Package Trackers

I confess. Okay, it isn't really much of a confession, but still... I did all my shopping, with exception to stocking stuffers, online this year. I thought about what I wanted to get Michael, and what we wanted to get everyone else, and shopped around online for the best deal. I was extra lucky that much of the time Amazon had the best deal and I was in the trial period for Amazon Prime (which gets you free 2 day shipping for many items).


I started a system to track my Christmas purchases way back in 2006. I create a label (or folder for you non-Gmail users) for each Christmas with the year -- Christmas 2009. Every purchase gets the label so I can easily look orders up as needed. The same year I started keeping a spreadsheet of everything I purchased (one sheet per person) with an item description, cost, purchase date and payment method. These two tools helped me keep track of purchases, but didn't do anything for the actual package tracking.


Since I had so many shipments en route, I needed a way to effectively monitor their shipment status. I have been using Boxoh in conjunction with my reader for quite a while. Boxoh is easy to use -- simply enter the tracking number and the site figures out who the carrier is and tracks the status. You can subscribe to the RSS feed, and your aggregator will be updated when the package status changes. That method is great if you use a reader like I do.


Even if you don't use a reader there are other methods to track your package status. If you are using Windows Vista or 7 with the sidebar another alternative is PackageTrackr. Just register for an account and install the gadget in the sidebar, and you'll see status updates as they happen. You can add packages either directly through the sidebar or the website. If you aren't using the sidebar but you have a Google account, there is also an iGoogle gadget. The site says it will support email notifications soon. If you are using a Mac, there is no love for you here.


If you like a simpler, more basic approach, a third option may be better. TrackMyShipments gives you an email address (track@trackmyshipments.com) to forward shipping confirmations to. The site will ferret the tracking number out of the email and provide you with email notifications when the package status changes. You can add notes for any shipment to better reflect the item when you have multiple shipments. This site doesn't really offer any bells and whistles, but it does a good clean job of reporting status.


I've been using all three services (for every package) since the beginning of December so that I can compare them. Each does a good job, the real differences are in the way updates are delivered. The boxoh/reader combo is my universal solution; packagetrackr works great on my Windows computer. TrackMyShipments falls at the bottom of the list for me, but that is just because it isn't quite slick enough for my nerdy desires...