[jdh]

Originally Posted by Toadling

Bonjour sync doesn't do me any good if my Mac is at home while I'm on the road. Worse yet, if my iPhone gets lost, stolen, smashed, or suffers from a catastrophic data loss, everything since my last sync is gone. I don't know about you, but I don't trust my iPhone that much.

Or, if I'm in a hurry to rush out the door to catch the train, I grab my iPhone and my hat and I'm gone. With WebDAV sync, I can update my iPhone on the way. With Bonjour sync, I'm stuck using old data.

Exactly... Wi-Fi syncing was one of the things that initially turned me right off about Things (there were many other issues as well, and I was already firmly entrenched in OF anyway, but I did note the use of Wi-Fi syncing would pretty much have been the show-stopper issue for me).

Most of the other apps that sync to the iPhone can work fine over Wi-Fi, since they don't deal with time-sensitive and mission-critical data. For example, I sync 1Password over Wi-Fi, but I generally don't update my password/wallet information so frequently that this would be an issue.

The fact that you would have to start up OF on both sides to run the Wi-Fi sync is the biggest limiting factor. If Apple ever permitted background apps, a transparent and regular Wi-Fi sync schedule between the Mac and the iPhone would probably make for a brilliant solution, but alas that's not possible right now.

OmniFocus is the one tool, however, where the WebDAV style of syncing is really necessary and really makes it stand out. Obviously, WebDAV won't be for everybody, particularly since it requires access to a WebDAV server somewhere, but it's absolutely great not to have to remember to sync my iPhone before I run out the door to a meeting.

[ext555]

Yeah mobile me syncing is starting to smooth out for me .. I just want the update for the interface improvements they listed .. especially not having to wait for the app to load before I can add a new item.

The main reason I got an iPhone was OmniFocus and it would mean the end to capturing things on index cards to enter later . I have a bad habit of losing the cards or forgetting to enter them later .

This has been working great and will be even better once 1.1 is available .

[defilmj]

Originally Posted by JKT

It will be a one or the other situation, not both. That is, if you continue with WebDAV you won't be able to use Wi-Fi synching and vice versa.

Thanks for this. Yea, now that I think about it I will have to choose.
I have WebDev running, but it is driving me nuts with the DHCP range change twice a day. Hence Bonjour should be perfect. I expect to always have
my MBP even when I travel.

Having to open both applications to sync... I can live with that. As noted
I too use 3/5 cards and I can't want to get rid of them. Lack of avilability of 1.1 however is really starting to get me angry. I had never heard of "Things", and it is not about money for me. I am going to check it out since it seems to have Bonjour already and be more established. (I have not compared any support features, look and feel, GTD , etc. yet, but I will take
a look. If it works for me I would love to stay loyal to OF, but it is about functionality ASAP.

My main concern is 1.1 comes out finally before 2009 I hope. If there is a bug Omni needs to fix, I don't want to wait a month for it. I realize this is a Apple thing, but Omni seems to be having issues with approvals and as I mentioned in another post, others don't. Something is not right....
Either way, I need a solution. I am now doing too much manual entry. 3x5 to Macbook later... Need to review and make changes, can't do so on Iphone, have to write them down and update MBP. If Apple provides no method for approval feedback to developers when Omni checked in for a status update, that is even a worse statement Apple is making to us as customers. They don't give a damn. Apple knows they have a loyal following. Well news is it is quickly eroding..

[JKT]

Things for the iPhone is just as 'established' as OmniFocus is for the iPhone - they both came out at the same time (1st day of App Store launch). Things on the desktop, however, is nowhere near as established as OmniFocus is... they haven't even reached the first official release. Edit: It could still be a very usable app, but if they haven't seen fit to call it version 1.0 yet it implies that there is still a lot of work to do on it before they can.

Rampant speculation: I wonder if the long delay in approval for OmniFocus for the iPhone version 1.1 is because anything that uses Wi-Fi requires a longer appraisal by Apple to make sure it isn't permitting tethering (by the front or the back door).

