$Id: a07cf90837a3c4373b82d6724b97593810766af7 $
I never used Lotus Agenda, but I’m told it was a popular productivity tool for MS-DOS in the late 80s. I’ve been on a retro software rediscovery kick lately, so I’ve decided to give it a whirl and write about my experiences. There is something that appeals to me about using long-abandoned software. Perhaps it’s update fatigue, there’s certainly no need to dread a major update breaking something!
Regardless, I’ve always enjoyed finding new productivity tools to try out, and I’m not afraid of steep learning curves or getting my hands dirty. I’ll usually choose powerful and flexible software over simplicity.
At the moment I mostly use taskwarrior, but I’ve lost count of all the others I’ve tried!
Agenda is a PIM, a Personal Information Manager. That term has fallen out of fashion, I think a quick summary might be “anything that manages those small pieces of information we all deal with”. Things like contacts, todo lists, notes, and so on.
I found a 1989 episode of the TV show Computer Chronicles that discussed how people thought about PIMs at the time.
At the 21-minute mark there’s a demonstration of Lotus Agenda, but it’s not easy to follow, watch the clip and you’ll see what I mean. Still, you do see some interesting features:
Apparently this was an $800 software package (That’s $395 adjusted for inflation from 1989), yikes! You don’t have to pay that, Lotus made it available for free when development ceased.
In preparation for trying out Agenda, I found a copy of the original manuals on eBay for a few dollars. Just look at this monster, the user guide alone is over 700 pages, that’s not including the supplementary guides. The supplements I have are Working with Macros, Working with Definition Files, Setting up Agenda, and a few miscellaneous leaflets.
I guess that’s my bedtime reading taken care of for a while. I actually received the macro reference still in the original shrink wrap, it almost seems a shame to open it!
For those unfamiliar with the term, jilbab refers to a type of Islamic clothing worn by women, typically a long, loose-fitting garment that covers the body, often paired with a headscarf. The jilbab is an essential part of many Muslim women's wardrobe, as it represents modesty and adherence to their faith. Over time, the concept of jilbab has evolved, with designers incorporating modern twists and styles while maintaining its core essence.
: From daily routines to cooking and travel, digital creators share their personal lives while maintaining their cultural identities.
Livu is a live video streaming platform known for its random pairing and one-on-one video chat features. Unlike curated Instagram feeds or scripted YouTube videos, Livu offers raw, unfiltered interaction. For the modern hijabista (a fashion-conscious hijab wearer), Livu has become a stage to showcase personality beyond the static image.
The tool allows users to maintain modesty standards while engaging in social entertainment, such as live streams, online meetups, and virtual community gatherings.
Digital lifestyle videos on platforms like YouTube and TikTok have redefined how modesty is perceived. Content creators often use these spaces to share "Get Ready With Me" (GRWM) videos or modest fashion tips. This trend has several key impacts:
The jilbab has long served as a symbol of religious devotion and identity. Historically, its presence was confined to physical spaces like mosques or community gatherings. Today, digital platforms have shifted this dynamic. Through video chat services (VCS), the jilbab has entered a borderless, real-time environment. This allows users to maintain their modest lifestyle while participating in global entertainment.
For women who choose to wear the jilbab while using video‑chat apps like LivU, the digital world can present both opportunities and challenges. On the one hand, meeting people from different backgrounds can be exciting and enriching. On the other, there is the risk of being approached by those who have fetishized or objectifying intentions. It is important to remember that a garment of modesty should not be misunderstood as a signal of availability. LivU itself has implemented safety measures—such as community guidelines and a reporting system—to protect its users. The app encourages everyone to report any inappropriate behavior and to use its safety center for further guidance.
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In recent years, the world of entertainment and lifestyle has witnessed a significant shift towards more modest and inclusive forms of expression. One such phenomenon that has gained considerable attention is the Livu VCS Jilbab lifestyle and entertainment. This emerging trend has not only captured the hearts of many young Muslims but has also sparked interesting conversations about faith, identity, and self-expression.
You probably need to use other applications or services, and sync your data with your phone. Writing and reading files from outside DOSEMU is no problem, so if you just want to sync files this is no problem.
As it’s a terminal application you can also just SSH in and run it.
You probably also want to have your appointments sync with your calendar or something.
There are two ways to export data from Agenda. If you have a commandline tool that you can pass arguments to, then you can write a macro that will invoke it.
