ToDoList doesn't need to be “installed”, it just needs to be placed onto a system for use.

• This page is for Windows users.
• Information for Linux is also available.
• If you are running Mac/OSX, please let us know. We do not have instructions for Mac here yet.

1. Download the software from GitHub
2. Save the file into a folder on your PC.
3. Extract the files to a convenient location. The location doesn't matter. You should call the folder “ToDoList”. If you intend to run different versions of ToDoList at the same time, and you can, then you should add the version ID, like “ToDoList 7.0RC3”. Further instructions will refer to this as the ToDoList folder.

The location you choose will be the home for all files related to ToDoList. Compare this to a package where you then need to run an installer which moves everything under C:\Program Files. This software does not have or need an installer. Here are suggestions for a folder location :

• C:\My Programs\ToDoList
• C:\Utilities\ToDoList
• D:\Folder Where You Put Other Apps\ToDoList

See the Configuration page about C:\Program Files and C:\Program Files (x86).

The primary folder has all required programs. Information is available about what is in all of the other file folders.

Your PC may have blocked execution of the programs since they were downloaded from the internet, so the next step is to unblock the programs so that Windows will trust the files.

1. Go to the ToDoList folder.
2. Right-click ToDoList.exe, then click Properties.
3. At the bottom of the form that displays you may see a Security section that says “This file came from another computer and might be blocked to help protect this computer.” If so, Click the Unblock button, then click OK.
4. Unblock TDLUpdate.exe and TDLUninstall.exe.

If you wish, create a shortcut to ToDoList.exe so that you can access it from your desktop.

1. Right-click the file and select “Create shortcut”. You'll get a new file called “ToDoList.exe - Shortcut”.
2. Copy that file to your desktop ( and you might want to rename it to a simple “ToDoList” ).

The first time you double-click the program, you'll get an option to select your language. (Translations are maintained in the Resources repository, see below.)

After selecting the language a “ToDoList Setup” window displays. Well, OK, there's a small installer… You get the option to save data to a .INI file (common configuration file) or to your Windows Registry. Most people choose the INI file which is easy to move, save, and edit. You also get the option to share tasklists on a network, but this can be changed later.

On clicking Next you get a list of columns that you will initially see in the user interface. If you are working by yourself you may not care to see the field that shows who a task is Allocated To. If you don't work on a deadline you may not want to see Due Date. These are just a couple of many fields to be evaluated, but if you accept the default and click Next you can easily change the settings at any time. If you're curious about any of the fields now, see Introduction to Fields, and from there (and also in the sidebar) is a link to a complete list of all Task Attributes.

On the next page of the setup you get the option to keep the user interface (UI) simple, or to see all available options. On one hand it's good to start simple and grow as you find need. On the other hand it might help to see what's available first and then decide what you wish to disable.

The final option on that setup form asks if you want to see a sample list, Introduction.tdl - leaving the default Yes is recommended before clicking Finish.

The configuration data is generated, and if you're using the INI file, ToDoList.ini, gets created in the ToDoList folder. You will see people discussing this file a lot in the forums.

ToDoList starts up (or should anyway). If it does not then you might need to start it manually with Administrator privileges.

ToDoList can check for updates, and update itself with a menu option. This functionality requires read/write access to the folders. If you just installed the software, chances are you already know how to get yourself admin privileges. If you're already running with a user with administrator privileges you might not need to do anything special here. But if the application doesn't start up immediately then check the following, because the issue is probably related to permissions.

To run with admin privs, right-click ToDoList.exe and select Run As Administrator. Click OK and OK again to close the forms. You might need to use a ctrl-right-click or similar - it's tough for us to guide you on specifics for your system so you might need to experiment a bit here.

If you created a shortcut, right click the shortcut and go to Properties. Click Advanced. Then check Run As Administrator.

It's assumed at this point that ToDoList is installed and running. A large number of menu>Tools>Preferences settings can be used to customize how the software works.

See the System Startup page about getting ToDoList to start automatically with your PC.

At this point you should go to the Getting Started page. If you need any help, see Getting Help.