OmniFocus 2.0 Progress Report
 

It would be really great to get a bit of an update on the progress of OmniFocus 2.0. I for one have been holding on waiting for a real teams based approach, in the hopes that Omni is going to once again lead the pack and that the personal OmniFocus I love to use if going to be able to help my entire organization.

Of course these things take time, but given the lack of information, I find it increasingly difficult to justify waiting. I'm Happy to wait, if I know that the right thing is coming, but without that it gets a lot harder.

I hope Team Omni can take this request in the right way. The products are great, but a bit more information on the road map would go a long way to keeping us waiting happily.

Best,

Peter

You can read what Omni's CEO had to say about the matter about two months ago here: [url]http://forums.omnigroup.com/showpost.php?p=102640&postcount=15[/url]

There's been a fair amount of work done behind the scenes over the last year or two to allow linking up OmniPlan and OmniFocus. Build a project plan in OmniPlan, farm out individual tasks to the OmniFocus databases of the people working on the project, have the plan update as they tick off their tasks in OmniFocus. You won't have any more luck getting a detailed progress report or schedule on that work until they are getting ready to beta test, I'm sure. They seem to be pretty busy trying to knock off the projects they've already put some rough dates to! See the [URL="http://www.omnigroup.com/blog/entry/iPad_or_Bust"]iPad or Bust![/URL] posts on the blog...and note that despite undoubtedly well-intentioned efforts, few of the predicted dates turned out to be accurate. My experience is that using the software released when the developer thinks it is ready is usually a more pleasant experience than using the software released when the calendar reads a date committed to long before the work was finished!

My impression was that it would be later into 2012. On Twitter, Ken Case recently mentioned a big UX redesign (which I completely welcome!) that was definitely more than a couple months away.

[QUOTE=Cameron;105183]My impression was that it would be later into 2012. On Twitter, Ken Case recently mentioned a big UX redesign (which I completely welcome!) that was definitely more than a couple months away.[/QUOTE]

Is it later in 2012 yet? ;)

2013 is now the current target from what I've heard.

Agreed, would love to get a status update on this.

Just wondering or move to a more advanced application?

"A more advanced application"?

If we're talking about implementing GTD on a mac-based software solution, I'd love to know what would be a "more advanced application". There are things I'd love to see improve about OmniFocus, but I've demoed them all. Clear, Things, Remember the Milk, and a bunch more I don't remember anymore. All have their strong points but none of them can match the functionality and flexibility and power of OmniFocus. Not even close. And most require moving to a very compromised version of GTD processing, while OmniFocus permits a relatively pure GTD implementation.

I will say that I'm disappointed in the lack of communication from OmniGroup on this. They're usually a good communicating group, treating their customer base with respect. The silence on this sucks, frankly.

[QUOTE=rmathes;117705]"A more advanced application"?


I will say that I'm disappointed in the lack of communication from OmniGroup on this. They're usually a good communicating group, treating their customer base with respect. The silence on this sucks, frankly.[/QUOTE]

I agree and confess that I'm not an GTD David Allen disciple. I also know, there are a lot of good features in OF which others not have, but others have good features that I would like to see.

The question is: are they still developing OF or are we on a dead horse? An app with no upgrades for more than a year is usually in danger of being dead. Error corrections are no upgrades, to be more precise.

I would not worry that OF is an abandoned app. My guess is they've had a lot on their plate with porting some of their apps to the iPad platform. Basically, they have 3 platforms now to develop and maintain for many of their apps (desktop, iPhone and ipad) and that assuredly creates resource issues.

I'm sure we'll get 2.0. Just a matter of when.

The developers have been actively squashing bugs and adding some new features over the last year.

[url]http://www.omnigroup.com/products/omnifocus/download/releasenotes/[/url]

I wouldn't call this a dead horse when it is still being worked on.

as @rmathes said, the iPad, iPhone, and Mac apps are all still being actively worked on.

Now you may think "why are they wasting their efforts on version 1.x and just get on with version 2.0?"

