On The Job 3.0 was released today, and it's poised to give my long-standing favorite time-tracking app, Billings 3, a good run for its money. On The Job 3 represents a complete rewrite of the application. It's such a new and different beast from its previous incarnations that -- in the words of the developer -- it "really feels much more like a version 1.0 than a 3.0."

On The Job is designed for individuals -- freelancers, contractors, etc. -- who need to track their time and expenses, send invoices for multiple jobs with multiple clients, and handle payments. It, like Billings, is especially geared toward those who want the extra features which can make them look utterly professional in their invoicing and billing.

Let's start with its looks: it's just plain gorgeous. From the main UI to the popup entry forms, and from the client editor to the template editor, the minute details of the interface have been treated with great care. I'll go ahead and say that the invoice template selector is eerily similar to Billings', but I'm not sure where the credit for the first such interface belongs. Let's just say it's a good one to pick up on. The default templates are definitely competition for Billings, whose selection is already above-par for time tracking and billing apps. Editing templates in either app is far more pleasurable than the first time I ever tried to edit a template in Quickbooks.

The first thing that struck me when I opened up the demo was the sheer simplicity of the interface. Everything you need is there, exactly where you want to look for it. The play/pause button for timing jobs is big but not overly obtrusive, and you can turn its default, obnoxious spinning to a pleasant throb in the preferences. That sounded dirtier than it is. There's a menubar control of the timer as well. The overall feature set is not as robust as Billings, but there's definitely something to be said for simplicity. If you don't need the additional features, such as Pro Forma invoices, full account tracking and statements, it's very possible that On The Job might be a great candidate to serve your time-tracking needs.

Other features in the new version include:

• Invoices for a specific date range
• New outstanding invoices panel
• Custom hourly rates for specific tasks
• Individual timing sessions are tracked, and can be "edited in post"
• Expense types now include quantity and mileage
• Per client currency settings
• Automatic and fully customizable invoice number generation

On The Job is selling for $39.95US. I have to mention that the "Main Street Sale" of Billings is still going, and it's at $39.99 right now. Both have free demos, so if you're a freelancer or contractor in the market for a slick way to track time and send invoices, make your own comparison. Personally, I'm torn. I'll decide in the next 20 days which, coincidentally, is the length of the On The Job demo period.

TimeXchange is a relatively new addition to the pile of available online time-tracking applications. Its current incarnation on the web is pretty standard, covering bases like multiple time entry, report and invoice creation, and Quickbooks integration. The developers have been fielding a lot of feature requests ... more than they have the capacity to handle. Their solution: an API, announced today, which will allow third-party developers to create applications, mashups and integrations with other tools.

A version of TimeXchange is already available for the iPhone, in both a $2.99US version and a free Lite version (iTunes links). The mobile applications make use of a private API, and demonstrate only a tiny bit of what could be accomplished with the new API. The "hooks" in the API are to be exposed as needed to developers, and custom hooks can be created to meet developers' needs. Beyond task management and mobile time/expense tracking, the API provides the opportunity for industry-specific applications, language localization, multiple currencies, and corporate branding. With no license restrictions, developers can customize an application with TimeXchange as its engine and keep 100% of the profits made on distribution.

The idea of opening an API to third-party development is not a novel one. Harvest (my current time-tracking app) and some others already provide access to an API. Tickspot, which also provides an API, has just released an iPhone app (iTunes link) as well. It's an excellent trend, and things such as desktop widgets, Basecamp integration and mashups allowing time tracking through Twitter and IM have become possible. By providing custom-built API's to developers, TimeXchange hopes to be able to meet any need which might come up.

TimeXchange provides an aggressive pricing scheme and a unique model. For a one-time fee of $19.95US, you get a lifetime membership. There are monthly and yearly payment plans, but a one-time fee is a pretty sweet deal. The major difference in models is that TimeXchange uses a peer-to-peer mentality, rather than a company setup. Every user has an account, and users can invite other users to join a project. It might not be a great model for larger companies, but for a freelancer, contractor or small company, this can be an ideal situation, given that the members of the team change frequently from project to project. Today's API news will hopefully spark some creative development on the Mac, iPhone and web to take advantage of the engine. Interested developers can visit the affiliate page for more information. To check out the service itself, just visit TimeXchange.net.

Marketcircle, the company behind Billings (which I mentioned in some depth recently), knows that a freelancer (or small business) needs every advantage they can get to survive in this economy. Sympathetic to the plight of the individuals on "Main Street," they're offering Billings 3 for $20 off the usual price, and upgrades for $10 off until November 30th. If you'd benefit from time tracking and high-quality invoices but weren't ready to drop $59.95 to get there, see if $39.95USD sounds a little better.

