Review: Basecamp Project Manager
I have to say, I have never used a project manager software that I liked. That all changed when Jose introduced us to Basecamp by 37 Signals. I have found that most project manager software falls short of expectations, not so with Basecamp. Although, it has its limitations, I feel Basecamp is flexible, intuitive to use, and comes loaded with lots of useful features.
Basecamp
The Basecamp Web site provides a number of good videos to demo the features and functionality of it’s software. There is no long term commitment and you simply sign up and pay for one month at a time. Based on the demos we saw on the 37 Signals Web site, we figured we would give it a 30 day test drive, for $24.99. We had little to lose and just maybe, we could gain our sanity. For a small design firm (We Think BIG!) we always have a lot of projects in the loop and keeping track of those projects can be daunting. I was impressed and addicted almost at once. I immediately starting creating projects and filling everyone’s emails with To-dos.
One of the great features of Basecamp, since it is browser based, is it allows groups of people to collaborate on a project. Everyone can log into the project manager to check the status of the project, leave messages, add goals and to-dos, and upload/download files. Basecamp, also, generates email notifications to all or part of the team. So when new information is posted on a project, everyone is kept current. The beauty of Basecamp’s message boards is that it replaces communications that would normally happen via email. Rather than fastidiously organizing your email, Basecamp does all the work for you.
Another, great feature of Basecamp is the dashboard. When you log into a project, the start screen is called the dashboard. The dashboard gives you an overview of the entire project including due dates and all the recent activity that has occurred on the project. In addition, just to prove how smart they are, 37 Signals realized that you may want to have some intra office communications that you do not want or need your clients to see, so they have a privacy feature which you can use on an item by item basis and limits who can view or have access to certain messages, files, and so on . . .
Even though I think Basecamp is one of the best purchases we made this year, it does have it’s limitations. It’s biggest limitation is the total storage space you recieve with the basic service. It’s a rather paltry 250mb. However, we have solved that problem by using our Web sites FTP capabilities to handle file storage. The process to set up a remote FTP server is not supported by Basecamp and is a little tricky, but none-the-less doable. Jose has promised to make a short tutorial on how set up a remote FTP server to Basecamp, so check back if you decide to give Basecamp a try.
Another issue I have with Basecamp is the 10mb file upload limitation. You can upload as many files as you like, as long as you have not exceeded your storage capacity, but no individual file can be larger than 10mb. This presents a particular problem for us since we do book design. Often our files are well beyond that 10mb and we have to resort to our regular FTP site to upload books. In addition, some clients experience problems downloading files if they’re using Internet Explorer (just one more reason to use Firefox). I hope 37 Signals works these issue out but in comparison to the intuitive functionality of the Basecamp software these issues are minor.
We offer Basecamp as a feature to our clients and every client that we have had work with Basecamp has loved the experience and organization (sometimes a little to much 
!). One client loved it so much they started using it in their company. All in all, Basecamp is a winner.
Pros: The price is right!, easy to use, collaborative, great feature to offer clients
Cons: Limited storage, limits on file sizes, problems with some features when using Internet ExplorerOverall: A great way to organize and manage your workflow.
FYI, after using Basecamp for a few months, we decided to sign up for their affiliate program based on our positive experience with the software. If you want to try Basecamp and found this review helpful please use our links to the 37 Signals Web site. Thanks.
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May 29th, 2007 at 8:33 am
Here is an article about 37Signals in Time magazine.
June 22nd, 2008 at 8:42 am
We’ve tried basecamp, google docs… our team didn’t really “connect” to any of them. But we love YouFig (www.youfig.com). It supports all of the privacy and administrative features your company needs and gives you a huge range of applications to work with (documents, spreadsheets, calendars, videos, file sharing, unlimited storage, unlimited users, unlimited workspaces)… and it’s free, which really *really* tops it off.