There may be some of us who are happy with version 1.x and may not want to go to Version 2.0 just yet until the dust is settled.

If version 2.0 will be a radical change in user interface and user experience, it may be too jarring for some of us to change our workflow until we've had time to transition on our own schedule and not another software company's release schedule.

A perfect analogy is Windows 8. There are many people who are still working in Windows XP and Windows 7. Windows 8 is the newest version but many folks don't see the need or have the desire to upgrade to Windows 8 until the dust has settled and bugs are squished. Heck, some IT departments have finally just started transitioning to Windows 7. They could care less about Windows 8 until there is a program that really requires Windows 8 to work.

[QUOTE=wilsonng;117711]
Now you may think "why are they wasting their efforts on version 1.x and just get on with version 2.0?"
[/QUOTE]

Are they wasting their efforts/resources on version 1? I doubt, they "killed iCal sync" and added "repetitive tasks". That counts like zero.

I'm in the SW Business since 20 years, SW which is developed get add ons etc. on a regular basis and not twice a year and in OS X many things have changed, and there is no adaption to the new possibilities.

And sorry; I have no iPad and yes I was looking to buy the phone app, but reluctant to buy also because of the "non existent" development of their core app, which is still OF for Mac. I'm aware of their other apps, which I don't need.

But, Omni Group can be proud of such a customer base, I hope they will honor that.

[QUOTE=markus;117713][QUOTE=wilsonng;117711]


Are they wasting their efforts/resources on version 1? I doubt, they "killed iCal sync" and added "repetitive tasks". That counts like zero.
[/QUOTE]


Apple has deprecated iCal syncing in favor of iCloud syncing.

[url]http://www.omnigroup.com/support/omnifocus-ical-sync[/url]


If Apple no longer supports legacy technology, why would Omni Group keep supporting it in new versions?

Omni had no choice but to kill iCal sync for Mountain Lion users. You can still use an older version of Mac OS X to keep iCal syncing.

[quote]"non existent" development of their core app, which is still OF for Mac. [/quote]

Non-existent development? Wow... I'm going to guess that Omni has elected not to show OmniFocus 2 just yet. A lot of the user interface and experiences that went into the iOS versions will most likely make its way to the Mac version. The Mac experience will definitely be affected by the work that Omni has done on the iOS side. So that can't count for zero.

Besides, why would Omni tip their hand and show off ideas that another company will probably try to steal?



I'm sure we're all frustrated by the non-arrival of OmniFocus 2. But it's something that none of us can control. Why worry about it? I've still got work to do and I'll do it with whatever tools I have at the moment. I don't have the time and energy to worry about a program that doesn't exist yet.

I'm betting that Omni would love to have OmniFocus 2 out already. But the introduction of the iPad put Omni's road map into uncharted territory.

Maybe I'm being optimistic but I hope to be very impressed with OmniFocus 2 whenever it arrives.

[I]The question is: are they still developing OF or are we on a dead horse? An app with no upgrades for more than a year is usually in danger of being dead. Error corrections are no upgrades, to be more precise.[/I]

I believe that OmniFocus is the "Flagship" product of the Omni Group. If it's not, then what is?

That being said, I think we will see OmniFocus 2.0 when it is ready to ship. Announcing that something is coming, and then not being able to deliver in a timely fashion (e.g. Things and cloud sync) can be a public relations disaster.

[QUOTE=Jay6821;117746][I]The question is: are they still developing OF or are we on a dead horse? An app with no upgrades for more than a year is usually in danger of being dead. Error corrections are no upgrades, to be more precise.[/I][/quote]

I think the product upgrade cycle has become insane and this yearly expectation has become the new norm. We see new versions of Adobe Suite, Mac OS X, iPhones, iPads, and other packages on a yearly upgrade cycle.

Sometimes we can become fatigued by the frequent updates. I don't think that a yearly upgrade cycle can be sustained for too long. If OmniFocus was upgraded on a yearly basis, wouldn't we all get tired of having to pay for yet another version?

I know of many people who are several versions behind on their Adobe Suite upgrades because they grew tired and cautious of Adobe's upgrade cycle.

