What if I don't like iCal?

[Shifting Sands]

Is there anything like a calendar built into OmniFocus, or do have to use iCal for that sort of thing?

[Paul]

In the current version, iCal's the only option. But it's time to start specifying what's needed for a useful task and time management calendar.

ICal is adquate (barely) for displaying events and commitments, but ICAL SUCKS FOR INPUT. Some obvious examples are:

1. It takes too many clicks for me find a time to schedule a meeting two weeks before the Conference I'm planning for 4 months from now, even though that's about half of the my scheduling tasks right now. I need to be able to save a particaular view and jump to it with one keystroke, hopefully like Perspectives in OF.

2. Forward-looking views I don't need to see my calendar from 2 weeks ago very often, but I continually need to look at my calendar for the next three weeks. Half the time there is no view that will let me see that in one place. Next 5-day, next 4-week, next week and next month views would actually help me manage my time and attention.

3. Events can be containers for Tasks and Tasks become Events become Tasks.... I get a call postponing til next week the meeting I had in 45 minutes with a business partner.In the call, two of the agenda items get delegated to people of his that I don't know, two more get "I'll have to trust you to handle that", a new project is dropped in my lap, and everything else is delayed til we meet. After the call ends with a "I'll be out of touch until next week," I realize that one of the deferred items has a due date before our meeting next week. I want drag and drop to make those changes and being able to double click on a meeting to open OF's agenda. Etc.

[markbrown00]

What we really need is OmniCalendar...hey guys? ay? ay? wink wink, nudge nudge...

[brooce]

No no, no one would want THAT.

[Please don't distract the Omnifolks with other viable product ideas until OF hits the streets...]

;)

[Shifting Sands]

I don't know. If the idea is to help us keep our lives organized, then at some point we are going to need a way to manage our appointments.

I'm not sure how start and end dates work, I don't yet have access to the program, but it would be rather nice if we had a way to create tasks with start and end times and then quickly see what they look like on any given day.