If you've already purchased or upgraded to Billings 3, you're not excluded from the party. Emailing a proof of purchase to Marketcircle will get you a voucher for the difference, redeemable for anything else in their store. See AJ's blog post for directions. Prices have also been reduced in the U.K., Canada, Europe and Australia with slightly modified numbers based on exchange rates. Stop by the Marketcircle store for details.

Marketcircle just released version 3 of Billings last week, greatly expanding the functionality of the time-tracking and invoicing application. One of the major reasons I've chosen Billings in the past for my invoicing is the professional-looking documents it can create for electronic and paper delivery. Billings 3 adds new templates and new features, making it an application which any professional individual who needs to manage estimates, invoices, statements and collections should take a look at.

Billings 3 started as a ground-up rework of the program's foundation, focusing on future extensibility, workflow improvements and the user interface. Billings has always had time-tracking and invoicing features, with an easy-to-use timer window, menubar timers and professional invoice templates. This version expands those areas, but it's got a bevy of entirely new features designed to make the lives of self-employed individuals, freelancers and small business owners easier. Read on for an overview of what's new.

I've tried a lot of online time-tracking solutions and have personally come to love Harvest for its simplicity, good looks and -- more than anything -- the great tools they provide to make punching in and out simple enough that people might actually do it. They've had a Dashboard widget (also available for Yahoo! Widgets) for some time which allows for insanely fast job tracking, whether entering it in post or starting and stopping a timer. You can even use Twitter from your phone to stop a running job timer if you forget. As of last Thursday, though, you can handle all of your time tracking and expense logging through a spiffy iPhone interface.

I have high hopes for the opening of the App Store and the veritable bounty that the Mac developer community will be able to offer. In the meantime, I'm really enjoying the number of highly-useful sites that are offering iPhone portals, and the companies and developers that are stepping up to provide services for a device which they must agree is not a passing fad.

Thanks, Danny!

Here's a nice application for people who work by the hour ... and must track those hours themselves. Timepost works very simply - just click the start button as you begin working and the pause button when you're done.

Now for the good part. Timepost integrates with Basecamp, Freshbooks, Blinksale, FogBugz, Harvest and Tick. Just enable the API access for each service in your account settings and you'll be able to browse all of your open projects. Select the one you're working on from the drop down menu and when you're finished just click the "Post" button. Your hours will be added to the project.

Timepost requires Mac OS X 10.4.9 or later and a single license will cost you $49US.

We know that several of our readers do the type of work that requires them to track their own billable hours. For those of you using Freshbooks, here's a handy Dashboard widget.

The Time Tracker Widget includes a timer (of course) plus menus to choose the project you're working on as well as the particular task (meeting, research, etc.). Finally, add any pertinent notes in the Notes field.

When you're finished working, click "Submit Hours" to upload your hours to your Freshbooks account. Easy! Note that you must have API access enabled in your Freshbook settings.

Media Atelier has released TimeLog 4.3, a time-tracking application that integrates tightly with Address Book, iCal, .mac Sync and iSync. We've covered many such apps, and this is another entry in a crowded field (see Billings, Billable, iRatchet, et al). It takes a lot of features to be a contender in this arena and TimeLog has plenty to offer.

The iSync, .mac Sync and iCal integration allow for multiple macs to be on board. You can even let other people in on the timesheets (they suggest your accountant) simply by publishing the calendar that you're syncing with. The Address Book integration is a pretty standard feature, but I'd definitely miss it if it weren't there. A walk through the Preferences gives a better view of the abilities of the software, though.

One feature I love is application tracking, which includes your time spent using certain applications in the log. An XML export that can auto-publish at configurable intervals is also potentially handy. Time logs in graph form can be displayed on a full-screen panel which optionally becomes a floating mini-window when the program is not in the foreground. Categories can each have their own hourly rate assigned, which you'd expect, but TimeLog also provides the ability to define a per-client, custom rate within each category. It also handles expenses, which some other apps in the field are lacking. The timer feature allows for an array of display options, including the ability to show task, project and extended tracking. And small, optional HUD reminders can be used to keep you aware of your timer status... in addition to its Growl support.

This is my first look at TimeLog. I'm currently using Billings quite happily, but I'm pretty impressed with this one. And at $25 it's a valid competitor for my hard-earned money. The demo allows 50 entries, so you can take a pretty good test-drive and decide for yourself.