There are examples of folks who have stuck with Final Cut Pro 7 despite Final Cut Pro X being released many months ago.

Let's take an example like Angry Birds. It's not exactly an upgrade but Rovio actively updates Angry Birds with new levels every few months. It's not a dead product by any stretch of the imagination.

I think that the reason why we are all looking forward to OmniFocus 2 is because we see competing products such as Things, Clear, and even OmniFocus for iPad offering a different user interface/experience. We're all hoping that a new user workflow will change everything and make OmniFocus easier to use.

Omni tends to work at their own pace. I've been hoping for a zoom feature in Omni Outliner which was promised for OO4 a few years ago. I'm sure that when (if?) the new version comes out it will have been worth the wait. Until then I just keep my handy magnifying glass next to my MacBook Air :)

So I'm sitting in my hotel room bored, after a day long business meeting, when I discovered a new task management application. [B]2Do[/B] in the Mac app store now has a desk top version and after playing around with a trial version tonight, there is a lot to like!

OmniFocus 2.0 can't come soon enough, the competition has some great features. I'm not quite ready to move all my info into a new system, but there is a new kid on the block.

[QUOTE=Jay6821;118051]So I'm sitting in my hotel room bored, after a day long business meeting, when I discovered a new task management application. [B]2Do[/B] in the Mac app store now has a desk top version and after playing around with a trial version tonight, there is a lot to like!

OmniFocus 2.0 can't come soon enough, the competition has some great features. I'm not quite ready to move all my info into a new system, but there is a new kid on the block.[/QUOTE]

+1

It seems like we're all patiently waiting for the next thing. As an example, I waited forever for NovaMind 5 to come out with promised features. I'm still waiting.

Trying to guess Omni's strategy. From what I can surmise, it appears that OmniOutliner 4 will come out first and then OmniFocus 2. A lot of resources that is being spent on OmniOutliner 4 will carry over to OmniFocus 2.

*sigh* patiently waiting again but I get it out of my head 'cuz I've got things to do.

intro omnifocus 2 January 31st 2013
 

on the website of the Omnigroup: the January 31st intro Omnifocus 2? (see ipad image)

[QUOTE=w.bone;118065]on the website of the Omnigroup: the January 31st intro Omnifocus 2? (see ipad image)[/QUOTE]

Sorry for the confusion! That screenshot does show January 31st, but only because the OmniFocus Setup event will be occurring on that date. Folks shouldn't draw any other conclusions from the image.

[QUOTE=Brian;118072]Folks shouldn't draw any other conclusions from the image.[/QUOTE]

...and off in the distance, the sound of a bubble being burst can be heard, but only just as its sound is in danger of being drowned out by the thunderous sound of a heavy rainfall soaking a parade.

[I]the sound of a bubble being burst can be heard[/I] . . .

I started using OmniFocus in Spring 2010 (or was it 2009?). It has been such a hectic 3.75 years that I don't even remember any longer when it was. Three months later after I had a breathing spell and knew more of how I wanted to use OmniFocus I set it up all over again. Since then I haven't looked back: OmniFocus just works and I don't consider the use of it to result in any overhead at all.

I finally got an iPhone about 1.5 years ago and very soon bought OmniFocus for iPhone. I love it and the 'Forecast' element of it. I will be very excited for that to come to the Mac OSX version of OmniFocus. As busy as I am, I love to update my software when a new update comes out, and I typically do so ASAP and read about all the changes while my body produces endorphins like mad. So I will be very excited when the next OmniFocus comes out.

However, there is no way that I would leave OmniFocus for the bling, philosophy, or flow of another application. OmniFocus does exactly what I want in a dependable way, I understand well how it works, and if something can be improved upon I have confidence that OmniFocus will address it. I had only a rudimentary organizational philosophy before, but now OmniFocus and I have melded philosophies, and so to switch to something else would put me into a mid-life crisis.