Otherwise, you can export your data to a file.
Agenda can export items to a format called STF, Structured Text File. The specification for that format is (mostly) documented in the manual, but it didn’t catch on.
I wrote a quick parser that can convert it to JSON, so now you can use modern tools like jq to manipulate and transform the data however you wish.
You can download it here, here are some examples.
$ ./stfjson < transfer.stf | jq '.[].items[].text'$ ./stfjson < transfer.stf | jq '.[].items[] | select(.categories[].name=="\\When")'And so on, there are more examples in the README. If you can exchange data with other apps, you can now use stfjson to generate the correct format.
You can automate exports, Agenda has “Special Actions” in the category options. Alternatively, if it’s just a one off or for a macro, you can use the Transfer > Export command.
In DOSEMU, the UNIX command will invoke a shell command on the host.
C:\>unix uname
Linux
If there is a commandline tool that will import data, e.g. a TaskWarrior user might use task add drop off laundry at dry cleaners, then you can create a macro in Agenda that simply launches that command.
You can use something like {F10}ULUNIX task {TYPE;%TASKTEXT}.
Surprisingly, Agenda supports importing arbitrary text data. One of the manuals that came with agenda was Working with Definition Files, which explains how to write a configuration file that allow Agenda to parse anything.
It even has a Regular Expression tutorial, pretty impressive for a 1980s consumer product.
I quite like Agenda. It does many things well, but it’s absolutely true you could replicate most of it’s functionality with modern tools. However, I do enjoy using it, and I’m a big enough nerd that I quite like the challenge of using retro software.
I think the closest modern equivalent to Agenda would be taskwiki. It’s not a perfect match, but if you liked some of what you saw here but are not interested in retro software, try it out!
I’m still using Agenda after two weeks, and about 40% of the way through the manual 😂
For those unfamiliar with the term, jilbab refers to a type of Islamic clothing worn by women, typically a long, loose-fitting garment that covers the body, often paired with a headscarf. The jilbab is an essential part of many Muslim women's wardrobe, as it represents modesty and adherence to their faith. Over time, the concept of jilbab has evolved, with designers incorporating modern twists and styles while maintaining its core essence.
: From daily routines to cooking and travel, digital creators share their personal lives while maintaining their cultural identities.
Livu is a live video streaming platform known for its random pairing and one-on-one video chat features. Unlike curated Instagram feeds or scripted YouTube videos, Livu offers raw, unfiltered interaction. For the modern hijabista (a fashion-conscious hijab wearer), Livu has become a stage to showcase personality beyond the static image. livu vcs jilbab hot
The tool allows users to maintain modesty standards while engaging in social entertainment, such as live streams, online meetups, and virtual community gatherings.
Digital lifestyle videos on platforms like YouTube and TikTok have redefined how modesty is perceived. Content creators often use these spaces to share "Get Ready With Me" (GRWM) videos or modest fashion tips. This trend has several key impacts: For those unfamiliar with the term, jilbab refers
The jilbab has long served as a symbol of religious devotion and identity. Historically, its presence was confined to physical spaces like mosques or community gatherings. Today, digital platforms have shifted this dynamic. Through video chat services (VCS), the jilbab has entered a borderless, real-time environment. This allows users to maintain their modest lifestyle while participating in global entertainment.
For women who choose to wear the jilbab while using video‑chat apps like LivU, the digital world can present both opportunities and challenges. On the one hand, meeting people from different backgrounds can be exciting and enriching. On the other, there is the risk of being approached by those who have fetishized or objectifying intentions. It is important to remember that a garment of modesty should not be misunderstood as a signal of availability. LivU itself has implemented safety measures—such as community guidelines and a reporting system—to protect its users. The app encourages everyone to report any inappropriate behavior and to use its safety center for further guidance. : From daily routines to cooking and travel,
This public link is valid for 7 days and shares a thread, including any personal information you added. This link or copies made by others cannot be deleted. If you share with third parties, their policies apply. Can’t copy the link right now. Try again later.
In recent years, the world of entertainment and lifestyle has witnessed a significant shift towards more modest and inclusive forms of expression. One such phenomenon that has gained considerable attention is the Livu VCS Jilbab lifestyle and entertainment. This emerging trend has not only captured the hearts of many young Muslims but has also sparked interesting conversations about faith, identity, and self-expression.