Some suggestions - mostly for non (X)Emacs updating of org mode files.

[Tim O'Callaghan <timo@dspsrv.com>]

Not sure how useful any of this would be to other people, but here is
some stuff that i have been thinking about. 

The great thing about org files is that they are ASCII and therefore
very portable. The only problem with org files is that you need
(X)Emacs to do anything good with them!

This is not quite true, but it is in the case i am talking about. I
regularly copy my org files to the SDCard in my mobile phone, so i can
read them on the move. I have a text editing application on the phone,
so i can also update and create files on the move.

My problem is that the editor is not (X)Emacs, and so cannot
intelligently update the org information. The ideas below are not all
about this use case, but its what started me thinking about them.

And so on to the ideas.

* org-save-hooks
  I have an Org file, and to export useful lists from it that i can
  use offline i have to go into agenda mode and export the
  information.
  
  What i think would be cool is if i could just do an export at save
  time. What i think would be cooler, would be that i could specify
  these exports in a #+VAR with TAG search criteria. 

  Something like #+AUTOEXPORT TYPE filename <search criteria>
  e.g.:
  #+AUTOEXPORT ASCII work_stuff.txt +WORK-HOME
  #+AUTOEXPORT ICAL  home_appointments.ical +HOME-WORK

* Fast Update mode - for minimal editing in another editor
  This is where the **** in the outline is prefixed with a number or
  character, and processed at load time.

  1** TODO This top level task is done archive it
  +** TODO move this one TODO stage further

  Then something in my org config like: 
  (("1"  my-mark-done-and-archive) ("+" org-cycle))

* embedded file link - for tables, possibly images where supported.
  This is something i was thinking about for linking external tables
  into a document. To have the table as a separate document, possibly
  a CSV one converted to tbl mode automagicaly. The basic idea being
  that i can use something other than emacs to update the data in the
  tables and see the updates in my org document.

* an option to export CSV using quotes and commas.

* The ability to change the command prefix from ctrl-c.
  I have migrated from the pinkie killing ctrl to the more finger
  friendly alt and escape keys for most of my (X)Emacs usage.

* Agenda Collections.
  Essentially the ability to define org-agenda-files from a #+
  file link. This allows me to separate out work and home for
  example. When i open my work file, it agendas my work org
  files. When i open my home org file it could agenda my home and work
  projects, if i set the links up.
  e.g:
  #+COLLECTION file://blah.org

What do people think? and also does anyone have a non (X)Emacs
strategy for dealing with or updating org-mode?

cheers,

Tim.