OK, so I am given to a bit of drama here or there, but the above is not far off. Yes, I am hoping for the next OmniFocus to be out sooner rather than later, but mostly due to my general excitement about updates. I check in here every few weeks to look for any information about when it might be out, but I'd rather have good solid updates less often (and which are consistent with the developers philosophy) than have frequent updates which try to keep up in some way with somebody else (and potentially dissipate in some way what I already have).

Hear, hear, macmath...

First off, I always get a chuckle listening to passive aggressive comments on forums threatening to leave a platform if 'new features' aren't implemented soon. "ooh, this package has this, and this package has that...might have to jump ship." Although OG would hate to lose a customer...they already have your money.

OmniFocus is hugely powerful implementation of GTD. If you don't follow the GTD principles to get the most out of the 'system' then maybe OF isn't for you. 2Do is a NICE program, but it's not meant to lead you through the span of GTD without some serious hacking on your part (meaning how you 'force' the program to work for you). It's a very well thought out TO DO LIST. Things is pretty, but it's limited and is developed on constantly sliding implementation dates (as well as Midnight Inbox, which, while VERY nice on the eyes, seems to involve too much work getting your stuff in there.)

The GTD system is a specific set of methodologies. It's not like they can add a new brush or burn tool (a la Photoshop). I honestly think OF captures those methodologies well as it is. I don't think there would be a huge featureset you could add here (besides the team functionality stated in the first post or a UI refresh/overhaul).

If you're complaining about features, what do you want to see? While I realize you may not be an app dev, you can't complain about software being long in the tooth only because there hasn't been a blockbuster feature added or they've been at 1.x since its inception.

I'm sure OF 2 will be well thought out and stable. And I'm along for the ride...

My 2 Cents - which is about what its worth.
 

[QUOTE=Lightstorm;118108]
If you're complaining about features, what do you want to see? [/QUOTE]

Since you asked...

I would like to see a delegate or person field, so that I can group my tasks by context (@work) and person (Bob). Or this could be accomplished by allowing multiple contexts. I know that there are work arounds usually consisting of having an elaborate but unnatural folder or context structure. It just seems to me that having a task list/todo app of the magnitude & cost of OF without having that basic but necessary functionality is (pardon my French) asinine!

Also, a basic prioritization field would be great. Again, I am aware of work arounds using duration lengths, etc. But again, why should people have to jury-rig an app of OF's size & scope to get basic functionality from it?

As well, I suggest that Omni hire someone with a knack/flare for design to enhance the aesthetic appeal of Omni's products. Programmers and engineers while having a sense of functionality, often are not blessed with a designer's sense of art and style. Again, I stress that OF presents itself to be the "creme de la creme" of todo apps... a little creme with our software coffee would be nice!

1. I'd like to see multiple contexts or tags. One context per item is very limiting.

2. I would like to see a global search box, like DEVONthink for example. (I know I can set up a work around with a perspective, that's not the point).

3. I would like to see multiple colored flags like YNAB. Let me decide what color to use, in the absence of multiple contexts, this would help.

4. Password protection would be nice.

5. Perspectives in project mode that sync to my iPad.

6. The user interface could be improved.

OmniFocus is one of my "go to" programs, but there is room for improvement.

I'm not sure OF will ever get tags. I may be wrong, but this seems to come down to philosophy more than programming. And while tags are more flexible, it's also tempting to clutter everything with redundant tags, which is a task in and of itself.

Regarding the design, I agree. Just look at the screenshots in the app store, where "powerful view options" are shown through two screenshots that look absolutely identical.
Right next to OF in the productivity charts is 2Do, which costs less than half, syncs to a universal iOS app that's equally cheaper than OF, which looks nicer and offers password protection.
It's hard not to argue that OF for Mac needs a substantial upgrade.

[QUOTE=Flex;118174]I'm not sure OF will ever get tags. I may be wrong, but this seems to come down to philosophy more than programming. And while tags are more flexible, it's also tempting to clutter everything with redundant tags, which is a task in and of itself.

