and the list is deleted for good. Once you delete a list you can't get it back so make sure you really want it gone before you give it the boot.

How do I add dates to to-dos?

To-dos in Basecamp aren't associated with dates. You can use milestones to track things that have distinct dates. Alternatively, you can always add your own dates manually to to-do items by adding "(DUE: April 7th)" to the front of an item (the date/time format is up to you, of course).

Can I prioritize to-dos?

To-do lists don't have explicit priorities (1-5 or "high" "medium" "low", for example). Instead, priority in Basecamp is set visually. Put the most important to-do items at the top of the list and the least important at the bottom (instructions for reordering items and lists).

What does it mean to relate a list to a milestone?

When you relate a to-do list to a milestone, you'll see a link to that to-do list displayed under the milestone on the milestones screen. This allows you to see which to-do lists relate to a particular milestone.

To relate a new list to a milestone, choose the appropriate milestone from the pulldown below "Does this list relate to a milestone?" You can also relate an existing list to a milestone too. Just roll your mouse over the list title and click on the red "Edit" link that appears to the left. Then select the milestone you want.

Note: Checking off an item on the to-do list or completing the list entirely doesn't automatically complete the milestone. The association is purely visual. You'll still need to go to the "Milestones" tab and check off the milestone manually to mark it as done.

What is a "private" to-do list? What does it mean to make something "private"?

Private messages and private to-do lists can be seen by members of your team (including contractors) but can NOT be viewed by your clients. Clients will see no reference to the messages or to-do lists — not on the messages page, not on the to-do list page, not on the overview page, not on the dashboard page, and they won't receive any email notifications related to private items. This allows you to share sensitive or not-yet-finalized information internally without needing to worry about clients accessing these entries.

Private items are called out with a red bar on the left, a light red textured background, and a small red "PRIVATE" item badge in the upper right corner of the item.

To make a new list private, select the "Make this list private" checkbox. You can also make an existing list private too. Just roll your mouse over the list title and click on the red "Edit" link that appears to the left. Then select the private checkbox.

Does Basecamp support task dependencies?

Basecamp does not support hierarchal to-do lists, sub tasks, or dependencies. Basecamp lists are simple one-level lists. You can, however, make as many lists as you want and you can add as many items to those lists as you want.

Why are my to-do lists automatically being
marked as completed?

If you add a list and don't add any items to that list it will be marked as complete (any list with no items is marked complete). To add an item to that list just click the name of the list in the sidebar then click the "Add an item" link.

How do I add more items to a to-do list?

At the bottom of each to-do list is a grey bar with a red link that says "Add an item."

Click the link, enter a to-do item, choose who's responsible (that's optional), and click the "Add this item" button.

Can I reorder items or lists? Can I move items between lists?

To reorder items in a list, move your mouse over the item you want to move up or down. To the left of the item, you'll see the reorder icon (it looks like four arrows). Click the icon and drag the item up or down to the location you want. You can also move items between lists by dragging an item from one lis up or down to another list.

To reorder your lists, click on the "To-Do" tab. Then click the red link that says "Reorder lists" at the top of the screen. You'll see the title of each of your lists. To the left of each title, you'll see the reorder icon (it looks like four arrows). Click the icon and drag the list up or down to the location you want.

Reordering is global. This means that anyone who reorders the list reorders them for everyone. At this time, individuals can not have their own list orders. The list and item order is the same for everyone.

How do I use Basecamp to-do lists to track time?

Click the "To-Do" tab. Find the list you want to enable time tracking for and put your mouse over the title. You'll see a red "Edit" link appears to the left of the list's title. Click this link and check the box next to "Enable time tracking for this list."

You'll see that all items on the list now have a little clock icon next to the checkbox. Click the icon to enter hours for that item. You can select the person who performed the task, add the number of hours, and add notes.

You can learn more about this by watching the quick video tour of time tracking.

Can I save and reuse to-do lists?

To-Do List Templates allow you to save time and typing by creating frequently used to-do lists which you can then add easily to any project. To-Do List Templates are global which means they are available to you from within any project.

From the Dashboard click the new "Templates" tab on the right side of the screen.

Create a list (you can create as many lists as you want).

Next, go into a project and click the "To-Do" tab. Then, click the "New to-do list" link.

To use a template, click the "Use a to-do list template" link (note: you'll only see this link if you've created a to-do list template).

Select the to-do list template from the pulldown that appears.

Once you hite the "Create this list" button, the to-do list page will reload and the selected template will now be loaded in your new to-do list screen. You can then adjust the list title or items and assign responsibility for the items.

(Note: Clients and contractors can't create templates, only people in your own company can.)