Here's a slightly sarcastic but legitimate suggestion:
1) Shut down windows task scheduler (because it just stinks)
2) Install CruiseControl.NET
3) Configure your scheduled tasks
4) Write flashy reporting apps that consume the plentiful XML generated from the CruiseControl processes.
In all seriousness... I have given up on task scheduler. I use CruiseControl for continuous integration of software, but I also use it for managing other scheduled processes such as daily data import routines, data analysis processes, data migration and general backup processes not provided by other means.
It is robust, efficient, well documented, logs its behavior well, generates XML, can email when processes fail and other things. It has a web dashboard as well as a client app for monitoring the state of its processes. I have never had it fail on me. The things that fail are usually the process I put into it, but the app itself is very solid. It supports various scheduling scenarios and because it's intended as a continuous integration system for software it has hooks into various source control system so it can trigger processes when source changes are detected. It has a task for shelling out to any executable process so it's basically open to anything.
-Peter
peterlanoie.blog
Getting the "Last Result" from a Scheduled Task?