Regarding the design, I agree. Just look at the screenshots in the app store, where "powerful view options" are shown through two screenshots that look absolutely identical.
Right next to OF in the productivity charts is 2Do, which costs less than half, syncs to a universal iOS app that's equally cheaper than OF, which looks nicer and offers password protection.
It's hard not to argue that OF for Mac needs a substantial upgrade.[/QUOTE]

There was talk of tags or equivalent arbitrary metadata by Ken here in the forums in like 2009. Here we are almost 4 years later with no 2.0 in sight.

[QUOTE=CatOne;118233]There was talk of tags or equivalent arbitrary metadata by Ken here in the forums in like 2009. Here we are almost 4 years later with no 2.0 in sight.[/QUOTE]

Oh, it must be close — I just got a response from Omni management giving the concentration on 2.0 as the reason why they aren't actively fixing an OF data corruption issue that has been known since mid-2012. This must mean that 2.0 is right around the corner, and it's going to be incredible, right? Maybe 2013 will be the year where I can stop referring to Omni products shipping in the promised year as "Christmas miracles"...

[QUOTE=Jay6821;118051]So I'm sitting in my hotel room bored, after a day long business meeting, when I discovered a new task management application. [B]2Do[/B] in the Mac app store now has a desk top version and after playing around with a trial version tonight, there is a lot to like!

OmniFocus 2.0 can't come soon enough, the competition has some great features. I'm not quite ready to move all my info into a new system, but there is a new kid on the block.[/QUOTE]

Yes... Looking at the layout of [B]2Do[/B] I can see how old the current OF layout feels. I have little doubt that the good folks from Omnigroup have fun stuff in store for us, but let me stress an important expectation, in case it is not forthcoming: [B]better functionality around Perspectives[/B] and [B]Tagging[/B]. At this juncture of the narrative I am resigned to the fact that OF will stick to the one context per task principle. Realistically speaking, this is often not workable. I very often need John to be a context, as well as WaitingFor (what are all the things that John owes me?), and no, neither can be a project, because I actually use projects for, well, projects. So, like many other people out there, I created a tagging convention, where I generate tags by inserting them into the text of tasks, and then have Perspectives based on the searches.

That works quite well, except that I have limited functionality around my list of perspectives. What I think makes a great deal of sense is to have a Perspective explorer (like the Project and Context explorers), where I could have a perspective tree, with perspective folders, etc.

And please - tags! It would make life so much easier and happier if I could have tags that I can include in searches to organize my tasks. And if these tags can sync/be imported from MailTags, that would be a major, major bonus.

Just my two groschen...

I think that Tags and an updated user interface would would really put the hurt on Cultured Code's Things.

It makes business sense to me to add those features for that aspect alone.

[QUOTE=imlad;118257]I very often need John to be a context, as well as WaitingFor (what are all the things that John owes me?)...[/QUOTE]

I just wanted to point out that OF supports nested contexts, and what you are asking for here can easily be accomplished by having a "parent" context called "Waiting For", with subcontexts for various people. If you want to see everything you are waiting for, you view the parent "Waiting For" context, and if you just want to see what John owes you, you select his sub context.

I use this method for my "Agendas" context, inside which I have several nested contexts for various people.

I have not yet used 2Do myself. But I am becoming tired of waiting for OF 2. The old interface looks dated, and that wording is chosen rather soft.

Any users that have tested 2Do?

[QUOTE=FatalError;118325]I have not yet used 2Do myself. But I am becoming tired of waiting for OF 2. The old interface looks dated, and that wording is chosen rather soft.

Any users that have tested 2Do?[/QUOTE]
I believe that most, if not all of us are more than ready for OmniFocus 2.0 to appear. However, perhaps a discussion of 2Do belongs on 2Do's forum instead of Omni's board?

[QUOTE=Greg Jones;118326]I believe that most, if not all of us are more than ready for OmniFocus 2.0 to appear. However, perhaps a discussion of 2Do belongs on 2Do's forum instead of Omni's board?[/QUOTE]
OmniFocus is the big cheese when it comes to task planners for the Mac. It's much more expensive, it's much more established and apparently it still sells better. It'll survive talk about alternatives ;)

[QUOTE=Flex;118408]It'll survive talk about alternatives ;)[/QUOTE]
Then perhaps it should be discussed it in the Omni Lounge section? I would expect that most visitors to this forum, especially those viewing a thread about the OmniFocus 2.0 progress report, are not looking for a discussion on alternatives.

