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OmniSync vs. Sync for Things 2 Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
I have been using OmniFocus for about a month now, quite successfully after coming back to it from a long hiatus. One thing that has been really bugging me though is the way that changes don't seem to be synced very quickly between devices. Example from a few days ago: write shopping list on Mac version... sometime later am at supermarket, open shopping list but find it hasn't been synced! :- ( Don't have good mobile connection at supermarket, can't get list. Or, browsing iPad in bed, check off done task, later go to computer (can't remember if this was next morning, or just 45 mins later or so), task is still there.

When Things 2 launched I immediately installed it and checked re its sync (which I had been waiting ages for). And it just seems to work way quicker and more automatically than OmniSync. Pretty well anything you do including waking a device from sleep, changing pages, etc. causes sync across devices. I would really like to stay with Omni, since it actually seems to be working for me this time round. But can anything be done about sync "triggers" to bring it up to the level of apps like Things 2, or for that matter free platforms like Wunderlist, which seem to have this much more sorted. The promise of a task manager is to have all your information with you all the time, when you need it, and I can't be the only one that doesn't want to be having to remember to manually sync all the time.

Thanks.
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Omnivorous View Post
I can't be the only one that doesn't want to be having to remember to manually sync all the time.
+1.
I have the same "problem".
I love OmniFocus, but I don't like its sync so much. :(

Last edited by Brian; 2012-08-22 at 02:51 PM.. Reason: reduce amount of quoted material for increased readability.
 
We've got a couple of ideas for improvements we can make here, but overhauling the UI of OmniFocus for Mac to bring it in line with the other two editions is a higher priority right now.
 
Syncing is slow yes, but the problem is more that it does not happen quick enough after a change. I would very welcome a setting "sync X sec. after a change". This should be easy to implement just by decreasing the timer which is used now.
 
From an IT department standpoint, it is often preferred to minimise network traffic.

My department boss wanted me to set his Outlook to query once every minute. The IT department came in and reset it to every 30 minutes. They didn't want EVERYONE in the company to be sending out mail queries every minute and possibly overburden the network.

If OmniFocus were to sync every time there was a change, you might just be creating busy traffic over your network and the internet. I don't know if it is syncing the whole database or just minimal changes.

I guess it might be easier if OmniFocus was a web based solution. I imagine a web based solution would be faster. I can imagine gMail being a faster solution as a web based app instead of a local app. I'm just guessing from what little I know...

Last edited by wilsonng; 2012-08-24 at 01:47 AM..
 
This thread has a terminal command that lets you set the OmniFocus sync interval (sync X sec. after change):

http://forums.omnigroup.com/showthread.php?t=8888


The forum for general OmniFocus syncing questions is here:

http://forums.omnigroup.com/forumdisplay.php?f=50
 
I have noticed the same issue. My problem with regard to Things 2 is this: while it allows for repeating tasks, you can't associate a repeating task with a project. That combined with the lack of subtasks makes Things 2 useless to me. :( I sure am ready for some Omnifocus updates, though - such as being able to see project-based perspectives on the iphone or ipad, some sort or prioritization options, even if it's allowing the use of task duration on the iphone and ipad. Of course, I would also love to be able assign multiple contexts to a task. Even with those shortcomings, Omnifocus is still the best thing out there for my workflow.
 
OmniFocus sync has always been slow. Since iCloud, and now Things 2, it seems positively glacial. It's one of the factors that prevents me moving back to OmniFocus (alongside the inelegant interface) and I'd love to see it made equally as fast as Things.
 
I know that it is preferred to have a faster syncing solution but how many times does a person have to sync to worry about time?

Is your database very large and takes a long time to sync large databases?

I think if you have file attachments in your OmniFocus database, that would be a reason why syncing takes longer. I leave attachments out of my OmniFocus database. I usually like to just leave my attachments in a cloud storage site like Dropbox, box.com, or Amazon. Then I'll just attach a URL to the task's note.

I also know that it helps to start archiving old completed tasks. I rarely ever need to look up something older then 60 days. Yes, it would be nice to have all your tasks online but anything older than 60 days is pretty well past its relevance. If I do need to look up older than 60 days, i tell my client that I will get back to them when I have consulted my archives. They usually understand. I often forget what really happens older than 60 days and I do like to take time to refresh my memory before jumping into any future discussions. Making hasty decisions based on a simple cursory overview of archived tasks is not my workflow.
 
Still, the OmniFocus is slow, and can "burp" the UI multiple times after the sync has occurred.

It is far from optimal, and has been a thorn in its side for 4+ years. It is noticeably worse than The Hit List and Things from a performance standpoint. I notice it every time I use it, and spend more time than I should "fiddling" and checking the # of zip files to ensure reasonable performance. I should not have to fiddle with it to ensure reasonable sync performance.
 
 


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