Sort filter + Next filter + repetitive actions
 

Hi, gang. Using OmniFocus 1.0 alpha 2 (v37.0.93512) today.

On the heels of my great advances in productivity yesterday, today I'm working on integrating the Next filter with Start Date sort--but I'm having mucho problems.

I admit I'm somewhat confused about Sort order when using View filters under Planning Mode. There's a drop-down for the Sort menu with various options:

Unsorted
Name
Flagged
Due
Start
Completed
Next Review
Added
Changed

I have a project with 4 Actions that have today as the Start date, no due date; they all repeat every day. Another Action also has today as the Start date, no due date, and repeats every day. I just checked that one off. I have it as a crossed-through action for today, and now a new version of it with a Start Date of tomorrow.

Now when I sort on Start date, OF doesn't sort correctly; it should push the Action with a Start Date of tomorrow to the bottom of the list, but doesn't.

Also, this is a Project set up so that Actions must be performed in order--yet there's no purple Action, everything is greyed out. And when I reset my filter from All or Remaining to Next, I have no Next action. Help!

Is there some rule that I can't set up start dates in a Project with Actions that are supposed to be performed in order and expect the Next filter to work correctly? I would prefer to use the Next filter so that I only see the next action, but I also want to use repetitive actions too, and I was hoping OF would be able to track different start dates and know how to sort such Actions correctly.

Thanks anyone for any helpful hints. I know I may be setting this up wrong. It's been a few weeks since we last discussed repetitive actions and I've forgotten the methodology (apologies).

--Sandy Santra

Uh-oh...please don't tell me that the Sort filter only works for Project titles/dates/etc and not Action titles/dates/etc.

Hmmm...suddenly it's working (I think). Go figure. But it does seem like any drag-and-drop order you establish gets lost in the haze when different start dates exist.

Well, I guess it's the case that the View Filters operate on Projects, not Actions. But the good news is that drag-and-drop ordering of Actions seems to be preserved with mutiple start dates for Actions starting on the same day. Actions starting on other days will not be shown in the "Available View". And, as always (and I'm sure everyone here has this memorized, but I still have to remind myself):

- Available shows you what's due today
- Remaining shows you other dates, too
- All shows you even Completed

[QUOTE=santra;23514]Uh-oh...please don't tell me that the Sort filter only works for Project titles/dates/etc and not Action titles/dates/etc.[/QUOTE]

In Planning view, the Sort filter acts on project-level information. Sorting by name will sort your projects by their names, within whatever grouping you've set up.

If you want to sort actions, use Context mode; you can group by project if you need to see actions within a particular project. However, sorting doesn't yet work in Context mode when grouped by project. This is a known bug, according to email I got from an Omni support ninja, who added, "The bug is currently on the 'things we should fix before we ship' list."

Also note that actions inherit the start or due date of their project for the purposes of sorting, unless they've explicitly been assigned a different start or due date.