I agree, I WAS not looking for an alternative, but they silence of Omnigroup was the decision maker. I changed to another application.

[QUOTE=Greg Jones;118326]I believe that most, if not all of us are more than ready for OmniFocus 2.0 to appear. However, perhaps a discussion of 2Do belongs on 2Do's forum instead of Omni's board?[/QUOTE]

I have found this discussion very interesting. For years, I was always excited about the latest upgrade of any software. I think that was mainly because I was younger, and because software wasn't "complete." There was always stuff that was missing. Now, I look at the apps I use every day, and they have way more features than I will ever use, and most of my "wants" are quibbles or idiosyncratic desires that are wrong or irrelevant for others.

When I first started using OmniFocus, all versions, I was in that "hurry up the the new version" mode. I was impatient for tags/multiple contexts/shiny interface/etc. I'm still waiting :) But along the way the software improved incrementally to the point where it does everything I need it to do. And, when I finally figured out perspectives, it does everything I need it to do with a simplicity and elegance that I appreciate. It isn't the sexiest application in the world, but it helps me live my life and manage the work lives of 100 people.

So, yeah, I'll upgrade to 2.0 when it comes out. But what I got is workin' real good for me now. It's my trusted system. And I waited over 20 years for something like it to show up.

I feel just about the same way as you with respect to OmniFocus 1.x, mostly because the iOS apps have become so darn useful. About the only feature that I am really looking forward to on the desktop is the forecast view, otherwise I'm very happy with it as is.

[QUOTE=markus;118431]I agree, I WAS not looking for an alternative, but they silence of Omnigroup was the decision maker. I changed to another application.[/QUOTE]

Sorry for the quiet on our end! We'll be talking a lot more about what we've been up to soon, we've just had [URL="http://www.omnigroup.com/blog/entry/omni-2012-in-review"]a very busy year[/URL]:

[QUOTE]OmniFocus has been on [URL="http://www.omnigroup.com/blog/entry/omnifocus_is_now_on_speaking_terms"]speaking terms with Siri[/URL] since late 2011, of course, but in 2012 we’ve made it more robust and brought support for Siri to the iPad app as well. We also added support for [URL="http://www.omnigroup.com/blog/entry/what_is_a_week-end_or_weekly_repeats"]flexible weekly repeats[/URL] and [URL="http://www.omnigroup.com/blog/entry/textexpander-touch-support-now-in-omnifocus-on-ios"]TextExpander[/URL]—and just this month we’ve started beta testing our new [URL="http://forums.omnigroup.com/showpost.php?p=118013&postcount=1"]Mail Drop[/URL] which lets you email tasks directly to your OmniFocus database.[/QUOTE]

(See also [URL="http://www.omnigroup.com/images/blog_images/Omni-Release-Timeline-2012.png"]this timeline[/URL]… I hope everyone has been enjoying the OmniFocus updates we've shipped this year!)

Here's the blog post where Ken "talks a lot more about what we've been up to": [url]http://www.omnigroup.com/blog/entry/omni-plans-for-2013[/url]

And here's your invitation to come preview OmniFocus 2 in person: [url]http://www.omnigroup.com/thedebut[/url]

Even with version 2, after all these years it looks like theres still no way to share projects or collaborate within omnifocus.

Probably because most everyone is saying "OmniFocus looks outdated", not "OmniFocus doesn't have the collaboration features I need"...and a new UI will make for attractive marketing graphics, unlike the preferences for configuring the sharing of some projects but not others.

Hopefully after OmniFocus 2 ships they'll get back to the years old project to link OmniPlan to OmniFocus (the OmniPlan 2 side was pulled out because the OmniFocus side wasn't ready for anything but the iPhone, as I recall). Overkill for just wanting to send a project to another OmniFocus user, but if you wanted to divide up a big chunk of work among a number of resources and have some idea how the project was going, it looked pretty slick.

