16 Productivity-Enhancing Websites

Need some assistance in taming your various to-do lists?

In this story, we've vetted 16 incredibly useful Web services and sites that can keep your tasks and notes in order, help you with your personal finances, streamline your Web surfing, track lost gadgets, and more.

We looked at a total of 52 incredibly useful sites. For the others, check out the stories below.

• 13 Top-Notch Web Services for Business and Communication
• 13 Terrific Sites for Managing Media and Sharing Files
• 10 Great Shopping, Dining, and Travel Websites
• 52 Incredibly Useful Sites: The Full List

Better To-Do Lists

Most to-do apps are little more than static lists of pending responsibilities. Teux Deux, though, is a slick, simple, and free online task manager that visually groups your upcoming chores by date, giving you a clear view of what you need to accomplish in the coming week.

The site's interface works particularly well with the popular Getting Things Done method for enhancing productivity. Each date acts a bit like a folder, keeping all of the tasks for the day contained and compartmentalized, so you can focus on what matters most in the moment. Tasks with no specific due date linger in a ‘Someday' box on the main screen, so you can put them off without forgetting about them.

Learn Anything Fast

Whether it's learning conversational Japanese, memorizing state capitals, deciphering the periodic table of elements, or mastering the fictional language of the Na'vi, the free, goal-oriented online courses at Smart.fm can get you up to speed in no time.

Tag Anything

Stickybits is an especially cool way to add an online résumé or company Website to a business card, or to add lost-and-found info to your mobile gadgets.

In fact, you can add photos, data files, Web URLs, and messages to any physical object. You simply download a Stickybits bar code and slap it on anything, and then link the bar code to any digital file or address. When someone scans that bar code with their phone's camera, they'll go straight to your linked data.

Hey, Wake Up

You don't have to stay in some fancy two-star motel to get a wake-up call. Wakerupper allows you to schedule wake-up or reminder calls to any phone at any time, for 5 cents a call, complete with a snooze option. If you type in a reminder, you'll hear an oddly disquieting computer voice read it back to you on the call.

Remember Everything

Evernote lets you capture ideas, images, or audio clips from your PC or phone, and then sync them to the cloud for easy retrieval and organization. It even works with handwritten notes, turning your chicken scratch into searchable text.

Remember Specific Things

Like Evernote, Springpad helps you organize your information, but it doesn't focus on just notes and Web clippings. Instead, Springpad offers unique templates for organizing data about your personal life, from recipes to your music collection to your favorite movies, wines, and restaurants.

The recipe features are particularly cool. First, enter a recipe directly into the template, or link to an online recipe to have it automatically imported into your Springpad recipe collection. Later, when you want to cook the recipe, click ‘Add to shopping list', and all the ingredients will appear on your shopping list. You can even search for coupons from your local supermarket. In addition to basic information storage, Springpad offers task lists and reminders to help you keep your life on track.

Control Your Spending

Would you spend $3 per month to get your finances under control? The simple PearBudget online budgeting app offers a drag-and-drop interface for organizing all of your expenses and tracking them against your income. You can create custom categories, enter receipts, and review your spending from any computer. PearBudget also lets you print what it calls GoCards, 3-by-5-inch cards that you can toss in your wallet to keep track of how much you have left in your budget for any given expense category. It's a great way to avoid overspending, with no high-priced gadgets required.

Manage Personal Finances

For a more complete set of financial tools, try Mint. This free financial powerhouse--from the same people who make Quicken and TurboTax--automatically syncs with your bank accounts, tracks your spending, and gives you detailed graphical reports that show you where your money comes from, where it's going, and how you can save more.

Send Payments via Twitter

Strange as it sounds to use a public social network like Twitter to send money, TwitPay's PayPal-driven payment system is a great way to drum up buzz around a fundraiser or to kick-start an office pool.