[ext555]

good point! I'm not sure how long it took things to get approvAl on their wi-fi sync. Twitter feed might have history. And things is Definitely Not as established as OF, lots of features missing

[defilmj]

Originally Posted by JKT

Things for the iPhone is just as 'established' as OmniFocus is for the iPhone - they both came out at the same time (1st day of App Store launch). Things on the desktop, however, is nowhere near as established as OmniFocus is... they haven't even reached the first official release. Edit: It could still be a very usable app, but if they haven't seen fit to call it version 1.0 yet it implies that there is still a lot of work to do on it before they can.

Rampant speculation: I wonder if the long delay in approval for OmniFocus for the iPhone version 1.1 is because anything that uses Wi-Fi requires a longer appraisal by Apple to make sure it isn't permitting tethering (by the front or the back door).

Well I checked out Things and I found a major flaw immediately. They dont
support contexts. They support Tags, which initially look like the "same thing" only more flexible as I think was the intent. However I already have contexts nested 3 deep, and the tags work, but displaying the information gets real complex. (So too can on OF, but not in the same way. And besides for complex views you can build a perspective, which is a great time saver. OF sticks true to GTD method and didn't try to reinvent something better at the fundamental level, they enhanced it's scalability in a keen way, but built an accurate electronic version of GTD that does not have you feel like you are learning something new and foreign. If you know how to use a computer, and Iphone and read GTD, had a manual system, the flow right in to an electronic system is a welcomed relief, not more work to keep track of my work. So I don't think there is any competition at this time IMHO.

As for how long Apple is taking, and the delay, it has me angry enough that I looked carefully. Year end technology projects get pushed before :year end freezes" and the 1.1 mobility would really help me out right now.
I tried sending Apple a 'love letter' via customer support contact, but CS
advised "We have nothing to do with applications on the Iphone". Silly me
for expecting more :rolleyes:

[JKT]

I went looking for a way to complain to Apple about this delay too, but couldn't find anything. The support forums at apple.com don't have a section dedicated to the App Store which is pretty crazy. It seems very bad form that trivialities like games get to post updates with a (relatively) short turnaround, but an important update to a productivity app that people depend on for their work is held up for nearly two weeks or longer... sigh.

[ext555]

and there's been no response from Omni about this either[tried emailing also ] , Not even a " yes, we've checked into it , it's being delayed " " no , we can't check on submissions once they're sent " . Obviously the criticism that Apple is using music store methods to run a software house is valid .
Watch, this update will probably appear when 1.5 goes final .

[JMR]

Yeah I've been surprised by the lack of comment from Omni, since they're usually so communicative. I'd really appreciate a status update, even if it's "we have no idea what's taking so long". Could they be limited in what they can say due to Apple requirements?

[jdh]

Originally Posted by JKT

Things for the iPhone is just as 'established' as OmniFocus is for the iPhone - they both came out at the same time (1st day of App Store launch). Things on the desktop, however, is nowhere near as established as OmniFocus is... they haven't even reached the first official release. Edit: It could still be a very usable app, but if they haven't seen fit to call it version 1.0 yet it implies that there is still a lot of work to do on it before they can.

Things has been behind the curve compared to OmniFocus for a while now even on the desktop, and although Things was present on the App Store on day one, it was a joke in that it didn't even support any form of syncing... It was an entirely standalone app which they were selling for $10 based on the promise that they would add syncing later (which they did do, to be fair).

Most importantly, however, Things on the iPhone doesn't provide nearly the equivalent-to-desktop functionality that OmniFocus does. Many of the desktop features are missing even for viewing -- for example there is no support to even search by tags (which is their "kind-of-sort-of" answer to contexts). While the desktop app might appeal to some users, the iPhone variant of Things ends up being far too basic by comparison. I'd end up abandoning a GTD approach entirely and go to something like ToodleDo with Appigo's To-Do before I'd bother with Things.

As for the OmniFocus v1.1 release, I've been awaiting it with bated breath as well since I needed to publish it in a review this week. Unfortunately, the due date was today, so I had to go with my v1.03 review instead of being able to get the more updated version in there. Murphy's law being what it is, v1.1 will probably show up now that I've finished the piece :) Regardless, however, it's still made our Top 100 iPhone Apps list for this year's iLounge Buyer's Guide which is coming out tomorrow.