[QUOTE=whpalmer4;118585]Probably because most everyone is saying "OmniFocus looks outdated", not "OmniFocus doesn't have the collaboration features I need"...and a new UI will make for attractive marketing graphics, unlike the preferences for configuring the sharing of some projects but not others.

Hopefully after OmniFocus 2 ships they'll get back to the years old project to link OmniPlan to OmniFocus (the OmniPlan 2 side was pulled out because the OmniFocus side wasn't ready for anything but the iPhone, as I recall). Overkill for just wanting to send a project to another OmniFocus user, but if you wanted to divide up a big chunk of work among a number of resources and have some idea how the project was going, it looked pretty slick.[/QUOTE]

I think almost everyone has the occasion to share projects with someone else, a boss, an employee, a spouse, a team member etc. it's not some obscure need peculiar to just a few people.

let us see what they are offering for new functionality and the upgrade price. Then I will see, if I will return.

[QUOTE=cellmatrix;118608]I think almost everyone has the occasion to share projects with someone else, a boss, an employee, a spouse, a team member etc. it's not some obscure need peculiar to just a few people.[/QUOTE]

Ah, but are they complaining to Omni about it? I don't keep count, but I see more messages on the forum whining about the look and feel of OmniFocus for Mac. Omni looks at the numbers of requests.

I am very happy and nervous about OmniFocus 2.0 as I have been an OF user since it was Kinkless and it is so much a part of my daily life, any drastic changes will take some getting used to (but i have a project for that).

Wish List:
- A little refresh of design (sounds like it is coming)
- Forecast and Review (sounds like that is coming)
- Better context / Project handling in Perspectives
- Statistics built in

BZ

I was listening to the Ken Case interview podcast and am happy to hear that progress is being made.

I've had to use Asana for "collaborative" purposes and do understand the dilemma with multi-user setups. The idea of forwarding tasks and projects to others would be nice but I can understand Ken Case's arguments about not trying to complicate OmniFocus with the collaborative stuff. He does argue that OmniPlan would be a better choice for collaborative project work because OmniPlan has the report tools necessary for project status reports.

I can understand how some folks want to be able to forward tasks to others in a collaborative setup. But I think this may not work because everyone will have their own favorite task management program that may or may not be OmniFocus. Some of my colleagues use either Pocket Informant, Things, 2Do, or any number of programs. I guess the only way to do it is to just e-mail the task to someone as either an e-mail message or some kind of Outlook format that is easily readable (similar to vCard perhaps?).

The Omni Server does sound interesting as a way to share tasks with other OmniFocus users.

OmniFocus 2.0 will probably not yet have the OmniPlan integration yet. That sounds like something for OmniFocus 2.5.

I'm sure many of us will be eagerly awaiting the public beta. I know I'm looking forward to it. :-D

[QUOTE=wilsonng;118621]I was listening to the Ken Case interview podcast and am happy to hear that progress is being made.[/QUOTE]

What podcast? Is there a url link to this?
tia

Here ya go!

[url]http://www.70decibels.com/mikesonmics/2012/12/21/episode-47-looking-forward-to-omnifocus-2-with-ken-case.html[/url]

Thank you :)

...or you can read a summary here:

[url]http://www.macstories.net/links/the-omni-groups-2013-omnifocus-2-omnioutliner-4-new-omnipresence-sync/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+macstoriesnet+%28MacStories%29[/url]

[url]http://www.omnigroup.com/blog/entry/omni-plans-for-2013[/url]

I listened to the podcast (and all of MM's GTD stuff by the way) and while I am excited for some of the features of iPad/iPhone coming back to the desktop, I am a bit disappointed that it only sounds like a feature leveling with nothing new to add to the mix.

While I like OmniGroup's attention to detail sometimes I feel like they are the slowest software developer out there and could really use a faster more agile development lifecycle to keep up with the pace of the platform.

BZ

[QUOTE=BwanaZulia;118707]I listened to the podcast (and all of MM's GTD stuff by the way) and while I am excited for some of the features of iPad/iPhone coming back to the desktop, I am a bit disappointed that it only sounds like a feature leveling with nothing new to add to the mix.

While I like OmniGroup's attention to detail sometimes I feel like they are the slowest software developer out there and could really use a faster more agile development lifecycle to keep up with the pace of the platform.

BZ[/QUOTE]

I too listened to Ken's description of what was coming. I'm okay with it. They spent a ton of time on the iPad apps. Resources are limited. Choices are made. I'm not interested in rapid. I'm interested in incremental improvements. Once all of the platforms are leveled, then they can wow us all over again.

[QUOTE=BwanaZulia;118707]I listened to the podcast (and all of MM's GTD stuff by the way) and while I am excited for some of the features of iPad/iPhone coming back to the desktop, I am a bit disappointed that it only sounds like a feature leveling with nothing new to add to the mix.

While I like OmniGroup's attention to detail sometimes I feel like they are the slowest software developer out there and could really use a faster more agile development lifecycle to keep up with the pace of the platform.

BZ[/QUOTE]

I'd rather have long gestation periods over the shenanigans that Adobe tries to put on people. Adobe releases a new Adobe CS Suite every year with incremental improvements and charges an upgrade fee. A lot of folks are still using older versions of Photoshop because they don't really want to pay for what appears to be incremental improvements.

Software doesn't appear magically. Oftentimes, these developers have to make sure their program works on different flavors of operating systems. My guess is they are trying to keep the Lion users and Mountain Lion users.

I don't necessarily think OmniGroup is the slowest developer out there. Mindjet still hasn't kept their Mindmanager Mac OS edition up to level with the Windows version. I'm still waiting for NovaMind to finally get their mindmapping program up to the Windows version. iTunes 11 was long time coming and was delayed an extra month. I remembered reading the BusyCal forums and seeing the "when is BusyCal version 2 coming?" Aw heck, Baldur's Gate iOS was delayed and the Mac version is still nowhere in sight.

It just seems like a long time because we're eagerly awaiting for Santa's presents and nobody is shimmying down the chimney just yet.

I'd rather get OmniFocus up to level first before starting to add groundshaking features. It provides a better starting point. Otherwise we'll be waiting even longer for a full blown OmniFocus.

News on new features?
 

Curious if there is any news about the afore mentioned metadata field?

[QUOTE=BwanaZulia;118707]I listened to the podcast (and all of MM's GTD stuff by the way) and while I am excited for some of the features of iPad/iPhone coming back to the desktop, I am a bit disappointed that it only sounds like a feature leveling with nothing new to add to the mix.
[/QUOTE]


I was thinking the same, but Im glad I listened to that to manage my expectations. It seems after they get the UI refresh done with Omnifocus 2 for Mac, they'd then look at changes to the actual system.

Repeating actions that can be modified individually is at the top of my list, for example, and I assume would need to be updated across all versions.

I listened to the podcast. I have a few features I would like to see implemented, but feature leveling is still welcome! I look forward to the forecast view on the Mac for example.

What I appreciated was Ken Case being interviewed for an hour about OmniFocus. It gave me deeper insight into OmniFocus and also confidence that this product is still actively being developed. There probably are tentative plans for OF 3.0 and 4.0(!). This gives me confidence that this can be my "trusted system." (There are other software developers, Cultured Code comes to mind, which keep their user base in the dark).

[QUOTE=Yata-Hey;118155]a basic prioritization field would be great. Again, I am aware of work arounds using duration lengths, etc. But again, why should people have to jury-rig an app of OF's size & scope to get basic functionality from it?[/QUOTE] I sparingly flag tasks and find it does a pretty solid job of keeping the most important things in front of me — particularly used inconjunction with a "flagged" perspective. Also, judicious use of due dates can help a lot.

I don't think these things are "jury rigging" at all. There are already tools to very easily and flexibly arrange tasks by priority, if you use them.